Using Knoppix to Rescue XP & Install a Dual-Boot system

[gmj2005]

I'm a half-newbie, flirting with linux for decades but afraid the learning curve was too high, especially another coding language. I'm NOT new to Unix, DOS, CGI/PL, html of course, or computers, having run a consulting/training/design/e-commerce & webmistress-guru type business, plus content creation (writer & photographer/videographer/media/producer/etc), since before AOL-point-zero, heh heh. (I'm 42).

Too long a story for one sitting, but LSS...I bought a new computer preloaded with XP Pro/Office & Plus Pro, end of Jan. 2006. Upon 1st MS update, I was told ALL my supposedly new & legal SW was stolen, according to MS' genuine bullsh*t disadvantage & hidden background mangling of ALL my certificates, SW, pretty much destroyed my brand new system! I tried uninstalling, restoring & finally deleting chunks of XP to get it back to square one, to find the damn thing won't reboot into windows XP anymore, within 2 weeks of buying it. Worse, the seller--a supposedly legit store--refuses to come fix the defective floppy drive, so I couldn't use rescue-type disks, & hadn't created any CD rescue disks, if even possible for XP? That's how new I am to XP & I hate it already! The seller has come to me for all business & upgrades, but now refuses to help in any way, & insists the SW is OEM--but when I requested my entitled OEM disks & such (all oems allow a copy of preinstalled OS/SW/etc legally), the guy got obscenely nasty. So now I have NO CHOICE but to go the legal route to get either my $ back, my floppy replaced, and my legal SW as was part of the deal/sale. [If ANYONE can help with this I'd truly appreciate it--no resources to hire lawyers, so my only option is the NY State Attorney General's fraud complaint process! Help?! ]

Ok, desperate to access my NEW computer but XP having NO DOS, how the heck could I do it??? I found an old Norton bootable CD, used it to access my SMART-thinking hard-copy of both win98se & XP disks on my HD...but Knoppix won't allow me to run the XP Restore & other executables, nor could I without a floppy drive (& no ability to write a CD/DVD without an OS/booting--norton or knoppix IN the CD-drive) or rescue disks, access windows. I tried to install win98se from HD cd-copy, but the XP partition took up entire primary/BOOT drive, so not enough space to even specify installing to another drive, since it needed the primary for copying or some such. I tried reinstalling XP from CD-on-HD too, nothing worked--especially not from knoppix, errors required windows sys to run win files, arghhhh. The knoppix 3.6 CD SAYS it can do this, but if so, it never worked. I had hoped the knoppix 4.0.2 CD I just bought with supposed bug fixes for HD install & XP restore options, would get my sys back up & running. I MUST not lose 9-gigs of HD data that the seller transferred to the primary NTFS 40 gig HD (& refused to" let me" [or warranty my NEW sys if I kept a 2nd HD] keep/use a 3rd drive, & at the time I thought it was worth giving up that 17gig HD--NOT!). MY GOAL: to get sys back up & running stable, with dual-boot system, then when I get my new made-for-install Linux OS-CDs, I can create smaller partitions for XP, using that large drive for Linux instead. (I'll use XP when compatability is an issue or the SW just doesn't exist otherwise for what work I need to do, etc).

I'm partially disabled, so I had to close my biz in 2000, and it's painful to spend hours focused on config work where countless hours go by b4 I notice the time, & by then I can't MOVE my body from cramping into one position so long among other things. It's taken me awhile just to type this--and it's only the tip of the iceberg I will gladly become an active user/poster here as time goes on, once my system is working & I can finally use it for PLEASURE again, rather than working 60-hr weeks trying to figure out how to get it to work 4 me!!! GRRR!
BTW, any class action lawsuits against MS I can join??? I'm serious--they destroyed MY PROPERTY without my permission, knowledge, took a new system & made it unusable, all my money, time, literaly physical pain & more since feb.15,2006 over MS' actions. Had they NOT done this, I might have helped them catch the culprit IF INDEED the SW is stolen VOL or OEM licensing this local shop is using on new computers. Instead, I'd LOVE to find a lawyer to sue their collective butts off for what they are doing--literally B&E since I shut off auto-updates, and blocked MS in its own firewall & it STILL did this illegal update-and-destroy-system by BUILDING BACKDOOR into its own firewall/OS/etc (obviously, right??!)!

Sorry this message not as organized as I'd like, but am trying to hurry--am hurting bad right now after 8 hours of frustration (& JUST LEARNED Knoppix does NOT recommend HD-install at all, so that's OUT, glad I bought those new OS-CDs--another 2 week wait for postal mail tho)--while giving enough info to get some experienced help. More in the days to come--as I can get here. Have surgery tomorrow but should be back mid-week, it's just day surgery (Hmmm, not that I am tempting fate or Mr. Murphy, famous last words, "it's just...").

I look forward to some feedback when I get back in a few days. Thanks, in advance, to any willing to give a bit of guidance & encouragement too, heh heh.

[jayzon915]

Hey, I'm a newbie too. Sorry to hear bout all the problems. So what exactly do you need fixed? Does your XP boot at all? Even under safe mode? You CAN install Knoppix to hard drive, it just isn't recommended. I installed it and love it. I've got 2 windows XP's and Knoppix booting. I'll check back later and check up.