Dell motherboard is dead, how should I get data off HD?

I had an older Dell Dimension 521, I think C521, the skinny tower, where the motherboard has fried. I need to get my wifes files and photos into her laptop. It doesn't make sense to replace this motherboard. Will these Dell HD's fit into any of my older non Dell towers? Could I put this HD into a cheap Dell computer off craigslist and then I still have a desktop? Or should I just invest $30 into one of those cables that connect to the HD, is it an IDE cable? Is there a specific type/make of cable that would work best? And if I buy a Dell to put the HD in, how do I know which ones will work?

 

Sticking the existing old drive into another Dell and attempting to use the existing copy of Windows is a crapshoot - unless it's an identical model the drivers are likely different and you'll end up having to reload Windows.

The best bet is to buy an adapter like this:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812232002

It will work with both IDE and SATA drives, desktop or notebook.

Hope this helps.

 

buy one of these according to the type of connection your hard drive uses http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicat...lc.asp?CatId=3770&name=USB Hard Drive Adapter

 

If you have another desktop PC available then you can plug it in as slave and copy the data.