formatting hd... reinstalling windows XP

plodr,

That's not necessarily the case. My WLAN, Bluetooth, Modem and Smart Card reader are all add-ons, connected to the system board via wire harness, that show up in the expanded device list with the yellow question mark. After I install the drivers for these devices, the device list collapses downward with each installation.

 

Thus morning... stayed up till 2am doing drivers. I got the first drvers (it said to put in first) from the dell website, putting in my service code, it showed them, but didn't have ALL the list said to put in. But, did get the first ones. I had the Dell disc that had the drivers (it said) but it wouldn't work on the computer I was working on. I did open it on my other one got the files on a memory card, saved them on the desktop and started adding them, one at a time. Not sure what it needed (though I knew I didn't need the dialup modem ones) Several of them cae up as a virus (I had put in AVG free ant virus before this) ones from nVunist.exe nVidioGForce. Warning box came up I clicked to delete it. Why would the Dell driver install disc have something with a virus? Maybe AVG just thought it was. Anyway, got most that would go in (some said no hardware installed for them) Tried Windows Media Player and no sound, said there was no driver for it. Googled it and found others looking for this, too, for the Dell Dimension 3000 and reinstal. It needed an audio driver R94481 (which wasn't on the Dell driver disc. Maybe it's too old) I hunted around, found it (via google, on the Dell driver site, from someone else asking for it) downloaded it and put it in. The sound now works.
Checked device manager and no more yellow alerts. Not sure what it needed (drivers) but I clicked to instal all the drivers I had, and some said not the right platform, no hardware installed for it, etc but those that it needed apparently went in.
Next will be memory. Have to wait till next month (moneywise) but going by "hardware" (and Belarc Advisor) this has 2 mem sticks,256MB and 512MB= 760MB I remmeber when this was a lot.
I like to report details because sometime someone doing the same thing, and having the same confusion might come across this in search. Though if they do I hope they read the last ones first, because the first ones might confuse them more.
I'm thinking the reinstall is all done, all working (if something isn't I will find out when I get to it) have to put things in, doesn't have all the junk to take out most new/reinstalls do, that's a plus. My house is a mess (more than usual) I feel like I haven't slept for days, I see windows files when I try to go to sleep. but, it feels good to know I did it, and I do feel I learned a lot from this. Thinking that has been my goal for a long time (with comuters) to learn. Still have to deal with learning about routers, networks, security and passwords, etc. (I have a router and home network, but just set it up without any security, etc. I live in a rural area, and no one around to steal it. I got it set up at the time, and the network with my comuters, but not sure how I did it LOL I know, another topic...