need help re-installing xp

hey guys, im turning to you for help because im at my wits end.

my parents xp machine got a nasty virus, so i ran boot n nuke. this is the first time ive tried this program and dont know much about it, but it worked.

now when i try to boot into the windows xp install cd, about 20 seconds into the setup i get an error (file \i386\ntkmlmp.exe could not be loaded. error code is 7. setup cannot continue.)

i believe this might be because the drive is not formatted, even though the xp cd is supposed to be able to format... it has just been nuked.

so if i do need to format the drive, what FREE software should i get to create a boot cd that will format my drive?

and if im incorrect in any of my assumptions, please set me straight.

you guys have always had the answers i needed in the past, so im keeping my fingers crossed!

and thanks in advance!

 

im sorry but your replies dont help me. they might be the right steps to take, but in my case i cannot even get to a dos prompt because the setup fails and the machine restarts before i have a chance. maybe there is a key i need to press to take me to a dos prompt?

also, if i nuked the drive, then dos is no longer installed, correct?

i believe that i need to create a bootable cd on my machine that will allow me to format and create partitions on a drive that has just been nuked on my parents machine. any suggestions?