I do that all the time for my clients using a little adapter kit that
has more than paid for itself. It lets me convert any hard disk into a
USB drive without needing the bulk of an enclosure. One should be easy
to find, and they are a snap to use. Mine uses the Microsoft native
driver, so I didn't need an extra driver. Once connected, the USB drive
behaves like any other. Drag and drop what you need, where you need it.
Best wishes. :)

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Re: [PCBUILD] What is reasonable to expect after paying to
replace mother board?
From: Bruce Lund <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Sun, September 05, 2010 2:26 pm
To: [log in to unmask]

>>>It could get stuck in a blue screen loop and the only option is to format the drive and start from scratch.

But would I be able to attach it to another machine and at least pull
the files off it even if the operating system was hosed?

Bruce


--- On Sat, 9/4/10, Ron Jobe <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

From: Ron Jobe <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Re: [PCBUILD] What is reasonable to expect after paying to
replace mother board?
To: [log in to unmask]
Date: Saturday, September 4, 2010, 6:00 PM

Bruce,
I won't replace an E-machines motherboard.  In order to follow the MS
Windows/E-machines licensing, I can only replace the motherboard with an
exact replacement or I have to install another OEM version of Windows. 
The
cost of the E-Machines specific motherboard is roughly $250, not
including
labor.  The cost of another motherboard and Windows OEM runs about the
same.  By the time I reload Windows and change the motherboard you're
looking at the same price as a new machine.  Installing a different
motherboard into an existing WinXP installation is always dicey and
fraught
with trouble.

Be aware, if you do this wrong, you can end up loosing everything on
your
hard drive so make a complete backup first.
You can Google "HAL", hardware abstraction layer.  You need to delete
the
HAL from your system (this is what Rick was saying).  Restart the
computer
and provide the drivers as it asks for them.  The system SHOULD work
fine
after that.  The caution is that if you feed it the wrong driver(s) it
won't
function at all.  It could get stuck in a blue screen loop and the only
option is to format the drive and start from scratch.

Ron Jobe





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