I have my pc which is running a AMD sabertooth 990fx motherboard with a 1100ti be cpu and an AMD ati 7770 grphics card ,it is currenting using windows 7 with the xbmc . the PC is mostly used for watching videos sometimes surfing the web and checking emails , I am currently using my older microsoft remote and wireless keyboard so my question is which linux distro can I switch to that can do the same . I guess this is basically a HTPC .

Given how you wish to use it, I'd recommend Mint. It has a wider range of codecs out of the box because (so I have been told) it's based in Ireland, where digital rights to media are different, and the out-of-the box interface is designed to be an easy transition for Windows users. It's also a nice job of work; I'm not using right now, but I have used it and was quite satisfied.

I can't speak to the Microsoft remote, though MS tends to encumber stuff, but contemporary Linux distros commonly recognize wireless keyboards and mice.

Other than that, no one can really pick a distro for you. I'd suggest that, once you narrow down your list, you burn some Live CDs of distros on your short list, boot to the disks, then install the one that feels like the best fit. You can also test the keyboard and remote.

I am currently rying the live XBMClinux lubuntu or something like that it loads right into the xbmc but I cannot figure out how to add in my media hard drive I have a harddrive full of video and audio files but I am not sure as to how to mnt them .

I second Mint,
essentially for the same reasons offered by frankbell

I'll just add that in my eyes at least, it is the new Ubuntu (Linux for the masses)

some reading with regards to the remote
http://www.mythtv.org/wiki/MCE_Remote
But I imagine support is 'built in' to xbmc

Have you visited the XBMC site? It looks like their wiki has most things covered.
http://wiki.xbmc.org/index.php?title=Main_Page

The XBMCUbuntu is good. to mount your external hard drive you have to go to the XBMC system and select file manager, from there you select add sources I think XBMC offers to browse or scan for attached devices.

Once you have found it you can add it and select a name for it to remember it later.

Next you go to the videos tab and select add videos then navigate to the device you had previously added in the file manager.

I dont think the remote will work, but if you own an Android phone or tablet you can install an app calles
Yatse. That app would let you control XBMC from your mobile device.

Good luck to you

I cannot find my drive anywhere it doesn't show up at all but if I were to install it it shows up.

It might have to do with what format you have in your external drive. I run XBMC in plain Ubuntu and it shows my external drive went plugged. My drive is formated in NTFS

I have similar result in my laptop running OpenSUSE

as far as the windows remote is concerned, I started looking into it and while I don't know of any distro in which it works out of the box, I was able to get the system recognizing button presses using lirc, which is available in the package manager. I'm not sure how to map the buttons to commands in XBMC, however.

EDIT: according to the page linked previously in this thread it may work out of the box with XBMC after all.