OKKKKKKKKKK.....

I have successfully changed my root username back to "root."

When I load Mandrake from floppy (WinXP destroys linux when I install to the drive), the graphical desktop tries to load about 5 times (the screen refreshes as if being demagnitized).

(During the loading process, a message comes up too fast to read that is to the effect of "not enough space in < / >.")

Then, after the command line comes up and I type "startx"
and get errors:

"Could not init font path element unix/:-1, removing from list!

Fatal server error:
Could not open default font 'fixed.'"

Ok, if anyone tells me to try something, please explain what to do!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am dumb.

It sounds like the font server is not running.

ok when you get that command line, try running:

`service xfs start`
if successful try running startx

if this resolves the issue then you should be able to:

`chkconfig --level 5 xfs on`

to resolve this. If winxp killed your linux setup you screwed up by installing linux first and xp second, bad idea... linux will detect the windows partition, the reverse is not true.

If using lilo then just type `lilo` or `grub` and this should reinstall your bootloader, it might nuke xp but you should be able to add an entry for xp and this will hand it over to xp's bootloader in turn (since the bootloaders in nt based systems don't actually live in the mbr, they live on the partition, windows OS simply blank the mbr on an install.

Hope this helps

To comment, I've got Mandrake 9.1 on "hda 5" and Windows XP takes up "hda 1 - 2." The 1 is labeled at C:\ in windows, and 2 as D:\ (recovery). When I did a destructive recovery, Windows XP tried to destroy Mandrake, and it only took out X....
Right now lilo works fine for me, except the few times windows is able to load before the disk drive reads the floppy (I configured bios to read floppy, net device, cd, THEN windows partition, and that solved the problem).

HELP MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!
I can't log in under root!! It changed my password!!!!!
Also, I type: service xfs start and get "-bash: service: command not found"

HELPPPP MEEEEEEE!!!

Should I just install Mandrake again or what?!?!?!?!