Just installed a new hard drive in anticipation of installing VL 7.0 SOHO.
Got the screen about the language and keyboard type, but after that there was a blank screen until I pressed enter when got an option of how I'd like to partition the drive.
After finished that with several partitions set, I clicked to exit and then NOTHING.
And I mean nothing! Just a blank screen and no response to any input. Tried a reboot with disc still in dvd player, but still got nothing: no message, or recognition that the laptop was even functioning, except for lights showing power on and hard drive active -- but no ability to install or even use the machine; seems like hard drive now totally dead.
Anybody with some explanation of what going on? or, better yet, how I can save the hd for use at all?

Go to BIOS settings and verify that the HD is detected. There may be some system tests available in the BIOS too. If all is fine, then do a full re-install, or install something else you know will work. You say it's a new hard drive, therefore there is no boot partition and information on there to manage booting. My impression is that your attempt to install failed and regardless of partitioning, if there's no boot data, this is how it is going to behave. Although a little wondering as to why there's no report that there's no valid boot media.

OK, was able to use hd when tried new install, but despite erasing all previous partitions and installing very limited core ones [swap and 3 primaries: / /home, /usr] and repeating process of full new install twice, ended up with;
1. message "bootloader did not install correctly"
2. tried to correct with click, but no go
3. finished data input [password, users, etc.]
4. when finished and rebooted get nothing but grey screen with box listing hard drives 1 and 2 and floppy, which after clicking and seconds shown running down ends with nothing
5. reboot using install cd
6. entered "linux root=/dev/hdb1 ro
7. Enter
8. get screen which goes no where and ends with line "kernel_thread_helper + 0x6/0x10
9. several lines above that on dead screen is "kernel panic - not syncing: VFS: unable to mount root fs on unknown block (0,0)

What else can I try?

In my opinion this is probably a hardware problem versus operating system and therefore closing this thread in lieu of the one in the hardware forum.

Continue here:
http://www.linuxquestions.org/questi...ve-4175554744/