built computer wont start

Check to insure you put the connections for the USB correctly.  I found that if the motherboard and the case differ then problems can occur.  Try taking them off and see if the PC will boot to windows.

Remove any device that you don't need to boot the machine. If the machine can boot without those devices, add them one at a time until you can't boot again.

just to clarify my problem, this is a pc built from scratch, new hdd, new dvd-rw, new case mobo, graphics and ram (ddr).......computer will boot from cd then will freeze when it trys to install, cant boot from floppy at all or a hdd with windows from another machine but thats xp cloning doing that, please ote other o/s have been used, only knoppix worked but it runs off cd, so what u think guys?

Have you tried different RAM sticks. It is a possibility that one of the RAM sticks is holding your system up when starting the file transfer. Try one stick at a time, and see if that works.

My first thought is Ram ... a bad stick of ram will cause page faults during the setup process and lock up the pc.

During setup, large amounts of ram are used to store information extracted from cab files, prior to the information being written to the hard drive. Setup can be a really memory intensive process.

Check to make sure your ram is properly seated. and if that doesn't help try changing out the ram (in most cases Ram has lifetime warranty anyways)

Good Luck
 

FYI - here is a place to grab a tool to test that memory:

http://www.memtest86.com/

If you have another machine with a burner you can go here http://www.memtest86.com/#download1 and get the ISO image to burn a bootable CD.

Jeff

Clear the BIOS (jumper should be near the battery). disconnect everything except the floppy and video card. Will it boot from the floppy now? If NO disconnect it and try the cdrom. If it works connect the HD and try to boot to it or boot from a CD and then attempt to logon onto the drive. If they both work then you should replace the adapters and try to boot. If you get a good boot then the floppy is dead.  If floppy works begin to add the other adapters in one at a time to find a culprit. If none of the adapters interfer try reattaching the CDROM first. Does the floppy still boot? Yes then try a bootable CD. Will the CD boot? Yes then double check the jumpers for the master/slave relationship against the CDROM if they share the same channel. Some manufacturers require a jumper for Master Alone or Master w/slave. Some drives when used alone require the jumpers to be removed. Isolating your problem is the best start.

You may have a problem in the IDE cable or IDE channel.  Try swapping the cable, and try the other IDE channel.  If they don't work, the IDE controller may be faulty, and you will need a PCI IDE card or a new motherboard.

update: i have tried all suggested which where good points but none have worked, if the floppy drive does not boot at all even when forced to and the hdd will boot from cd, with new ide cables and different channels and jumper settings would it be safe to say the mobo is faulty? or is there somethijng really silly i could be doing wrong, note when boot disk is entered to floppy is reports boot failure, but when i boot from cd with a windows o/s it works up until it trys to start the installation you know where is will start to transfer files to hdd, in saying this at the point the keyboard and mouse both go off very strange any more suggestions?

It definitely would not hurt to swap out the motherboard with a new one.  Could very easily be a bad board.  It happens...  Quality is not always #1!

Jeff

Perhaps the ide controller on the motherboard is bad. Unless you really went all out motherboards are pretty cheap to replace these days anyways. See if you can get yourself a refund or a replacement. Actually, have you tried contacting the manufacturer of the motherboard for tech support?