can i install another version of windows without effecting my current setup? i have windows xp pro installed but want to try media centre edtition 2005 (for xbox 360 reason). i have a external HD plus lot's or room on my internal one don't know if this helps

Hello LordC007,

Yes you can install another version of Windows onto your PC onto another HDD - your external one. During the Windows setup, you can choose which drive you want to install your new version of Windows to. Once installed, a startup menu will automatically appear, and you will have an option of which version you want to boot to, each time you switch on your PC!

thanks mate will this format my external HD tho?

You can't install to your external drive, it will not let you. But if it did let you, it would format it. You can buy internal hard drives really cheap for small 200 GB ones these days.

It competely depends on if your BIOS has the option to boot to an external USB device. As long as you can do this, you will be able to install on the external partition, however as tractor said, you will need to format.

thanks to both of ya!! can i partition my internal HD and install MCE on 2nd partition? and do you know any cheap site's in uk for buying sata HD's?