i had pc reformatted because of mistakenly messing up password.  anyway, WORKED around that..reinstalled windows XP..now i can't get ISP connection. i THINK it's because when BIOS and password fixed they were set back to factory settings and we had to install a new modem once and i think the modem wasn't being detected. worked at that and now receive message 'new hardware found..generic  modem" and the darn mouse lets me click and moves, then freezes up and i can't open control panel to get modem set as default to get ISP connected..!!!

any ideas? all knowledgable help would be fully

APPRECIATED.. If you have re-installed the system it should re-installled modem/graphics/vid/drivers..factory settings do not stop net connections..unless you have used a different modem from them?.........is this an winxp upgrade from win98?/first. let me say thanks for responding...no it wasn't an upgrade.. i got stuck after an automatic update from windows and tried to reboot and clicked on wrong thing and lost my NTLDR files and unwittingly messed with the password in BIOS utilities and had to have the pc fixed. but, lin the process since we had installed a v.92 PCI FAX MODEM Value , i'm assuming it wasn't being detected. and the NEXT time i tried to check which modem it was trying to connect to..there was the balloon box saying 'New hardware found'..and the NAME of modem , the cursor on mouse froze and i couldn't click on anything to see what was going on with the new hardware or anything else. i couldn't even get the tower to turn off  without turning the power off at the power strip..i give up!! :-/