I HAVE A COMPAQ DESKTOP 5000 SERIES AND THE BOARD WENT BAD WE HAVE PHOTOS ON THE DRIVE I NEED. DO I HAVE TO HAVE ANOTHER COMPAQ TO DO THIS? CAN I DO IT WITH MY HP LAPTOP? OR MY SONY DESKTOP?  USUALLY NOT A BIG DEAL BUT VERY IMPORTANT PHOTOS. PLEASE HELP ME. I OULD LIKE TO NOT HAVE TO SPEND A LOT OF MONEY GOING TO A SHOP.  THANK YOU j NADOLSKI      Hello!

Welcome to CH!

Is the harddisk a SATA  or an IDE drive? You can just hook it up on the working desktop..

KEEP us posted! No, you don't need another Compaq computer.

While you could remove your harddrive from your computer and install it internally into another computer, I would SUGGEST that you buy an external, USB enclosure for your harddrive. Just make sure that the enclosure is the right size (for 3.5" drive) and has the right interface for your harddrive (IDE or SATA.) If you do this, you can use any computer with a USB port to copy your data. Cost = ≈$20 - $40.

Good luck.  Thank You so much. I am so glad I found a place I could get amswers. I looked at Radio Shack and they have one for 19.95.  thanks again   : Terrific! Please post back and let us know how you made out.