I have just completed a self build, specification thus:-

Motherboard:- ASUS M2N-E (Socket AM2)
Processor:- AMD Athlon 64 3500+ (socket AM2)
HDD:- Western Digital Caviar SE16 250GB (SATA2)
Memory:- 2x512mb (DDR2)
DVD +/- RW

My problem is that, I cannot get the Operating System (XP Home) to load. Having got to the final Windows load screen, it 'freezes' showing the Windows XP logo with an empty bar. That's it! Please can a kind person , help me out? I've build other SYSTEMS in the past, but this is the first time I have been stuck. Please help if you can!Bad RAM is my guess. Those are the symptoms when my RAM goes bad. What brand is it? I hear that Corsair, kingston and pqi are good.When you hook everything together and it doesn't work it can be difficult to determine where the problem is.

Use the free download at www.memtest86.com to test the RAM. One stick at a time for an hour, then all together.

Use the free diagnostics at the Western Digital site to test the HARD drive. If everything passes let us know and we will proceed.Thanks linuxman and GX1_Man, for your quick and valued support, I'll follow your suggestions, and let you know how I get on.