ok, i got the file from Western Digital and was about to run it until i read the part about data "may be lost" while running the diagnostic programs.
that worried me. so i got an external drive to copy my hard drive to. now here's where i am right now:
-my friend gave me an external HD case. so i put my old hard drive in it and brought it to my laptop. i found i can access pretty much all of my documents and songs(that's a good thing)
-bought an external drive to copy the entire old hard drive to the new one(as a precaution...just in case)
i am ready to copy, but was wondering what program to use. i have a disc with an old copy of Norton's Ghost on it. should i install that program, or is there an easier way?
once i copy the HD, i can put the old one back into the computer and run the diagnostics. if that doesn't get me up and running and i decide to do a "repair installation", i wouldn't worry about any data loss, because i have the hd backed up.