Cannot install - installer hangs.

[Dotan Cohen]

I have been quite unsuccessful at installing DD on my P4 machine. I
previously had FC3, FC4, and Kubuntu on the machine at different times
in the past. I have tried to install DD with the desktop and the
alternative CDs, and also with the Kubuntu alternative CD. In every
case, the installer locks up and does not continue. I let it sit for
four hours before I decide that it is locked up to be sure that it's
not just busy.

Symptoms of "locked up" are screen not changing in response to
keyboard/ mouse input, disc not spinning, and red hard drive light not
lit.

I have checked the media and all three discs show that they are fine.
I have done maybe ten or fifteen successful linux installs in the
past, including Fedora and Ubuntu installations. I don't consider
myself an expert, but I am knowedgable.

Fedora Core also displays the same symptoms, so I believe it's not
Ubuntu related, but rather hardware. I have tried a different harddisk
(jumpered correctly and installed correctly), a different ribbon going
to the hard disk, and replaced the power supply. I have also run
memtest86+ for seven hours and it found nothing wrong. Slax, however,
installs to the harddrive fine. I don't want to use slax as my distro,
though.

Thanks for any advise.

Dotan Cohen
http://what-is-what.com