Abortive install - Xubuntu 7.10 (Alternative)

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With the purpose of evaluating an alternative to Windows, I attempted to
install Xubuntu Linux 7.10 on my old computer. I had previously "played"
with the live CD.

Dell Dimension XPS T500
Pentium III 500mhz
256mb ram

After several hours of churning away, during which I *think* that most of
the  OS and programs were installed, the computer froze with a black
screen and the words "GRUB Loading stage1.5 _" in the upper left hand
corner.
I was expecting to see some kind of dual-boot screen.

In what appears to be a mis-guided attempt to correct the mess and return to
the previous condition, I re-formatted the partition in which Linux was
installed.
There doesn't seem to be an "un-install" procedure.

Well, as you might guess (or why would I be writing?) that didn't work.

Upon boot-up, the "GRUB..etc." message appears and the computer
fails to respond. ( Actually, "ctrl-alt-del" results in a re-boot with the
same result.)
Can you help me to restore my computer to some level of usefulness?
Needless to say, I look upon a re-install of Windows as a last resort.

owl5138 at indra.com