Do I need a new hd?

[Knapp]

> If there is data to be recovered, this is a very bad idea.  First step
> is to try to copy off any files

Agreed.

>, second is simple hard drive diagnostics
> by a technician,

We are the technicians! Why don't you explain the test you have in
mind and help the dude learn?

You might want to boot with this or maybe even your install disk and
do some HD diagnosis. This is not my area but this disk is supposed to
be the best for it. I wait for others to tell you better and more.
http://partedmagic.com/

>and if the hard drive is reporting failures, then copy
> the drive image (as much as able) then fsck the copy to hopefully
> recover more.  Low level tools that try to modify data (like fsck)
> should never be run on unreliable hardware prior to data recovery.
>

-- 
Douglas E Knapp

Why do we live?