Hi everyone! This is my first post here. I came across this site in a google search, and it seems like you guys really know what you are doing, so I hope you can help.

I'm having a huge problem trying to get my new hard drive installed into my Dell and working. I've already posted on another forum a few days ago, and they've been able to help me a little but I'm still at a loss. Here's the original thread:
http://www.vbulletin.com/forum/showthread.php?t=223903

I found this trick in another thread: "Hold <Alt>+F, then hit <Alt>+E. After it stops beeping, hit <Alt>+B, and this will restart your system. That procedure sets your BIOS back to defaults, and it should force the system to redetect all of the IDE drives." I tried this but it doesn't work. Any help you could provide would be sincerely appreciated!! Thanks!!

I was reading your post over there and on your last post you said " When I try to set it up as the only hard drive in the computer, it starts up, gives me a black screen, and beeps as soon as I plug it in."

Are you saying you booted up the machine waited and then plugged in the drive?

If you did it is possible you damaged the motherboard.hook the drive up before you boot,turn on the PC and start hitting the F2 key if it doesn't go into BIOS you need another mother board.

No, sorry I should have been more clear. I put the drive in the computer (and plug it in), but then when I hook up the wires, as soon as I plug in the power cord it gives me the black screen and starts beeping.

The motherboard should be good, because if I simply take the hard drive out of my other (identical) machine and put it into the one that's giving me all the problems it boots up and functions fine.

Have you tried going into BIOS by hitting F2 at bootup and see if it recognizes the drive?