(Disk error _ Press any key to continue) SOLUTION

Question

For those of us, and I believe there are plenty, I've finally been able to install Windows XP Pro SP2 OEM on my Macbook. I'll firstly not be taking the credit for all of it as I used a few sources, of which I will reference as I go.
Essentially, if you have a version of Windows XP Pro SP2 that is an OEM version (full version, not "update or upgrade" + unbranded, eg no Dell brand on the disc etc.) then the installation process that begins after Bootcamp partitions your hard drive will run as expected until it asks you to choose the partition you want to install Windows on. As we all know, and as the Apple Bootcamp manual states, choose the Bootcamp partition. With I think most of us, this step works fine. But then we DO NOT, I repeat DO NOT get the option to reformat that partition to the NTFS or FAT32 format. Again, DO NOT. As the manual suggests, we SHOULD but we DON'T. As far as I can tell, the manual is not made to apply to the above OEM versions.
As a result, the installation continues (rather fast on my system compared to the way it should) and restarts, possibly spits the XP disc out and leaves us with a black DOS screen with white text stating "Disk error_Press any key to continue" (Note: for some, the process from the installation to the Disk Error prompt may include or exclude things from my quick description there. But I believe that's mainly what happens)
Anyway, installing Windows the way the manual states is not going to work no matter how many times you try it. I've tried it upwards of 10 or so times. If you do get the option to reformat to NTFS or FAT32, then all the power to you, everything is fine. But those of us who don't, it simply wont work if you keep following the manual.
But there is a way. In the post on this thread made by Michael Fox2,
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=6113937&#6113937
he says that we need to take our XP OEM discs (which work if you install them on an actual PC, mind you) and make an almost exact copy using something close to the Slipstreaming method. I say almost exact copy because he says there is one file that is causing the problems. It's called WINNT.sif and is in the I386 directory. You can insert your XP disc in your Mac or a PC and check the contents of the disc to see that it is there. Make sure to look carefully as the I386 directory has tonnes of files and there are quite a few with the name "WINNT" but they all have different file extensions. Make sure to find the correct file with extension .sif .
I'll get to the point. What you need to do is copy all files from your XP disc and paste them in a new directory. Then find the offending WINNT.sif file and remove it from that directory. Here's my process:
I used a desktop PC for this. I put the XP disc in the drive, went to My Computer and then right clicked the XP disc, hit explore, then copied all of the files and folders into a new directory that I entitled NEW FOLDER (original, I know) on my Desktop. Then I found the WINNT.sif file and cut and paste it out of the directory (I didn't delete it but just made sure it wasn't in thd directory that had the rest of the files, ie. NEW FOLDER. Then I followed the instructions on this website beginning at Step 5 and then continuing using NERO ie, Step 5a:
http://www.winsupersite.com/showcase/windowsxpsp2slipstream.asp
At the end, once the disc was burned, I began at the very beginning by using Bootcamp to partition the hard drive (I used 35G), then inserted the newly burned XP disc and clicked to start installation, the Macbook rebooted and might have spat the disc out but I put it straight back in. Then all of the loading of the computer jargon started. Then you can follow the manual to the letter.
Follow all your onscreen prompts and remember to choose the Bootcamp partition, and THEN you will get the screen that we've all been waiting for. I chose the NTFS format. Your installation process, ie. counting to 100%, then the Macbook restarted and spat the disc out.
I restarted by holding the power button down, then held the option button on the keyboard and chose to boot from Windows XP. At this point, the second phase of the XP installation begun, the one that has the familiar blue XP layout and theme. It also asked me to reinsert my XP disc, ie. the one I burnt, and from there followed the prompts. The installation completed without a hitch. I then inserted my Mac OSX Installation disc to install the drivers etc etc and then it was done.
As I said, the installation manual can be followed to the letter so long as you have the "replacement" XP disc burnt. And you should (hopefully) be good to go.
I hope this at the very least has contributed in some way to the problems we've all been having with these OEM discs and Disk Error screens.
As for any claims made by people who say we don't read manuals... near as I can tell, some might not read the manual properly. I will freely agree that's just ridiculous. They're ignorant and/or impatient people. But most of us actually DO read the manual that Apple provides. And I repeat again, no amount of reading and re-reading the blasted thing will change the fact that some of us won't get the DOS page that asks us to reformat the Bootcamp partition to NTFS or FAT32.
Before I finish, I must state that I don't mean to say that I understand how to fix any issues once Windows is installed. Nor do I profess to know the solution to any problems that might arise during the above process. It is simply what I tried and it worked.
Good luck!
Thanks,
Joe

Answer 1

There are some excellent articles I found from Google.
http://search.live.com/results.aspx?q=TroubleshootXPRecovery
And there is a tutorial on InformationWeek dealing with XP Recovery tricks.
http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=186500800&pgno=5 &queryText=