Windows XP no longer accessible on my Macbook Pro???

Question

I bought a used MacBook Pro with BootCamp and Windows XP installed, thus I have no disc for Windows. I got one for Snow Leopard. After downloading Lion (here we go again), when I try to restart in Windows, a black screen appears with a message that the hardware needs to be reconfigured. When I run Disk Utility and check BootCamp, it says it can't repair it. When I run Boot Camp Assistant, it says there is no software available. I am somewhat computer literate, but when you answer this, please go easy on the tech as I don't speak or understand it very well. I would really like to use Windows--I can see what is on BootCamp in Finder--but I don't really know what to do to fix this. Help?

Answer 1

Basically, you go to Apple Logo menu > About This Mac, and click on More Info.  This opens up Apple System Profiler.  In the Overview page you will find a Model ID.
The short version: if this ID is any of the following, it cannot run XP, period:
MacBookPro8,1
MacBookPro8,2
MacBookAir3,1
MacBookAir4,1
The following models can run XP, Vista or 7, but benefit more from Win 7:
MacBook5,x (x=1 or 2)
MacBook6,1
MacBook7,1
MacBookPro5,x (x=1-8)
MacBookPro6,x (x=1-2)
MacBookPro7,1
And these here work well with XP, better with Vista, and meet the basics for 7:
MacBook3,x
MacBook4,x
MacBookPro3,x
MacBookPro4,x
MacBookAir1,1
MacBookAir2,1
Finally, these models here aren't supported past Vista at all  Many simply fail to meet the recommendations for 7:
MacBook1,x
MacBook2,x
MacBookPro1,x
MacBookPro2,x
That first digit is the generation.
Nate