Your laptop's BIOS is likely set up to boot first to hard drive.

More info,

I just tried to start the computer with the OS CD that came with the computer, but it would not access it.

Looks like the install has gone corrupt after the crash of SP3 installation.

If the cd cannot be accessed, check if it's not scratched and if your computer is set to boot from cd first (enter the bios to enable it)

You can also try to do a system restore from the startup manager of Dell.(F12?)

When you boot up in safe mode, it's normal you get a load of text based messages like "multi(0)disk.... etc" 

If the system fails to boot, and ends up in a BSOD... then it's pretty sure the install is damaged... 

Realized my previous post was hard to understand, so i adding a revised version:

Due to my own negligence, I think, I requested a download of XP, SP3 at the same time I asked for an update to the Microsoft software update program.  Somewhere during the install process (I had walked away), my Dell E1505 Laptop crashed.  I found a message that a ”problem has been detected, Windows has shut down and I should restart in Safe Mode”  to  clean out the programs I just added.  After this restart failed from the message page, I tried to restart using the F8 command, selecting Safe Mode, XP Media Center OS. The response is a list of about 30 file paths like “multi(0)disk(0)partition(2)…etc”.  After about 30 seconds, the screen changes to the original notice that a problem has been detected and to restart in Safe Mode.  At the bottom of the page is more data, like “stop 0X00000007E (….).  I tried restarting several times. Once selecting the option “pick last known good configuration.  Same circle of pages begins.

So, does anyone know if I can fix this problem? I don’t know if I have the DELL PC restore partition on my laptop. I understand I could clean the hard disk and reinstall the initial key software if it is there.  How can I find out?  Can I bring up Safe Mode in another way?  Might I use the startup disk that came with the computer?  Might I have to erase my hard disk and start again or just take out the recently offending software??  If so, is there an instruction as to how to do this?

Sorry for the long explanation.  In 15 years of computer use, this is the first time I have run into a wall like this.  Fortunately, I did back up my data before performing the update.

No doubt the install messed up the software on the hard disc.  The OS disk (not the utilities disk) was just taken out of the package and looks fine.  I used the f12 key this time with the CD in the drive to access the bios and changed the startup sequence to first select the CD.  That worked on restart.  I selected to use the recovery console and a whole bunch of programs loaded.  When asked to select which installation to log into, I selected C:Windows.  Now it is asking for password.  I never submitted an administrator password, as far as I can remember, so I hit return.  Now, I am stuck. 

any thoughts as to how I can now proceed?

Probably hit ENTER and contiunue....

If you didn't enter any password, then don't enter any ;-)

Just fyi, return and enter are the same, and did not help. System still wanted a  password.

Anyway, I have come closer to the answer.  I was able to change the start sequence on my computer so I could do a reinstall of XP using the Dell startup disc.  However, during the install, I got an error message that said ““ngen.exe Entry Point “getrequestedruntimeversion” could not be relocated.  I was able to hit ok and the message went away and the load continued.  After restart, everything looked ok, with all files and programs present.  However, when I went to use Internet Explorer, it seems two or three versions open and they keep starting and shutting down.  I decided to go to the Windows section of add/remove programs to delete IE so I could download another version.  But, I then got that same error message about “getrequestedruntimeversion.”  However, again that operation seemed to complete ok.  But, when I checked, I found IE was still there (it is the version 6 that came with the OS, not the latest update) and having the same problem.  So, I tried to delete the IE folder manually.  But each time I did it, it reappeared.  I guess you cannot delete IE.

So I looked up “getrequestedruntimeversion up on the Microsoft site and found it to be a common problem when you reinstall the OS without first wiping the disc clean (which I don’t know how to do anyway)  I got a solution that involved fixing an error in the .net framework coding with a downloadable utility called dotnetfx.exe.  I downloaded the utility and ran it.  It looked like it ran ok, but I got an error message at the end that “the Microsoft.net framework setup failed. 

So, I took a chance and using Firefox, I downloaded the latest version of IE.  Oddly, it is working ok so far.  However, I now find I cannot install any updates to windows.  Neither xp sp3 or any other.  Sp3 seemed to download, but it did not install.  In fact, after the first try, the site says sp3 has 0 kb of data.  When I try the other updates I am supposed to download, the system starts, but then says nothing was installed. 

So we are a little farther along, but still in trouble.  Anyone have any other ideas???