Computer freezes a few min. after startup

[DisplayError]

I tried to install bandwidth meter, and during the install, a warning came up saying something about a program that was incompatible with my windows. I continued the install, but another warning came up, and I looked it up on google, only to be redirected to this forum. After reading the thread that I found on google, I canceled the install and restarted my computer. A few minutes after everything loaded, my computer completely froze. Does anyone know how this problem could be solved? My computer runs windows xp sp2. Thanks for any answers.

 

[Rik]

Boot into safe mode by pressing F8 just before windows begins to load and do a system restore to a date before you tried that bit of software. That will hopefully fix your problem.

 

[DisplayError]

Thanks for the advice; but I can't really get into safe mode for some reason. I was wondering, is it possible to reformat my computer so that the files on a partitioned drive wouldn't be erased?
Edit - I tried reformatting, but my pc went to some screen that asked me to enter safe mode; I entered safe mode, did a system restore, and everything works fine now. Thanks for the help, Rik. Your posts in this thread and other threads were very helpful.