Hi,
can i repair just the installer from this cd on my newer pc?
More commonly than not you cannot simply repair an install using a 3rd party (well as such Dell) install disk. This will be simply to reformat and reinstall your old operating system.
You will require an actual Windows Disk to perform a repair task.
Also with the hardware used with a Dell and the build you have most probably it will not activate and you will be locked out of Windows.
Therefore you will need to buy a new XP disk to reinstall XP on your system. Sorry.
can i repair just the installer from this cd on my newer pc? and how would i go about it step by step
If you manage to get hold of an XP disk then you can follow
THESE INSTRUCTIONS to perform a repair function.
However don't forget if you get hold of an XP disk then you need to also have a valid XP activation code.
i read that you have to boot from the xp cd to start the process by changing the bios to boot from a cd first intead of the hard drive
This is indeed correct. However most system will have the system read the disk first before the hard drive. More info can be found
HERE
However you didn't say if you could still get into your PC. If you cant then follow this guide
HERE to get your data back if you can't boot to windows.
Apart from that you will need to buy a new XP disk or if you can give use more information on the error then we may be able to help.