ok installed an old dvd drive it works fine. Only problem is, it won't read dvds because i don't have the right codecs. Since Microsoft in their everlasting wisdom have decided to charge for dvd plugin codecs, where can i get dvd codecs for free (and also works with winXP?)Ps. The drive is a TOshiba i got off a Dell desktop

I am not sure of any free ones, I thankfull got Power DVD free with my graphics card.

Try VideoLAN client at http://www.videolan.org/ . It is the only one I know of that can play DVD's for free. I don't have a DVD drive, but I know this program is capable of playing DVD's and just about every mainstream format (MPEG1, MPEG2, MPEG4, DivX, etc). Its also nice because it runs on every mainstream OS as well. Since I often record shows and put them in SVCD format, this applicaion makes a good test to see if the file works before I burn it for use on my DVD player.Hope this helps!

I don't think there are any decent freeware DVD decoders. I use PowerDVD XP 4.0, version 5 is the latest. It's fairly priced at about $40US and decodes Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS 6.1 sound. Plays movies and music clearly. Picture looks best attatched to a TV.I've also tried WinDVD Player as well but it wants you to buy all these addons to get the surround sound and that can get expensive. PowerDVD is the best one out there. I'm not sure what stores sell it but you can order it from their website. www.gocyberlink.com

ok downloaded videolan but how does it work? i tried clicking play after i load a dvd into the drive but nothing happens.

Its a multipurpose decoder, you gotta hit the CD looking icon to tell it your using a CD/DVD and select DVD (menu support). Hit ok and it should play. Its not exactly a user friendly decoder, but it works pretty well for me.

ok got it to work...thanks guysi'll probably bite the bullet and buy the decoders anyway, but that's for later, LOL