Hi,

Below are instruction how to fix the missing hal.dll.

If you have never used the Recovery Console before it looks a bit daunting, but it is not difficult if you follow the instructions EXACTLY.
So print them out from another machine.

 

You did not say if the trojan was found and deleted.  If it was not, then if you get back into XP the first thing to do is to get rid of it,
Before you do any of the above please post back whether you have deleted this trojan or not as you will need to be prepared to deal with it mmediately.

 

Here are the instructions on how to fix the hal.dll error.

Configure the computer to start from the CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive. (see NOTE at end of message)

 

Insert the Windows XP CD-ROM into your CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive, and then restart your computer.
 
When you see the "Press any key to boot from CD" message, press a key to start your computer from the Windows XP CD-ROM.

 

When you see the "Welcome to Setup" message, press R to start the Recovery Console.

 

If you have a dual-boot or multiple-boot computer, select the installation that you have to use from the Recovery Console. Usually this is just 1

 

When you are prompted to do so, type the administrator password, and then press ENTER.
If you did not set a password when installing XP just press ENTER here.

 

At the command prompt, type
bootcfg /list  
and then press ENTER. The entries in your current Boot.ini file are displayed on the screen.
 
At the command prompt, type
bootcfg /rebuild  
and then press ENTER.

 

Follow the on-screen instructions to add the Windows installations to the Boot.ini file.

You receive a message that is similar to the following:
Total Identified Windows Installs:
C:\Windows
Add installation to boot list? (Yes/No/All)
When you receive the message, press Y.

 

You receive a message that is similar to the following:
Enter Load Identifier
This is the name of the operating system.
When you receive the message, type the name of your operating system, and then press ENTER. This is either Microsoft Windows XP Professional or Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition.

You receive a message that is similar to the following:
Enter OS Load options
The instructions that are displayed on your screen may be different depending on the configuration of your computer.
When you receive the message, type
 /fastdetect
and then press ENTER.

 

Type exit
and then press ENTER to quit Recovery Console.

Your computer restarts

 

 

NOTE
Configure computer to start from CD ROM
Go into your BIOS Setup (it should tell you what key to press during the boot process).
 
In "Advances BIOS setup" or similar (Use the arrow keys here)

Set the
"First boot device" to Floppy,

"Second boot device" to CDROM, and

"Third boot device" to HD.
 Then save the settings and exit and it should then boot to the Windows CD.

 

Make sure you can do this before starting or post back for more help.

Sorry, but there is no easier way to fix this.

You had better check then to see if it is gone or not.

Whenever/if you get back into XP run these two online scans and let them fix anything they find. 
Try to take note of the names of the nasties they find as that might come in useful.

 

Trojan Scan  http://www.windowsecurity.com/trojanscan/ 

 

Panda            http://www.pandasoftware.com/activescan/com/activescan_principal.htm

 

Good luck

I tried what you suggested.  It said the bootcfg /list command wasn't recognized.  I got it to list commands and tried again.  It told me to run a chkdsk which I tried.  It got to 25%, then said "volume appears to contain one or more unrecognizable errors."   What now?