1. Is this an upgrade install? (upgraded winXP with Vista? or Win2K with Vista?) 2. If it is an upgrade, how long did it take for the previous OS to start up? 3. What build are you using? (RTM?) 4. Is this installed on a SATA drive? 6. If installed on an IDE drive, is this drive an older ATA 33 or 66 drive? 7. When you finally get into Vista, if you look in device manager, are there any problems noticed there and do all devices have drivers? Are any of the devices listed a 'Unknown' or 'Other'? 8. Are you installing behind a router or on a network by chance? 9. Maybe some type of corrupted install...did you try burning another .iso to a DVD at a low speed? Some burners need to burn the .iso at a low speed like 2X or 4X.