Start -> Run, then enter: regedit
then based on the path from the post above, find where is EnableBigLba, and edit the value as 1.
Do you have only one disk at home? Better buy another one. today, office Depot $25 for 160GB. Buy a new one, and install the system, after the system is up, do editing of that value, and reboot, the new system should be fine.
after you confirm the new installation is fine. turn off computer, connect the problem one to see if you can see partitions on that disk. I can not be sure if the file system on that disk is crashed. If it is, you may need to search further help.