Red Hat

i do not know much about linux, but i have a machine running ONLY red hat enterprise linux AS (or at least that is what i used to see when i start my machine). i was doing something on my machine and there was a power cut. my system went off and now when i restart the machine the first thing it displays (after the screen which shows the brand, dell in this case, and "press F12 to enter setup") is the message "error loading operating system". i dont want to have to reinstall my OS, PLEASE what should i do?

Well if it's RHELAS then it's likely 3 or 2.1 (version wise). They started using just RHEL (for the name) part way into version 4. I only say this because it could be more difficult to get support for 2.1 or 3.

Anyhow, the "right" answer is probably to boot up a rescue CD and fix things from there. But.. welcome to the advanced class!! Repairing this could require some skill and knowledge.

The fact that it no longer works tells me that the problem may not be simple at all.

Personal opinion, find a local linux guru and see if he'll visit you during his/her lunch break.... I know for a lot of people in the Dallas area, that's what I do.

Are you using a boot loader?

Try booting in rescue mode and see if you can find additional clues.