Newbie Install - Fresh Meat!!

[BSD baby]

> I am trying to install FreeBSD 5.0-RELEASE. However, I'm having two distinct problems..

Dave - 

FreeBSD 5.0 isn't really "done" yet.  It still has a bunch of known problems.

If you're new to FreeBSD you should REALLY start with FreeBSD 4.8.

Download and burn this ISO:
ftp://ftp2.freebsd.org/pub/FreeBSD/ISO-IMAGES-i386/4.8/4.8-RELEASE-i386-disc1.iso

Trying to start with 5.0 will give you many more headaches than you need when learning a new O.S. because you'll hit a bunch of unexplained bugs, and the advantages of 5.0 over 4.8 are not many.

FreeBSD 4.8 is *very* stable and a wonderful way to start with FreeBSD.