i think D is a blank partition for user data,
i dont think you should wipe C:,
i'd reinstall windows XP onto C if youve trashed it
then put in the ubuntu cd and make it dual boot
installing it into D if there's no data there.

I guess F is the windows recovery info,
and it will overwrite c:,
which is why they have D: for data.

or is MyDocuments mapped to D: ?

if so perhaps you should split D; into a smaller data partition for windows
data
(and this can be shared with ubuntu)
and a new partition for ubuntu,
then install it there..

but im not an expert..

I use ubuntu 99% of the time on my desktop machine
but have vista there incase something doesnt work in ubuntu
so i can see if it works in vista
which helps me decide if its a software or hardware problem!

Just getting into the Acer bios was difficult so seeing that their
partition naming is skewed isnt unexpected

Im installing XP on C and left D and F for now.
I split C up for XP and Ubuntu.
If she likes Ubuntu - XP goes away

I have an Acer desktop, and saw they have a partition on the harddrive set
aside for the image of the operating system.