Wing Commander Fowler,
I do not see a problem with his BIOS seeing the Drive. I would look for a 7,200rpm Drive as the replacement. Last I had checked, I think the 60Gb was the sweet spot.
Hitachi 60GB 7200RPM Notebook Hard Drive, Model HTS726060M9AT00 PART# 08K0939
Specifications:
Capacity: 60GB
Average Seek Time: 10 ms
Buffer: 8MB
Rotational Speed: 7200 RPM
Interface: IDE ULTRA ATA-6
Features: 9.5mm high, 7200 RPM, 2.5-inch mobile hard disk drive
Manufacturer Warranty: 3 years
That and WinXP would give him a great Notebook. Do make sure you get his RAM up to 512Mb, since you are spending his money.
Take Care,
Richard