Hi
few possible problems:
The hard drive is not detected or not working
Or the operating system is corrupt or missing
Or the computer is not set to boot from the hard drive.
if not then the computer is not set to start up from a cd, you can either enter the setup / bios to change that setting OR right when you power up the computer look at the screen it will say what button to press in order to enter bios thats one way to solve the problem but look for Boot menu, it will very likely be button F12 or similiar, it should say on the screen when you power on.
if it doesnt, then you need to go into the bios and change the boot order so that the computer starts from the CD first.
after that you should be able to start from the cd and install the OS (Operating system, eg.Windows)
heres some info on how to work the bios:
http://www.whitecanyon.com/how-to-change-boot-order.php
Change the boot order so its CD ROM, optionally FLoppy drive here if your laptop has one of those, then Hard drive.
save and exit the bios, use the above link to get info on how to work the bios.
Test and see if the computer starts up normally, if not then you need to use the windows installation cd to install windows into the computer again.
if you get any errors or problems on installing windows let me know.