Creating a local SQl Server instance

I installed SQLServer 8 Management Studio and I am not able to set up a local instance of the Server.
I get the below error message
TITLE: Connect to Server ------------------------------
Cannot connect to (local).
------------------------------ ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
A network-related or instance-specific error occurred while establishing a connection to SQL Server. The server was not found or was not accessible. Verify that the instance name is correct and that SQL Server is configured to allow remote connections. (provider: Named Pipes Provider, error: 40 - Could not open a connection to SQL Server) (Microsoft SQL Server, Error: 2)

------------------------------ BUTTONS:
OK ------------------------------
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