Boot Disk

I need to make a Boot Disk so I can get to the command prompt.
However, I do not have a floppy drive on my Compaq like I do on my
older Dell. I just have a Pioneer DVR110. Is there anyway to create a
boot disk with a CD?

It's not easy. A fellow named Bart has a web site dedicated to the subject.

How about a USB floppy drive? They are inexpensive and they come in handy.

.... Ben Myers

On Mon, 07 Nov 2005 19:21:04 -0500, MaadDog wrote:

I need to make a Boot Disk so I can get to the command prompt.
However, I do not have a floppy drive on my Compaq like I do on my
older Dell. I just have a Pioneer DVR110. Is there anyway to create a
boot disk with a CD?

Thanks Ben, I will take a look at USB floppy disks. Do you have the
URL for the WEB site on this subject?


In article , Ben Myers @ wrote:

It's not easy. A fellow named Bart has a web site dedicated to the subject.

How about a USB floppy drive? They are inexpensive and they come in handy.

... Ben Myers

On Mon, 07 Nov 2005 19:21:04 -0500, MaadDog wrote:

I need to make a Boot Disk so I can get to the command prompt.
However, I do not have a floppy drive on my Compaq like I do on my
older Dell. I just have a Pioneer DVR110. Is there anyway to create a
boot disk with a CD?

I suggest that you look around eBay, where the drives usually sell for around
$30 including shipping. With Windows 2000 or XP, they are painless to
"install". Just plug the drive into a USB port, and the system recognizes it
automatically. After that, the BIOS on most modern systems sees a USB floppy
drive as the A: drive. If the system BIOS allows, the system can boot from a
diskette in a USB floppy drive. Check and double check this, before you spend
your money.

Which model of system do you have? ... Ben Myers

On Mon, 07 Nov 2005 20:56:19 -0500, MaadDog wrote:

Thanks Ben, I will take a look at USB floppy disks. Do you have the
URL for the WEB site on this subject?


In article , Ben Myers @ wrote:

It's not easy. A fellow named Bart has a web site dedicated to the subject.

How about a USB floppy drive? They are inexpensive and they come in handy.

... Ben Myers

On Mon, 07 Nov 2005 19:21:04 -0500, MaadDog wrote:

I need to make a Boot Disk so I can get to the command prompt.
However, I do not have a floppy drive on my Compaq like I do on my
older Dell. I just have a Pioneer DVR110. Is there anyway to create a
boot disk with a CD?

If you have a full version of most CD/DVD burning software, it likely can
make a bootable CD or DVD disc. Search the software help for boot disc. OEM
versions of the software often do not include this option.
HH

"MaadDog" wrote in message
...
I need to make a Boot Disk so I can get to the command prompt.
However, I do not have a floppy drive on my Compaq like I do on my
older Dell. I just have a Pioneer DVR110. Is there anyway to create a
boot disk with a CD?

I have a Compaq Presario SR1610NX. It is a very basic system. I am
primarily a MAC user that also needs to use a PC for some things. The
MAC I know inside out. So this is a learning thing for me. I also
have a Dell Precision Workstation which is a bit older. Configuring
PC's is a bit more difficult I have found. Which doesn't bother me,
because I do enjoy the tinkering etc.

The burning software I have is Nero 7 Ultra. I will take a look at
that to see if I can make a boot disk. It seems to make sense that
they need to be able to provide some way of being able to access the
command prompt if you don't have a floppy. I really feel that floppy
disks are obsolete anyway.

Thanks for all the help!!!

In article , HH
wrote:

If you have a full version of most CD/DVD burning software, it likely can
make a bootable CD or DVD disc. Search the software help for boot disc. OEM
versions of the software often do not include this option.
HH

"MaadDog" wrote in message
...
I need to make a Boot Disk so I can get to the command prompt.
However, I do not have a floppy drive on my Compaq like I do on my
older Dell. I just have a Pioneer DVR110. Is there anyway to create a
boot disk with a CD?

Several points of interest:

1. The SR1610NX is new enough that it supports booting from a USB floppy drive.

2. I'm not familiar with its innards, but you could probably add an internal
floppy drive with the right mounting bracket or screws or whatever.

3. Booting from a floppy or a CD probably won't help you with command line
access, assuming that you have Windows XP on the system. Windows XP can be set
up with either the FAT32 file system or the NTFS file system. Most
manufacturers deliver computers set up with NTFS, which is more difficult to
access when the system is booted to a command prompt. If your needs are
read-only, you can download a free DOS driver that allows you to read anything
on an NTFS partition. Otherwise, you have to buy a fairly expensive NTFS
read-write driver from a company called SysInternals. Microsoft designed NTFS
with greater security in mind, despite the myriad of plugged and unplugged
security holes in Windows. The greater security means that it is much more
difficult for the garden-variety person to access an NTFS partition from the
command line.

4. Windows computers and Macs... Neither is easier to set up than the other.
Late in the game here (last year or so), business opportunities have made me
confront Mac, which I'd never done before. It's taken me some time to do the
learning curve, but I now have a degree of comfort with Macs.

5. In the time honored tradition, I need to ask the question as to what is it
that you need to accomplish via command line access to a supposed NTFS
partition? There may be another way to get the job done. Please explain.

.... Ben Myers

On Tue, 08 Nov 2005 06:36:32 -0500, MaadDog wrote:

I have a Compaq Presario SR1610NX. It is a very basic system. I am
primarily a MAC user that also needs to use a PC for some things. The
MAC I know inside out. So this is a learning thing for me. I also
have a Dell Precision Workstation which is a bit older. Configuring
PC's is a bit more difficult I have found. Which doesn't bother me,
because I do enjoy the tinkering etc.

The burning software I have is Nero 7 Ultra. I will take a look at
that to see if I can make a boot disk. It seems to make sense that
they need to be able to provide some way of being able to access the
command prompt if you don't have a floppy. I really feel that floppy
disks are obsolete anyway.

Thanks for all the help!!!

In article , HH
wrote:

If you have a full version of most CD/DVD burning software, it likely can
make a bootable CD or DVD disc. Search the software help for boot disc. OEM
versions of the software often do not include this option.
HH

"MaadDog" wrote in message
...
I need to make a Boot Disk so I can get to the command prompt.
However, I do not have a floppy drive on my Compaq like I do on my
older Dell. I just have a Pioneer DVR110. Is there anyway to create a
boot disk with a CD?

I have been a MAC user since the very beginning, so my comfort level
with them has never been a problem. But now that I want to tinker
with the PC, it just has a different approach. Which is fine with me.

What I am trying to accomplish is this:

The ST1610NX comes with a 80GB IDE HD. The PC has 2 SATA connectors on
board. I happen to have an extra Hitachi 400GB SATA drive left over
from my MAC systems. I had installed 3 of these in my G4. The G4 can
handle 4 internal drives, but because the connector on the 4th drive
was binding on a fan I couldn't use it. So I figured lets put it in
the Compaq.

The Compaq has room for only 1 HD. I opened the case and hooked up
the SATA drive to the logic board and connected it to the power supply.
I then used Norton Ghost to do an exact copy of the original drive. I
then dissconected the original drive, booted the PC and entered the
BIOS to make sure the new drive was visible. It was, but after leaving
the BIOS and continuing the boot process the machine gave me a HD
confiuration error. I also have a couple of extra Hitachi 120GB IDE
HD's. I also tried to see if they would work. I received the same
error. So I figured that I needed to access the command line to
perhaps properly set up the partion. But not being a PC user for very
long, I really didn't know how to go about things. With a MAC you open
the case, install the drive, boot up, go to Drive set-up, format and
you're good to go.

I hope I am making sense.

Thanks for the help!!!

Kevin



In article , Ben Myers @ wrote:

Several points of interest:

1. The SR1610NX is new enough that it supports booting from a USB floppy
drive.

2. I'm not familiar with its innards, but you could probably add an internal
floppy drive with the right mounting bracket or screws or whatever.

3. Booting from a floppy or a CD probably won't help you with command line
access, assuming that you have Windows XP on the system. Windows XP can be
set
up with either the FAT32 file system or the NTFS file system. Most
manufacturers deliver computers set up with NTFS, which is more difficult to
access when the system is booted to a command prompt. If your needs are
read-only, you can download a free DOS driver that allows you to read anything
on an NTFS partition. Otherwise, you have to buy a fairly expensive NTFS
read-write driver from a company called SysInternals. Microsoft designed NTFS
with greater security in mind, despite the myriad of plugged and unplugged
security holes in Windows. The greater security means that it is much more
difficult for the garden-variety person to access an NTFS partition from the
command line.

4. Windows computers and Macs... Neither is easier to set up than the other.
Late in the game here (last year or so), business opportunities have made me
confront Mac, which I'd never done before. It's taken me some time to do the
learning curve, but I now have a degree of comfort with Macs.

5. In the time honored tradition, I need to ask the question as to what is it
that you need to accomplish via command line access to a supposed NTFS
partition? There may be another way to get the job done. Please explain.

... Ben Myers

On Tue, 08 Nov 2005 06:36:32 -0500, MaadDog wrote:

I have a Compaq Presario SR1610NX. It is a very basic system. I am
primarily a MAC user that also needs to use a PC for some things. The
MAC I know inside out. So this is a learning thing for me. I also
have a Dell Precision Workstation which is a bit older. Configuring
PC's is a bit more difficult I have found. Which doesn't bother me,
because I do enjoy the tinkering etc.

The burning software I have is Nero 7 Ultra. I will take a look at
that to see if I can make a boot disk. It seems to make sense that
they need to be able to provide some way of being able to access the
command prompt if you don't have a floppy. I really feel that floppy
disks are obsolete anyway.

Thanks for all the help!!!

In article , HH
wrote:

If you have a full version of most CD/DVD burning software, it likely can
make a bootable CD or DVD disc. Search the software help for boot disc.
OEM
versions of the software often do not include this option.
HH

"MaadDog" wrote in message
...
I need to make a Boot Disk so I can get to the command prompt.
However, I do not have a floppy drive on my Compaq like I do on my
older Dell. I just have a Pioneer DVR110. Is there anyway to create a
boot disk with a CD?

It all makes perfectly good sense to me, but, as always, there are pitfalls.

First, Windows XP does not have built-in support for SATA. The only guaranteed
way to use an SATA drive as a boot device is to install Windows on it from
scratch, inserting a CD with SATA driver early-on (non-Windows text displays) in
the install process. SATA is relatively new to the Intel computer world, and as
with any newer hardware, the drivers could not possibly have been included with
Windows XP, which was born (hatched?) before SATA.

Next, Ghost oughta work for cloning a drive and Windows XP should not throw up
when booting from the cloned drive. As an alternative, I have been using
Seagate's Disk Wizard somewhat routinely to clone hard drives, most recently for
my old IBM ThinkPad notebook. Disk Wizard works OK even if neither source nor
target drive is a Seagate brand. At worst, when Windows XP boots up, it will
fret that your hardware configuration has changed and you'll need to go through
the stupid product activation process again... Ben Myers

On Tue, 08 Nov 2005 09:43:14 -0500, Kevin DeFreest wrote:

I have been a MAC user since the very beginning, so my comfort level
with them has never been a problem. But now that I want to tinker
with the PC, it just has a different approach. Which is fine with me.

What I am trying to accomplish is this:

The ST1610NX comes with a 80GB IDE HD. The PC has 2 SATA connectors on
board. I happen to have an extra Hitachi 400GB SATA drive left over
from my MAC systems. I had installed 3 of these in my G4. The G4 can
handle 4 internal drives, but because the connector on the 4th drive
was binding on a fan I couldn't use it. So I figured lets put it in
the Compaq.

The Compaq has room for only 1 HD. I opened the case and hooked up
the SATA drive to the logic board and connected it to the power supply.
I then used Norton Ghost to do an exact copy of the original drive. I
then dissconected the original drive, booted the PC and entered the
BIOS to make sure the new drive was visible. It was, but after leaving
the BIOS and continuing the boot process the machine gave me a HD
confiuration error. I also have a couple of extra Hitachi 120GB IDE
HD's. I also tried to see if they would work. I received the same
error. So I figured that I needed to access the command line to
perhaps properly set up the partion. But not being a PC user for very
long, I really didn't know how to go about things. With a MAC you open
the case, install the drive, boot up, go to Drive set-up, format and
you're good to go.

I hope I am making sense.

Thanks for the help!!!

Kevin



In article , Ben Myers @ wrote:

Several points of interest:

1. The SR1610NX is new enough that it supports booting from a USB floppy
drive.

2. I'm not familiar with its innards, but you could probably add an internal
floppy drive with the right mounting bracket or screws or whatever.

3. Booting from a floppy or a CD probably won't help you with command line
access, assuming that you have Windows XP on the system. Windows XP can be
set
up with either the FAT32 file system or the NTFS file system. Most
manufacturers deliver computers set up with NTFS, which is more difficult to
access when the system is booted to a command prompt. If your needs are
read-only, you can download a free DOS driver that allows you to read anything
on an NTFS partition. Otherwise, you have to buy a fairly expensive NTFS
read-write driver from a company called SysInternals. Microsoft designed NTFS
with greater security in mind, despite the myriad of plugged and unplugged
security holes in Windows. The greater security means that it is much more
difficult for the garden-variety person to access an NTFS partition from the
command line.

4. Windows computers and Macs... Neither is easier to set up than the other.
Late in the game here (last year or so), business opportunities have made me
confront Mac, which I'd never done before. It's taken me some time to do the
learning curve, but I now have a degree of comfort with Macs.

5. In the time honored tradition, I need to ask the question as to what is it
that you need to accomplish via command line access to a supposed NTFS
partition? There may be another way to get the job done. Please explain.

... Ben Myers

On Tue, 08 Nov 2005 06:36:32 -0500, MaadDog wrote:

I have a Compaq Presario SR1610NX. It is a very basic system. I am
primarily a MAC user that also needs to use a PC for some things. The
MAC I know inside out. So this is a learning thing for me. I also
have a Dell Precision Workstation which is a bit older. Configuring
PC's is a bit more difficult I have found. Which doesn't bother me,
because I do enjoy the tinkering etc.

The burning software I have is Nero 7 Ultra. I will take a look at
that to see if I can make a boot disk. It seems to make sense that
they need to be able to provide some way of being able to access the
command prompt if you don't have a floppy. I really feel that floppy
disks are obsolete anyway.

Thanks for all the help!!!

In article , HH
wrote:

If you have a full version of most CD/DVD burning software, it likely can
make a bootable CD or DVD disc. Search the software help for boot disc.
OEM
versions of the software often do not include this option.
HH

"MaadDog" wrote in message
...
I need to make a Boot Disk so I can get to the command prompt.
However, I do not have a floppy drive on my Compaq like I do on my
older Dell. I just have a Pioneer DVR110. Is there anyway to create a
boot disk with a CD?

Actually, I believe XP sees the SATA drive just fine. I did the
initial format in XP and was able to see it in My Computer. Would
there be any reason that I would get a drive configuration error upon
boot if I used the 120GB IDE drive instead? I did try the IDE drive
and did get the same error. I set the jumper to CS, no go, then
Master, no go. I must be doing something wrong. One of the problems
is the fact that Compaq does not include any disks at all. I was also
wondering if it could be that the Windows XP is the OEM version and
won't allow itself to be duplicated. I did create a DVD recovery disk
set. But I believe that will only get me to factory installed stuff
and not all my other stuff. I really would like to avoid a complete
re-install of everything. That is why I picked up Ghost. But at this
point, the only thing it seems I am allowed to do or use is the factory
installed disk.


In article , Ben Myers @ wrote:

It all makes perfectly good sense to me, but, as always, there are pitfalls.

First, Windows XP does not have built-in support for SATA. The only
guaranteed
way to use an SATA drive as a boot device is to install Windows on it from
scratch, inserting a CD with SATA driver early-on (non-Windows text displays)
in
the install process. SATA is relatively new to the Intel computer world, and
as
with any newer hardware, the drivers could not possibly have been included
with
Windows XP, which was born (hatched?) before SATA.

Next, Ghost oughta work for cloning a drive and Windows XP should not throw up
when booting from the cloned drive. As an alternative, I have been using
Seagate's Disk Wizard somewhat routinely to clone hard drives, most recently
for
my old IBM ThinkPad notebook. Disk Wizard works OK even if neither source nor
target drive is a Seagate brand. At worst, when Windows XP boots up, it will
fret that your hardware configuration has changed and you'll need to go
through
the stupid product activation process again... Ben Myers

On Tue, 08 Nov 2005 09:43:14 -0500, Kevin DeFreest wrote:

I have been a MAC user since the very beginning, so my comfort level
with them has never been a problem. But now that I want to tinker
with the PC, it just has a different approach. Which is fine with me.

What I am trying to accomplish is this:

The ST1610NX comes with a 80GB IDE HD. The PC has 2 SATA connectors on
board. I happen to have an extra Hitachi 400GB SATA drive left over
from my MAC systems. I had installed 3 of these in my G4. The G4 can
handle 4 internal drives, but because the connector on the 4th drive
was binding on a fan I couldn't use it. So I figured lets put it in
the Compaq.

The Compaq has room for only 1 HD. I opened the case and hooked up
the SATA drive to the logic board and connected it to the power supply.
I then used Norton Ghost to do an exact copy of the original drive. I
then dissconected the original drive, booted the PC and entered the
BIOS to make sure the new drive was visible. It was, but after leaving
the BIOS and continuing the boot process the machine gave me a HD
confiuration error. I also have a couple of extra Hitachi 120GB IDE
HD's. I also tried to see if they would work. I received the same
error. So I figured that I needed to access the command line to
perhaps properly set up the partion. But not being a PC user for very
long, I really didn't know how to go about things. With a MAC you open
the case, install the drive, boot up, go to Drive set-up, format and
you're good to go.

I hope I am making sense.

Thanks for the help!!!

Kevin



In article , Ben Myers @ wrote:

Several points of interest:

1. The SR1610NX is new enough that it supports booting from a USB floppy
drive.

2. I'm not familiar with its innards, but you could probably add an
internal
floppy drive with the right mounting bracket or screws or whatever.

3. Booting from a floppy or a CD probably won't help you with command line
access, assuming that you have Windows XP on the system. Windows XP can be
set
up with either the FAT32 file system or the NTFS file system. Most
manufacturers deliver computers set up with NTFS, which is more difficult
to
access when the system is booted to a command prompt. If your needs are
read-only, you can download a free DOS driver that allows you to read
anything
on an NTFS partition. Otherwise, you have to buy a fairly expensive NTFS
read-write driver from a company called SysInternals. Microsoft designed
NTFS
with greater security in mind, despite the myriad of plugged and unplugged
security holes in Windows. The greater security means that it is much more
difficult for the garden-variety person to access an NTFS partition from
the
command line.

4. Windows computers and Macs... Neither is easier to set up than the
other.
Late in the game here (last year or so), business opportunities have made
me
confront Mac, which I'd never done before. It's taken me some time to do
the
learning curve, but I now have a degree of comfort with Macs.

5. In the time honored tradition, I need to ask the question as to what is
it
that you need to accomplish via command line access to a supposed NTFS
partition? There may be another way to get the job done. Please explain.

... Ben Myers

On Tue, 08 Nov 2005 06:36:32 -0500, MaadDog wrote:

I have a Compaq Presario SR1610NX. It is a very basic system. I am
primarily a MAC user that also needs to use a PC for some things. The
MAC I know inside out. So this is a learning thing for me. I also
have a Dell Precision Workstation which is a bit older. Configuring
PC's is a bit more difficult I have found. Which doesn't bother me,
because I do enjoy the tinkering etc.

The burning software I have is Nero 7 Ultra. I will take a look at
that to see if I can make a boot disk. It seems to make sense that
they need to be able to provide some way of being able to access the
command prompt if you don't have a floppy. I really feel that floppy
disks are obsolete anyway.

Thanks for all the help!!!

In article , HH
wrote:

If you have a full version of most CD/DVD burning software, it likely
can
make a bootable CD or DVD disc. Search the software help for boot disc.
OEM
versions of the software often do not include this option.
HH

"MaadDog" wrote in message
...
I need to make a Boot Disk so I can get to the command prompt.
However, I do not have a floppy drive on my Compaq like I do on my
older Dell. I just have a Pioneer DVR110. Is there anyway to create a
boot disk with a CD?