Problem booting from Floppy boot disk.

burnsy · August 24th, 2003, 11:03 PM

Hi. I have a 233mhz machine that was running win98upgrade nicely. I purchased a Lindows O/S disk and attempted clean install on the whole harddrive. It loaded to the hdrive, but I couldn't get past the install because it needed a 800 res. moniter, which I didn't have, in order to view the process. So I have tried to re-install my win98 upgrade with a win95 original for verification, with no luck.

When I try to boot from the floppy, I get an I/O error, insert disk and press any key. I have tried connect and re-connect on cables, have installed another working floppy, have changed cables, have set BIOS to boot from floppy, have downloaded a new boot disk for Win98 from bootdisk.com, with the same results..

A friend has said that Lindows has partitioned the drive with a non-dos partition, and I need to fdisk and format the drive, deleting the non-dos partition. But in order to do so requires a dos prompt. How does one get into dos when the floppy won't pick up the boot disk for some reason....

thanks.

burnsy

Xeroid · August 24th, 2003, 11:08 PM

That's a strange one. Doesn't Lindows have a partition utility on the install CD? I have used my bootable Mandrake install CD to delete a Linux partition. Just start the install and progress down to where you do the partitioning, wipe out the Linux partiton, and reboot.

& WELCOME to TechIMO!

burnsy · August 24th, 2003, 11:18 PM

Hi Xeroid; fast reply, thanks....

On the Lindows CD, the only thing it asks is if you want to install alongside your windows O/S or a clean install on the hd. Once chosen and entered, the CD takes over the install, no opportunity to change anything. This is the new Lindows O/S version 4. I had it running on my AMD 1800 and it is a really nice O/S but a pain havind to pay for everything, when many windows applications and programs are free downloads....

I have loaded Mandrake Linux ver 9.1 on my 1800 and ran it for awhile, also a nice clean O/S. But until I learn a little of the unix lingo, I am staying with win98 on my 1800, and I want to have it back on my 233, if I can ever get the boot disk to read....

Anything else you might think I can try?

burnsy

Xeroid · August 24th, 2003, 11:27 PM

If you have the Mandrake CD, boot to it and blow away the partition. Should work.

I have no idea why your floppy won't boot. You've tried everything I would have tried. I don't know unless your floppy port on your motherboard is hosed.

Anyway's you should be able to boot to the Mandrake install CD & delete that partition. Is the Win98 upgrade CD bootable? I have the full version of Win98 and I know that CD is bootable. You should be able to get Win98 back on your machine if it is.

You might also check in you BIOS setup to make sure the floppy is even enabled. On mine it's under SUPER IO DEVICE / ONBOARD FDC CONTROLLER.

EDIT: Sorry, left a step out.

INTEGRATED PERIF. / SUPER IO DEVICE / FDC CONTROLLER

burnsy · August 24th, 2003, 11:31 PM

Xeroid, yes the bios has the floppy enabled and listed, but I will try the Mandrake install idea since I have it. I will give it a try in a bit, my wife wants me for the moment.....LOL....

Be back with the good news hopefully within the hour.......

burnsy

Xeroid · August 24th, 2003, 11:33 PM

Kewl.

Toggle into the "expert mode" when you get into the Mandrake partition utility.

burnsy · August 25th, 2003, 01:33 AM

Nope! No luck!
I live in a three story apt building. I will try a dropick on the machine...... see if that works.

burnsy

burnsy · August 26th, 2003, 03:30 PM

Xeroid, you still around? I've tried, and retried, and still get this I/O error, insert disk and press any key.

Short of dropping it off the roof, what should I do? New board? New Hdrive? Maybe a bootable win98 cd, so it could try to load from the cdrom instead of the floppy?

Patience, patience, part of the procedures with pcs', got it.

burnsy

burnsy · August 26th, 2003, 11:21 PM

Okay Xeroid: I got it.... The problem was with the floppy cable. I noticed that the floppy light was on constantly. So I traded cables because I did a flip flop on it, and it didn't make a differene. But when I put on the new cable the light went out, and only came on on demand.....

Great. Then it said the boot disk was faulty, so I downloaded a new startup from my AMD 1800 machine running win98, and put that in the floppy and away we went.

Thought I would let you know how it all came out.... Thanks for the quick responses, that really is a help....

burnsy

Xeroid · August 27th, 2003, 12:57 AM

No, I wasn't around earlier.

Sorry dude but I was tied up. I thought you had already tried a new cable.

Glad you got it going. Thanks for the feedback.

Mike