Boot Floppy Disk

[Jim]

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.win95.general.discussion (More info?)

I have a dell latitude lm with only a formatted hard drive
and a cd rom. I want to install windows 98 but the
computer will not boot past the dell setup. How do i get a
drive prompt so i can install windows 98?

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.win95.general.discussion (More info?)

"Jim" <anonymous@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote:

>I have a dell latitude lm with only a formatted hard drive
>and a cd rom. I want to install windows 98 but the
>computer will not boot past the dell setup. How do i get a
>drive prompt so i can install windows 98?

After being puzzled for a minute or so, I figure that you're talking
about a computer with a formatted hard drive partition with nothing at
all on it. In that case, you're right that you can't boot to the hard
drive, since there's nothing there to boot to!

You need to go to www.bootdisk.com and get a bootdisk that includes
CD-ROM support. Once you get that created correctly, put it into the
floppy drive and boot your machine. (This assumes that your machine,
like nearly all computers, is configured to search the floppy drive
first, then the hard drive for a bootable OS.) You'll be in a DOS
environment (you should see an A:> prompt), and you'll be able to put
your Win98 CD into the CD drive and run "setup.exe" from it.

--
Tim Slattery
MS MVP(DTS)
Slattery_T@bls.gov

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.win95.general.discussion (More info?)

I recommend that you consult Dell tech support before installing
Windows. The reason is that laptop makers sometimes use hardware that
is not compatible with the components of Windows that Microsoft
distributes, in which cases, you have to use components provided by
the laptop maker. I do not know that this is a factor for you, but it
makes sense to ask dell before installing.

You can obtain a Windows Startup Disk at:

http://www.bootdisk.com/

Also, the Ultimate Boot Disk will: Restore corrupt system files; Flash
your PC bios; Scan your hard drive for viruses; Install or re-install
Windows; Extract cabinet files from the Windows CD; Scan your hard
drive for errors; Boot into the Windows graphical user interface; Run
DOS disk utilities like Partition Magic or Ghost; Partition your hard
drive; Backup your registry or transfer system files. 626kB. Windows
95/98/ME/NT/2000. Free at:

http://www.startdisk.com/Web1/ubd/ubd.htm


Bill Starbuck (MVP)