Win XP and CD-R problem

Hi guys

Recently installed Win XP. Most things fine (except for sound problem - see other post).
One thing I have noticed now is that after I have been using the PC for a while and restart the machine the PC waits for ages trying to detect my IDE drives (including DVD ROM and CD RW. After about 1 minute it carries on having found my two hard drives but not the DVD or CDRW!! The loading screen takes FOREVER, but eventually Win XP loads but I cannot access my CD-R (I can access the DVD though!) This is Soooooooo weird..... I have re-installed Win XP and it works fine for a while then forgets there is a CD-R again and takes ages to boot.

Any ideas?

I mean the machine does not see the actual drive at all. However, when I switched on the PC just now it booted fine and found the drives! Why is it finding them sometimes and and then losing them? It usually happens when the machine has been on for some time. I wonder whether it is a heat problem (temp gauge says the 1800 XP is only at 45 degrees though, and I have the side of the PC off to allow more ventilation....

Any ideas?

One thing I know is that WinXP's CD writing capabilities are pretty poor. Data that is written to a CD is often difficult to access.

One effect is that a CD in the drive can't be read properly. This prevents WinXP from "reporting" the drive correctly, because it keeps attempting to read the data on the disc but cannot do so successfully.

So, I ask again - does the problem occur randomly, or only when a CD-R is in the drive?

<b>1.4 Ghz AMD T-Bird underclocked to 1 Ghz...just to be safe!</b>