The driver for the CDROM drive needs to be loaded before the disk in the CDROM can be read. Trying to make a CDROM disk universally bootable is similar to asking the Space shuttle to take off without the booster rockets.

With a floppy drive at $15, why bother? Boot from the floppy, load the driver and go from there. If you want to make it look like it is booting cold, don't put the floppy slot through the front bezel, just stick it inside the case with the bootup floppy installed permanently. If it is a DOS based system, then do a SUBST to flip drive A: and drive B:

You really can't go wrong with any product from MicroSoft! They always take care of their customers needs promptly and effectively. What is that piling up in here? Oh, it's my own BS.

I wanted to make a data CD for DOS programs, as some of them don't run correctly under Windows 9X.

Short answer: under EZCD 4, hit the small arrow next to the NEW button to get a popup menu of all the types you can create. The bottom one is "bootable CD."

-Tw?

(One of these days there will be a film-oriented topic I will be able to post in intelligently...)
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Resident nerd.

There should be no reason why you can't get the CDROM to read in DOS using a standard CD drive and MSDEX, although, of course, you won't be able to write to it if your burning software doesn't work in DOS. You WILL have to make sure the disk is in the STANDARD CD data format.

My guess is that you are using DirectCD to create disks that can be modified like floppies. These can be read under various Windows machines, but not under DOS or Win 3.11. People confuse DirectCD and CD Creator all the time.
http://www.roxio.com/ has the adaptec support faqs. Quoting: "In order to support packet writing, when DirectCD closes a session to the ISO 9660 format, it must use ISO 9660 Interchange Level 3. Unfortunately, DOS and Windows 3.1 can only read ISO 9660 Level 1, so DirectCD discs, even when closed to ISO, cannot be read by these operating systems"

If you ARE using EZ CD creator then this should help: "Problem Session Not Closed- It sometimes happens that the data (or audio) is recorded correctly, but the session is not closed. In this case a CD recorder can read the disc, but a normal CD-ROM drive or CD audio player cannot. Solution - In Easy CD Creator, go to Disc | Disc Information and click on the Close Session button."

Does this help?

There is not a keyboard command to force a boot from CD, the boot order needs to be set in the BIOS, so that it will check the CD first, normal boot order is A,C (or IDE0) SCSI or IDE-CD the method of changing this order depends on the BIOS.

For any drive to be able to boot it needs to not only have a boot sector but the necessary files as well. Formatting a floppy with the /s switch accomplishes this, however it works if you have DOS, Windows 95 or 98.

MAC has an excellent platform, no doubt about it. Trouble is, some of the specialized programs I have do not fit a MAC. Some of the crap I have to contend with in our on-air computers at the radio station were written to run under MSDOS. Even the update as of last month.

Macro-Shaft has some good points, too. It is just like eating feces - millions and millions flies can't be wrong!

Making a bootable CD was more of a curiosity than anything else. And, with Tod's help, mission accomplished.

Again, thanks, Tod, and the rest of you gents who tried to help me. Your guidance is what did the trick, and I learned something.

I hope I can help all of you in a technical matter when your butt falls through a crack.

These forums are GREAT!

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