um...yeah...i got a Win98SE install problem.

[pluto1914]

So anyways we are using these Panasonic toughbooks (CF-25) for use in some of the vehicles here at work. Well before I stepped into this little project they used to run Win95 someone upgraded them to Win98SE with out doing a format. These little computers are Pentium's with 1.3GB HD and 72MB of RAM. With a swapable floppy drive and CD-ROM. So enter me into the picture. I comment on how I can wipe the PC's giving them a fresh start. Well I formatted them from a boot disk and when I went to put in the CD ROM and the Win98SE CD it dosen't do anything...There is no splash screen in the beginning that says Panasonic and I cannot enter the BIOS to see if the stupid thing even sees the CD ROM. The Win98SE splash screen shows for like a split second and then asks me to press F1 to continue. Please somone out there must be able to help?? Thanks!!!

[blackbeard]

woops
.remember the early days of compaq and packard bell
if you do it may be a similar deal
you may need special boot disks to prepare the hdd the correct way for the
system to work
sort of like blessing the x box hdd or some of the dvr boxes

2nd guess
any updated bios flashes available?????

[NooNoo]

Pluto, how is your dos?

You need to create the cd driving lines in config.sys and autoexec.bat on the hard drive.

You boot with a floppy, create the autoexec and config on the hard drive. Now shut down, put in the cdrom and the drivers you have already loaded on to the hdd can run the cd rom. general tutorial (http://www.geocities.com/politalk/cdrom/cddos.htm) you will need the specific cdrom dos drivers.... although many work with each other.

Personally, I hook up the hard drive to a desktop and copy the cabs across and run setup from the hard disk.

[pluto1914]

How hard is it to hook up a lap top HDD to a desktop computer??? WHere can i buy the adapter??

[NooNoo]

How hard is it to hook up a lap top HDD to a desktop computer??? WHere can i buy the adapter??
dead easy, if you know that there is a pin one and how to set a jumper and just about anywhere.....

You should also know that some laptops keep their bios on their hard drive, as blackbeard said above. What what you are doing, it is all to easy to overwrite stuff that you didn't know you needed until you can't get it.

[WebHead]

Pluto, how is your dos?

You need to create the cd driving lines in config.sys and autoexec.bat on the hard drive.

You boot with a floppy, create the autoexec and config on the hard drive. Now shut down, put in the cdrom and the drivers you have already loaded on to the hdd can run the cd rom. general tutorial (http://www.geocities.com/politalk/cdrom/cddos.htm) you will need the specific cdrom dos drivers.... although many work with each other.

Personally, I hook up the hard drive to a desktop and copy the cabs across and run setup from the hard disk.

Also, don't forget to " sys" the disk.

Boot up on a bootable floppy, at the command prompt type:
"a:\sys C:" without the quotes

[pluto1914]

I don't think I can use that tutorial because I currently have nothing on this HDD. When I boot this PC it says

C:\

I type "DIR" and get

Volume in drive C has no label
Volume serial number is 384A-1DE2
Directory of drive C:\

COMMAND COM 93,890 4-23-99 10:22p
1 file(s) 93,890 bytes
0 dir(s) 1,345,290,240 bytes free

C:\


I have nothing on this HD, that tutorial tells me to edit something that I don't have. Sorry if this is difficult.

[WebHead]

Can you boot to a floppy? (I just want to be sure before I post the ultimate Wrbby answer to all your problems).

[WebHead]

If you can boot to a floppy, then do the following...

1) Download this file and unzip all the contents of this file to a floppy disk using winzip. (http://www.clixstar.net/bootdisk/Bootdisk.zip)

2) Now you have all the files you need to do this,.. but now you need to be able to boot from that floppy disk. So from a working Win98se PC, open a DOS window and from the C prompt type "C:\sys a:" without quotes. It has to be from a win98se pc or this sys might not work right for what you want to do.

3) Now you're ready to go. Insert the floppy disk and let the computer boot to it.

4) You'll be faced with 3 choices. Just pick choice 2 (it really doesn't matter either way.)

5) Once it finishes doing some stuff, it'll show the A prompt. At that point, type "a:\mitsumi" without quotes and hit enter.

6) Once it's finished, remove the floppy disk and shut off the computer.

7) Unplug the floppy drive and plug in the cd-rom drive

8) Turn the computer back on. Once it gets to the C prompt type "C:\cd d:" without the quotes and hit enter.

9) At the D prompt type "D:\setup", hit enter and you'll be off and running.

This boot disk is awesome btw. The jedi master who instructed me created it. It will load a basic version of DOS, a DOS mouse driver, Toshiba CD drivers, and Mitsumi CD drivers (which are compatible with 99.999% of all CD-rom drives out there).

[DocPC]

Hey Wrbby, yer link don't work...... :sad:

[WebHead]

Hey Wrbby, yer link don't work...... :sad:

Ooops,.. sorry about that. Try again. I guess there is a difference between b and B. :D

And while you're at it,.. let me know what you think of that boot disk. I think it's pretty cool. But I'm always open to suggestions on how to improve it.

[DocPC]

:thumbs2:

[WebHead]

[absent minded] Oops,.. I just noticed that the disk I posted above was from something else. The one that is there now is the correct one. :) [/absent minded]

[pluto1914]

WebHead THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! You have saved me from this nightmare!!! I really appreciate all your help! Thanks again...

David

[confus-ed]

So Webby fixed it :thumbs: .. but that's re-inventing the wheel methinks ..

Was all that to create a bootdisk with cd rom support ? Get 'em here predone .. bootdisk.com (http://www.bootdisk.com) admittedly these don't add dos mouse support, but what the hell do you want that for ? & dos mouse drivers can hardly be described as 'generic' so getting one that covers them all seems unlikely, it didn't work with mine ;) !

[WebHead]

WebHead THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! You have saved me from this nightmare!!! I really appreciate all your help! Thanks again...

David

No prob. Glad it worked out. :)

[pluto1914]

I have since done this to three more computers wiht much success. I have this one laptop that still has Win95 on it. I formatted it with the Win95 boot disk from bootdisk.com and again like before I cannot get the CD-ROM to work. I was wondering if there is some different procedure for Win95??

[pluto1914]

I had three successful reformats with this help...but i have a pc that was never upgraded to Win98. It had win95 on it...I formatted it and tried to follow the instructions but that do not work. Is there different instructions for machine that had Win95??? Thanks!

[confus-ed]

I had three successful reformats with this help...but i have a pc that was never upgraded to Win98. It had win95 on it...I formatted it and tried to follow the instructions but that do not work. Is there different instructions for machine that had Win95??? Thanks!

Probably you need to tell this laptop in its bios to use the floppy drive as its boot source ? (the reply I got by mail said different to the bit quoted & said something about no system disk found ?)

..95 or 98 or even 98se should make no nevermind ;)