Got a service call from a user with an older Packard Bell system.
Didn't write down the specifics, but it's an Intel Pentium 75 (I think it
might have even been an old Socket 5 mobo.) with 8MB RAM.

User had upgraded the system to Win98 a few weeks ago, and except for
having to uninstall their anti-virus to get the upgrade to work, the
upgrade supposedly went fine (so they tell me).  About a week ago, their
CD-ROM drive stopped working.  It was a plain Quad speed IDE drive that
came with the system.  The drive would spin-up with a CD inside, and the
drive was recognized by Windows, but they'd always get the "Drive Not
Ready, Cancel or Retry" dialog box (as if there was no CD in the drive). I
assumed the drive went bad and brought over an NEC 4x4 IDE CD-ROM changer
drive that was just laying around. Made sure it was jumpered as master and
hooked it up to the secondary IDE interface on the mobo., same as the old
drive, but lo and behold, I would get the same error dialog box (Drive Not
Ready) even with a CD in the drive.

Also tried changing the IDE cable, even re-jumpered the CD as slave and
the HD as master and connected both to the primary IDE interface on the
mobo., and still got the same results.  Will be testing the old CD-ROM
drive (and my NEC drive) on my own system at home the first chance I get,
but I suspect that both will work.

Anyone else had anything similar happen to them with an older Packard
Bell system, Win98 and IDE CD-ROM drives?

-JOWj.

John Wilson
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"The Pledge of Allegiance says, 'With liberty and justice for ALL.'  What
part of ALL do you not understand?" - Rep. Pat Schroder.