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Your computer has to know how to use a bootdisk. There are 4
things to look for in the BIOS.

First, make sure the bios knows that you have a 1.44 floppy
installed. then look for Boot Sequence and set it so A or Floppy
shows up first in the sequence. Check for a line that says your
Onboard FDC Controller is ENABLED. Finally, assure that the
Onboard FDC Swap A & B is set to No Swap if your 1.44 is at the
end of your floppy cable.

First see if there is a message when you first turn on your system
like: "To Enter Setup Press" and make a note of it. That will be the
key you need to access the CMOS setup. Check your motherboard
manual also.

The most popular way is to hit the Delete key as the computer
boots up, but there are many other ways depending on what type of
system you have. Other popular keys include F1 or F2 and for
Compaqs, F10 when the big cursor is in the upper right of the
screen for example. Also Ctrl-Alt-Delete, Ctrl-q, Ctrl-s, Alt-s, Esc,
Alt-Esc, Alt-Enter, Ctrl-Alt-Esc, Ctrl-Alt-Enter, Ctrl-Alt-F8, and

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Ctrl-Alt-Insert.

Or type setup in DOS on older boxes. then we have F12, other F

keys, Ctrl-Alt-q, Ctrl-Alt-s, Ctrl-Alt-d, Ctrl-Alt-p, Ctrl-Esc, Ctrl-Shift-s
and combinations of above.

Sometimes, just holding down a key when you first turn on the
computer forces an error which tells you how to enter "setup". Often
you can just disconnect the keyboard to get the "To Enter Setup
Press" prompt. Write it down, turn the power off, reconnect the
keyboard and go.

A whole slew of laptops have cmos access software on the hard

drive. For example, on old Toshiba's there is a tsetup file in c:\dos.
Check the C: drive for a folder that matches your model laptop
maybe there's a setup file there. Or, your laptop may have bios
access software that you have to find and run in windows. It is often
available from their website.

If you get real desperate, you can sometimes take out a set of RAM
which may cause an adjustment notice where the directions may
appear on how to access, or just pulling out the floppy cable or hard
drive cable sometimes works.

HOW TO MAKE A BOOTDISK FOR YOUR PC

The easiest way to make a simple bootdisk for your Win 95/98
computer is to type sys a: at a c:\_

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Or, from Windows, goto Start | Settings | Control Panel | Add

Remove Programs | Startup Disk | Create Disk. You may be asked
to insert your Win9X CD. This may not work however if your CD
drive letter has changed since you installed Windows due to adding
another IDE device.

You will have to use the above method with Windows Me.

Getting your cdrom to work may also be a hassle, unless you make
a bootdisk with Windows 98 in that case it will most likely include
the drivers that will see your cdrom.

In order to get your cdrom working from a bootdisk, you'll need a

line that looks like this in the config.sys file on your boot floppy:

DEVICE=cd1.SYS /D:tomato

And a line that looks like this in the autoexec.bat file:

MSCDEX.EXE /D:tomato /L:R

The device line loads the cdrom driver, cd1.sys. Your particular
CDrom driver if you know where it is will be named something like
mtmide.sys or similar. The /D names the CDrom device. In this
case I am naming it tomato, you can name it anything you like but I
think it has to be 8 characters or less.

The purpose of MSCDEX.EXE in autoexec.bat is to assign a drive

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letter to the device, hence, the /D:tomato has to be the same in

both files. The /L:R tells your computer to make your cdrom drive
letter R. You can change this letter to anything you want to, tho you
may have to put a lastdrive=z in your config.sys file first.

A proper bootdisk also contains the utilities you will need, like
format, fdisk, sys, edit, qbasic, copy, xcopy, label, chkdsk, himem,
etc. Copy them over from either the DOS or the
Windows\Command folder to the bootdisk.

Ok, suppose you tried doing it manually, and already did a sys a:, or
made a bootdisk with windows and it still doesn't see your cdrom
and you're at the end of your rope. You can download shebang1 to
an empty folder on your hard drive, click on it, and just copy the
extracted files to your bootfloppy.

Make sure tho you have at least mscdex.exe and himem.sys on

your bootdisk.

Or, another way: Do a sys a: from a C:\_ prompt and then download
shebang2 to an empty folder on your hard drive, click on it and
copy the contents to your A: Drive. You wont have to worry about
finding mscdex.exe or himem.sys.

Supplemental Note #1: To make a better Windows 98 bootdisk then

the one that came with your Windows CD, put in your CD and seek
out \tools\mtsutil\fat32ebd\fat32ebd.exe and double click on the file.

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Supplemental Note #2: Windows 3.X has no utility for making a

bootdisk. You have to do it manually. If you want to download one,
do a ver from a DOS prompt to find out what version of DOS you
have. If ver doesn't work then go to your DOS folder and note the
dates on the files as they correspond to the version of DOS you are
using.

Supplemental Note #3: You can also download a bootdisk and add
universal cdrom drivers to it by using thepatch.

Supplemental Note #4: After you make any bootdisk using any
method even an image program the very first thing to do is WRITE
PROTECT it. Do this before you even do a dir on the disk.

I WANT A MOUSE IN DOS

The easiest way to test and/or get a standard serial or ps/2 mouse
working in DOS is to download mouse.com to C:\ and C:\Windows
and just type mouse at a any C:\_ prompt. You may have to hold
your Shift key down when you click on the file to download.

Or, Download mouse.zip to an empty folder on your hard drive and

and unpack it. then type install. It will put a line in your autoexec.bat
file [c:\mouse\mouse] and reboot your computer.

Another mouse installation program for DOS is mouse.exe. This file

will make a mouse driver installation diskette. Both programs have
testing software built in. Thanks to Mark O'

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If you want a mouse to work on your bootdisk copy mouse.com to

your bootdisk and add a line in the autoexec.bat like this:

mouse, or
a:\mouse.com, or
a:\mouse

If you want the mouse installed high when you boot to C: add LH to
the line in autoexec.bat like this:

LH C:\MOUSE\MOUSE

Of course, in order for the mouse to load high you may need lines
like this in your c:\config.sys:

DEVICE=C:\DOS\HIMEM.SYS
DEVICE=C:\DOS\EMM386.EXE NOEMS, or

DEVICE=C:\windows\HIMEM.SYS
DEVICE=C:\windows\EMM386.EXE NOEMS

If you want a mouse when you shell to DOS from Windows add a
line to dosstart.bat like this after you use either of the installation
programs above:

c:\mouse\mouse

Dosstart.bat is in the C:\Windows folder.

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USB Mouse In DOS

Your bios may already support USB mice and keyboards. Check
there, look for something that says USB Legacy support or similiar.
This is a much better option than using third party software.

If you have a USB mouse here are two files, either one should find
your USB mouse in DOS. Docs are included with the zip-pack
called: USBmice. Essentially all you do is either load up ohci.exe or
uhci.exe in autoexec.bat

Please note that while the UBS Mouse files "should" get your USB
mouse to work OK in simple programs like DOS Edit and other
basic DOS applications, they will totally disappoint you for
sophisticated DOS games. The files are also quite large and use a
lot of base ram.

In summary, the USB DOS mice "driver" files are very limited in
their use.

I WANT MY CDROM TO WORK IN DOS

Sometimes you need to make your hard drive boot up to DOS and
load CDrom drivers. For example, some people have swappable
CD and Floppy drives for their laptop and have to be able to boot to
C: and use their Windows CD to start the install.

So I created a special bootdisk just for this purpose that adds the

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drivers you need automatically. It comes with 4 generic CDrom

drivers and after you run it you'll see a menu. Selection #1 works
99% of the time. Before you use this disk your hard drive has to be
partitioned and formatted and made bootable with the sys c:
command.

In other words use the bootdisk you need that matches the OS you
want to install ie win95/win98. Setup the hard drive first, do a sys c:,
then put the special disk in and reboot and it will do the rest of the
work for you.

The file is called doscdrom.exe. Here's the helpfile. It's a special

bootdisk you create by putting in a new disk into your A: drive and
clicking on doscdrom.exe in Windows.

Your CDrom drive will be assigned the next drive letter after your
hard drive partitions (and) other IDE devices. Pay close attention to
the screens to see the exact letter.

Please note that there is a slight chance that you may have a
proprietary cdrom. If none of the included generic cdrom drivers
work then you really need the specific driver for your cdrom that
you should be able to get from your manufacturers website.

Supplemental Note #1: Make sure the jumpers are set on your
cdrom correctly. For example, if you have it connected on the same
flat ribbon cable as your hard drive, make sure the hard drive is set
to master and the cdrom is set to slave. If the cdrom is on its own

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channel by itself, I like to set it to master but it works most of the

time when set to slave also.

Supplemental Note #2: Once you have the real mode drivers
loading up and have a cdrom in DOS, you can have the use of it in
Windows Safe Mode as well. From a DOS boot, or a boot to
Command Prompt Only from the win95/98 menu, type win /d:m for
Safe Mode with CDrom support.

Supplemental Note #3: In the CMOS, sometimes the cdrom will

work best in DOS if it's set to NONE on the channel it's on.
Sometimes it works best if set to AUTO.

Supplemental Note #4: This utility uses dos drivers to make your
cdrom work. After you are done with your dos work you may have
to rem out the lines in config.sys and/or autoexec.bat to make sure
your cdrom works in Windows because windows likes to use it's
own drivers. Leave them in however if working on a win3X PC.

THE PATCH
To standardize any of your personal bootdisks with universal cdrom
drivers and make it work faster, you can download thepatch to a
clean folder, click on it, and then copy everything over to your
bootdisk except the file called thepatch.exe. It will put 4 standard
cdrom drivers on your bootdisk and also overwrite the config.sys
and autoexec.bat with easier to work with, more universal files.

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If cd1.sys doesn't find your cdrom drive, then you can edit the
config.sys and change cd1.sys to cd2.sys and so on. Just change
the 1 to a 2, easy huh? Also, if your cdrom is on a odd channel, you
might try unremming some or all of the lines you see in my version
of config.sys.

If the set of generic cdrom drivers do not work, then you have to try
downloading the driver from the cdrom manufacturers website or
download a cdrom setup disk. If you don't know who made your
cdrom, you can check for a FCCID number and go to the FCCID
search form and try to find out. If you are lucky, the manufacturer's
name will be printed on top.

Reminder, you should have at least a basic disk that at least starts
your computer before you apply thepatch. Your basic disk must at
least include the startup files, mscdex.exe, and himem.sys.

HOW TO INSTALL VIDEO DRIVERS

Windows may lose your video card settings or drivers. This may
happen when you add a new pci card or just swap slots, add other
new hardware, experience a surge, or reinstall Windows. Of course
you can first try running the setup program that came with on your
drivers disk or have Windows search for new hardware and install
its own native drivers but that doesn't always work.

If you are installing a new video card, make sure you boot to Safe
Mode and in Device Manager, remove the old video card(s). If the

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new video card is already in and you have also have onboard
video, use Device Manager to find the onboard adapter and click on
it and set it to "Disable in this hardware profile".

On thing to tho check if you are having driver problems is the

website of the card manufacturer. They are beginning to put special
un-installers for download that you can use. Also remember to
check Add/Remove programs to uninstall any old drivers, if there.

The classic way to reinstall video drivers on a SEASONED

SYSTEM that is having a problem with the standard methods is to
first go into Safe Mode | Device Manager and remove everything
under Display Adapters.

Also, while in Safe Mode | Device Manager, click on Monitors and

remove any entry that does not match the model of your monitor. If
you see a Standard VGA entry there you can also delete it and add
the correct driver later on if required.

Then reboot and let Windows start up and force it to select a

standard vga card. Now you have two options:

First, install your drivers the standard way according to the docs for
your specific card, or Second, reboot again and if Windows asks for
the correct drivers point it the correct folder on your drivers disk or
the drivers file folder you have already expanded in a folder on your
hard drive.

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If Windows 98 doesn't install the correct drivers "automatically" or

ask for the location of the correct drivers then right click on the
desktop, select Properties | Settings | Advanced | Adapter | Change
| Next | Search for a better driver ... | Specify a location | Browse.
Now you can either browse and tell Windows where the correct
drivers are or manually type in the path.

If Windows 95 doesn't install the correct drivers "automatically" then

right click on the desktop, select Properties | Settings | Advanced
Properties | Adapter | Change. Now you have 2 choices. You can
select a compatible device if its shown or select Have Disk | Browse
and tell Windows where the drivers are or manually type in the
path.

If you have a drivers disk, the .inf file(s) may be located in the root
directory of the disk or in a sub folder called win95 or win98. If you
are using Win98 and your video drivers disk only has a Win95
folder then its certainly time to download the latest files for your
video adapter from the manufacturers or chip makers website.

In addition, you cant always trust what video card windows "thinks"
is installed. You often have to look at the chipset to find the
numbers you need to locate and download the proper drivers.
That's the reason we often have to force it to use a standard VGA
card in advance of pointing it to the correct driver folder.

Very often have to take out your video card from the computer to

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properly Identify it so you can find the right drivers. If you have
onboard video often you have to look for the video chip to get the
maker and number.

There are however, utilities that can ID your video card without you
taking your system apart. These include {HWiNFO} or {WcpuID}.

So, you may find that you have a choice of 3 different sets of
drivers to try: The Windows drivers, the card manufacturers drivers,
and the chip makers drivers. If you know the brand of the card or
type of chip, sometimes the card makers have ID utilities that you
can download to properly identify the specific model so you may not
have to take your computer apart.

In any case, especially when installing a brand new video card, it's
important to read the help and/or doc files as some new cards
require some "unconventional" methods to install the drivers. For
example, some new cards you have to install the software _before_
you snap in the new replacement card.

Keep in mind that after you get the video card working properly with
the proper drivers you will most likely have to install/update DirectX.

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