[PLUG] Cross-platform hardware problem

["George Langford, Sc.D." <amenex@amenex.com>]

Hello Linux Users:

My Ak-74EC computer is giving me fits.  During a memory upgrade,
I inadvertently ran the PC first with both HD's powered up and then
with just one.  I saved the System.ini file twice, once with each
of the above conditions.  As a result I ended up with the drive
letters swapped between C: and D: as described at this long-winded
URL:

> http://www.experts-exchange.com/Operating_Systems/Win98/Q_20642131.html

I now find, after attempting to escape into Mandrake Linux 9.1, that
there must be a hardware problem, because even Linux can't boot from
the hard drive.  "Boot drive failure" etc.  Same result as with W98
and WinXP and three hard drives tried so far.  One of the screens that
I see during this process contains the words, "Registry file was not 
found ... XMS cache problem ... Registry Service may be inoperative
for this session ... followed by ... VFAT is not present ... which of
course are MS-specific.  Mandrake doesn't say anything, but I haven't
figured out how to view the appropriate logs ... I've never actually
started Linux from the CD - it just wants to redo the installation
or repair it.  I've tried the repair w/o success.

Win98SE could boot back when I had two HD's installed ... and before I
hosed the Win98SE with an attempted WinXP install ... so I had the
impression that the OS was split between the two hard drives ... but
that explanation seems useless now that the Linux install fails more-
or-less the same as the two MS installations (actually many more if one
counts the other failed attempts).

Searching on XMS & VFAT produces a myriad of questions and replies but
no real answers ... many of which go back to W95, or Linux in 1999 ...

Thanks for thinking about this.

George Langford
amenex@amenex.com
http://www.amenex.com/
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