I needed a laptop on win98 to run a specific program that won't run on XP, so I got an old one that was had run 98 but had been upgraded. I loaded the 98 cd and rebooted from it, got the blue setup screen saying what partition do you want 98 in. I chose the active partition and it looked like it was about to reformat, then came back with an error msg that it couldn't format. Then I loaded a win98 boot disk and restarted the laptop to format or fdisk the HD. I could fdisk and make the partition active but that didn't solve the problem. So, I restarted the computer with the floppy and was going to format the disk and then repartition it, but there was no format listed on the A:. I made another floppy from a reliable source but after loading it the A drive Dir still did not show it. I then put in a floppy with only Format.com on it and did a Directory search. The A drive still showed the same dir that it had before. I then realized that no matter what I stuck in the a drive it was always coming up with the same Dir listing, without Format.com. This is a Compaq Presario 1200(old). I have gone to the bios and made sure it was going to the floppy first.
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Old laptop will not format HD to load Win98SE
(23 posts)
mstead,
I'm missing something here.
If copied Fomat.com to the floppy, it is on the floppy.
It may have hidden attribute set.
Did you try Format C: (or) Format C: /s ??
For Reference Only if you don't have real MS Boot Disk.
http://www.bootdisk.com/bootdisk.htm
Kindest Regards,
Rick P.♦ :)
mstead,
What O/S are you running right now to post ??
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/255292/en-us
Kindest Regards,
Rick P.♦ :)
That list of files that the link took me to, looks suspectiously like the one that the computer says it sees everytime I put a different floppy in. And notice there is no format.com in that list. The computer when I just bought it from a friend had 2000 on it and without thinking thought I was going to have to have 98 on it. I didn't think there would be this problem and I wanted to clean up the computer away. I probably could have used 2000 with the program and drivers, but oh well. I have 98 but not 2000.
I don't know how to email you.... I went to your website in your member info and clicked on your picture but it just took me to my email program and not into New Message with your email address in it.
Every time the computer boots, after the Compaq logo it asks to boot from cd or HD from a black and white screen (not windows blue)even though I changed the bios to read the floppy first. If you pick HD it says no OS, if you choose cd (1)start windows setup, which tries to format with an error; 2) opens cd support to >a:prompt; 3)no cd support to >a:prompt. It runs through an opening sequence of files (with black and white screen)then to prompt. At that point a dir listing gives that list of files from that windows support window you sent me to.
I wonder if I can make a boot disk on cd and see if it reads it?
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