Install Load Error Laptop Snafu

[parvardigar]

My friends pc went down. This is a laptop with no floppy drive. He was
running XP on a fresh install after machine was returned for repair.
All was well. No it won't boot. The message is 'Load Error!"

Esc allows one into setup. I could boot from Norton Rescue. Ran its
diag. No viruses. If I change the boot order from HD to CD or CD to HD
it's always = 'Load Error" . I thought if I could get the laptop to
access to install CD (I trid XP and windows 2000) I'd do a fresh
install, and get back into the system.

I can't understand why the manufacturers are creating machines without
floppy drives. I would have used the win98 boot floppy, and at least
could see C: drive and have access to D. for cd installation.

Norton gave me an A prompt but I couldn't get it to c: or d: .
I ran a manual scan using a few variables and one line was interesting
'No c:\windows\ command.com -missing/ or damaged."

Thus is have a HP no floppy drive (I could use usb floppy drive but I
need a system to recognize it) and no which way on the boot order can I
get anywhere because of this "Load Error"

Oh after fiddling endless I did manage -and this is a fluke -through
Norton CD to get access to windows 2000 loading its tmp files. You know
when the red bar finishes it says 'Finished Reboot' and bang back to
"Load Error" Is there a fix, a solution? I would be eager to know.
Thanks
Chuck M

 

[Dave Patrick]

You can just boot the CD-Rom but it sounds like hardware failure to me.

--

Regards,

Dave Patrick ....Please no email replies - reply in newsgroup.
Microsoft Certified Professional
Microsoft MVP [Windows]
http://www.microsoft.com/protect

| My friends pc went down. This is a laptop with no floppy drive. He was
| running XP on a fresh install after machine was returned for repair.
| All was well. No it won't boot. The message is 'Load Error!"
|
| Esc allows one into setup. I could boot from Norton Rescue. Ran its
| diag. No viruses. If I change the boot order from HD to CD or CD to HD
| it's always = 'Load Error" . I thought if I could get the laptop to
| access to install CD (I trid XP and windows 2000) I'd do a fresh
| install, and get back into the system.
|
| I can't understand why the manufacturers are creating machines without
| floppy drives. I would have used the win98 boot floppy, and at least
| could see C: drive and have access to D. for cd installation.
|
| Norton gave me an A prompt but I couldn't get it to c: or d: .
| I ran a manual scan using a few variables and one line was interesting
| 'No c:\windows\ command.com -missing/ or damaged."
|
| Thus is have a HP no floppy drive (I could use usb floppy drive but I
| need a system to recognize it) and no which way on the boot order can I
| get anywhere because of this "Load Error"
|
| Oh after fiddling endless I did manage -and this is a fluke -through
| Norton CD to get access to windows 2000 loading its tmp files. You know
| when the red bar finishes it says 'Finished Reboot' and bang back to
| "Load Error" Is there a fix, a solution? I would be eager to know.
| Thanks
| Chuck M
|

 

[parvardigar]

Right. Forgot. Fat32 not seeing NTFS. But for running diags and such
the floppy drive is very useful. I could at least Delpart.exe the NTFS,
and start over. Let look at the boot sequence starting from cd rom. I
can't figure why the install is unable to initiate with 2000 / Xp cd's.
Because it fire up from the Norton CD. One would think if Norton cd
executed that the other installation cds would become activated. As I
mentioned, and this with fiddling the power on in one instance it did
find and execute the 2000 pro installation cd. However during reboot it
didn't finish up within the usual gui interface. If anyone is willing
to speculate is this hardware related? and should I just simply return
to HP for repair.
Thanks

 

[Sid Knee]

Right. Forgot. Fat32 not seeing NTFS. But for running diags and such
the floppy drive is very useful. I could at least Delpart.exe the NTFS,
and start over. Let look at the boot sequence starting from cd rom. I
can't figure why the install is unable to initiate with 2000 / Xp cd's.
Because it fire up from the Norton CD. One would think if Norton cd
executed that the other installation cds would become activated.

Just an idle thought, and to cover all the bases ... there are two types
of boot-cd

1. The type that will automatically boot regardless

2. The type which will produce a message for you to press a key to boot
from the cd - and which will time-out to the next boot device if you don't.

The Windows install-cd's are of type 2. I would expect that the Norton's
cd is type-1. So with the Windows Cd I presume you are actually
monitoring the boot and pressing the key? Otherwise it will go to the
next boot device (presumably your HD) and give the error you are getting.

I've never really understood the actual difference between the two types
of boot-CD ... presumably a difference in the boot tracks?

 

[Sid Knee]

Right. Forgot. Fat32 not seeing NTFS. But for running diags and such
the floppy drive is very useful.

Well, I'd tend to agree but, particularly with a laptop, it's a trade
off for space and power for a device which typically is used very
infrequently these days. Moreover, in principle it's function can be
replaced by the CD-drive ... not that you're finding that in this
instance I know, but your experience is aberrant and, if you did have a
floppy, it could just as easily be that which was giving trouble.

I think all of this will be solved when all bios's allow booting from a
USB flashdrive and we can dump floppies altogether. Although recent
mb's/bios's allow this it's taking an awful long time since flashdrives
were introduced. It always seems to be the same for new boot devices -
the bios's lag the hardware by a long, long time.

 

[Guest]

Hi Parvardigar,
Have you tried booting off a bootable Windows cd, booting to recovery
console and then running fixmbr?

Thanks,
Lukesh