I need a boot disk that will connect my IBM thinkpad laptop with a crossed ethernet cable to my MMX 166 Pentium. Reason: The MMX has a CDROM drive, the Thinkpad dosn't. So I can put Windows in the laptop.

What does this have to do with a boot disk?

Arg. That's a rough one. Too many options - you would have to make a boot disk that would drive the PCMCIA slot maybe? I don't know where your network port is on your laptop. If it's a built in, that might be easier. I've done it years ago, but it took some 5-6 hours of toying around to get it to work with a 3Com PCI card. I can't imagine what it would take... The easiest way would be to get a backpack CD ROM drive. They are $20 on ebay. They run through the parallel slot. Plus you would now have a CD ROM drive for your laptop.

The back-pack CDROM would possibly be easier route to go? A lot less effort - and you will have it for any other system similarly deficient? Otherwise you're looking to make a DOS client disk (DOS boot-disk with appropriate Network adapter drivers included). How to etc. for a desktop system to another system over a LAN at: http://www.helmig.com specifically: http://www.wown.info/j_helmig/dosclien.htm and: http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/default.asp?url=/library/en-us/dnw2kmag01/html/BootDisk.asp Not sure how it all goes together for a laptop; you would certainly need to have the correct drivers for the laptop NIC (PCMCIA card). This M$ KB may also have some bearing: http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;q142857 Probably you could use a'9x bootdisk as the starting point from which to build up the disk - if no DOS6x handy? If you do a search in google.com for: dos client boot-disk You get all manner of similar info; e.g. http://www.labmice.net/Windows2000/install/bootdisk.htm covers all manner of boot-disk info; including DOS client to various systems. Labmice.net is an excellent resource to get familar with. Also check out: http://tweakcentral.com/bootdisk.htm offers a suitable disk? http://scilnet.fortlewis.edu/tech/Network/bootdisk.htm Similarly a search (again) in google.com for: laptop network boot disk generates a lot of specifically laptop related info - much relates to Linux but that should not be any problem; an OS is just any OS across a LAN... Do the search - saves duplicating a lot of links here?

Rene, I use a network bootdisk to install Windows on computers with no CD-ROMs, but I'm not familiar with the Thinkpad, so I don't know if it's NIC is supported by the bootdisk. The one that I use can be downloaded here: Network Bootdisk If you don't have any luck connecting this way, you could also DL Laplink & use a parallel port crossover cable to copy the Win9x directory onto the Thinkpad's HD, then run setup from the HD. You can get Laplink here: Laplink4 Hope this helps. Dave

Mesich...note the "fuchsia" link above. LOL Thanks. Dave

I have the same problem (almost) An IBM Thinkpad that I reformatted, and am trying to put 98 on. It has swappin drives floppy/CD, and I cant get the HDD to boot without dependence on the flop. So is this paralell cable a normal printer cable? (for laplink)