[Ham-Computers] Erratic Boot from CD

[nn6o]

Soft cotton cloth (with no fabric softeners) and a wet "breath" on the lens
should be just fine.  Don't "push" down on the lens, just "brush" over it a
couple times.  Try again in a circular motion if the first doesn't work.  The
cotton swab is OK...just don't press down too hard.  In my experience,
anything beyond this pointed to a worn-out laser or some other problem.

The CD/DVD cleaning discs also work, but weren't designed for burners where
the lens is more sensitive to scratches (current drives spin upwards of 10,000
RPM (48x) - imagine the cleaning brushes hitting the lens at that speed!).
Yes, I've used them, but they worked no better than the above method and
didn't produce a working drive where the "cloth and mist" method didn't work.

And I've also used lens cleaning tissues (photography is a hobby) with
solution.  I would avoid the alcohol only because the lens may be made of
plastic and alcohol will craze and yellow the plastic over time.


73,

  - Aaron, NN6O
    {nn6o}@arrl.net


-----Original Message-----
From: ham-computers-bounces at mailman.qth.net
[mailto:ham-computers-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Jim Hill
Sent: Thursday, June 07, 2012 12:32 AM
Subject: [Ham-Computers] Erratic Boot from CD


I'm having problems with erratic success when booting from a CD on my Dell
5160 laptop running Win XP.  BIOS is set up to be the first in line when
booting, and it should be set up correctly, since I have 
booted successfully.   It is steadily getting worse, and now boots 
infrequently.  I'm thinking of cleaning the small lens using a cotton swab and
alcohol. The lens is recessed, so will leave a little alcohol in the drive.
Is this a good idea?  The lens looks fine when I just look at it.  Should I
purchase a cd cleaner disk, or just use 
the alcohol?   I can read CD's and DVD's but sometimes they take time to
start.

Jim