>>3) One posible problem... I am using RW CD media, even though I'm using a ROM format...
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>AFAIK, most CD drives that aren't burners don't handle RW CDs very well. Use write-once CDs, and make sure you close the session. If you don't close the session, it not only slows down the reading of the CD, regular drives may not be able to read the disk.

Mike, there's an excellent FAQ on CD-R and CD-RW issues available from Adaptec on their Web site (www.adaptec.com) which covers a lot of this in detail.

FWIW, I've found that for widest compatibility, I've had to pre-master the image and then burn a true ISO format from the pre-mastered image, especially where target systems include older Win95/WinNT versions and older CD readers; I use Adaptec's EZ-CD Creator v 4.02 for this, rather than an app like DirectCD that lets me write to the drive using copy commands or drag and drop from Explorer, even after closing out the CD; pre-mastering optimizes the layout and handles the directory structuring a bit differently, and ensures that the write process doesn't get affected by source disk head movement. It's not free, and is not the same as the OEM version included with a lot of CD_R and CD-RW drives in the OEM version. Adaptec's retail version had full support for Win2K well before patches were released for the OEM versions, and some OEM versions that pre-date DirectCD 3 and EZ-CD Creator will probably never have patches for them for Win2K, so people will probaby have to buy the retail software from Adaptec IAC. It can be ordered and delivered off the Internet from Adaptec's web site.