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I have a CD-ROM which accepts and reads a CD, but will not open when the
front button is pushed or when told to via software. It can only be opened
by inserting a paperclip into the small hole in the front.

Should mention that the drive appears to function normally while the
computer boots. Is this a purely software issue, or hardware also?

Thanks in advance,
Sean

On 12 Feb 2004, Sean V. wrote:

> I have a CD-ROM which accepts and reads a CD, but will not open when
> the front button is pushed or when told to via software. It can only
> be opened by inserting a paperclip into the small hole in the front.
>
> Should mention that the drive appears to function normally while the
> computer boots. Is this a purely software issue, or hardware also?
>
> Thanks in advance,
> Sean
>
>
>

If it opens fine without windows running, ie; during boot-up before windows
starts or in DOS via a start-up disk, then it's software. I experience this
occasionally when burning discs but no idea what causes it yet.

--
Alex Devlin

Good friends will bail you out of jail...
... True friends will be sitting there with you saying "Damn. That was
fun!"

"Alex Devlin" <Alex@127.0.0.1> wrote in message
news:. net...
> On 12 Feb 2004, Sean V. wrote:
>
> > I have a CD-ROM which accepts and reads a CD, but will not open when
> > the front button is pushed or when told to via software. It can only
> > be opened by inserting a paperclip into the small hole in the front.
> >
> > Should mention that the drive appears to function normally while the
> > computer boots. Is this a purely software issue, or hardware also?
> >
> > Thanks in advance,
> > Sean
> >
> >
> >
>
> If it opens fine without windows running, ie; during boot-up before
windows
> starts or in DOS via a start-up disk, then it's software. I experience
this
> occasionally when burning discs but no idea what causes it yet.

If you use packet writing software, it's to prevent you from ejecting the
disc before it's finalized so it can be read in other computers. You usually
have to eject by software command in those situations.

Try to end each process running in the background one by one. Then try to
eject the CD. It sounds like a conflict of some sort. Also, did you look in
the event viewer to see if there are any errors?

On Fri, 13 Feb 2004 04:10:46 GMT, "Sean V." <>
wrote:

>I have a CD-ROM which accepts and reads a CD, but will not open when the
>front button is pushed or when told to via software. It can only be opened
>by inserting a paperclip into the small hole in the front.

Are you using any kind of an operating system? Just let us know...yes
or know...and we'll try to guess which one it is.

>Should mention that the drive appears to function normally while the
>computer boots.

What does it do 'normally' as the machine is booting?

>Is this a purely software issue, or hardware also?

Usually software.

What operating system? What program is doin' the reading?

Next time it happens, go to My Computer, right click on the cdrom,
pick the 'eject' option (some operating systems will let you follow
this scenario), see if that helps.


Have a nice week...

Trent

Follow Joan Rivers' example --- get pre-embalmed!