This may be one of those things that can't be diagnosed remotely, but I thought there might be a chance that the symptoms are classic and the problem has a simple solution.

I just bought a new Dell notebook computer with Windows XP, and I'm trying to use the "transfer settings and files" utility to transfer stuff from my old computer. The old computer is a Compaq laptop running Win98SE. I have an external "Mad Dog" CD Writer connecting via USB2.

Here's the problem. When I run the utility (using the XP CD in my old computer like I'm supposed to), it collects all the files just fine, but when it comes to send them to the CD-RW, it tells me it can't find a disk in the drive. Then when I go to "My Computer" and double click on the external (F:) drive, I get one of those nasty red X's with a message: "F:\ is not accessible. The device is not ready."

BUT...if I leave that same blank CD-RW disk in the burner, without touching anything else, and run Nero...it will copy files to that disk without blinking an eye. Then when I go back to "My Computer" and double click on the F: drive, it reads it just fine, and all those copied files are accessible.   Then if I try to run the XP file transfer utility using that CD (which I burned as a multisession CD), the utility tells me, "You have the wrong disk in the drive. Please insert disk 1." At which point I stick a new blank CD-RW in...and it again tells me it can't find the disk and Windows tells me it's "not accessible," and I'm back where I started.

Does this make any sense? Since it's a USB connection, I tried rebooting with the drive connected and turned on...same problem. Am I missing something obvious?

Oh...I'm using a CD to do the transfer because neither computer is on a network, and I can't use a serial cable because my new computer (Dell Inspiron 1100) doesn't have a serial port.

Aloha,
Mark