Thanks for the advice MB.
I was using a junk CD-R brand. I just picked up Memorex this morning.
I didn't want to wipe the hard drive until after I got good results on an installation since the CD driver was on it.
I did find the BIOS on Dell, but didn't try loading it. I can try that before I do this again.
I am currently downloading OpenSuse as my second choice.
I am looking at replacing the memory, but the $29 memory at CompUSA is out of stock and I am not paying $60 for new memory. I intend to verify the disks on my desktop PC and if I then have problems with the laptop, I can assume it might be the memory or the laptop CD-ROM drive.
I will have to look for the Ultimate Boot CD. I have some old diagnostic disks, but this sounds simpler.
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