Boot order setting anomaly...

[PAL_Thailand]

Wishing to boot from a CD or a USB HDD, I prepare the X41 BIOS by entering F1 and set up the following boot priority:

1 USB CD:
2 -USB HDD (why there is a hyphen in the choices, I don't know!)
3 IDE HDD:0
4 ATAPI CD0:
5 PCI LAN:
6 IDE HDD1:
7 USB FDD:
8 (blank)

Then I press F10 to save my choices and shut down. I attach my external USB drive and load a CD.

I then proceed to restart the X41 with the anticipation that it will boot from the CD, BUT IT DOES NOT!!! It boots into the HDD presenting me with the WIN XP splash screen and OS -- completely disregarding the previously set BIOS settings. I need to understand why the BIOS priority settings were not activated.

Additionally, if I start the X41 while depressing the F12 button, I am eventually shown the Boot Priority sequence and see that it shows only two possibilities plus a choice to proceed:

3: IDE HDD0:
5: PCI LAN:

which is NOT what I set the BIOS boot priorities to be! Why is this happening?

Hopefully reaching out to the forum members for some guidance in solving this/these two problems, I somewhat exasperatingly seek some assistance so that I can get the X41 to do what I understood was to happen. Evidently, I have incorrectly understood SOMETHING!! Right?

[RealBlackStuff]

If the first item on your boot order (USB CD:) is not bootable, it will go to the next item (USB HDD:).
If also not bootable, it will continue checking until it finds a bootable item (IDE HDD:0)
So I guess your USB CD and USB drive are not properly prepared.

The - before the USB HDD must have been a quirk, which disappeared in xx20 and later models.
It probably had a meaning, but I never checked.

[dr_st]

The - before the USB HDD must have been a quirk, which disappeared in xx20 and later models.
It probably had a meaning, but I never checked.

AFAIR, the "-" means that no device of said type is detected. If a compatible device is attached, it will instead appear as a "+" and the matching device name(s) will be listed below.

[PAL_Thailand]

Ah-ha!! There is some light at the end of the tunnel. The two replies certainly make sense. Consequently, how can I check the relevant CDs and USB thumbs to assure that they ARE bootable, one was created by my local IT shop and the USB was created by Rufus?

[RealBlackStuff]

Try them in another laptop.

[PAL_Thailand]

No other laptops available. I did try something else though - I set the BIOS priority to - USB HDD and plugged in my MINT thumb and was greeted with a proper boot into MINT! Will try later today setting the priority to USB CD: to see if that works as well! So far, so good!