Leo writes:

Ever since Microsoft shipped Windows XP creating a boot disk has become much trickier. You can’t simply make a floppy with DOS and some utilities on it. DOS won’t read the NT file system, and most DOS utilities are useless (or worse) with XP discs. And yet a boot disk is a critical tool for rescuing a downed system. Many folks have solved this conundrum by rolling their own boot CDs. Here is a list of some recommendations from listeners.

• Hiren’s Boot CD - an illegal (yet very useful) compilation of disk utilities on one CD. I removed utilities I don’t already own from mine (to ease my conscience) and update the anti-virus definitions and re-burn regularly. This is a wildly useful disc.

- Leo

• The Ultimate Boot CD - A boot CD that contains about 50 DOS and Linux based tools
• Bart’s Preinstalled Environment - a tool for making a bootable Windows live CD/DVD it includes a number of freeware diagnostic and reporting tools, and plugins can be used to include additional software.
• SysRescue An open source that contains “Ghost like” and “Partition magic” like software.
• Bootdisk - just basic boot disks.
• Also just as important is an easy way to burn these .ISO image files. I use ISOrecorder. Just right-click an ISO and “burn to CD”, or right-click a CDROM with a CD in it “make .ISO file”.

- Burke

• AllBootDisks.com is another resource to look to ask well.

- Trevor Evans

• BootCD is one for Mac OS X.

- bruceb

• MandrakeMove and Knoppix. Actually, they are portable Linux OSs. Download the ±700MB ISO and burn it to a CD. A follow me OS to take with you where ever you go. Not bad at all. Don’t install it - BOOT it!

- Kalic