No DVD-ROM No worries

One of my first concerns with purchasing a netbook was the lack of a DVDROM, but I have come to realise, this is actually a blessing in disguise.

1. Ok so you want to reinstall the os (or install a new OS), how do I do it?

When you book the mini-9 and if you select 0, one of the boot options are USB boot.

USB keys are very cheap nowadays, I picked up a 8gb USB key for $80 which is more than enough room.

2. Ive got my USB key now what?

What you have to do is prepare your USB key so the mini-9 will recognise it and boot whatever is installed on it. To do this you have to follow the following steps:

Hop on a machine that has a dvd drive so you can put in your xp or vista media
type diskpart
type list disk (see if your disk is listed)
select disk 1 (assuming this is your usb key)
clean
create partition primary
select partition 1
active
format fs=fat32
assign
exit

I assume d: is your xp or vista dvd drive e: is the usb drive

Now xcopy d:\*.* /s/e/f e:\

When that is done simply reboot your mini-9, select 0 for boot options and select USB, your computer will boot and load from the USB key much faster than a DVDROM