Every Macintosh can start up from a
                                bootable CD-ROM. 




                       Starting up from a CD-ROM makes the installation process easier. Although you can't normally
                       boot from a Windows NT 4.0 CD-ROM*, installing-and reinstalling-Windows NT is a complex
                       process that requires a CD-ROM drive. While a CD-ROM is not required to install Windows 95,
                       the sheer number of floppy disks involved in a floppy disk install makes a CD-ROM installation
                       the best choice. But if you have a blank hard disk or have to reformat it, how do you start up your
                       computer? On a Macintosh, you simply boot off the CD-ROM and install the OS. On the PC, you
                       have to at least install DOS and all the necessary drivers before you can install Windows. 

                       For a Mac OS user, being able to start up from a CD-ROM makes troubleshooting hard disk
                       problems easier. For a PC user, especially one who is facing a virus that has attacked the hard
                       disk, there are fewer options and many more steps involved in fixing the problem because of the
                       inability to simply boot from a CD-ROM. 

                       *When equipped with a special BIOS chip that supports the El Torito CD-ROM boot specification, it may be
                       possible to boot from a CD-ROM on a PC. However, this chip is rarely included on desktop PCs. In addition, the
                       bootable CD-ROM must also contain the necessary disk images if the CD-ROM is acting as a floppy disk
                       replacement.