Hi Again,
I just recently posted about upgrading to Cinnamon from Mint 10 Julia. I have the ISO and was going to burn it to a CD-RW with Brasero, when Brasero hung unexpectedly. My answer was to restart the computer. Now the CD writer drive doesn't open-and the DVD drive opens, but a quick check to Computer shows neither of them-just File System and Floppy Drive. They were there 10 minutes ago.
WTF??

Power issues on the CD ROM? Or perhaps it just gave up the ghost, since it's a CD and therefore potentially very old?

If one piece of hardware on the bus is malfunctioning, it might cause issues for the other. So open it up and disconnect the CD and reboot. See if the DVD works.

Are there any boot messages that would indicate hardware issues?
Have you checked dmesg for same?

Have you checked to see if the drives are recognized in bios, or disabled?

I'm a Newbie - so I ran dmesg in terminal like you said - many pages of info - some of which I don't understand. What am I looking for?

run dmesg > dmesg.txt

Look through the file for references to the device in the dmesg.txt file. It might contain errors that could point you in the right direction. Also, rdepending on your distro, there might be a dmesg logfile whereever your logfiles are stored.

Here is the sort of thing you would look for:

[ 1.141918] ata2: SATA link up 1.5 Gbps (SStatus 113 SControl 300)
[ 1.144715] ata2.00: ACPI cmd e3/00:1f:00:00:00:a0 (IDLE) succeeded
[ 1.145055] ata2.00: ACPI cmd e3/00:02:00:00:00:a0 (IDLE) succeeded
[ 1.145063] ata2.00: ACPI cmd ef/10:03:00:00:00:a0 (SET FEATURES) filtered out
[ 1.146764] ata2.00: ATAPI: Optiarc DVD RW AD-7940H, 1.D0, max UDMA/100
[ 1.149717] ata2.00: ACPI cmd e3/00:1f:00:00:00:a0 (IDLE) succeeded
[ 1.150076] ata2.00: ACPI cmd e3/00:02:00:00:00:a0 (IDLE) succeeded
[ 1.150084] ata2.00: ACPI cmd ef/10:03:00:00:00:a0 (SET FEATURES) filtered out
[ 1.151786] ata2.00: configured for UDMA/100
[ 1.154603] scsi 1:0:0:0: CD-ROM Optiarc DVD RW AD-7940H 1.D0 PQ: 0 ANSI: 5
[ 1.166634] sr0: scsi3-mmc drive: 24x/24x writer dvd-ram cd/rw xa/form2 cdda tray
[ 1.166639] cdrom: Uniform CD-ROM driver Revision: 3.20
[ 1.166918] sr 1:0:0:0: Attached scsi CD-ROM sr0
[ 1.167016] sr 1:0:0:0: Attached scsi generic sg1 type 5

1 members found this post helpful.

OK - Here is what I found in the dmesg file (that I thought might relate):
[ 89.256100] udev[337]: starting version 163
[ 89.443641] lp: driver loaded but no devices found
[ 89.592964] EXT4-fs (sda1): re-mounted. Opts: errors=remount-ro
[ 89.797310] intel_rng: FWH not detected
[ 89.834203] shpchp: Standard Hot Plug PCI Controller Driver version: 0.4
[ 90.538558] parport_pc 00:09: reported by Plug and Play ACPI
[ 90.538698] parport0: PC-style at 0x378 (0x778), irq 7, dma 3 [PCSPP,TRISTATE,COMPAT,EPP,ECP,DMA]
[ 90.661643] lp0: using parport0 (interrupt-driven).
[ 91.120083] ppdev: user-space parallel port driver
[ 92.032856] ENS1371 0000:01:0a.0: enabling device (0004 -> 0005)
[ 92.032872] ENS1371 0000:01:0a.0: PCI INT A -> GSI 22 (level, low) -> IRQ 9
-is what I highlighted red a problem?
Also:
0.080561] ACPI: bus type pci registered
[ 0.082608] PCI: PCI BIOS revision 2.10 entry at 0xf1100, last bus=1
[ 0.082614] PCI: Using configuration type 1 for base access
[ 0.084719] bio: create slab <bio-0> at 0
[ 0.085957] ACPI: EC: Look up EC in DSDT
[ 0.088786] ACPI: Interpreter enabled
[ 0.088796] ACPI: (supports S0 S1 S3 S4 S5)
[ 0.088848] ACPI: Using IOAPIC for interrupt routing
[ 0.106325] ACPI: No dock devices found.
[ 0.106338] PCI: Ignoring host bridge windows from ACPI; if necessary, use "pci=use_crs" and report a bug
[ 0.106617] ACPI: PCI Root Bridge [PCI0] (domain 0000 [bus 00-ff])
[ 0.107136] pci_root PNP0A03:00: host bridge window [io 0x0000-0x0cf7] (ignored)
[ 0.107144] pci_root PNP0A03:00: host bridge window [io 0x0d00-0xffff] (ignored)
[ 0.107150] pci_root PNP0A03:00: host bridge window [mem 0x000a0000-0x000bffff] (ignored)
[ 0.107155] pci_root PNP0A03:00: host bridge window [mem 0x000c8000-0x000dffff] (ignored)
[ 0.107161] pci_root PNP0A03:00: host bridge window [mem 0x3ff00000-0xffffffff] (ignored)
[ 0.107201] pci 0000:00:00.0: reg 10: [mem 0xf8000000-0xfbffffff pref]
[ 0.107306] pci 0000:00:02.0: reg 10: [mem 0xf0000000-0xf7ffffff pref]
[ 0.107317] pci 0000:00:02.0: reg 14: [mem 0xef800000-0xef87ffff]
[ 0.107459] pci 0000:00:1d.0: reg 20: [io 0xd800-0xd81f]
[ 0.107530] pci 0000:00:1d.1: reg 20: [io 0xd400-0xd41f]
[ 0.107599] pci 0000:00:1d.2: reg 20: [io 0xd000-0xd01f]
[ 0.107678] pci 0000:00:1d.7: reg 10: [mem 0xef000000-0xef0003ff]
[ 0.107752] pci 0000:00:1d.7: PME# supported from D0 D3hot D3cold
[ 0.107761] pci 0000:00:1d.7: PME# disabled
[ 0.107827] * The chipset may have PM-Timer Bug. Due to workarounds for a bug,
[ 0.107830] * this clock source is slow. If you are sure your timer does not have
[ 0.107832] * this bug, please use "acpi_pm_good" to disable the workaround
and..
0.194712] pnp: PnP ACPI init
[ 0.194755] ACPI: bus type pnp registered
[ 0.201010] pnp: PnP ACPI: found 13 devices
[ 0.201017] ACPI: ACPI bus type pnp unregistered
[ 0.201026] PnPBIOS: Disabled by ACPI PNP
[ 0.201058] system 00:00: [mem 0x00000000-0x0009ffff] could not be reserved
[ 0.201067] system 00:00: [mem 0x000f0000-0x000fffff] could not be reserved
[ 0.201072] system 00:00: [mem 0x00100000-0x3fefffff] could not be reserved
[ 0.201079] system 00:00: [mem 0xfec00000-0xfec000ff] could not be reserved
[ 1.019500] sda: sda1 sda2 < sda5 >
[ 1.056259] sd 0:0:0:0: [sda] Attached SCSI disk
[ 1.587645] Freeing initrd memory: 15856k freed
[ 5.440025] ata2: link is slow to respond, please be patient (ready=0)
[ 10.424025] ata2: device not ready (errno=-16), forcing hardreset
[ 15.620021] ata2: link is slow to respond, please be patient (ready=0)
[ 20.436021] ata2: SRST failed (errno=-16)
[ 25.632024] ata2: link is slow to respond, please be patient (ready=0)
[ 30.448022] ata2: SRST failed (errno=-16)
[ 35.644021] ata2: link is slow to respond, please be patient (ready=0)
[ 65.492025] ata2: SRST failed (errno=-16)
[ 70.520024] ata2: SRST failed (errno=-16)
[ 70.520031] ata2: reset failed, giving up

these seem like problems to me, but what I know is so very little..it seems like this all happened when I went into terminal to find out about my machines capabilities. I read somewhere that there was a log of everything I entered into terminal to see what I may have done wrong, but I also don't know where that can be found in the directory either.

lp is printing. I don't think that's a problem.

Your CPU is not playing nice with your kernel. You might want to see if there's an updated kernel thah has a fix for the workaround/bug mentioned.

http://forums.opensuse.org/showthrea...IOS-disappears

^^ Might go through your disks (HDD and spinning media) and make sure that they are all plugged in correctly, powered up, attached to the mainboard without error, and have the jumpers correctly set.

(FYI, I'm not a huge hardware person, so I'm just grasping at stuff for you)

After sorting this out, you might consider using a different burning application, like k3b, xfurn or cdw. Many people, including myself, consider Brasero to be a piece of crap. In fact, I would not be surprised if Brasero is the source of your trouble.

You might try changing the ribbon or sata cable to cdrom drive, if that doesn't work try a new drive or 1 that you know works.

OK - Here is what I found in the dmesg file (that I thought might relate):
[ 89.256100] udev[337]: starting version 163
[ 89.443641] lp: driver loaded but no devices found
[ 89.592964] EXT4-fs (sda1): re-mounted. Opts: errors=remount-ro
[ 89.797310] intel_rng: FWH not detected
[ 89.834203] shpchp: Standard Hot Plug PCI Controller Driver version: 0.4
[ 90.538558] parport_pc 00:09: reported by Plug and Play ACPI
[ 90.538698] parport0: PC-style at 0x378 (0x778), irq 7, dma 3 [PCSPP,TRISTATE,COMPAT,EPP,ECP,DMA]
[ 90.661643] lp0: using parport0 (interrupt-driven).
[ 91.120083] ppdev: user-space parallel port driver
[ 92.032856] ENS1371 0000:01:0a.0: enabling device (0004 -> 0005)
[ 92.032872] ENS1371 0000:01:0a.0: PCI INT A -> GSI 22 (level, low) -> IRQ 9
-is what I highlighted red a problem?
Also:
0.080561] ACPI: bus type pci registered
[ 0.082608] PCI: PCI BIOS revision 2.10 entry at 0xf1100, last bus=1
[ 0.082614] PCI: Using configuration type 1 for base access
[ 0.084719] bio: create slab <bio-0> at 0
[ 0.085957] ACPI: EC: Look up EC in DSDT
[ 0.088786] ACPI: Interpreter enabled
[ 0.088796] ACPI: (supports S0 S1 S3 S4 S5)
[ 0.088848] ACPI: Using IOAPIC for interrupt routing
[ 0.106325] ACPI: No dock devices found.
[ 0.106338] PCI: Ignoring host bridge windows from ACPI; if necessary, use "pci=use_crs" and report a bug
[ 0.106617] ACPI: PCI Root Bridge [PCI0] (domain 0000 [bus 00-ff])
[ 0.107136] pci_root PNP0A03:00: host bridge window [io 0x0000-0x0cf7] (ignored)
[ 0.107144] pci_root PNP0A03:00: host bridge window [io 0x0d00-0xffff] (ignored)
[ 0.107150] pci_root PNP0A03:00: host bridge window [mem 0x000a0000-0x000bffff] (ignored)
[ 0.107155] pci_root PNP0A03:00: host bridge window [mem 0x000c8000-0x000dffff] (ignored)
[ 0.107161] pci_root PNP0A03:00: host bridge window [mem 0x3ff00000-0xffffffff] (ignored)
[ 0.107201] pci 0000:00:00.0: reg 10: [mem 0xf8000000-0xfbffffff pref]
[ 0.107306] pci 0000:00:02.0: reg 10: [mem 0xf0000000-0xf7ffffff pref]
[ 0.107317] pci 0000:00:02.0: reg 14: [mem 0xef800000-0xef87ffff]
[ 0.107459] pci 0000:00:1d.0: reg 20: [io 0xd800-0xd81f]
[ 0.107530] pci 0000:00:1d.1: reg 20: [io 0xd400-0xd41f]
[ 0.107599] pci 0000:00:1d.2: reg 20: [io 0xd000-0xd01f]
[ 0.107678] pci 0000:00:1d.7: reg 10: [mem 0xef000000-0xef0003ff]
[ 0.107752] pci 0000:00:1d.7: PME# supported from D0 D3hot D3cold
[ 0.107761] pci 0000:00:1d.7: PME# disabled
[ 0.107827] * The chipset may have PM-Timer Bug. Due to workarounds for a bug,
[ 0.107830] * this clock source is slow. If you are sure your timer does not have
[ 0.107832] * this bug, please use "acpi_pm_good" to disable the workaround
and..
0.194712] pnp: PnP ACPI init
[ 0.194755] ACPI: bus type pnp registered
[ 0.201010] pnp: PnP ACPI: found 13 devices
[ 0.201017] ACPI: ACPI bus type pnp unregistered
[ 0.201026] PnPBIOS: Disabled by ACPI PNP
[ 0.201058] system 00:00: [mem 0x00000000-0x0009ffff] could not be reserved
[ 0.201067] system 00:00: [mem 0x000f0000-0x000fffff] could not be reserved
[ 0.201072] system 00:00: [mem 0x00100000-0x3fefffff] could not be reserved
[ 0.201079] system 00:00: [mem 0xfec00000-0xfec000ff] could not be reserved
[ 1.019500] sda: sda1 sda2 < sda5 >
[ 1.056259] sd 0:0:0:0: [sda] Attached SCSI disk
[ 1.587645] Freeing initrd memory: 15856k freed
[ 5.440025] ata2: link is slow to respond, please be patient (ready=0)
[ 10.424025] ata2: device not ready (errno=-16), forcing hardreset
[ 15.620021] ata2: link is slow to respond, please be patient (ready=0)
[ 20.436021] ata2: SRST failed (errno=-16)
[ 25.632024] ata2: link is slow to respond, please be patient (ready=0)
[ 30.448022] ata2: SRST failed (errno=-16)
[ 35.644021] ata2: link is slow to respond, please be patient (ready=0)
[ 65.492025] ata2: SRST failed (errno=-16)
[ 70.520024] ata2: SRST failed (errno=-16)
[ 70.520031] ata2: reset failed, giving up

these seem like problems to me, but what I know is so very little..it seems like this all happened when I went into terminal to find out about my machines capabilities. I read somewhere that there was a log of everything I entered into terminal to see what I may have done wrong, but I also don't know where that can be found in the directory either.

The command 'history' will show you your commands entered. I generally prefer to grep or less the '.bash_history' file, but that's just my preference. Bash_history is in your home dir, and is hidden (hence the '.' before the filename).

I don't believe you could have caused these problems from the command line. I think you are having a hardware issue.

make this simple during the reboot before the boot loader push your cdrom buttons they will open pull the disk out. now start over and. if the door closes then while your in the boot loader press the down arrow key it will stop the grub clock count down now press the buttons you want to open.
grab a new cdrom cd-rw and if it is not formatted then the program will format it if your going to have a open session and that takes a long long time.
and they probably will not show on your desk top till you load them.