DVD/CD-Drive not reading data CD's

[Guest]

I've seen a couple posts similar, but just seeing if anyone has encountered this particular problem
-First, I have a laptop, not sure if that makes a difference on the situatio
-My DVD/CD-Drive reads music CD's, games, DVD's (I hear the whirring sound of the CD-tray) and it autoplays the discs
-When I enter a data-CD, the little light blinks for a while, then stops, doesnt autoplay (or ask what action to take), and doesn't show up in my "My Computer" screen. (It still just says DVD/CD-ROM Drive
-I tried a system restore to previous date and it worked a couple of times, then stopped again. I had to do a little trick even then just to get it working. I had to put in the disc, wait a second while it loaded, open "My Computer" and it would freeze for a moment, then read the disc
These are all just data-CD's too, if anyone can suggest anything, it would be appreciated. I would really rather not reformat or anything drastic like that just to get this drive working again, I'm already angry enough as it is.

 

[Jerry]

Are these CD's original Mfg. disks or CD-RW? Some CD
writers don't imprint the disk properly and can't be read
on weaker lasers in some CD drives.

If that isn't the problem the laser could be coated with
cigarette smoke residue or just plain dirty. You can
clean it with isopropol alcohol and a Q-tip being careful
not to push on the laser. I had to do this on my laptop
to get it to read anything especially multi-layer DVD
movies. Be very careful touching the laser bulb with the
Q-tip with almost no pressure applied then blow off the
excess the alcohol (hairdryer on low deflecting the air
with your hand) before closing the drawer or using it.

-----Original Message-----
I've seen a couple posts similar, but just seeing if

anyone has encountered this particular problem.

-First, I have a laptop, not sure if that makes a difference on the situation
-My DVD/CD-Drive reads music CD's, games, DVD's (I hear

the whirring sound of the CD-tray) and it autoplays the
discs.

-When I enter a data-CD, the little light blinks for a

while, then stops, doesnt autoplay (or ask what action to
take), and doesn't show up in my "My Computer" screen.
(It still just says DVD/CD-ROM Drive)

-I tried a system restore to previous date and it worked

a couple of times, then stopped again. I had to do a
little trick even then just to get it working. I had to
put in the disc, wait a second while it loaded, open "My
Computer" and it would freeze for a moment, then read the
disc.

These are all just data-CD's too, if anyone can suggest

anything, it would be appreciated. I would really rather
not reformat or anything drastic like that just to get
this drive working again, I'm already angry enough as it
is.

 

[Guest]

The CD's are ones that I put my own data on and burned. They worked properly before. Im not exactly sure when it started to flake out on me. I tried cleaning the lens, but it didn't seem to work. I had a friend try and put the CD in his laptop and it worked fine. Thanks for the tip Jerry.
If anyone else has had similar problems and has some solution, I'd greatly appreciate it.