HP8200 is it ****?

[raterick]

*sigh*

no.

i do indeed have an 8250i but i can read compatibility lists before posting topics. It is fully compatible with 8250i which can read/write DAO+96.

i am tired and therefore sound unappreciative of help, but when that help is useless and uninformed....well...

i have since tracked down the problem myself. the problem was i was using incompatible drivers for my IDE controller, so if any1 else has, or has ever had, this problem that i described then the solution is to change ide drivers which should be straightforward (but in my case needed a full reformat).

so 2 valuable lessons have been learned by myself.
1. ALWAYS fully read helpfiles provided with apps before asking for help at forums. and
2. never use fooking forums.