Help with install... please?

[Littlefield, tyler]

Hello,
I'm having issues.
I try to install slack, and debian, and both of them fail.
I select my target partition with slack, ya ya ya. then I go to select source media, and it can't find the CD drive.
I select my language stuff and etc from the deb install, and it is detecting hardware, then it fails with it can't find the cd drive.
Why won't it find it?
I just want a damned version of linux running... is that so hard?
It worked about three months ago, and I keep trying things.
I need my version of linux running, so I can keep programing, and trying to learn how it works best possible.
Any help is really appriciated,
thanks,
Tyler Littlefield
Shaned.net customer support and server administrator.
Unlimited horizons head coder.
check out our website:
tysplace.homelinux.net
msn: compgeek134 at hotmail.com
aim: st8amnd2005
skype: st8amnd127