old ibm laptop

[tariquepark]

hi all
i have an old ibm thinkpad that has a broken cdrom
its a ibm thinkpad 2621 which has one usb port but can't boot from it. it is dualboot w2k and ubuntu 5.10(which is broken)
so i want to put xubuntu 8.04 on it
Major problem
so are the ribbon cables in a laptop the same as desktop?
i.e could i remove the cdrom and connect an old hdd formatted as xubuntu.iso with an ide ribbon?
or
is there a boot loader which will allow me to boot from usb thumb drive? preferebly loaded from floppy
w2k works, mostly, and i have internet through w2k (usb wireless)
i really only need to do this once to install hardy fresh on the old ext partition

any thoughts on how to achive this would muchly appreciated
cheers

[logos34]

one of the methods here should work:

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Installation/FromWindows

either the UNetbootin/netboot or 'CD image' approach (transfer xubuntu 8.04 iso to hard drive with usb stick)

[GOROSSI]

short answer no they wouldn't be compatible, you will have to find a replacement cd drive for the laptop

http://www.pchub.co.uk/uph/model/0--2526-1/Thinkpad-I-Series-2621-Series-parts.html

the above web link may help in terms of finding the right drive for your machine, even if you don't get their.

If you have no luck you could try contacting lenovo giving them the serial no of the laptop to find the exact part as their are sometime different model revisions

hope that helps

[tariquepark]

thanks heaps to both of you
i think the netboot should do the trick nicely thanks
and also some great parts for the old girl too
its win win =D>
cheers