This error message indicates an error
in your AUTOEXEC.BAT because it reads
MSCD001 as a DOS command or file (that
cannot be found).  But MSCD001 is a parameter
setting in the command
LH %ramd%:\MSCDEX.EXE /D:mscd001 /L:%CDROM%

Your quickest solution would be to download a new
Win98 bootiing floppy from www.bootdisk.com.
It will include models of AUTOEXEC.BAT and
CONFIG.SYS that you can edit if they do not
by themselves boot your PC the way you want.

I assume you know this disk is bootable because you can boot to it on the
desktop machine. Do you have any other bootable CDs you can use to test the
laptop? To see if it's just the XP CD that won't boot or if it's any
bootable CD? Because if no CD will boot on that machine, it's a matter for
research at the laptop manufacturer's site--BIOS update, perhaps? Or some
other odd known problem.

HOWEVER: Many machines prompt for a key press to launch a bootable CD. You
have 5 seconds, perhaps, to press the key, otherwise it skips the CD boot
and proceeds to the next device in the list. Perhaps you aren't seeing the
prompt? Try repeatedly pressing the <Enter> key as your system is booting
up. (Don't hold the key down or you may get a stuck-key error.) For
convenience, put in any NON-bootable floppy disk, first, so that if the CD
boot again fails the process will be halted with an error when the floppy
can't boot, instead of continuing on to a full Windows startup.

Assuming you have a standard XP installation CD, DOS doesn't have anything
to do with it. The XP CD has its own operating system that doesn't use DOS
at all. Only issue that might involve DOS drivers is if you're booting from
a DOS-based OS, whether on the hard drive, a floppy, a CD or any other
bootable device. Doesn't apply to XP Setup.

I'm not aware that XP can be installed from a set of floppies. I'd be *very*
surprised if this is true. I'm also fairly certain that you can't use a
standard Windows 9x floppy Startup disk to access the XP install CD and
install. I'm guessing that perhaps it's possible to load something from a
floppy that will do the job, but again, I'd be surprised. Floppies simply
aren't big enough.

I'm not familiar with installing WinXP from the HD, I just haven't done
it--maybe once several years ago. Sorry, can't help you there.

Here's another idea: If you've already repartitioned your drive to create a
partition for the XP system (or sufficient free disk space in which to
create a partition, since XP Setup has its own partitioning tools) why don't
you just run the XP installation CD from within Windows 98? If I recall
correctly (which isn't a given, considering my current memory difficulties)
Setup will offer you the option to install XP clean to the new partition,
place the boot manager files on the Win98 side (like it always does unless
it can't see the 98 side), and you will have what you desire, exactly the
same as if you'd begun installation by booting the CD. I may be wrong, it
may yet require a step involving booting up to the CD, but it's worth a try.
Go slowly, and if you're not absolutely certain that Setup is doing what you
want it to, Cancel out immediately.

Oh, and since this is primarily an XP issue, you should be asking in an XP
Setup newsgroup, <s>. A vast number of the tricks and solutions involving
Win9x systems are absolutely inapplicable to XP Setup. Hardly anything at
all in common. Posting to this NG has, from what I can tell, distracted you
into more than one inapplicable solution.

The 98 startup diskette, even if it finds the XP install CD, is useless for
installing XP.  The booted OS environment is not suitable for XP's setup
installation.

You need either to boot from the XP CD, or from the user created 6 XP boot
floppies.

Concerning the 98 startup diskette, the mscdex.exe line doesn't need a
MSCDXXXX switch if you only have one CD device you intend to access and
don't need to delegate a non-sequential drive letter if its singular.  Its
possible that oakcdrom.sys is not finding a cdrom device to begin with.  In
that case you need a replacement for oakcdrom.sys that works with your CD
reading device in real mode msdos.

Is the XP install CD retail, or a borrowed/copied one meant for another
brand name notebook or PC?  Is the install version a full install or
upgrade?
Are you trying to do an upgrade, or write over the current operating system
and all its files entirely?