Laptop CD/DVD drive problem

There seem to be some pretty knowledgable people here regarding PC problems, so here’s one for you to ponder over.

For the last few weeks, when I first try to copy a file to a CD (using my laptop’s built-in CD-RW/DVD drive) after turning on – the first window of the CD writing wizard invites me to enter a name for the CD, as it fails to ‘detect’ the name previously given to the CD. When I enter re-enter the name or just click on ‘Next’ it then says there is no disc in the drive – when there obviously is. The only way I can then get the CD drive to copy the file/image to the CD is to restart the laptop with the CD-RW in the drive. It then ‘detects’ the CDs name & copies the files OK.

The strange thing is that the CD drive can read the files/display images from the CD that it says isn’t in the drive!

If I then try to copy other files/images to a second CD, the first CD Writing Wizzard window then says the first CD is still in the drive – when it isn’t. However, if I now click on ‘Next’ the CD drive then copies the file/image to the CD OK.

Has anyone here had the same problem? Can they suggest a solution or a Computer Forum etc. that they’ve found helpful in the past. BTW my laptop runs ‘Windows XP’. Please keep any instructions/advice simple as I’m useless with computers.

I have tried right-clicking on the CD-RW/DVD drive in ‘My computer’ & then setting ‘autoplay’ to ask me what I want to do when I put a CD/DVD into the drive but it doesn’t, also CD-ROMs that should autostart don’t.

I haven’t got a clue about computers at the best of times, but with a problem like this I’m completely lost. :confused:

Any help or advice will be gratefully recieved.

Geoff.