cd-rom question

is it possible for a cd-rom drive to not read ALL of the files but some of them when installing? like occasionally skip a file "just because"?
i once had a computer freezing problem but somebody told me it was possible the cd-rom was doing that. it was a kenwood 52x multi-beam. i never heard of anything like that ever...

I remember when the 52x CD ROMS first came out that I read something about some problems reading but it was usually caused by the drive spinning too fast for the laser and it usually gave a read error when this happened. I don't know if your drive is one of the ones mentioned. Usually a problem of the nature you described could be caused by a dirty CD or laser, there may also be another cause, but nothing I can think of at the moment.

Despite their speed rating, they all slow down to a usable stable speed to reduce vibration.
"Skip a file just because?" I doubt it too. Could also be a scratched or dirty cd.

It could be that the laser is not being aligned properly with the disk as it is spinning. Or perhaps the mechanism is dusty etc. If you are happy with dismantling it, open it up and blast it with compressed air, but be careful around the laser lens.

Also, I have a DVD drive that is getting a bit dodgy now, as it will only read CD's and DVD Movies, but not DVD Data. Any ideas anyone?

I had this too.... gave it a clean with a cleaning DVD which helped for about 12 months but after that it completely broken down.

I would suspect dust in the drive.
Give it a good blow out with canned air