Yes, in the BIOS the CD is the first boot option.

To date, the only CD that has worked flawlessly is
Ubuntu 10.04.3 LTS and I'm guessing thatÂ
my machine cannot handle the newer kernels (beyond 2.6 for that matter).

I know it sounds far-fetched, but who knows... for the moment, the computer
does work fine with 10.04.3 installed to the HD and can be left
on there even past "end of support" in April 2013 if I wish.

I would just like to get a modern distro working, but if not,
I'll settle for an older distro that works.