ped_disk_next error creating partitions ?

[rcs]

I am trying to install a quad boot with Windows ME, 2000, and Fedora. ME and W2K are up, and Knoppix is next, the first thing to go on the second hard disk. It doesn't matter if I make the partiions with W2K, System Commander 7, or qtParted under Knoppix 3.6 or 3.7, but I wind up with variants of the following:

knoppix@ttyp0[knoppix]$ sudo knoppix-installer
Disk /dev/hdc doesn't contain a valid partition table
Disk /dev/hda doesn't contain a valid partition table
Disk /dev/hdc doesn't contain a valid partition table
Disk /dev/hda doesn't contain a valid partition table
Disk /dev/hdc doesn't contain a valid partition table
Disk /dev/hda doesn't contain a valid partition table
Error: Unable to open /dev/hdc - unrecognised disk label.
A bug has been detected in GNU parted. Please email a bug report to bug-parted@gnu.org containing the version (1.6.9) and the following message:Assertion (disk != NULL) at ../../libparted/disk.c:1037 in function ped_disk_next_partition() failed.
knoppix@ttyp0[knoppix]$

If I recreate the target disk from scratch in qtParted I also get the "ped_disk_next" error in a pop-up window. Any clue where I am going wrong ?

Thanks,
rcs

[rcs]

This was an MSI MS-5169 motherboard that I recently replaced in this machine. The board was a "pull" from a liquidator, and I had neglected to update its BIOS. I flashed from BIOS revision A5169AS6 V1.0 B1 to A5169MS V3.7, and after getting the settings right, it seems to be installing fine.

I am CD booted into 3.7 now, and it is pretty cool to be surfing the web on the same computer you're installing the O/S to.

rcs