Also, do I have it right that if a device is in fstab then it is not necessary to 'mount /dev/hd* /mnt/hd*' ? This is definately a newbie Q but I've got to ask it.
It's a good question to ask.

If there is no entry in /etc/fstab you'll be unable to mount the device.

So an entry only makes it possible for it to be mounted.

man fstab

and

man mount

should make things pretty clear (read them in conjunction with looking at your /etc/fstab).

Just a thought -- you did edit /etc/fstab as root? Do:

su
(enter root password)

gvim /etc/fstab



then hit the "i" key to get into insert mode. Everything else you can do with the mouse.