98 Fresh Install

What is the make of your pc and are you using a Windows 98 boot disk that provides CD-Rom support?

If you're using a Windows 98 floppy boot disk you don't want to get to the c:\ prompt. After the disk loads and you have pressed 1 for CD-Rom support type setup at the a:\ prompt, or have you already tried that?

Also, what is your CD-Rom hookup, is it internal or an external USB and was it working properly when you had Windows 95 installed?

Why don't you try doing this... download a fresh boot disk from the link below. It's possible the one you have is corrupted.

Go for Windows 98SE OEM. Extract it to your floppy disk
then boot up with CD-Rom support and type setup at the a:\ prompt. Make sure your Windows 98 disk is in the D drive when you're typing setup.

http://www.bootdisk.com/bootdisk.htm

When you get a message that says something like "its not ready reading drive D" usually that means you have nothing in the drive. Is the Windows 98 disk in your CD-Rom drive when you type setup?