/ Okay.  Here's the deal:
/ I have a secondary machine (i386-33/64k ISA) which I just made out of spare
/ parts. I think I hosed the old 40MB MFM hard drive by putting in the wrong
/ BIOS parameters.
/ Question 1: Can you ruin a disk by doing that?

I've done exactly that numerous times.  MFMs are pretty durable.
So, I'd say no.

/ It low-leveled just fine after I put in the right parameters, and then the
/ media analysis and high-level worked, but the next time I cold-booted it
/ died and won't read the disk.
/ Question 2: Why?

Just to double check, the parameters are right?  Is your controller
configed right?  How old is the MB?  Old enough that it has switches
as well on it and needs them set so it sees a HD?
Do you have an extra controller too try?  

/ And I'd like to boot using bootp, if possible, rather than a slow floppy.
/ Question 4: This is possible using what cards?  I know SMC elite... any
/ others?  Anything special I have to do?

I've used the 3c503's and they never gave me problems.  Have two
in one machine doing forwarding but that was in the days of 0.8.
Even had a IPX forwarding daemon running succesfully.
The NEx000's weren't bad but I'd rather have a 3com or SMC.

/ Question 7: I'm looking at getting a new hd controller soon; I have
/ an AHA-1542B now.  Should I go with the bustek EISA controller, or
/ some VLB controller?  Real experience valued here.  I hear that some
/ vlb disk controllers can significantly slow down the CPU.  rumor?
/ PS: The attached disk is a year-old Microp 2210s.  No other drives yet.
/ Another factor may be that NetBSD-curr doesn't have EISA support back
/ in yet, and I've already recompiled since then (dumb move)!?!

I have one of those AIC-6360 VLB SCSI/IDE controllers.  Highly
recommended you get something with a real name.  Mine is nothing
but trouble and is about to get the boot if it doesn't shape up.
It's a QAccess, just for the record.

-- 
----
Greg "TwoTone" Spiegelberg		      SAIC UNIX Systems Admin Dude
RidgeNet, Ridgecrest, Ca.		   gspiegel@owens.ridgecrest.ca.us 
	 My views are hardly reasonable or credible thus are
		contrary to others including SAICs.