Need help--Strange memory and peripheral results

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This is a little lengthy but it's now the second time around for this Infinity (Not a SLI) beast.

#1. All seemed OK during the bench build using the mobo box and minimum peripherals until I added the second 1 GB of memory. The BIOS would show "detecting array" if using slots 1 & 3 or if in 2 & 4. I understood the manual to require that to obtain the optimum performance using single channel. Finally ended up using slots 1 & 2, the black ones.

Have I misunderstood the manual and single channel concept?

 

#2. Installed mobo in the case and connected up a second HD, and floppy. Noticed, using Everest Home ver 2.20.405, that the CPU temp jumped from 38° C to 48° C but didn't know exactly why. Suspected that in the process of adding the floppy and HD ribbon cables that the Big Typhoon was jostled to much. BT movement must have contributed, BUT after a second teardown and buildup now adding peripherals while still in the bench mode, the floppy is why. If the floppy is hooked up, it always has an active light as if it was in use, plus the CPU temp jumped 6° C. This floppy always worked OK in my old system and I don't have another floppy at the moment to try. So the floppy is not currently connected.

Does an expert know why the floppy will always show active as if in use and causes the CPU temp to be 6° C higher at idle?

 

#3. Tried hooking up the second DVD, as a slave to my primary HD and the BIOS won't read the peripherals. It just hangs & shows the Infinity logo. My configuration is with the NEC DVD as master on the IDE 1 connector and the second HD as a slave. I have the long end of the ribbon at the DVD, the middle connector at the HD and the other (short) end at IDE #1, near the edge of the mobo. IDE #2 has the short end; the middle goes to the primary HD, and the long end to my Sony DVD. My reasoning is that a DVD-to-DVD copy would work better if both were not on the same cable; same reasoning applies for doing a copy from HD to HD. This thing will only get through the BIOS if the primary HD is not jumpered as a master. I even tried another ribbon cable with the same results. So the Sony DVD is not currently connected.

Does an expert have a solution that meets my configuration needs, or do I have to buy more hardware, namely some SATA adapters to use these HD's as SATA? This build has already gone way over my retiree budget.