[syslinux] MS-DOS Magic ?

[lanas]

Hi all,

  I've tried and retried to make some USB sticks bootable.  I started by
making one partition, labeling it FAT16, copying a kernel, an initrd and
a very simple syslinux.cfg file.  I ran syslinux /dev/sda1 on it. 
Didn't boot.  I tried placing on it the mbr.bin file ('cat mbr.bin >
/dev/sda') but still no boot.  Then I tried various combinations of
these two.  Labeling the partition Linux.  Running dd on the mbr.  ans
some other things.

  Still no boot.

  Then I disconnected the hard drive, booted with an old MS-DOS floppy
disk, ran fdisk on the stick(s), rebooted, ran 'format /s c:' and voila
!  The sticks were bootable.  I then re-installed the hard drive, copied
kernel, initrd, and syslinux.cfg, ran syslinux and the sticks are
booting linux juts fine.

  Now, what I'd like to know, apart from what I could be doing wrong, is
that, why on Earth in 2005 one must boot an old MS-DOS floppy in order
to do something that all linux system gurus in the world did not figure
?

  But then again, I may be doing something wrong.  Please advise !

Al