I fixed the "bios" problem.
I couldn't hit DEL to enter set up. I couldn't "press any key" to boot from CD. I began to wonder if the keyboard was working.
Started the pc and tested it in notepad. Everything worked. Before that, I noticed the light didn't come on the keyboard until the OS loaded. Then it hit me- it must be a USB keyboard and sure enough, it had two connectors, PS2/USB. Plugged in the PS2 and Vista is now going bye bye.
Evidently USB devices don't "wake up" on post?