iso's are driving me mad

[hampster]

Im a total newbie to Linux, as you will soon realise, but decided to ditch Microsoft after their so called super OS turned out to be a pile of pants.
Any way heres my problem...Ive downloaded both mandrake and redhat off the net. Each of the files claims to be an iso image. When I decompress the files, using winrar, I get 1 directory containing many sub-directories....not an iso. The directories are boot, doc, dosutils (which I used to create the boot disc), images, mandrake, misc and tutorial. The parent directory contains no files just directories.
Now even I know that this aint going to be able to create a bootable disc by just copying these onto cd rom (although I have tried ).
Ive created a bootdisk. This boots up my pc and starts to install Linux, however, when I get to the cd rom I am told that this isnt the linux disc. Ive also tried booting straight from the cd rom. How do I install Linux using this so called iso
If anybody could stop me from pulling any more hair out I would be eternally grateful
Dave:p

[FoBoT]

use a cdr program, such as nero to burn the iso directly to cdr, you don't decompress the iso file

there are good instructions for doing this at http://linuxiso.org/
here (http://linuxiso.org/viewdoc.php/howtoburn.html)

[fancypiper]

If you will burn the iso to the disk, it is bootable. Extract and burn just files like you did, it's not. Your CD burner software documentation should tell you how to burn an iso.

Read the stuff in the doc directioy carefully and you can find out how to use the boot floppy to install. You will have to have the files on a primary partion that the boot floppy can read to use the boot floppy to install.

[hampster]

Thanks for the swift reply. The file name that I am decompressing is Mandrake82-cd1-inst.i586.zip
when I unpack the file I am then presented with the directories listed above. I have nero installed and regularly burn isos with it. Its just the files I keep downloading arent isos

[fancypiper]

I would go to where I got the files from and read their help. That probably is the iso and you may need to re-name or something. Sorry, I am hopeless with windows stuff. I can help you do a mkisofs in linux, but windows is such a mystery to me now.

[hampster]

Do I feel stupid or what......Ive managed to resolve the iso problem. Winrar had decided that it wanted to claim the file as its own. Despite Nero being installed (which usually opens iso's)
When a winrar icon was above the file name I just presumed it was a rar or zip file-Ive burned loads of Isos before without any problems. I never even knew that winrar could open iso's......as homer would say DOH
BTW thanks to everyone who offered help....I really appreciate it

[fancypiper]

I always felt stupid in Windows because of that. It reconfigures things without my permission and then the programs keep arguing with you as to which one is going to claim the file as its personal property.

I can make my own decisions, thank you Mr. Gates.