As there are hundreds of Linux CDs, it is impossible to provide a comprehensive overview of what, if any, boot options they may provide.
No!
The Scientic Linux Live CD is a bootable CD that runs Linux directly from CD without downloading installing it.Its based on Scientific Linux (SN),which is recompiled from RedHat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) source.
If you have a USB drive and your BIOS supports booting from a USB device then try that.
The usual method to install a linux type operating system (Ubuntu, for one example) is to first download the program, burn it as an ISO onto a CD, and make the CD drive as the first boot (rather than the hard-drive) by entering the BIOS. Then, with the CD in the drive switch on the computer. You will eventually be offered the choice of running the ubuntu operating system as a live-cd, which doesn't alter any settings or your present OS, as it is run entirely in memory (RAM), or install Linux Ubuntu (either as a dual-boot or do you want it to use the whole of the hard-drive). As to why there is a disc already there? Maybe the BIOS has not been set to make the CD drive the first boot?
many linux distributions you can just download and burn to cd and then boot from cd afterwards and most of them have the dual boot option so you don't need to create one but if you'd like to make one you can use a bootloader like grub or syslinux but most linux distros already have a dual boot option.
To format a partition that is not in use get a program called Gparted. If you need to format the whole drive you need to boot from a Linux CD.
an ios CD to do CD boot probably 32 bit for laptop and 64 bit for desktop but check in on that
Buy and boot from a Windows XP cd.
Just the ability to boot from a CD drive (which almost all systems can do now). Other than that, nothing needs to be preconfigured.
You cannot run it from HDD without installing. And windows does not come with a Live DVD/CD like LInux. However you can try running it on Virtual Machine inside your current OS. Try Oracle VirtualBox.
to set cd drive as a first boot device
Boot it from a usb flash drive