floppy drive light always glowing

Several things can cause the floppy drive to be accessed at startup.

First, your anti-virus software likely is set to scan floppy disks at boot.
You can disable the floppy scan at boot option.

Then, do you ever load or save files to / from the floppy?
If so, Windows remembers where files came from and looks for them to still be there.

To reduce the amount of time that Windows spends looking for files on the floppy drive, you need to delete ALL references to files that were on the floppy drive from your recent documents list.

Chas

Check your FD cable. It might have been connected backward. The red (or pink) side should match with Pin 1.

Is your computer set to try booting to the floppy first and then the hard drive? Also, I know that in Win98 file system properties there is a place to put a check mark that tells your computer to check the floppy drive when the computer is booted, I don't know if XP has the same thing or not.