Hardware Horror

[riser]

i recently took my external drive on vacation with me. it worked fine the entire trip. when i got home and plugged it into my PC, and it did not register. I tried to run the drive on my lap top, and it too did not register. I am a bit surprised because the poewer source lights up but the drive does not show on either computer. Any suggestions?

 

[strategic]

Have you/can you try a different cable?
You should be able to swap with a printer cable if one is available.

 

[LookinAround]

Is this a USB drive? Does it have its own AC adapter or not? Is this a WD Passport drive? (i find they're particularly notorious)

Do try different cable and the shortest USB cable you have
Do you hear the USB "ding dong" sound at all when you connect/disconnect the drive?
Unplug all other USB devices when you try (and plug the drive directly into the computer's USB ports)