Here is the issue:
150 GB SimpleTech external hard drive. I have had it for over a year with no issues. All of a sudden I go on a flight and when I land and attempt to reconnect the thing won't work. When plugged in Windows XP (SP2) goes through the plug and play thing and says it installs my new hardware; however, now it is installed under a much different name than previously: WDC WD 16 00 USB Device. The hard drive can still be "Safely Removed" but nothing shows up in My Computer, Explorer, or the administrative tools storage monitor. I have uninstalled and reinstalled the drivers for my USB ports (all 2.0), as well as the external hard drive. These same issues occur on other computers as well. I have tried TestDisk, Zero Assumption Recovery, as well as PC Inspector File Recovery, and I get read errors for all. I cannot run the chkdsk utility because it does not a physical drive assigned to scan. I'm stuck as to what my next move is. Suggestions?
Specs:
Windows XP Media Center Edition (SP2)
HP Pavilion zd8000 Laptop
2 GB Ram
Pentium 3.4 GHz processor

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