i have been working on a no name pc. it has xp on it. ...sorry i dont know any info on this pc. the ports used to work (she said) but stopped. the usb have the familiar "cannot recognize device" i have installed Service pack 3. ..nothing still. the port doesnt recognize my external hard drive, flash drive nor an ipod...nothing. there are no yellow errors when i look in device manager. i have tried UPDATING driver in device manager it doesnt do anything but wants me to insert a disk or selecting a file from pc.....anybody have anything???In hardware manager do you see anything regarding USB HUB or Device towards the bottom of the list?

I have seen before where the UART chip for the USB becomes blown. Quick fix is usually INSTALLING a 4-port USB Adapter into a PCI slot to fix. I have a StarTech 4-Port USB Adapter in an old Packard Bell that has a blown USB UART that we use for Diablo 2 LAN parties for the USB Mouse and Keyboard. Works perfectly fine and it cost me $19.77 + shipping 2 years ago.

Also I was able to get USB 2.0 vs 1.1 upgrade through this as well for external pen drives etc for quicker communications.thanks for the HELP, i will checkit out.