Hi Geoff
I had a similar experience with a USB device.
Once I installed the drivers without the device present, restarted the laptop and then connected the device, windows then detected the device and it worked. If the driver specifically requests the device during installation plug it in then. USB was designed for hot swapping so you wont damage anything.
Are you running XP or Vista as this could also make a difference. If this doesnt work then perhaps the powered USB is the answer.
Good luck and hope you get it sorted.
Regards
Steve
