Maxtor D540X-4K becomes external

[zeroburn]

hey ppl... can you all tell that i have too many non working hard drives...
so today, i have an internal desktop hard drive... it was running windows 98, and from what i guess... the OS crashed...
when plugged into the old desktop, it shows the intel screan for the processor, for about 30 secconds, then it displays that the drive is not ready... does this mean that i can not use this as an external???
im using a hobo rig of a modified comnputer PSU and an IDE - USB cable... and the drive does not show in the computer menu...
is there a reason it is not working?? i have proper power suplied to the drive, and you can hear it run, but it wont affect the computer
thanks to anyone who helps

[Geek-9pm]

Hard drives and external USB adapters can work very well. Sometimes.
These devices are not suitable for repair by the average user.

Experienced Technicians can repair such devices with economical consideration.
Which means that in a remote underdeveloped area where importation is difficult, a repair is made. In advanced countries where skilled labor cots are very high, the devices will be recycled and replaced with new devices readily available.

[Quantos]

    

[Geek-9pm]

   

What?
Should I have said:
Get get a working computer with legal windows for $99 [now $89] on eBay.
Don't try to fix junk; sStart a junk box.

[Salmon Trout]

If you use an IDE hard drive with a USB adapter, you may need to either remove the jumper or put it in the "park" position. Having it as "master" can cause conflict with an internal master.

[Geek-9pm]

If you use an IDE hard drive with a USB adapter, you may need to either remove the jumper or put it in the "park" position. Having it as "master" can cause conflict with an internal master.

Wrong! Sound the Gong!  The drive must be master or single.

Has that happened to you, Salmon Trout? 

When you put a failing drive on a unproven USB adapter, hard to say.
Sometimes it works The DIE thing in the adapter is independent.

[Salmon Trout]

Wrong! Sound the Gong!  The drive must be master or single.
Has that happened to you, Salmon Trout? 

Yes; I plugged an IDE drive, jumpered as master, from an old computer into a cheap IDE-to-USB adapter cable and connected it to my little Shuttle, which would no longer boot until switched the external drive off with the little switch it has. I subsequently changed the jumper. The disk is still working 2 years later. Some adapters require the drive to be jumpered to CS. This seems to be one of them.