My laptop hates my USB storage devices?!?!?!?

[Ology]

I have a Sony Vaio laptop running Windows XP.

For the past 4 months I have been using a Western Digital Passpart 160gb external hard drive. However just recently the laptop fails to recognize the hard drive. When I went to try the hard drive on other computers I got the same message.

I thought it was just the hard drive but last night I connected my digitial camera and while the computer recognizes it was a camera, it could not read any of the pictures. I plugged the camera into another laptop - no problems. Plugged it back into my laptop -still not working.

I later plugged it back into the laptop that it was working on- this time SAME PROBLEM as my Vaio.  Tried a 3rd computer that I had used the camera on the previous day SAME PROBLEM,  Nothing's wrong with the camera's memory card - I checked. USBs on it work as I am using a laptop cooler & optical mouse through USB.   Tried moving USB slots around.  Could it be that my Vaio laptop is ruining the HD & camera making them useable on other computers?  Any ideas as to what is going on and if the problem is reverseable?

[Carbon Dudeoxide]

I may have a theory but I will need more information to confirm it....

When I went to try the hard drive on other computers I got the same message.

Do you mean that now, after you have connected to the Vaio, the Portable devices are no longer being recognized or what?
Is there any message/error message?

[Ology]

Correct, the hard drive is not being recognized on any of the computers that I have tried.  The error comes up "USB Device Not Recognized".  For the camera there is no error message. The computer(s) identify it as a camera but the computer does not read the pictures.  Also when the auto window pops up to choose a program to view the pictures with nothing is listed - nothing at all no icons, nothing.

[Carbon Dudeoxide]

Then I think my theory is wrong 

For the pictures, have you tried right-clicking on the image, click Open With and choose the imager you want to view them with.

[Ology]

It doesn't give me the "Open With" option.  When I right click and choose Open or Explore the graphic with the camera and computer comes up runs for awhile and then shows the window with 0 files.  However the camera has pictures on it and I even took the memory card and put it in a build-in reader on one of the laptops (not vaio) and there didn't appear to be any strange on it.