just moved, now removeable USB drive Code 10's

ill describe my situation...
I have an older (4+ year old) dell xp, with 3 external removeable usb drives. i just moved to a new apartment, and now one of the drives gives a 'code 10' message when i plug it in. it gives the distinctive "ding" when plugged in, and XP first recognizes it as a USB device, then (correctly) as a USB Mass Storage Device. but then it gives a bubble saying there was a problem in installation.. clicking the !exclamation !point in front of the drive in device manager tells me that its "CODE 10 the device cannot start"

the odd thing is that the drive worked well right before i moved. did uplugging everything and then plugging it all back in somehow screw up the software?

even odder, i distinctly remember this same problem (code 10) with this same drive, when i upgraded this old comp to XP maybe 1.5 years ago. i managed to fix the problem then, (somehow) but for the life of me i cant remember what i did back then. back then, the drive worked fine on win98SE, but XP didnt get it to run right after I installed XP. (till i monkeyed with it a bunch) but i cant remember what i did to fix it then. i know the problem is software related, as this 200 gigabyte USB drive works fine on my Dads newer computer, and i checked the USB ports and cables with the other two drives that i have (ports/cables check out fine)

more specific info regarding my system:

4.5 year old Dell XP desktop (dont laugh, i'm poor)
550 mhz
128 megs ram
20 gig internal hd
toshiba dvd rom
sony cd burner

120 gigabyte Maxtor external USB hard drive
500 gibabyte Lacie external USB hard drive
200 gigabyte (?) external USB hard drive

the 200 gig is the one thats not starting. i dont have the documentation anymore, but if memory serves it is Western Digital.

what i have tried:
-uninstalling/reinstalling the USB device, and the device drivers.
-running the device through an external USB hub
-getting XP completely updated (sp2 with patches)
-removing all other external hardware and trying to run the problem drive alone
-PS: generally rebooting after trying each of the above steps

MISC INFO:
-the drive (actually all three of my externals) are usb 2.0 compatible, but the computer is only 1.1 compatible. this has never been a problem before (unless you consider long transfer times a problem)
-had CODE 10 problem with this drive after installing winXP 1.5 years ago.. fixed it then. cant remember how.
-drive works on another computer, so i know it wasnt damaged in the move.
-usual way i have my comp set up:
2 usb ports, one has the 500 gig external hd, the other has a 4 port USB hub, with the 120 gig and 200 gig going through the hub.