I have used a USB transfer cable and it worked fine with 98SE.
It was a special transfer cable not a plain USB cable.
I had to search and download updated software before mine worked.
I'm also using an external USB 1.1 drive. It's good but slow for large
transfers. A large directory took 3 hours, slow but it works.
It seems like most USB devices ask for the software installation first
and plug in the device later. Don't know if that's a  general rule or not.

Here's something on PC to PC file xfer. Among other things,
it describes how to make a parallel transfer cable.
http://www.hardwaresite.net/faqpctopc.html


At 11/24/02, you wrote:

>I'm trying to connect a desktop PC to an IBM Thinkpad 'i' Series 1440
>laptop.  The laptop has 192 ram and a Celeron 300 (I think) Both machines
>are running W98SE.
>The problem is this:
>The PC recognises the USB cable as soon as it's plugged in and throws up a
>wizard which accepts the floppy-based driver.
>But the laptop doesn't even blink when I connect the USB cable to it's
>single port - it doesn't acknowledge the connection at all.
>All I could think to do was to check Device Manager for USB conflicts (none)
>and the BIOS to see if the USB configuration is set as enabled (it is)
>The only other issue which might perhaps be relevant is the battery level -
>perhaps the USB port is disabled when the power level is down, as is the
>case with this machine, which has a fairly feeble battery.
>However, I would have thought that plugging into the mains power would have
>solved that problem - but it doesn't.
>The USB cable gadget says it has 'Full compliance with USB spec. 1.1.'  And,
>I've used it before to connect a Toshiba laptop with the same PC without
>problem.
>Can anyone suggest what might be wrong here?
>FOOTNOTE:  I've just plugged a USB mouse into the laptop USB port,
>and DID get a response, although I was unable to get the 'USB Human
>Interface Device' set up, for some reason. It kept asking me to reboot after
>the install, but on rebooting, the mouse was inactive again.  Until I
>wiggled it, when the wizard sprang into life and kicked off the whole
>process again, etc etc.
>However, plugging in the USB link cable again has absolutely no effect,
>wiggle or no.
>Perhaps I can work a connection between the PC and laptop with a serial
>or parallel cable.  Can anyone tell me how this works? I have a variety of
>Laplink-type software so I probably have the application covered.