I have a little USB to IDE adapter kit I use for just your situation. It
lets me take any IDE or SATA hard drive, even a laptop hard drive, and
connect it to my computer without having to open up the case or even shut
off my machine. One cable in the kit provides the USB link, and the other
provides power from a wall socket. My kit only set me back about $25, and
should be easy to find at an store like Fry's Electronics or online as a
site like Newegg.

Kenneth Whyman
[log in to unmask]
"Chance favors the prepared mind."

On Thu, Feb 5, 2009 at 9:58 PM, Joyce A <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> It _was_ apparently the hard drive in the eMachine -- but when I got it
> back day before yesterday, I saved the drive itself, rather than have the
> techies "recycle" it.  Now, is it possible that I could put that old HD in
> another computer (preferably my old Compaq Presario, which fell victim to
> adware, and which I never did get running again) and get my files off of it
> and into my new HD?  Or is there some kind of cable connection I could buy
> in order to rescue my missing files and a couple of software items?  They
> did back up most of my files, but there are some things missing that I
> wanted to save...  Thanks again, everyone!
>
> Joyce in SE Ohio
>
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