Finally figured it out: Vaio USB problem

[tball]

So I get my internet via an AT&T aircard (usb connection) that worked beautifully on my old Dell laptop. I upgraded to a Sony Vaio laptop last year and about twice a day the AT&T software couldn't find the aircard. I'd have to disconnect it and plug it into a different USB port to get it to recognize, and then it would eventually happen again. I finally decided that there must be some kind of loose connection within the guts of the computer causing this.

Anyway, I was going through the power settings on the control panel and I find a USB power setting option that allows the computer to turn off USB ports that it thinks aren't being used in order to save power. Apparently the default for this option is "ON" even with AC power available. I turned the option off and haven't had anymore problems.

I figured I'd share this in case anyone else was having similar problems with their USB ports. I never knew that option existed.