external hard drive connection

[irene]

hi, i have this problem...., i can not get my
computer,which is operated by xp professional, to
recoginize my amd external usb drive. i plug it in, and my
computer does not detect my device. should i have a
specific driver?
this hard drive was created by an ex-friend so i don't
know much about it other than on the front it 4 little
design boxes 1 says amd athlon,1 says athlon xp, 1 says
amd duron, and the other says intel 4. I don't know how
much it holds. in short, i am a short idiot. can you help
me?
thanks