X40 USB only mounts w/ dock

[yadoyisnow]

hello all

newbie here...

just replaced Ubuntu Studio Karmic Koala with Mint Debian 12 on my Thinkpad X40 (Intel Pentium M processor 1.40GHz, 1024MB RAM).

all is well, except no USB devices (pen drive, printer, scanner) will mount on the machine itself -- only through the dock (which also contains optical drive, etc.). this was NOT the case running from the live DVD. have tried inserting the USB sticks & printer cable before booting, and mounting manually... no dice.

thanks in advance for your tips!