Sounds like a clear driver problem. Get the latest driver from the manufacturer *or* see in Windows Update has a solution.
Bason Computer HD120GBFW37 - 120GB 3.5-IN 7200RPM HD IN CASE W/ FIREWIRE WITH CABLE,If possible, provide a link to the product page from that site. Possibly listed here?
I have a Firewire drive plugged into a firewire port via a PCMI card why doesn't Win 7 let me see the drive? In device manger it shows the device but will not let me see it in my computer/explore or even mount it?
Texas Instrments PCI-4520 Cardbuss controllerCan you give us the exact model of your pcmcia 1394 card?
According to all the info I could find, this is an obsolete product from TI, but PCPitStop listed that the built in drivers in Vista and Windows 7 should work just fine.
So, we're back to square one.
Do you have any other machine to test he HD on? it'd be nice to rule out that the HD itself....
And I know that Firewire is supposed to support hot-swapping - but have you tried powering the machine down, and then attaching the drive, and then booting the machine?