Many users have purchased an ide to usb device but many will claim that such devices do not work, or do not work efficiently.  This small page will help to explain to you what you need to do when using your USB to IDE adapter.  These steps will only work with Windows XP or newer, if you are running an older Operating system there may be drivers you need to install for the IDE to USB device to function properly.

1. Make sure you are connected to the internet if this is your first time using this device on this computer.
2. Ensure that the USB is not plugged into your computer.
3. Plug the power cable into the CD/DVD/Disk Drive.
4. Wait a few seconds before going onto the next step, Disk Drives require a short time to startup, if you go to fast the drive will not be fully powered up and the operating system will not be able to get the information it needs from the device.
5. Connect the adapter to the CD/DVD/Disk Drive.
6. Plug the USB cable into your computer.

These directions are very simple and will work for you.  If the computer does not detect the USB being plugged in then you have a frozen USB port and need to clear it.  You can access the guide to resolve the issue here