Yeah. I a noob when it comes to linux. A complete n00bz0rs!1!
I installed Mandriva Powerpack 2006. Everything was fine untilI decided to get some files from my two generic external HDs with Samsung drives (one 40 and the other 80). Under my normal user account I get a message like ¨Mount error, folder could not be opened¨ and so I went to look at the permissions. It says only the owner can view/modify files and the owner is te root account.
I logged on as root. Where do I go to see the devices? I can find the icon and if I type ¨Devices:/hda5¨ an error message comes up saying that itś an invalid error.
Any help would be greatlky appreciated by teh lunix no0b.

First, log in as a normal user. Then configure removable media, such as your external USB drives, to be mounted automatically. On the Gnome main menu, go to System --> Preferences --> Removable Drives and Media, and switch on auto-mounting. Then plug in your USB drives. They should be mounted on the desktop automatically within a minute or so.

If you are running KDE, the process will be similar, but I don't know the specifics.