OS 11.1: USB-Drive Detection dies at some point

How can I manually (re-)start the failed USB-port drive detection on
openSuSE 11.1 Gnome Live-CD, without having to do a reboot with all the
required individual preferred settings?

It already happened here on different occasions, that after changing or
removing and re-attaching a USB Flash drive a few times, it isn't
detected anymore by the system.
There is no drive icon for it appearing anymore on the desktop or in
Nautilus, leaving it inaccessible.

Please give detailed instructions, since I'm a beginner with Linux.


And finally an additional question:
how and where can the annoying desktop default behaviour be changed,
that during a D'n'D operation the target window doesn't automatically
come to the foreground when it is reached, in order to allow one, to
actually see what one is about to do?
.