Problems with WD 500GB

I have a My Passport WD 500 GB external harddrive that will be read by any computer. I have tried 5 different cables(4 designed for the passport and 1 that was exactly similar) and cannot get any computer to even read that it is connected to the computer. I do not know what else to do becasue I cannot automatically detect the external or even try to find it when it is connected to my computer. Any ideas?

Are you sure the drive is not locked?