It could be annoying when the DVD drive disappears after boot up. I suggest you to run the hardware diagnostics as you also reported about USB issues by following the steps provided the link below: http://dell.to/OUGnqT Please reply to this message with the results of the diagnostics.

i uninstalled my webcam central from my dell 1737 with vista, i did this as it never worked. i go to the site on dell that says my dell downloads, i clicked register my system but it goes no further. it says examining your compter please wait.

I recently had a service call to replace the motherboard on my Dell 15R SE (7520). This service call fixed the the original problem but the new motherboard is exhibiting a brand new problem of its own.