See the comment by HarryT above.
The reason for this strange behavior is that the Reader needs to negotiate the correct charging parameters with the PC. Some devices do it this way. I do not understand why.
Even more infuriating is, that the reader will *only* charge from a Windows PC if there is Sony Library software installed on the PC, or to be more precise if there is driver for Sony reader installed on the PC. Once I forgot a charger at home when I went for holiday. I had to find somebody that would allow me to hook my Reader to his notebook and THEN I had to persuade that nice person to install a software so that my PRS-500 could charge. They looked at me as if I was crazy. Now, talk about Sony being compatible with other systems. Phew!
Another interesting observation is that when you connect the Reader to a PC that is running LINUX , it will charge just fine.
