You can start Win with it not connected and then connect
it and use the hot plugging capability of SATA to do that.
That didn't work, as the SD-SATA150R wouldn't recognize the WD.
Today (Wednesday, 3-27-13), here's what ultimately succeeded:
1. Started the PC, with only the WD attached to the SD-SATA150R.
2. Reset the computer, and then connected the Seagate "C" boot
drive.
3. Windows XP loaded.
4. In Control Panel/Administrative Tools/Computer Management/Disk
Management, I was able to partition and format the Western Digital
500GB SATA drive (Windows XP gave it the "K" drive letter).
Then, after I restarted the PC, it took four resets, before Windows
finally loaded. That's just the way this utter kludge-fest is, I
fear.
Its mainboard is an ancient Asus "CUBX-E" ATX, as I salvaged
the Pentium III CPU and 1GB of RAM, from my old machine (which
died last October, and was based on an equally vintage Tyan
S1830 "Tsunami" AT board).
Luckily, it's not my primary computer.
You can also partition and format that drive in a different
machine, or do it at the dos level in that machine, don't
boot Win until after its partitioned and formatted.
Nope.
You were right, yet again -- thanks, man!
John