How do I get USB to work on Jellybean

[kreng]

I don't have much Android knowledge. I have an old tablet running 4.1.1 that I play with sometimes. It has always worked without problem when I want to transfer photos to Windows. But today I could not find the USB function on the settings menu. It seems to have vanished without a trace. I may have accidentally deleted it when removing some apps to make space. In any case, Windows 7 no longer recognises the tablet when I connect it and I cannot find any setting to activate the USB port.

I would like to get this functionality back if possible. It always worked very simply and well. My question is how I can restore this? I know I can transfer photos with wi-fi but I would really like to have the USB port back.

 

[B. Diddy]

Welcome to Android Central! When you connect via USB, swipe down the notification panel -- do you see a USB icon there? If so, tap it, and select MTP.

 

[kreng]

I don't understand at all what is going on but something seems to be missing. I don't see any USB icon anywhere. That is the reason for my question. Yesterday when I posted there was no communication with my pc at all. Today the pc saw the connection but said it was unknown. Later I got an error and then the pc stopped seeing the connection at all. I am very perplexed by this and do not understand what is going on. Other things work normally with the pc so I think the problem has to be with the Android tablet but I know next to nothing about the Android OS so have no idea how to diagnose it. I am very grateful for any help or tips.

 

[B. Diddy]

Have you tried a different cable? USB cables can fail without notice.

 

[kreng]

Thank you so much for the suggestion. I tried different cables earlier but I guess I just don't have much luck with this kind of thing. Both cables I tried seem to be proprietary charging cables. One doesn't work at all, the other appears to work (I get USB mass storage notification and the logo changes colour) but no connection to the pc. I bought a third one specifically for this but it arrived damaged and wouldn't plug in. I finally found a fourth one used with another device and it worked! No problem with the connection or transferring data.

So the problem was with the cables, not the device. I just never expected problems with so many cables. MY lack of Android experience doesn't help with this kind of thing. Thank you again. I really appreciate your trouble and patience.