Updater killed my iPod Mini!

Question

I purchased an iPod Mini off of my boss last week, as he purchased an iPod Nano and no longer has any need for it.
I installed iTunes on my Toshiba Satellite at work, hooked up my iPod, and I while I was removing songs from the unit (which worked just fine prior to all of this), I was prompted to download and install Updater.
I installed updater, hooked up my mini, and let it do its thing, until it said to plug the unit into an ac adapter to reflash the hardware (?). Ever since, there has been an image of an AC adapter plugging into an outlet that stays on the screen, and even after plugging it into numerous outlets, computers, and USB ports, I can't get any computer to recognize the unit, and I can't get this image off of the screen (except for when I restart it and the apple image briefly appears).
I have tried resetting my iPod numerous times by toggling the hold button and depressing select and menu simultaneously for ten seconds. I have also read that I should try depressing menu and play, and nothing helps. I can't help but be discouraged.
Any words of wisdom for me? Perhaps there is something that I haven't tried (spin around three times, pray facing east, burn sage, make a sacrifice to Cthulhu, etc.)
Help!
(Sorry to the mac mini folks for posting in the incorrect forum in the first place. It's been a long week.)

Answer 1

Try any/all of these tips below. Some you may have seen, others may be new....
First, make sure that the iPod is fully charged.
Try Resetting Your iPod while it's connected to the computer.
Hold down the Menu and Select buttons until you see the Apple logo (or Menu & Play/Pause in older models).
This will often get it recognized. It may take several attempts.
Try closing and re-starting iTunes. There have been cases where iTunes refuses to see an iPod, but after re-starting, it works again.
Also try re-booting the entire computer. Especially if the PC has been operating for a long time &/or many programs have been opened and closed, repeatedly.
Other USB connected peripherals may be the cause as well. Try removing all connected USB items and attaching the iPod. If you have a USB keyboard, it may be worth a try using the adapter to convert it to non-USB. If the iPod connects, continue plugging things back in until you have the problem return. You may have then isolated the issue. Sometimes it could be a printer, camera, Flash Card reader, or other attached device causing a conflict.
If your iPod shows up in Explorer under 'my computer' try changing the drive letter: Click on Start=>Control Panel=>Admin Tools=>Computer Management=>Disk Management. Right-Click on the iPod and select “change drive letter”. Choose something further along in the alphabet that is unused. Usually, “M”, “N”, “O” (or something similar).
If that doesn't work, Put Your iPod into Disk Mode then plug it in and you should be able to Restore the iPod
Your PC may have difficulty with the USB2 protocol and the iPod. See this Article for a possible solution: iPod not Recognized Correctly
Also try these hints (and the other suggestions above) from any other USB port you may have on the PC. Sometimes switching USB ports can make all the difference.
Also See:
Your Windows PC doesn't recognize iPod
iPod does not appear in iTunes or on the desktop
iPod appears in Windows Explorer but does not appear in iTunes“Strange iPod Behavior within Windows”
If all else fails, there have been some successes using the information in this post below. WARNING: I have absolutely no clue to what this download file does, and introducing it into your PC environment is risky. Some Forum posters have experienced less than benign results. Proceed at you own risk.
http://discussions.apple.com/message.jspa?messageID=1222335#1222335