Webcam no longer recognized

I bought my AAO netbook in summer 2009 and in the last few months I've been getting messages saying "USB device not recognized". Whenever this occurs, the webcam disappears from the cameras and scanners folder, and nothing can be found that shows one is even on the computer. This happens most of the time now. I don't use video messaging of etc all that often so it wasn't a big deal, but now that it's faulty I seem to need it more. Does this problem mean that the connection is loose or something, or do I need to reinstall the drivers? It would be easy enough to it a separate camera for the occasions where I need it, but I'd rather just fix the camera that came with the netbook! Please let me know if it is a common problem that's easy to fix, or if I should send it out with the protection plan from where I purchased it, or if I should save myself the trouble and just get a $20 webcam. Thanks!

 

I apologize for the grammar in my last post - I don't check my mistakes enough when posting from my phone, even though it's very easy to mess up typing on a touchscreen

 

There's been a few posts on the forums about the webcams dying. The sad fact of the matter is that the cams just up and die. There's nothing that can be done to repair them short of a firmware update, if you can find the firmware. The easiest method is to either get it replaced under warranty (if you still have warranty) or to buy a replacement webcam module off ebay and swap it out.