Finder Refuses To List Devices

I'm trying to work with a new iMac which is giving me a lot of grief. After using Migration Assistant to bring over my Mac Mini data, I discovered I needed to separately move my email, address book, keychain, etc. - something I'd expected MA to handle. Finding no advice from Help or either of my two OS X manuals, I found instructions on the internet about how to move these files by copying to a flash drive because I can't seem to get either the firewire connection or the internet connection to allow the transfer. However, I can't paste any of the copied files from the flash drive because NONE of the iMac's devices show in its Finder's Sidebar or on its desktop. I've opened the iMac's Finder Preferences which shows Devices, CDs, etc. are all checked to show on Finder's window. I've gone through all the iMac's Finder Preference settings which agree with those on the Mini on whose Finder screen these Devices are listed as well as showing up on its desktop.

I'm dead in the water. I can understand Apple not transferring these files automatically, but the user should have been given the option to do so. I'll be cleaning everything off the Mini prior to trying to resell it because it was waaaay too small and underpowered to run Parallels Desktop for Mac and my applications. What do I have to do to make Finder work so I can transfer my vital data?
LeslieT

Fixed Finder; Lost Mail Application

I fixed Finder, but have run into a much more serious problem which I'll post in a new thread.
LeslieT

If you open up a new Finder window and press cmd+up arrow several times you should get to the very top directory, do you see your mounted volumes there? You should at least have a Macintosh HD and Network visible.

Also, what filesystem is on the drive you are trying to connect?

Edit,
oh, ok ... good for you can you post back any feedback that might be helpful to others?

I'm embarrassed to admit that I have no idea what I did to "fix" it. I did restart the iMac which could've done it (with Windows, a restart often fixed a lot of problems). But, I was also fiddling with other things. Please see my post on the latest problem. This is the second iMac I've bought and the fourth Mac in less than a year and has been a real pain in the ##%%^ on the Mac side. I could write a book about the joys of importing Windows virtual machines via Parallels into Macs. I've gotten pretty successful at this after doing it three times - only the last one of which didn't require paid tech support.
LeslieT