I will try another computer and report back.
Thank you for your help and patience till now

EDIT:

I tried 2 different computers (though i couldn't find one with USB 1.0/1.1 ports) but still couldn't get it to work.

Since the phone was dead after i went running with it (guess what i won't do with my spare one), i bought some isopropyl to clean it and gave it another try.
It worked and i was able to pull my data off it.

Thanks again for your help pali