Thu Nov 05, 2015 10:33 am
I will have to make some assumptions about what you are seeing; please post if these are not correct.
I assume that by using "the latest NOOBS" that when the Pi starts up you see the GUI windows screen. At the top is the Task bar which contains an icon of a 2 drawer filing cabinet. Double clicking on this opens the File Manager. I also assume that searching "through all the expandable menus" means the 'File', 'Edit', 'View', etc.
The left panel has a dropdown list that gives 'Places' or 'Directory Tree'; which one is shown depends on what it was the last time you used the File Manager. If you are looking at the Directory Tree, you will only see the 'Pi' directory and the root directory '/'. You would have to expand the root directory to see the contents of the memory stick. Perhaps the 'Places' view is what you are used to; this shows 'Home Folder', 'Desktop', etc.
If you insert a memory stick after booting the Pi you should get a new window "Removable medium inserted" asking what you want to do with this. Clicking 'OK' will open a File Manager window showing the contents of the memory stick.
I hope this is what you are seeing, and that it solves your problem.