short circuit motherboard
Nicleo -
First let me say that I have two Olympus cameras, and I follow the same connection procedure that you do. I have never had a problem on any of the three computers to which I regularly connect. I've been using my Olympus C2020 for about 4-5 years, and my C8080 for about a year.
It is unlikely that you have a problem because the connector wasn't pushed in far enough. It IS possible that you have a bad cable with some sliver of metal where it shouldn't be. It is also possible that you had a bad chip that just happened to blow when you put a load on it - a coincidence. Finally, it is possible you have a defect in the camera itself - this should have smoked the camera as well as you MB since it is unlikely it could handle as much current as the MB.
Next - the Micr0s0ft USBVIEW utility that you are using is intended only for XP systems running SP1 or above. The information you get from other operating systems may be incomplete or erroneous because the software flags won't be right. That said - yes, the message means that the port is directly connected to the +5V bus without protection. It is one of the three types for USB devices (i.e. type 1 - Low power, bus powered (100 mA), type 2 - High power, bus powered (500 mA), and type 3 - Self powered, but may use bus power when in power save mode).