swapping laptop hard drives

my laptop died last week. just won’t turn on. i really need some files that were on the drive. tried swapping it out for the drive in my wife’s laptop, but it wouldn’t boot. i just got a blank screen. so i tried her sister’s laptop, and i got an error saying that the OS can’t be found.
is this normal, or does it mean the drive is bad? what else can i do to get files from a laptop drive?
Answer #1
what else can i do to get files from a laptop drive?
try hooking it up to a 2.5″ external enclosure maybe?
Answer #2
ah! i didn’t know they made those for 2.5″ drives. i’ll see if i can find one after work.