I don't know why your dvd drive doesn't read the dvd without those programs. Usually, if you buy a dvd drive ... it should come with a installation disc...just install that and everything should work. Now, if you want to burn something ... you gotta have Nero or some other dvd burning programs. Btw, Nero 7 Ultra Edition have Nero Express in it.
Oh, when you say read ... do you mean ... the program open up automatically when you put in a dvd disc? Anyways, to check if your dvd drive read dvd disc without having to install all those programs ... just put in a dvd disc ... than go check your MY COMPUTER and see if there's a dvd title in your dvd drive (i.e D:\Rush_Hour2 ... D:\ being the dvd drive and Rush_Hour2 ... being the movie name)