Laptop computers are great, but some do not have the memory you may need to store files created in some of today's byte-eating software. There are also times when you may not want to lug your laptop with you, so putting your files on a small, portable external hard drive and sticking it in your pocket or briefcase is an easy and convenient way to transport files to use on another computer. External hard drives are smaller and cheaper with more storage space than ever before, and most are "plug and play."
Instructions
1. Plug the external drive into a USB port on your laptop. Some external hard drives require another source of power from a transformer; if yours does, plug the transformer into a power outlet, and then plug the power cord into the external hard drive. Other external hard drives have another USB plug attached to the drive's cable that requires that you plug both USB plugs into USB ports. The second plug is to be used if the first plug cannot get enough power. If this is the case a pop-up window will appear on your screen to advise you to use both USB plugs.
2. Select any files you wish to store on the external hard drive and drag them to the external hard drive icon that will appear on your desktop. Your computer will create a copy of each file for your external hard drive, and your original file will remain on your laptop.
3. Store a file on your external hard drive that you are currently working on by selecting "Save as" from the "File" menu in your menu bar. A drop-down window will appear and ask where you want to store the file.
4. Navigate through the selections until you find your external hard drive and click on it. If you want to store the file on both your external hard drive and your laptop, repeat this process and select where you wish to store the file on your laptop.
5. Remove the external hard drive when you have completed all the transfers you want to make. Follow the directions for your computer when removing any device.
Tags: external hard drive, hard drive, external hard, your laptop, your external, your external hard
