Chapter 9. External and Removable Storage Devices
Adding an external or removable storage device is an easy, inexpensive way to supplement the storage of your PC. By definition, external storage devices do not require installation, and most do not require even installing a device driver or other software. Even internal removable storage devices—tape drives and removable hard drives—are easy to install, no more difficult than a standard hard drive or optical drive. By using external or removable storage devices, you can expand the storage of your system to whatever capacity you need.
Uses for External and Removable Storage
The potential uses of external and removable storage devices are as many and as varied as the people who use them. Here are just a few:
- Expanding storage on notebook systems
Replacing the hard drive in a desktop system is easy and inexpensive, but options for notebook systems are much more limited. Notebook hard drives are expensive, have relatively small capacities, and are slow. Adding an external hard drive to a notebook system addresses all of these problems. If the notebook has a USB 2.0, FireWire, or External SATA port, you can use one of the many models of external hard drives that support one or more of those interfaces. If your notebook has only slow USB 1.1 ports, you can install a ...
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