Dianne-TX Posted July 21, 2011 Share Posted July 21, 2011 to replace it? I need to be able to install software, copy pictures/videos from laptop onto disc, play/burn cd's onto laptop, etc. What do I look for when I buy that will do all that? Also, what discs do I need to get to transfer pictures/videos from my laptop onto disc so I can free up space on my laptop? R or RW or something else? Thanks always for the tech help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Photo Ninja Posted July 21, 2011 Share Posted July 21, 2011 You can buy an external cd/dvd drive. If you go to Best Buy or a similar store they will have several different brands. It will plug into your USB port and usually they also plug into a wall outlet. This will allow you to burn cds and dvds as well as read them so you can put software onto your computer. It should solve your problem. The type of cds and dvds you need to buy to burn your photos or videos will depend on the external cd/dvd drive you buy. I think the easiest and fastest thing to do, if you need to get photos and videos off your computer's hard drive, is not to use dvds or cds. Buy a portable hard drive. You can get a 1 terabyte portable hard drive for between $80- $100. That will probably hold far more than your current computer's hard drive. It plugs into a USB port on your computer and acts just like the computer's hard drive. You can then copy or move your photos and videos onto the portable hard drive, freeing up your computer's hard drive space. I think this is much easier than needing to burn all those photos to cds or dvds, and it will be easier to find the photos you want later because you won't have to look through piles of cds. You can organize the photos and videos on the external hard drive the same way you have them on your computer now. If it gets filled, you can always buy another one. You can always back up your photos onto dvds anyway as a precaution, and I always have copies in two different formats because I don't want to risk losing photos. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gingersmom Posted July 21, 2011 Share Posted July 21, 2011 I bought an external hard drive from amazon.com for around $50. I have had it for several years and it works great. I also have an external hard drive that I use for storing photos and backing up the computer. I read the reviews on amazon and picked one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dianne-TX Posted July 21, 2011 Author Share Posted July 21, 2011 You can buy an external cd/dvd drive. If you go to Best Buy or a similar store they will have several different brands. It will plug into your USB port and usually they also plug into a wall outlet. This will allow you to burn cds and dvds as well as read them so you can put software onto your computer. It should solve your problem. The type of cds and dvds you need to buy to burn your photos or videos will depend on the external cd/dvd drive you buy. I think the easiest and fastest thing to do, if you need to get photos and videos off your computer's hard drive, is not to use dvds or cds. Buy a portable hard drive. You can get a 1 terabyte portable hard drive for between $80- $100. That will probably hold far more than your current computer's hard drive. It plugs into a USB port on your computer and acts just like the computer's hard drive. You can then copy or move your photos and videos onto the portable hard drive, freeing up your computer's hard drive space. I think this is much easier than needing to burn all those photos to cds or dvds, and it will be easier to find the photos you want later because you won't have to look through piles of cds. You can organize the photos and videos on the external hard drive the same way you have them on your computer now. If it gets filled, you can always buy another one. You can always back up your photos onto dvds anyway as a precaution, and I always have copies in two different formats because I don't want to risk losing photos. You are SO right about the external hard drive and we already have one! Duh!!!! I think having disc backups is a good idea, too, though. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dianne-TX Posted July 21, 2011 Author Share Posted July 21, 2011 I bought an external hard drive from amazon.com for around $50. I have had it for several years and it works great. I also have an external hard drive that I use for storing photos and backing up the computer. I read the reviews on amazon and picked one. The one we have doesn't allow me to open the files unless I choose "restore". Am I understanding it wrong? I'd like to see what is saved on it, but not "restore". I guess I should look at the manual... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Photo Ninja Posted July 21, 2011 Share Posted July 21, 2011 If you have to choose "restore" then the portable drive may be backups, not being used as an extra drive. There is software you can use that backups your computer onto a portable hard drive, but you can't actually use the files unless you restore them onto your computer. It is a good idea to have a backup. I have a Mac and it has Time Machine software which backs up the computer to a portable hard drive. The only way I can use that specific drive is to restore files. It can't also be used as a regular hard drive at the same time. It sounds like your external drive is being used for backups. The same type of portable hard drive can be used just as a drive, where you put files onto it or remove them, and you can see and use the files just as you do your computer hard drive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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