Flash Drive Directions
Flash drives are indispensable in the computer age. The ability to transfer and save data from multiple computers enables such ease of communication; it's difficult to imagine a future without the removable hard drive. Certainly, "ease" is the key word when talking about flash drives. This short article will lay out in simple steps almost everything there is to know about using a flash drive.
Other People Are Reading
Instructions
-
-
1
Locate the USB port on the computer. The ports are rectangular in shape and are fairly distinct from the others. Refer to the owner's manual as to its location, if needed.
-
2
Plug in the flash drive. Make sure that the flash drive is right side up in order to avoid damaging either the port or drive or both. Usually, the right side up has a LED light, which will blink once connected.
-
-
3
Wait until the computer recognizes the flash drive. Download or install any software as needed. Follow the instructions in the installation wizard to acclimate the drive to the computer system.
-
4
Right click on the Start Menu and select "explore." Scroll down the menu on the left side of the window to the flash drive icon. The icon should either say "REMOVABLE HARDWARE" or the name of the company that made the flash drive.
-
5
Drag files into the window to save onto the flash drive, or save the files directly onto flash drive. View a file simply by clicking on the icon--the file does not need to be saved onto the computer to be used or edited.
-
6
Eject the flash drive by first navigating away from it (for example, by clicking on the C Drive). Right click the flash drive icon. Select "remove," and wait until the icon disappears. Carefully pull the flash drive out of the port.
-
1
Tips & Warnings
Rather than dragging a file from the flash drive onto the computer, it's usually best to select the "Copy File" option so that any mistakes and edits can be easily scaled back to the original if need be. Remember the mantra: if you have 2 copies, you really have 1.
Never pull the drive without first manually ejecting the drive. Removing the drive untimely may damage it, rendering all the files useless.
