Flash drive

[sjw54]

I am new to computers..a friend gave me this laptop with Windows VIsta. I got a thumb drive to back up all the Mozilla Thunderbird emails and photos stored there, plus all the bookmarked folders and websites and whatnot on Firefox. I do not understand most computer terminology, and need someone to give the steps to using the flash drive. Can anyone here do that for me? Sorry for my ignorance...I lived with a webtv for six years and now have this great laptop, which I am learning how to use.

Thank you.

 

[Arc Angel XVI]

Think of a flash drive (or pretty much any flash media) as an easily removable hard disk. To use the flash drive, first expose the USB connector (sometimes it's a cap, sometimes its a slider...or it could be more exotic like my Extreme Cruzer Contour) and locate a USB port on the laptop (If you don't know, they're rectangular w/ a 3 pronged symbol above them). Plug in the flash drive and don't force it, it'll only go in one way. Then, open up "Computer" from your start menu. From there, you'll see several things listed such as: your computer's main HDD (usually "c"), your Disk Drive, and if it worked out correctly, your flash drive (the name could be random, but it's usually something like "Removable Disk"). When you found which is the Flash Drive, open it up and either drag and drop or copy the files to your chosen location.