HT2477: Mac Basics: The essentials

Learn about Mac Basics: The essentials
Rob54Whit

Q: How do I read drives plugged into the usb ports

How can I access files on usb jump drives and external hard drives

 

and do I need to reformat them in order to use them on the Mac

 

If so how do I get files back on them from the pc so that I can use them on the mac

 

word,excell, pdf, and pm3 files

MacBook Pro with Retina display, OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.3)

Posted on Apr 22, 2013 4:42 AM

Close

Q: How do I read drives plugged into the usb ports

  • All replies
  • Helpful answers

  • by Barney-15E,

    Barney-15E Barney-15E Apr 22, 2013 4:47 AM in response to Rob54Whit
    Level 9 (50,237 points)
    Mac OS X
    Apr 22, 2013 4:47 AM in response to Rob54Whit

    Just plug them in. If they don't show up in the Sidebar or on the Desktop, choose Computer from the Go menu in Finder. You can also set them to mount on the Desktop with the Finder preferences (cmd-,) in Finder.

     

    Jump drives are usually formatted FAT32, which OS X can read and write.

    If the external drives are NTFS, then OS X can only read them, not write. You can add a third-party driver like NTFS-3g or Tuxera to write to those drives, or you can reformat as HFS+ (Mac OS Extended), but that will delete the data currently on them.

     

    If you need to use the external on both Windows and OS X, and you can reformat it, use exFAT. It handles larger files than FAT32 and is read/write by both OS's.

     

    You'll need Office for Mac to edit the word, excel files, or you can use one of the free alternatives, Open Office, Libre Office, Neo Office.

  • by Yellowbox,

    Yellowbox Yellowbox Apr 22, 2013 4:56 AM in response to Rob54Whit
    Level 6 (10,485 points)
    Mac OS X
    Apr 22, 2013 4:56 AM in response to Rob54Whit

    Hi Rob,

     

    In Finder , go to Finder > Preferences > General and look at  Show these items on the Desktop.

     

    'External Drives' may be what you are looking for to show USB and external discs to show as icons on your Desktop.

     

    A USB memory stick, formatted as purchased, will suit pc and Mac. Well, it did for me! Copy files from pc to USB, then copy from USB to Mac. Put them in a convenient folder on your Mac (e.g. My pc files) then decide what you will do with them. Pages will open ms Word, Numbers will open ms Excell (with some warnings!)

     

    Regards,

    Ian.