I need help with a external hard drive

Hello Im sorry if I seem like a idiot but I just bought my first mac from my brother a couple of days ago and he used it for music downloading/recording and also video editing so when he sold it to me it really didn't have that much space left on it so I when out and purchased a Western Digital My Book Essential Edition External Hard Drive and can't seem to figure the installation out and probably how to use it correctly any help will be welcome and sorry if I'm a idiot

Hello,
Did your brother give you an installation disc along with the Mac? If so, I'd recommend transferring the files that you want to keep from the Mac to the external drive and then doing an "Erase and Install" on the Mac.

No there was no disc that was given to me.

That's unfortunate. Perhaps your brother can bring a disc over or perhaps make you a copy of one. When you do an "Erase and Install" of the operating system on your Mac, not only will it erase all of your brother's files, you'll also end up with a fresh operating system.
You can plug the external drive into your Mac via usb port or firewire port with the appropriate cable. Your Mac should automatically recognize the external drive as soon as it's plugged in either of it's ports.

yes when i plug it in it shows up as an icon my my desktop but i do not no how to move files to it. again I feel like im coming of like an idiot.

Double click its icon and with your mouse drag the files and or folders that you want to place in the external drive into its window.

How could you even consider this MR EKIP, you are simply asking for help with something that is daunting unless you have done it before ... could you imagine trying to explain to a being from another dimension, in writing, the correct method to make a cup of tea?

What seems so obvious to some can appear complex to others ... once you've mastered this technique you'll be an expert.

is it the same for itunes files as well as video files?

Ya I see what your saying it just seemed like such a simple task I felt stupid gor not being able to figure it out and it was frustrating because there is no more space left on this mac book..

I think you either need to read about the method to use OR be told about it ... it only seems easy once you do it ...

I've also had experience with something that seemed very complicated at first, then turned out to be very easy once I'd done it myself.

Technology is advancing so fast that it's hard to keep up with.

Stick around a bit MR EKIP and you'll be amazed at what you can learn from a forum like this by reading past and future threads and responses ...

You are in very good hands with Walrus666 BTW, you'll be a pro with using an Ext HD in no time .....