I have a pretty modest cd collection I've cultivated over the years. After having ripped the whole collection probably 3 times now on to computers that eventually bite the dust, I'm looking into getting an external hard drive just for the purposes of storing my music. I'm aware that hard drives will inevitably fail as well but it feels more stable then my cheapo $300 laptop and will save me the storage on my computer. The 'catch' to all of this, i am totally oblivious when it comes to this stuff. So beyond even knowing which one to pick, when i do go to do this, is it as simple as plugging it into my computer and ripping it onto there instead? Is there any sort of formatting or setting up ill have to do? I'm also going to need an external disc drive so i would love suggestions on one of those as well. I really don't know anything when it comes to this stuff so please try to dumb down your language as much as possible, like your talking to your grandma but she's actually 25 so not completely oblivious lol. Your opinions and in put are greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance