Question about using a flash drive?

When I bought my Mac (coming from Windows), I just plug my thumbdrives into the Mac's USB slot and copied my files. Also, Firewire is like USB in that it allows the transfer of information (external HDD, webcam, etc.), however the plug and technical specs are completely different.

 

Flash drives usually come pre-formatted FAT32, which means they are cross-platform compatible with Macs and PCs. I was going to mention that you can't write files > 4 GB to the drive but that's a moot point based on the size of the flash drive you're planning to purchase. USB is not the same as FireWire. The ports may look similar but the differences are quite readily identifiable. FireWire is faster than USB 2.0, as it transfers at a constant data stream rather than starting slow and then ramping up. Too, the USB port is more a narrow rectangular shape while the FireWire 400 has a angular point on one side (think a sideways house and then squished) while FireWire 800 looks more like an Ethernet (wired internet) port.

 

Lesson #1, never buy from the Apple Online Store if you can help it. That same drive is $10.99 from newegg.