Getting started - questions re software update and 2 macs

WD External and Portable SSD External SSD for macOS
1

Just getting started on a My Book Elite 1TB with a MacBook and an iBook G4. I see that there are software and firmware upgrades. Main computer is the MacBook.

  1. Should I download the upgrades to my computer first? Or get the thing started and then do the upgrade. Do the upgrades need to go on both computers?

  2. The MacBook runs 10.5 and the iBook runs 10.4. I see that formatting the drive is different for each. Is it possible to use on both?

  3. I’ve never used an external drive. With 2 computers (assuming I can) - I’m imagining that the drive will make two main compartments (sorry, don’t know the lingo) - one for each. Is it possible to have a different password for each?

What else am I not asking that I should???

Thanks.

2

  1. No, the new firmware is stored on a chip in the drive so you just have to upgrade on one Mac.

  2. Formating the drive with HFS+ (with or without journaling) should work fine with both macs. So again, just format it on one of your Macs and you’ll be fine.

  3. You can create two partitions via Disc Utility or you can use the complete disc with both Macs. Protecting the discs with a password can’t be done with tools that are part of OS X, but you can create a encrypted DMG-file the size of your drive and store everything inside of that image. That way it will be password-protected.