NIS2010 and External Hard Drive Concerns

Hello All.

First for the basics:
Operating System- Windows XP Pro SP3, NIS 2010.

I just bought a WD Elements 1TB External Hard Drive.
I plan to use it to back up all of my personal files from My Documents, as well as the audio and video files, pictures, etc; That I have at present.

There's no manual  ( other than a hook up guide), so I assume that the instructions will included on the software that's on the drive itself.

I've read some horror stories about NIS blocking or else an external hard drive re-writing  files as Norton back-up or other such thing. I also read that  someone had a drive that worked perfectly  and then when they tried to plug the drive back in again after having disconnected  it,  it wouldn't be recognized as the files  have been re-written, etc.


So, before I even plug it in  and format it to NTFS ( if it's FAT), I want to know what is the safest way to go?

Should I just disable NIS  Anti-Virus Auto Protect, Firewall, Anti-Virus and then plug it in?

I plan to unplug it after backing up all of said files ( once I learn how to do it)
Also, I have the Safely Remove Hardware Icon on my taskbar ( has been there as long as I can remember for some reason), I should click on it I assume before removing the drive?


The only thing about disabling NIS before plugging in each time, is that I may forget to do it once and then NIS will see it, and it will be  full of"duplicate files" of course...
I do worry about having the same problem that someone else had on this forum with an external  hard drive. It worked fine until they unplugged it, then when plugged back in, windows wouldn't recognize it,etc. 

Thanks in advance