No file on external hard disk

hi
i used windows 7 at home, and imac at school. LOTS of files (and folders) are missing from my external hard disk when i connect it to my mac. what happened? are they hidden? are they corrupted?
what can i do other than reformatting my external HD? i cant do it (i.e. reformat) everytime it happened!
please help..
p/s: i hope this question is on the right topic.

This partly depends on the Mac OS version in the School iMacs, and on the kind of files you need to access, two things we do not yet know from your initial post.
I would not reformat the drive yet. Unless the Mac OS at school is extremely old, it should be able to read a disk formatted for Windows.
Macs and PCs can share a number of data files: most of the MS Office apps (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) produce true, cross-platform documents. All pdf files should be cross-platform.
On the other hand, a Windoze-only application like Microsoft Publisher creates a file that Macs do not recognize. The Mac should be able to "see" the file on the drive but cannot associate it with a Mac app for opening.
The myriad of system files from either OS may or may not be hidden. You would seldom need access to those files on either system.
If you post what OS is on the iMacs at your school and what types of file are on the hard drive that you need to access at school, then I think people here can better help.
newblexx wrote:
p/s: i hope this question is on the right topic.
It is if the iMacs at school are the ones with an articulated display arm and the half-dome base. In the long run, you may be better off posting in the forum section for whatever OS is on the school's iMacs, but continue here for now.

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