Possible to install CS5 on an external drive?

Hi all,
I'm new to adobe products so I apologize if this is a common question; I tried my best to search the forums for an answer. I recently bought CS5 to use on my 2007 Macbook (snow leopard) for personal use, just to keep my skills current. I wouldn't be using the software that often and I'm worried it'll slow up my computer too much if I keep it on here permanently. I only have about 28 gb free. Is it possible to install and store the software on an external drive?
I see in the tech specs it can't be installed on a flash drive, but is there a way to install it on the laptop and then move it to a drive? If so, how big does the drive need to be? (I'd want something relatively portable) Are there any other problems that could arise from this? Thanks so much.
Emma

Several points:
Computers don't get slow because of a lack of hard drive space, unless there is very very little left (let's say under 1GB). You may be thinking of RAM (memory), where the more programs that are running simultaneously, the more difficult it is for the running ones to allocate memory and they may page between RAM and disk (virtual memory), which is slow.
You can install Creative Suite 5 on your hard drive and move it. Most of the Adobe programs will happily detect that they have been moved and update their idea of where they live. I think you will find that this causes mild problems for Acrobat, but it just means you get more annoying prompts when you start it up. Still, I would leave it alone.
In CS5.5, the installer lets you choose the location of the install (which Acrobat then ignores...). I can't remember if CS5 lets you choose, but I've moved it after the fact without a problem.
Another issue is that there are a lot of common files that are not installed in the Applications folder. For instance, I have 2.4 GB in /Library/Application Support/Adobe. I would not recommend trying to move these files unless you are familiar and comfortable with symbolic links (ln -s).

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