External DVD Drive

Hi. I recently had to get an external DVD drive for my iMac since the internal one was causing me problems. I just need to know if I can keep the external DVD drive connected all the time? It connects via usb and gets its power from the computer. It does not pop up as mounted and only mounts a cd or dvd when one is inserted in it. It shows up under About This Mac > More Information> Storage as just another optical drive along with the internal one.

Would love to know if I can just keep it connected all the time or if it would be best to unplug it after every use?

Thanks.
iMac (27-inch Late 2009), OS X Mountain Lion (10.8)

It's perfectly fine to leave it connected. If anything, constantly unplugging/replugging it would have an adverse effect on the cable and port if done very frequently.