N00b Time Capsule questions

I have just purchased my MBP and have passed my old Windows Laptop over to the Wife and Children to use. I am now considering my back up options and with the added Time Machine feature I have a couple of questions as a first time Mac user as well as being a total novice with regards to network based backup etc.
1, If I had a Time Capsule connected to my network router would I be able to send files from a windows pc to the Time Capsule to backup/store.
2, Could I connect a usb external hard drive to the time capsule and manually move files (from either MBP or windows laptop) to the external drive to keep as a "redundant" backup of certain data?

Any help will be greatly appreciated

1. yes.

2. I don't know if you can connect an external drive directly to the Time Capsule or not. It has a USB port, but I believe that is intended for wireless printing.

Although, not designed for this purpose, you can use Time Machine to backup the Mac, and then use another application to backup the PC--both to the Time Capsule. You can also read and write freely to it from both machines. But I might recommend the 1TB model if you are backing up two drives to it so that you don't run out of space. Quirky things may happen if it completely fills up. (I'm assuming a MBP HD and an "old Windows laptop" combined will add up to a lot less than 1TB.) As long as their's space available on it, you can feel free to use it as a network drive as well.

Here's a similar thread that might be helpful. Repartitioning the Time Capsule is not an option, but the info regarding using the Time Machine drive for storage applies perfectly.

http://www.mac-forums.com/forums/os...35327-repartition-time-machine-hard-disk.html

Thanks for the info Jaygray. Looks like it should suit all my needs