Diminished Arpeggios

What kind of progressions can they and where in a progression can they be used? I know they work over the V chord pretty good.

4 And 5 String Sweeping

Im clean and fast on 5 different shapes doing 3 string sweeps. Im moving them around and sequencing them nicely. Im getting noise on 4 and 5 stringers. What can I do to fix this? I sweep from the wrist on the 3 strings but it seems as if there has to be arm movement on the bigger ones.

Single String Alt Picking

Ive built alt picking speed up across the strings but I cant seem to get much faster on these. These would be Yngwie style licks. Every time I try to speed up, the sync. falls apart. Obviously the challenge is the position shifts. Whats the best way to practice these?

Description/ Definition Of Tones

I hear tones described as Bright, crunchy, dark, warm, punchy etc. What are some more of these and what are some examples or definitions of these tones? If this doesnt make sense ill try and explain it differently.

Firewire Vs. Usb

Im using a crappy little pandora px5d usb. My macbook has a firewire port. I only record with garageband because im not that knowledgeable and its easy. Should my next interface be firewire or should I just stick with USB?