Backup Solutions

Personally, I use FW externals and SuperDuper ( http://www.shirt-pocket.com/SuperDuper/SuperDuperDescription.html)

The drives are all the same or larger than the internals and SuperDuper allows backups manually or by schedule. I use it to first clone the entire drive, then update the content by schedule, backing up to two drives. All test restores have proven good, so it's a recovery practice I have confidence in.

SuperDuper can be tried out for free to see if you like the features.

I backup the entire drives, so if necessary I can simply restore the whole thing, or any part of the image. It also means I can boot from the appropriate externals if need be. Once the clone is made at the outset, the system only then backs up files that change or are added. As a result, backups are anything from 20Gb on the G4 mini, to around 350Gb currently for my G5.

Ripping movies at full DVD quality would require a lot of space since each would typically be 5Gb+, but you could rip movies to QT files for use in Front Row or with iTunes/iPod, and those would more typically be 750Mb or so, depending on quality needed. You could export your finished home movies to QT files of smaller size than the DVDs to watch, keeping the DVDs as backups perhaps!

I have a mini at home used pretty much entirely for movie libraries, music, photos, TV shows and home movies, backed up to an external 500Gb drive comprising a Seagate 3.5" drive in a FW/USB2.0 enclosure, bought separately (and used exclusively with FW rather than USB for better throughput).

Handbrake ( http://handbrake.m0k.org/) is the software I use to rip DVDs to QT files, and the quality is user-controlled by setting bitrate. The results aren't perfect, and on your TV you may notice degraded quality compared to the DVD originals, but since Handbrake is free to download and use, it's worth playing with. A side benefit is that you can then use Front Row as the movie library controller, so picking what you want to watch is as simple as scrolling a list and clicking.

I actually have a series of 250 and 500Gb externals, all using standard 3.5 inch drives in separately bought enclosures. All my backups at home are done this way. I do have some systems that aren't backed up at all, but that's because they're not used for anything critical and no lost data would be missed.

It might not be easy to beat the price of that unit with enclosures and drives and a bit of self-assembly, but it's worth looking at places like www.tigerdirect.com to see what their current prices are for such things, and to compare with their ready-built externals.

I've bought IDE enclosures because I had some drives already. I like http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=12157 95&CatId=2779 because it seems to run reasonably cool in comparison to some, and hasn't shown any sign of connectivity issues across a number of MacOS versions.

$90 delivered from Frys for a 320GB Iomega:
http://www.outpost.com/entry?sku=4963641
Get two for a total of $180.

I don't believe the WD 250GB My Book has firewire either. so let's see, the Iomega is cheaper, and you get more storage. Will it be enough? It's more than 250GB.
It's not more than 500GB though, but the price is right. Only you can say for sure if it will meet your needs.

I don't think Best Buy has the premium on sale though. According to their website, they don't even carry the 250GB in premium. They do list the 320GB premium. Perhaps your local Best Buy carries it though.