...If you have an ext HD you are using for time machine, not having it bootable is just plain silly...
Virtual1, your post raises several points, but I'd like to better understand how you make an ext HD bootable if you are using it for a Time Machine backup. I back up to a 1TB external drive (connected via FW800). As I understand it, the Time Machine backup is a disk image that is not bootable without restoring it somewhere. I keep a current standby, bootable internal drive on my Mac Pro by booting from the Apple 10.6 install disk and and restoring the most current Time Machine backup to the standby disk so that there will be a bootable copy of the current system available in case of main hard drive failure. As you're well-aware, I've had two internal HD failures during the past couple of months, so I'm very diligent to keep a current, bootable copy handy in case of need. If I'm accomplishing this the "hard way," I'd like to know a better way. Please explain. Thanks.
