There's SuperDuper (http://www.shirt-pocket.com/SuperDuper/SuperDuperDescription.html) for shiny backup solutions -- if you're not afraid of getting your hands dirty, you can backup OS X as-is (http://www.egg-tech.com/mac_backup/). It's not quite as user-friendly as Time Machine is/will be, but you've got the mad skillz to make it happen.
I know nothing about Firewire's future -- I just find Firewire invaluable in creating bootable drives to use in the labs (boot to the external, image the hard drive, and roll). It's not without an expense, but I usually find it tolerable. (There are some competitively-priced Firewire-capable drives in the Union Computer Store, and failing that, there's always buying an external shell, a new hard drive, and putting them together. I did resist the Lego-esque La Cie externals, and I deserve a damn medal for that.) I prefer Firewire/USB, but yeah, under no circumstances am I going Firewire-only anymore.
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I know nothing about Firewire's future -- I just find Firewire invaluable in creating bootable drives to use in the labs (boot to the external, image the hard drive, and roll). It's not without an expense, but I usually find it tolerable. (There are some competitively-priced Firewire-capable drives in the Union Computer Store, and failing that, there's always buying an external shell, a new hard drive, and putting them together. I did resist the Lego-esque La Cie externals, and I deserve a damn medal for that.) I prefer Firewire/USB, but yeah, under no circumstances am I going Firewire-only anymore.