Accidentally deleting files from your computer is probably one of the most horrifying experiences of your life. And yet you never learn. Your paranoid friends have told you countless times to back up, back up, and  back up. But you choose not to heed the call and the next thing you know, you're making a frantic phone call to your tech-savvy friend, crying over the loss of 80GB worth of data. That shouldn't have to happen when you've at least made an effort to back up your files.

Tyler Hall learned the hard way when he lost his files after his hard drive crashed. Since then, he's gotten very good at making sure his data is secure. He's got two words for you: Back up! He had created a back up system that  is based on how he prioritizes his data, and on the budget he's willing to spend for keeping his data safe. He shares the system setup on his blog. Though it works for him, it does not guarantee it will work for you. But then again, it doesn't hurt to get acquainted with the more intelligent ways to back up your Mac.

Tyler's data falls on 6 categories: Email, Home folder (for pictures, documents, application preferences, etc), iTunes library, Movies folder, Websites IÂ?ve built (both personal and professional), and Applications.

Email

Sure, Gmail is such a great web-based email because it gives so much space, but that doesn't mean it's safe from hacker attacks or immune to crashing. So the best thing to do is to take advantage of Google's "POP Access to Gmail". By following the simple instructions, your Apple Mail can keep a back up copy of your mails.

Movies Folder

Movies are much easier to back up. Burn home videos to DVD twice. Store one copy at home, the other at work, or with a family member, or taking it to the extreme, in a safety deposit box at the bank. The rest of the movies and TV shows may also be burned, but really, are they worth all the trouble? If they get lost, it wouldn't be too much of a deal.

iTunes Library

You're probably very interested with what Tyler has to say about backing up his iTunes music:

Backing up my iTunes library took a large initial investment of time. I made sure that all of my files were tagged with the correct album, artist, and song title information and then told iTunes to burn the entire library to data DVDsÂ?twice. My 25GB collection spanned 6 DVDs. (I could have used larger, dual-layer discs but those are too expensive.) Once the backup was finished, I stored one set of discs at home, the other went to my parentÂ?s house.

That solves the in ital backup problem. The trick is to continue backing up new music as you acquire it so you donÂ?t have to do a huge multi-disc backup each time.

So if you value your iTunes music as much as your personal and work files, read the rest of the "guide" by clicking on the Read link.

For me, Youtube.com is love. Where else can I freely upload, view, and share video clips like in YouTube? But if there's one thing I don't like about YouTube is the fact that since videos are encoded in Macromedia Flash format, downloading of videos and making digital copies of them are almost impossible. Well, I can't exactly blame YouTube; since anybody can upload videos, copyright violations are rampant.

However, if YouTube thinks uploading images in FLV format will prevent the technophiles from loading their favorite YouTube videos into their iPods, then they were wrong. QJ has stumbled upon this site that teaches iPod users how to copy YouTube videos in their handy video player.

This step-by-step tutorial on copying video files from YouTube.com and converting them for an iPod Video will work on either Mac or PC using either Firefox or Internet Explorer.

The full tutorial awaits after the jump!

BYP stands for Broadcast Your Podcast. With a BYP unit, you can go beyond the internet and into a local radio space. If, like me, you have dreams of being a radio 'star', the BYP unit may be the easiest way of setting up your very own radio show.

If you already have a BYP unit set-up, good for you. If not, I suggest you click the 'Read Full Article' link below for a step-by-step process of building your own BYP unit. Don't worry, it's not a tedious process (although you do need a lot of materials). After you build your BYP unit, get back to this article and follow the path to radio stardom.

Know how to broadcast your podcasts in your local radio after the jump!

Earlier we posted an article on the newly designed MacBook that features the easy-to-replace HD. In fact, MacBook owners are supposed to do it themselves. Not convinced? Here's a video that proves it can be done by anyone with an opposable thumb and the right screw driver!

Sometimes, even a new, shiny $300 dollar iPod cannot replace an 'old friend', which is why Sam O'Reilly wrote an eight-page tutorial on how to resuscitate the fourth generation music player.

O'Reilly innocently shipped his iPod off to Apple for repairs expecting a $100 dollar service fee. Instead, they were going to charge him $225. Incensed, O'Reilly decided to fix the darn thing himself.

The tutorial obviously requires you to open up the precious old timer and switch some parts around, a job which may not appeal to less tech-savvy readers. Still, though, it's a major start.

The Mac Mini is of course a very handy contraption and not to mention costs less than most Mac products, some may disagree but it seems like using one of these babies couldn't get any better. But actually, you now have a choice for your handy thingamajig to be even better and if you are experimental and adventurous enough, the upgrade may cost less for you.

The step-by-step procedures could be found in the website, but we can tell you some reminders before attempting to do as such. If you are going to attempt to do this, you should know how to open your Mini, if you do not know how, then I suggest you put down the screwdriver and be contented with what you got. With that settled, as soon as you open your Mini, you should pay attention to the 4 black screws in the corners, the black cable for the hard drive sensor, the flat cable for the audio module, and the Airport antenna.

Another reminder is when you have properly unmounted the motherboard from the case, pay attention to the thermal pads so as when you assemble them back again your baby won't suffer the perils of overheating. When working on your disassembled Mini, make sure that it is placed on a flat surface with a table towel since the device, especially the core duo, is very fragile. And lastly, always remember that you should do this procedure at your own Mini's risk.

So let's say that you have both an iPod and an iPod Shuffle and their different chargers are just so inconvenient to tag along when you're on a trip, what do you do? Well, if you are the mechanical type and you happen to have spare voltage regulators, a USB female socket, a firewire female socket, resistors, LEDs, and a breadboard (phew, that list is long!), you can build your very own dual iPod charger that could charge both your iPod and your iShuffle. 

The step by step directions could be found in the website but we can tell you how the finish product functions. The dual charger (although still pretty bare and delicate to look at) will be able to charge both an iPod and an iShuffle through a firewire connector (that you built) making it more convenient for you to bring along your iPod and iPod shuffle when travelling. But take extra precaution especially when powering the USB and the firewire using the voltage regulators, because if you mess that up, instead of a dual-charger, you would be left with a  damaged iPod shuffle. Also don't be too shy to ask for assistance or directions when your stumped.

Yes, we know, you love your iPod and the joys that it brings to your boring and uber-hectic days. But do you find yourself disappointed sometimes about the sounds being produced by your iPod? Well, if you do, you aren't the only one. Apparently,some consumers find iPod sounds as lacking in bass. An explanation for this is the fact that headphones ranging from 16 to 32ohms seems to fall flat on the bass department and the earphones that come with your iPod fall on this range which explains the lack in bass.

With this at hand, the Apple people introduced an equalizer to remedy this problem. But the equalizer has received negative reactions wherein consumers are saying that it does a horrible job of amping up their tracks and is unfortunately useless, it seems like Apple people are humans too who are entitled to some boo-boos every now and then.

Well fortunately, there are some fixes for this dilemma. One alternative solution is to simply change earphones, the Sennheiser HD 25-1, the Beyerdynamic DT231 and the Sony MDR-G74SL are highly recommended if what you are after is a good bass. But if you are the penny-pinching type, then you might want to try out a freeware, open source program called MP3Gain.

It has been getting good feedback from users with them saying that MP3Gain allows them to reduce the volume tag of their mp3 files to around 89dB, so that they can leave some headroom to further boost some frequencies without overdriving their iPod's amplifier. Also, consumers claim that it is very easy to use, all you have to do is download the program, put your tracks in it and let it do the rest of the work (although it may take quite a while). So if you are interested in amping the sounds of your MP3s, maybe this program is for you, but then again, try it at your own risk.

The folks over at DVD-To-iPod-Coverter.com have a nice guide on how to rip DVDs and toss them on your iPod video. Being a 'technologically adept' person, I get asked how to do this all the time, and frankly it pisses me off because I have no idea since I don't own an iPod video.

The website offers some free, fully functional, and not time limited software for you to use to convert your DVDs and toss them on your iPod. Seeing as how Apple tries to make everything incredibly easy, it's amazing how difficult it can be for computer newbies to do this. There are, of course, various other software tools you can use to accomplish this task, but this guide is a great place to start.

The guide is simple, easy to follow, and complete. It's definitely there for people who have no idea what they're doing and if you know those kinds of people, feel free to send them the link. The guide includes a ton of pictures if words aren't enough, and the pictures are simple and easy to follow. It's nice that someone finally put a guide together for those that need it.

As OS X 10.4.6 dropped, the computer world went nuts with the whole Boot Camp thing.  But amidst the incredible news, an interesting item was overlooked by most.  You see, Boot Camp makes it possible to dual boot to Windows XP (unless you've been living under a rock, you know this already).  In order to do that, a Partition needs to be created on your hard drive for XP to live on.  Has it clicked yet? 

So a partition had to be created to boot XP from - which meant you needed to create a partition on the drive you were currently using without disrupting any of your currently working files.  That's a nifty trick.  Obviously Apple has streamlined this process so the folks who get queasy about these sorts of things don't have to lose their heads.  But the capability is there, and it's pretty significant.

Luckily, Mac Geekery has a little run down on how to try this for yourself.  It's surmised that the capability is only evident on Intel Macs.  I tried it on an external hard drive of mine (I'm running a G4 PowerBook) and it didn't work for me.  BUT.  I'm not all that savvy when it comes to technical partitioning and such.  I can get a vanilla partition or RAID setup going, but this stuff was admittedly, over my head.

Let us know if you've tried it, and what your experience was.  Of course, back up, back up, back up before getting started.