Is there a way to copy a time machine backup to a second drive?

I'm in a foreign country and someone wants to buy my laptop, for a price where I can upgrade to the newest model, and have some $$ left over. I have an external drive at home with a time machine backup I did right before I left, but that's it. What if I have someone at home buy a new drive? If they copy all the data on my existing backup drive, will the time machine backups copy and be useable to set up a new laptop? If not, could they use the disk utility on another mac to duplicate my current time machine backup, and would that second mac need to be running 10.5 Leopard? Would also appreciate any advice about how to create another back up using dvd's. I probably can't get another external drive to make another backup to bring with me. I have internet so I can send the latest data from my trip to my idisk. My goal is to have two, independent backups, so if something happens to one, I can still set up a new machine. Also, how can I securely erase my data and programs? Thanks!

SeannX wrote:
If not, could they use the disk utility on another mac to duplicate my current time machine backup, and would that second mac need to be running 10.5 Leopard?
Yes, but only if it's done using the procedure in item #18 of the Frequently Asked Questions *User Tip* at the top of this forum, or SuperDuper!. Otherwise they won't be copied properly and won't work.
Would also appreciate any advice about how to create another back up using dvd's. I probably can't get another external drive to make another backup to bring with me.
If you have much data, DVDs aren't going to work well. But if the main things in your home folder aren't too large, just copy them to DVDs. If there's more than will fit a single DVD, divide it up so you can put, say, documents on one and photos on another.
Can you get a portable external? They tend not to be lighting fast, but for your purposes, might be sufficient.

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