Back up and HD erase question.

Hey all, appreciate some help here. Recently my iMac has been running a bit slow and dodgy at times, so I would like to erase the HD and reinstall OSX 10.4 to get rid of some "build up". Here are my questions regarding this:
1) Other than the obvious pics, video, songs, and docs that I need to back up, are there any other not-so-obvious things I should back up as well?
I have the driver CD for my printer handy as well as iLife and other software I have accumulated, so that is not a prob to re-install them all is said and done. And I am changing internet providers anyway, so those prefs and settings can be deleted with the rest, but I just don't want to miss something very important that could potentially muck up my life.
2) I have a .mac account, so I ASSUME that my address book and all e-mails will be untouched, no? All I would have to do is when I seet up Mail again, just sync it, correct? But, my wife has a separate account on my computer, and she does NOT have a .mac account, though she uses Mail. How do I back up her e-mails and addresses? And also, how about my iDisk and Homepage? Will I have to back up all pics I have on my iDisk?
3) As mentioned, my wife uses a separate account on my iMac, so if I erase the HD, will I have to re set up an account for her again?
4. What is everyone's opinion of the BEST way to back up? I have never used the .mac back up feature, in fact, this is the first time I will have ever erased my HD and backed up almost everything. In the past, I would (and still do) just back up pics, vids, and songs now and then to CD in case of a dreaded crash and burn of the HD. What is the best and easiest way to do a major back up?
Sorry for all the questions. Would REALLY appreciate any help on this matter.
Regards,
KLB
17 iMac 1gHz   Mac OS X (10.4.5)   iBook G4 (OS X 10.4.5)

I double-posted this in another forum.

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