What do I need to do before I physically replace my hard drive?

Hi All --
I'm comfortable with the steps to physically replace my original hard drive with a new one, however, I do not know everything I need to do before and after the switch.
I have recent Time Machine backups on an external drive.  I also have my Snow Leopard install disk.  Do I need to do anything with the original hard drive before removing and replacing it?  Thanks!

Thanks, Paul_31!  Right now I am just trying to get booted up, then I'll probably go with the hammer technique. 
I've replaced the orginal hard drive with the new hard drive using instructions from ifixit.  When I startup, I get a question mark flashing.  I loaded the Snow Leopard disc and the install options only show my external drives, rather than the new hard drive I installed.
Do you know why my new hard drive does not seem to be recognized? 

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