Anyway to backup an OS 9 macintosh like time machine?

Unlike Mac OS X, you can drag the full Mac OS 9 hard drive (with the system folder and everything inside) to another drive. Then a new folder in the secondary drive (backup drive) named "Macintosh HD" (or whatever you've labeled the original hard drive), and it should be bootable, with everything you had.

Just make sure the backup drive is in the same format as the original drive (HSF+ for Mac OS 8.1 PPC and above).

 

I think Mac OS installs on HFS+ by default since its introduction in Mac OS 8.1, at least in PPC Macs, since there's no reason to use the old, less efficient HFS system when HFS+ is available.

However, both Mac OS 8.1 to 9 and Mac OS X versions below 10.6 (Snow Leopard) can be installed on both file systems. EDIT: OS X can't be installed on HFS, but it can write/read it from 10.0 to 10.5.8

 

I doubt that you could install OS X, in any version, on an HFS (not extended format), as there is a file/folder limit of 32,767 (?) items on a single folder, approximately double that for one single volume - and OSX will far exceed that number on a standard install in the boot volume.

 

You're right, it looks like OS X can't boot from HFS drives, although it can read and write them. I haven't tried it though.