Backing up games & deciding on Mod-chip?

[Brother D]

Hi,
I'm new to the world of backing up games, and I
thought someone could help me with this. First of
all, I was thinking about getting a mod-chip for my
PS2, but I don't know which one to get. Which one of
the external ones (w/1 wire to solder) is the best in
your opinion? internal? Is there anyway to play
back-up copies with just like a gameshark 2 so you
don't have to void your waranty? And another
question: How exactly do you patch the games when you
back them up? I have easy CD creator 4. Do I need
like Nero Burning Room? I notice that it speaks a lot
about bin files to patch, and I'm not sure what they
are. Can you help me decide and learn how to back the
games up?


Thanks
D


(ps: your help would be greatly appreciated)