i didn't back up my files.

i was wondering if i could use the hardrive from my ylod ps3, and place it in a new ps3 (if i get one) and get all my stuff back

my understanding is no. When you put the harddrive in a new PS3 it will format the old drive. As far as I know you are screwed, but I could be wrong.

You don't, I had this happen 6 weeks ago and you are screwed.

The HDD of each PS3 is encrypted and only works with that PS3.
If you get your HDD out and switch it to a new PS3 the first thing the new PS3 will do is reformat the HDD...

What I ended up doing is buying a SLIM and getting my PS3 repaired ( for 50$ in 2 days by a local guy), so now I have 2 working PS3 lol.........( and I did move all my saves to the SLIM once the old PS3 was fixed, in case it broke out again soon afterward). So basically I had the YLOD PS3 repaired just so I could get the data out ( I don't trust it won't break again at some point).

How or why does the PS3 YLOD btw? I have a 80gb MGS4 bundle PS3 when it came out. I lost my job so I been even more active on the PS3 even when I am on forums or go to sleep. That thing is on literally 18-24 hours in the day. Even when I was working full time It would still be on around 6-8 hours a day. I would like to know what causes this YLOD so I can try and be careful cuz I definitely abuse my PS3 lol.

if you haven't played much then its okay, if you did then you are simply screwed.

this thread reminded me to back up my PS3.

DemonFox I hear of plenty of people who get the YLOD after they boot it up for the first time since like a 2-3 days.. so I don't think playing it alot is a big cause..

My PS3 was litterally up and running for 2 straight years before I got the YLOD ( the PS3 was up 24/7 for 2 years, I wasn't playing 24/7 obviously).

What happens with YLOD is some of the solder that keeps everything connected on your motherboard has melted away due to the heat and some components  ( often the graphic chip and the cell) are not electrically connected well to the motherboard anymore...

It's not that hard to actually fix but requires some technical knowledge and for old PS3 you have to pretty much remove every part of your PS3 to get to the motherboard so not something I would advise a casual to do.( removing is easy, putting it back together the way it was isn't...)

Otherwise the fix consist in laying new solder around the cell and the rsx ( which involves heating those area with a fixed temperature heat gun ( some people use an oven lol).

For some PS3 that had really bad heating issues the fix will however only work for a time and the PS3 will break again in the future ( sometime the heating has been so bad the graphic chip might have warped...)

I went to cali for about a week , Phoenix for about 2 days, and a little more recently Scottsdale for about 3-4 days, so have I gotten really lucky or something? Or is the failure rate still within the norm of below 5%?

well, we don't know for sure exactly what the YLOD is, but it generally seems to be an overheating issue like the RROD.

here is a guide to fixing it if you have nothing left to lose.

http://playstationlifestyle.net/forums/showthread.php?t=2376

As for preventing future problems just take general steps like you would for any electronic device.

1) Turn it off when not in use
2) keep it in a well ventilated cool area. If air can't flow around it, then it will slowly bake itself to death.
3) keep it in a clean area. dust from cigarettes or wood fires will kill the thing.
4) clean it on occasion. vacuum out the vents as dust will block air flow which could cause the system to overheat.

There's a lot of luck involved...

When mine broke and I took it to the repair guy he was amazed I kept it on 2 years and never had a problem, so obviously it doesn't seem like it is something that is recommended...

And yes the problem is the same as the RROD, which involves Solder melting away too.

RROD is however easier to fix as getting to the motherboard when you open an Xbox360 is easier to do ( but RROD happens more often than YLOD, probably due to better ventilation and solder in the PS3).