Clone WP Blogs Manually

I know there are many people who cannot afford a software or plugin to make a complete backup of their blog(s). Not everyone can use BackupBuddy. On the more positive note – are you going to wait for the next update of your backup plugin, for the next update when the WordPress releases next version of their core system? I currently run 3.3.1 version – but in a few months there will certainly be a newer version!