Jenningsville
iPF Novice
The reason why everybody is having problems is that they don't read instructions properly, it's been noted a lot of times (including myself) that you must do the jailbreak on a fully clean install of ios 5.0.1, i Jailbroke 2 devices an each time it took 2 mins!
This may well be the collective wisdom we acquire over time and then I'm sure the various instructions and tutorials will be updated to reflect this approach if it becomes recognised as the better approach.
The approach I took was influenced by the instructions on the Absinthe Windows GUI which indicated that a backup was recommended NOT a restore to virgin iOS, and f4780y's tutorial that indicates he'd successfully performed the JB on a loaded iPad.
Like most people, I look upon relying on a backup as a last resort as I've had backup recoveries fail in the past.
So I prefer to be guided by those, e.g. f4780y, who are far more experienced than I and most of other forum contributers, because I'm confident that those experienced guys provide the best advice and would update their guidance appropriately at the right time when they see enough collective wisdom to warrant it.
In the mean time I'm happy to experience and document some of my own setbacks in the hope that it provides a POSITIVE contribution to the collective wisdom of this forum and will help others.