How do I copy my HD to my SSD?
If your Mac supports 10.7 or later, see the "Installing OS X on an external storage device" section in http://support.apple.com/kb/ht4718.


Open Disk Utility when started up normally. Select the SSD, open the Partition tab, set the partition layout to one partition, set the format to Mac OS Extended (Journaled), and press the Apply button.
Download an OS X installer from App Store and install it on the SSD.


You can copy the old files manually or by using Migration Assistant. If you can't download the installer from App Store, you can also download and install OS X from the recovery partition.

Related questions:


How can I move my data to the new harddrive?
What's the best way to move from an HDD to an SSD on a Mac Pro?
How can I copy the OS X system image from primary HDD to new SSD?