Good lord
What Linux are you using then, that you cant just plug in a hard disk?
Unless you are using one of the unfriendly ones (and they do exist, I sometimes use Arch, and thats awkward) you just plug it in and boot up.
Just plug it in if its a Sata, no need to reboot even.
Linux has had a plug-and-play aware mechanism for a few years now, its part of the Debian repository and everything based on it - like Ubuntu, probably the most popular distro out there.
'Most people have no interest in doing that'
Yes they do. Have you heard of a little computer called a Raspberry Pi?
Unless you buy a working SD card off the foundation you'll be rolling your own distro out of Debian or Arch repositories from a terminal. Using tools like DD and PartEd to build the system.
Yes. Teenagers are learning to roll distros, and once you've done it a couple of times you can do it in your sleep. Cambridge Uni are offering a free course in writing an OS from scratch, in Assembly. They wouldnt do that if there wasnt an uptake for it, so I beg to differ with you.
