Oh wow

I've just learned that it isn't possible to directly connect a 2.5" hdd (laptop hard drive) to an ordinary ATA motherboard without buying a pricey USB enclosure. This seems rather deliberate on the part of the laptop manufacturers. I mean, SATA-ATA (PATA is not correct, do not mention it) conversions are readily available, but not 2.5"-3.5". Why?

So I did some preliminary research-apparently they're SATA drives, and get their power through the cable itself, rather than through a separate, dedicated power line. So I thought to myself that a cable that connected to both would work, but I'm unsure whether it would work because-

1. The available power might be to small or great (though I doubt it)
2. The power might flow backward and overload the motherboard circuitry (again, speculation)
3. They are deliberately not made

So this leaves me with two options-to either not buy a second hand hard drive (which I really want) or to fork out another AUS$54 for an enclosure (which i cannot afford, period) or I can throw out my old 40GB or sell it. Just thought I'd blog it, comment if you know differently.
Oh, apparently I'm wrong. A simple google search showed me up :) silly me.

wired. An old Persian god is Ahura-Mazda. Anyone see a connection? Isn't it odd that this is a Japanese car company? It means "wisdom" in the Persian language. Wikipedia says:

...Mazda coincides with the anglicized pronunciation of the founder's name, Jujiro Matsuda...

Odd really. Cya.