What is an IDE Hard Drive?

Answer 1

"IDE was created as a way to standardize the use of hard drives in computers. The basic concept behind IDE is that the hard drive and the controller should be combined. The controller is a small circuit board with chips that provide guidance as to exactly how the hard drive stores and accesses data. Most controllers also include some memory that acts as a buffer to enhance hard drive performance. "

See http://computer.howstuffworks.com/ide1.htm