DIY: Is it possible to replace the Hard Drive on a MacBook?!

It seems it is permitted to replace the Hard Drive on a MacBook (13"). I found Apple "Hard Drive Replacement Instructions 073-1045 Rev A" dated 26 Jan 2007.
OK this is very basic-- but my question is: When you get the Hard Drive and Install it-- can you boot from an external HD and then FORMAT THIS DRIVE? Where to PURCHASE the drive?
Thanks as I prefer to do this as my data is backed-up and to wait 15 days to have Apple do this in Belgium... I need this Mac!
Thanks for any comments.-- Again, key question is: WILL THE HD be unformatted or ??? and how to format. I have an external drive (several) or can boot from the DVD.
THANKS!
Steve

You'll find a good tutorial here: http://eshop.macsales.com/tech_center/installation.cfm.
Be sure to prep the new drive properly:
Extended Hard Drive Preparation
1. Boot from your OS X Installer Disk. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Installer menu (Utilities menu for Tiger.)
2. After DU loads select your hard drive (this is the entry with the mfgr.'s ID and size) from the left side list. Note the SMART status of the drive in DU's status area. If it does not say "Verified" then the drive is failing or has failed and will need replacing. Otherwise, click on the Partition tab in the DU main window.
3. Set the number of partitions from the dropdown menu (use 1 partition unless you wish to make more.) Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled, if supported.) Click on the Options button and set the partition scheme to GUID, then click on the OK button. Click on the Partition button and wait until the volume(s) mount on the Desktop.
4. Select the volume you just created (this is the sub-entry under the drive entry) from the left side list. Click on the Erase tab in the DU main window.
5. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled, if supported.) Click on the Options button, check the button for Zero Data and click on OK to return to the Erase window.
6. Click on the Erase button. The format process will take 30 minutes to an hour or more depending upon the drive size.
Now you can clone your external drive to the new internal drive:
How to Clone Using Restore Option of Disk Utility
1. Select the internal volume from the left side list.
2. Click on the Erase tab in the DU main window. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (journaled, if available) and click on the Erase button. This step can be skipped if the destination has already been freshly erased.
3. Click on the Restore tab in the DU main window.
4. Select the internal volume from the left side list and drag it to the Destination entry field.
5. Select the external (startup) volume from the left side list and drag it to the Source entry field.
6. Double-check you got it right, then click on the Restore button.
For added precaution you can boot into safe mode before doing the clone.

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