I think you should find that installing a hard disk will dramatically[/i] speed up the boot time. :-)
When you get Workbench 3.1 installed, the Amiga will boot to your desktop literally in a matter of seconds from turning the machine on.
I experienced the same behaviour when upgrading my A4000 to ROM 3.1 and disconected my hard disk - the machine runs around in circles for about 35 seconds looking for a hard disk before kicking the bucket and putting up the "insert floppy" screen. :-)
I think as long as *something* is on the IDE channel, there's no delay.
