I need to make my computer better, faster, harder, stronger... Without the money

[Mr. Moon]

So, as some of you may have heard by now, I just bought Splinter Cell: Double Agent on Steam. (I'm broke as ****, so even doing that was costly.) Finally got everything downloaded, and all the updates updated, when, wouldn't you know it? The game won't friggin' open. :smallannoyed: So I go to the Steam forums, start a thread and ask for help. (http://forums.steampowered.com/forums/showthread.php?p=9271432#post9271432)
Didn't turn out very well.

Evidently, in order to play a ten dollar game, I need to spend a thousand dollars on a new computer.
...
Yeah. Sure.
I may be a die-hard Splinter Cell fangirl, but I just don't have that kind of money.

So, I figure, what the hey. You people are smart. You may know some nifty tricks I can do to trick the game into thinking my computer is good enough to run it, without actually spending any money.
...
Or, if need be, a little money. I might be able to beg Mom into buying some twenty-dollar gadget, but honestly, I wouldn't bet on it happening.

And like I said, even ten dollars was a lot for me. Being a poor nerd sucks. I'll be a very grumpy Moon Called if that ten dollars went to a program that will sit around and do nothing but slow down my computer.

[Mc. Lovin']

I can't help you Moon (Sorry :smallfrown:) but to avoid making the same mistake again on PC games use this website

http://www.systemrequirementslab.com/referrer/srtest

Tells you if your PC can run any game

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Great website Apelord.

I wish I'd known about it 2 hours ago before I bought Guitar Hero for PC :smallfurious:

[thubby]

oh, that stings.

there's very little you can do. but that 1k machine will work a long time, and then you can just swap out individual parts.

if you are absolutely hell bent on making your machine work, you could theoretically buy a bare minimum graphics card ($75 maybe) and readyboost (if you use vista) to force it.
but i will take no part in creating such an abomination.

[Mr. Moon]

So that's it?

There isn't anything I can do?
I mean, the video card may work... If I can get my hands on $75.
*loud cursing goes here*
Oh well. I spent the money and I doubt Steam will refund it. Might as well try reinstalling the game and following all the steps. I mean, I can run Half Life 2, and that game's a lot newer than Double Agent.

Thanks, for the link, Apelord.

*sighs*

[RS14]

So that's it?

There isn't anything I can do?
I mean, the video card may work... If I can get my hands on $75.
*loud cursing goes here*
Oh well. I spent the money and I doubt Steam will refund it. Might as well try reinstalling the game and following all the steps. I mean, I can run Half Life 2, and that game's a lot newer than Double Agent.

Thanks, for the link, Apelord.

*sighs*

Pretty much.

It used to be that you could at least return a game. Now not even the brick and mortar stores will take a game back. You can't even resell games you get from Steam...

Let the industry die. Support DRM free games. Buy nothing without a demo.

Edit: Apelord, that website strikes me as extremely suspicious.

[Mr. Moon]

Okay, after a brief discusion with Mom, I'm feeling a bit better about this.
We've been talking about getting me my own computer for a year now. This may just be the catylist I need to get started.

I'm looking through E-Bay right now. Making my own computer is an appealing concept, but I have no idea what's inside the CPU, so I have no idea what to /do/. Feel free to list a bunch of parts that I'll need, but I can garuntee I'll have no clue what you're talking about.
This:

yeh because my computer OC E8400 crossfire HD4850 runs it at avg of 80fps and drops to 30 sometimes
so you will need a new computer and minimum is a P4 at 3.0GHz,1gb ram,DX9.0c shade model 3 just to run

might as well be instructions on how to reach Warp Ten more efficiantly for all I know.

In short?
Halp.

For now, though, I think I'll take a look on ebay and see if I can find anything.

Edit: Oh, yeah. You guys rock, and any help I can get will make me very happy.
Like, draw your character happy.
>>

[tyckspoon]

Building your own computer can potentially save you a fair bit of money and it's really satisfying to do your time-wasting on something you put together with your own hands, but I wouldn't recommend it for you unless you're willing to put some time into educating yourself on the components and especially on shopping for the best deals. OEM manufacturers can get better deals on lower-end parts than you ever will be able to, so it takes really savvy shopping to beat their prices for builds under the 5-600 range. For your situation, the best option is probably to dig up a good deal on a decent desktop (Nvidia or ATI-based graphics preferred, if you can't afford a discrete card immediately) and then put a new 70-100$ video card in it as budget allows. Maybe something like this Lenovo (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883108198) paired with one of the graphics cards under discussion in http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=105971. Buy the computer locally, if you have any shops around you can trust to give you a fair price; shipping for a computer runs about $30. Buy video cards online; the prices are almost always tens of dollars cheaper, and free shipping deals are common.

[Deathslayer7]

i'm not much of a computer genius myself but there are a few things you need to look at when buying a computer

Is it going to be a desktop or laptop. If laptop, you'll probably need to shell out more moeny, but I don't think you're going this route from your posts.

Now that we decided on a desktop, what kind of desktop? Gaming, video, pictures, all-around? Choosing a specific category may just help you find what you're are looking for. Gaming desktops do tend to be more expensive though for the reasons listed below

graphics card
processor

to be able to run a game, it must meet a minimum system requirement, which is usually determined by the processing speed of the computer (measured in GHz) My computer has 1.7 GHz processor, which is decent, but its graphics card and RAM suck (only 256 MB of RAM).

Nowadays, RAM is inexpensive to install and you can probably go with 512 RAM or 1024 RAM (the latter being a bit more expensive but not much).

Secondly, the type of graphics card you get can be costly. An excellent graphics card can run up too $200 + but you probably won't ever need to change it again until about 7-10 years down the road, assuming you have it for that long.

Thirdly is the processing speed. This is usually between 1.7 to 4ish if you get a really good one. Standard now seems to be about 2.2 (i think). But the faster processing speed it has, the more money it is going to cost, but as above, if you get a good one, you probably wont need to upgrade it. The other thing processing speed helps with is that it can run many programs at a single moment, which helps if you multitask a lot and have multiple programs open at the same time.

From there, it's mostly brand you like and trust, and searching for a good price with the requirements you want, which should be determined by you ahead of time.

Hope this helps.

[toasty]

Nowadays, RAM is inexpensive to install and you can probably go with 512 RAM or 1024 RAM (the latter being a bit more expensive but not much).


As a note for RAM i've found the following:

For Vista: Minium: 1GB Ram. For gaming minium 2gb. You really should consider getting 3-4GB if you are a serious gamer and can afford it.

For XP: I had 512 ram for a long time and it was fine. But that wasn't the best machine in the world. Get 1GB if you can afford it. 2 GB if you are a crazy gamer. :p

[BizzaroStormy]

I'm surprised that im the first to suggest this, but to help with your processor speed, you could try overclocking it. This means setting it to run faster than it is supposed to. I only had to increase mine by .02 GHz to get TF2 to run but im not sure about yours. The two main things you'll need are instructions on how to do it, and a screwdriver to get into your tower if you mess up. First thing though. OVERCLOCKING CAN SERIOUSLY DAMAGE YOUR COMPUTER

I can't stress this enough. This will make your processor heat up more than its supposed to and can cause damage and possibly complete failure of the unit (even fire in severe cases) First thing I would reccomend is figuring out how fast it runs normally then making a small change as per any online instructions you find to see how much it increases it by. After that, you only want to speed it up enough to put you over the threshold of being able to run the game.

Once you do that you should be set. If you find out that you need to make a pretty drastic change, you should probably get some additional cooling for your processor. Should you mess up and your computer wont turn back on, there will be instructions on how to do that as well, I reccomend printing these out. Now if you need a BIG boost, like .5 GHz or so, then you're probably better off getting a new processor, instead of risking frying your whole computer.

[Fri]

i'm not much of a computer genius myself but there are a few things you need to look at when buying a computer

*snips*

Hope this helps.

Basically, I always did when I want to build a computer is:

1.Find out what graphic intensive game that I want to play? I always do that. Then I look at the requirement. My last benchmark was Fallout 3. I'll try to build a computer that can play at least a decent game (not minimum req, not max req).

2.All the mumbo jumbo seemed intimidating at first, but you only need this three thing to know. All other is just

a.Processor. You know, pentium, etc. Nowadays there are two producers, Intel or AMD. AMD is cheaper, I think. How many ghz (that is gigahertz) that the game need? the standard is around 2 ghz now I think.

b.RAM aka memory. this is cheap. look at how many ram the game need? Just buy 2 gb (gigabyte, if you need to know) ram, it will serve for a long run. But even 512 mb ram will do good for most older game.

c.Graphic card. This is the gaming part of your computer. There are A LOT, almost seemed to be unlimited permutation of it. But you only need to know how many megabyte the card hold and it's pixel shader. Buy the cheapest card that serve your need, don't care for the mumbo jumbo.

ps:
oh, I almost forgot. then, those things will be equipped at the Motherboard. Motherboard is your pc's 'spine'. Everything is put together there. Just ask for the cheapest motherboard that will hold those part you choose together. I mentioned this, because sometimes, there will be a motherboard that isn't compatible with the part you choose.

[onasuma]

How much have you got to spend, moon? My moderatly budgeted pc (about £600, might seem alot, but compared to what it can do its pretty price) can run most modern games on full (only thing ive ever had a problem with was crysis, but that makes alienwares run at 3 fps) as well as never really crashing or anythign annoying like that. If you want, Ill be happy to help you with what you need. Feel free to ask me over msn anytime, Im pretty sure you have mine already anyhow.

[Archonic Energy]

but I have no idea what's inside the CPU,

do i get kicked if i say "Silicon"?
:smalltongue:

if i asked for a ballpark figure you are willing to spend would you provide it?

@V wouldn't that interfere with the thermal transfer to the heatsink?

[Rama_Lei]

Bitchin' flame decals on the side of your CPU? (Can't provide techie support, but hopefully some laugh support)

[Mr. Moon]

Oh, look.
People are helping me.
Yays! ^^

As for a price figure? Right now, $500-$800 CAN ($392.10 - 627.35 for you Yankies, and 309.56 - 495.29 Euros to... you people who use Euros. >>)
A thousand may be possible, after all, I think that's about what my tablet cost. But lower is better.
Although this is a ball park - I'll have more firm figures when I can discuss it with Mom.

My needs are simple - gaming, and internet. (When I move out, not so much internet. But that's not for a few years.) I'm not a hardcore gamer - cant afford it. So nothing fancy is needed. Just running my games without lag will be good enough for me.

@Pirate: ... I really doubt Mom will let me do anything to her computer that may involve it combusting. I really do.


Is it going to be a desktop or laptop. If laptop, you'll probably need to shell out more moeny, but I don't think you're going this route from your posts.

Now that we decided on a desktop, what kind of desktop? Gaming, video, pictures, all-around? Choosing a specific category may just help you find what you're are looking for. Gaming desktops do tend to be more expensive though for the reasons listed below

Yup, desktop. I don't trust myself with a lappy. I'd lose it.


As a note for RAM i've found the following:

For Vista: Minium: 1GB Ram. For gaming minium 2gb. You really should consider getting 3-4GB if you are a serious gamer and can afford it.

For XP: I had 512 ram for a long time and it was fine. But that wasn't the best machine in the world. Get 1GB if you can afford it. 2 GB if you are a crazy gamer. :p

Actually, this brings up another question. Is it still possible to get my hands on XP? From the window-shopping I've done, Vista seems to be the only one out there. And I haven't heard a lot of stuff I like about Vista.
Apple is straight out - unless, of course, the internet has lied to me and you can game on Macs.


2.All the mumbo jumbo seemed intimidating at first, but you only need this three thing to know. All other is just

a.Processor. *snip*

b.RAM aka memory. *snip*

c.Graphic card. *snip*

Motherboard

Are those everything I'll need for the CPU? Excluding mice and keyboards and the like. Or is that just the core?


Bitchin' flame decals on the side of your CPU?

Naturally. :smalltongue:

@tyckspoon: Thanks for the links. This Newegg website - is it any good? I'm taking a look through it, but I have no idea what I'm reading.

[Fri]

There is another thing actually, the power supply. With that, yes, that's everything inside the tower. Some people add external sound card and cooler, but that's optional.

With price wrangling, discount hunting, and everything, and not counting the software, I built mine for around 400 bucks, including a 15 inch LCD monitor. Not exactly pc-of-the-line, but serve my purpose. (It can't play fallout 3 in full graphical glory, but decently enough. And I need it for 3d design as well).

And I think you could downgrade vista for XP free. just ask the dealer.

Ask for the shop for help, ask if there is anything you don't understand, and don't be intimidated by the psychobabble, and you'll be fine.

[Mr. Moon]

Ah, yes. Good old electricity. How could I forget.

Thanks. ^^

[Jimp]

Encase it in concrete and attach it to the back of a train. Suddenly your computer will be faster, harder and stronger. It will be better too, just in very limited ways :smallwink:

[Bonecrusher Doc]

This Newegg website - is it any good? I'm taking a look through it, but I have no idea what I'm reading.

Every person I know who is computer-savvy buys stuff on Newegg. So I presume it must be decent if you know what you're doing.

[tyckspoon]

Oh, Canadian? Your equivalent is probably http://www.ncix.com/, then. Newegg did recently set up a Canadian (http://www.newegg.ca) branch, but I'm not sure if the pricing is as good as their US stuff usually is.

(Further Research:) It looks like Newegg.ca is about as good as Newegg US. They have at least the same general lineup of products, anyway. Try something like this box (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883229067) matched with a 4670, 9600GT, or even one of the less expensive 4830's (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883229067); it should leave just enough room to squeak in under $800 Canadian once shipping is applied.

[Lupy]

Here's what I did when I started replacing my computer's parts. I was just your average middle school geek (much like you, I believe?) until teh intranetz (<-- added for cultural bonuses) changed my life.

Here's what I did.

I went to HP's website and found a computer that could do what I needed it to and wrote down the price.

Then I went to Newegg, which here in The States, and now even up in the frozen north, is THE website to go to for computer parts, and looked up how much it would cost me to make a similar computer if I learned how. I came up saving about $200 dollars, which made things more than worth my time to learn.

So when I wasn't chained to a math book I googled/youtubed instructions on installing hardware and the core software 'til I had a very good idea of what to do.

Then I went to Newegg, bought the goods, and then used the knowledge I had garnered from the internet to put it together. I was only renovating an old machine, but the process was much the same. :smallsmile:

Oh, and call me a Yankee one more time and you'll regret it Eskimo. :smalltongue::smallannoyed::smalltongue:

[Trog]

And if none of that works you can always call in the experts.
http://davetreston.files.wordpress.com/2008/02/daft-punk.png

[onasuma]

So, would you be happy just being able to run modern games on low settings? If so, theres a nice few cards around and pretty cheap as well. The nvidia 6800 is pretty decent and is only about £30. Unless you buy a specific gaming Pc odds are your graphics card wont handle everything too well, and gaming pc's are very expensive. A friend of mine borght a pc for gaming (left 4 dead mainly) for about £1200, it had so much stuff that it didnt need, it was unreal.

[Archonic Energy]

well onasuma, i've just spent £1700 on a laptop... that wasn't my MOST expensive laptop either i had an Alienware which came to about 2k... at least £300 was for the badge! DAMN YOU MARKUP!

anyway, Canada... i need some good Canadian hardware websites....

BRB.

p.s. add a hard disk & a DVD rom drive to the list...

[Zeb The Troll]

On the topic of buying vs building...

PCWorld Review (http://www.pcworld.com/article/123848/article.html?tk=nl_esxrvw)

PCWorld regularly rates computers on various criteria. This article rates budget PC's on a "bang for the buck" scale. Of note, they define "budget" as being under $1500US, but only like 4 of them are over $1000 and at least a couple are right around $500. This includes things like the monitor and keyboard/mouse stuff that you'll need to make it work. Check them out, scrub it against your requirements for your game, and see what fits in your budget. It's likely that you can get one of these that is within your budget and will meet or exceed those minimum requirements. If you don't really like any of them, scour Newegg and you'll probably be able to find something you do like, but at least you'll have any idea of what you should be expecting to spend.

[Forthork]

Current computer specs would be extremely useful. It may only be a matter of a new graphics card. Click the Start button. Right click My Computer. Click Properties. Under "Computer:" what does it say? Finally, at the back of your computer, is the cable plugged into the monitor parallel or perpendicular to the case?

Reading through this thread I have realized how many mixed messages you may be getting. If you are serious about getting a new computer, I would gladly show you some good options, be they parts or a prebuilt system. One thing you must realize is that you will save a lot of money by getting the parts, but you will most likely have to purchase a copy of Windows, which run ~$100, negating most of the cost saved on a budget PC.

[Mr. Moon]

Every person I know who is computer-savvy buys stuff on Newegg. So I presume it must be decent if you know what you're doing.

Therein lies the problem.
I don't know what I'm doing.
That's where you people come in.


*links and such*
Took a look, thanks. Steam isn't loading, and I haven't decided which game I wanna build my computer (if I do decide to build it, which I probably will) on. Hmm... Some new game. Suggestions? Maybe the new pretty new Watchmen game that's coming out? *fangirl drool*


*helpful advice*
Oooh, good idea. Don't suppose you can recommend any videos?


*refrence I dun get*


So, would you be happy just being able to run modern games on low settings? If so, theres a nice few cards around and pretty cheap as well. The nvidia 6800 is pretty decent and is only about £30.
Yeah, I'm not too picky on graphics. Pretty is nice, plot and no lag is better.

Unless you buy a specific gaming Pc odds are your graphics card wont handle everything too well, Eh? How so?


p.s. add a hard disk & a DVD rom drive to the list...

Hmm.
So that means I need: Mother board, tower case, power source, cooling unit, video drive, hard disk (what IS that?) DVD rom drive, speakers, mouse, keypad, moniter, lotsa wires... Other stuff I'm forgetting.
Halp?


On the topic of buying vs building...

PCWorld Review

PCWorld regularly rates computers on various criteria. This article rates budget PC's on a "bang for the buck" scale. Of note, they define "budget" as being under $1500US, but only like 4 of them are over $1000 and at least a couple are right around $500. This includes things like the monitor and keyboard/mouse stuff that you'll need to make it work. Check them out, scrub it against your requirements for your game, and see what fits in your budget. It's likely that you can get one of these that is within your budget and will meet or exceed those minimum requirements. If you don't really like any of them, scour Newegg and you'll probably be able to find something you do like, but at least you'll have any idea of what you should be expecting to spend.

Ah, thanks. That's a nifty link, I'll take a look.
...
Right after this lolcat. >>


Current computer specs would be extremely useful. It may only be a matter of a new graphics card. Click the Start button. Right click My Computer. Click Properties. Under "Computer:" what does it say? Finally, at the back of your computer, is the cable plugged into the monitor parallel or perpendicular to the case?
Hmm, apart from old?
Well, hang on, lessee...

CISNET

AMD Athlon(tm) 64 Processor
3500+
2.19 GHz, 448 MB of RAM
Physical Adress Extension
As for the plug, I have no clue which of that jumble mess is the one for the moniter, and I have all of two minutes to get this post done before McAfreak kicks me offline, so I can't look. just ran over my time limit, so may as well.
*pokes around*
Oh, look. I disconected my mouse. Greeaaat. Just plugged it in, but it's not doing anything. *saves this text and restarts*
'Nyway, the mouse-plug-thing is verticle, as is the tower-thing. That help?


Reading through this thread I have realized how many mixed messages you may be getting. If you are serious about getting a new computer, I would gladly show you some good options, be they parts or a prebuilt system. One thing you must realize is that you will save a lot of money by getting the parts, but you will most likely have to purchase a copy of Windows, which run ~$100, negating most of the cost saved on a budget PC.

Yeah, I'm serious. I didn't buy Splinter Cell just to let it clog up my only computer.
Seriously, one-hundred?
Hmm. I wonder if anyone on eBay is selling XP Home...

Again, thanks guys. ^^

[Fri]

Gah! Sorry, I forgot about the Hard disk and dvd rom. I always forgot about those. I also almost forgot those when I built my most recent pc.

dvd rom, well... yeah It'd be funny if you built a pc and realized that you haven't put a dvd rom there... (I was thiis close to let that happened to me)

Hard disk is well, the hard drive. You know, where you put your programs and save your files? The C drive, D drive, etc. Actually, we can say that usb stick and floppy drive are some kinds of hard drive.

Back then (and I still remember back then), computer practically didn't have a hard disk. If you want to use a word processing program like wordstar, you must put a floppy disk that contained the program to your computer, and then you need to save the document into another floppy disk.

If you want to play a game, you must insert the floppy disk that contained the game.

Nowadays, you can save your documents into your hard drive, and you can even INSTALL your word processing programs into your pc! Woah...

[Trog]

Originally Posted by Trog
*refrence I dun get*

*headdesk*
Those two robot fellows there are Daft Punk. You may be familiar with their work (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oGECJP3phyY)?

[Mr. Moon]

...
*head desks*
Wouldja believe I though I was quoting that old show... with the guy... the rebuilt him... they had the technology, something or other.
...
Imma bad nerd! DX

[Lupy]

...
*head desks*
Wouldja believe I though I was quoting that old show... with the guy... the rebuilt him... they had the technology, something or other.
...
Imma bad nerd! DX

Million dollar man?

Also, is that your GB'd avvy?
________________________________________

Linkys!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SiFIgSQOY7g - Installing RAM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RPB_uY00_yg - Video Card

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4Mx1n7qRTE - Motherboard

I got these by typing : "How to install a _____ " because I was working on a lappy mostly, so my favorite videos wouldn't apply.

Using that hand template you should be fine.

[The Valiant Turtle]

I'm a little late to this party, but let me add my 2 cents (and I'm afraid all my cents and dollars for this post will be referenced in US$)

I'm actually about to build a new PC myself, so I'm much more up to speed on parts and such right now. I tend to rely heavily on the recommendations over at arstechnica.com, who should be doing putting out a new systems buyers guide any day now. The TechReport did just put out some new recommended systems recently: Link (http://www.techreport.com/articles.x/16438/1). They did 4 separate builds targeting various price points with alternate options as well. It's actually one of the best system guide articles I've seen lately. The box I'm planning is very similar to their Utility Player, although I'm going to downgrade the graphics to a Radeon 4670, which has adequate performance for my 19" monitor and requires less electricity than the more powerful cards out there.

One thing that needs to be said about both of those sites is that they exclude the price of the Operating System. Once you include an operating system you may find that at the low end of things you are better off buying from one of the name-brand computers (i.e. Dell), especially at the cheap end of the spectrum, but keep in mind the overall quality of the parts just won't be as good. I know that in the US you get the best options at Dell under the small business section of the site.

If you are a bit scared of building everything yourself you might want to find someplace that offers a barebones configuration, this typically means they install the CPU and cooler on the motherboard and mount the motherboard and power supply in the case, it may include the RAM as well. I've done a little searching and this isn't as easy to find as it once was. It might not be that much of an option anymore.

I'll post my general minimum recommendations:
CPU: At a minimum get a dual-core at 2.0 Ghz. You'll have a hard time finding anything less than that anyway. I really like the new AMD Phenom II line. The Phenom II 720 is getting a lot of love lately as a reasonably priced processor with great performance. The cheapest processor I see at newegg (US) which I would be comfortable with is the Intel Core 2 7400.

Motherboard: It's hard to make a recommendation here until you choose a processor. If you go the AMD route and want to be really cheap you can consider getting something with the 790GX chipset, which has halfway decent built-in graphics. You can add a real graphics card a little later if you need to. I'm actually planning on using a 790GX for other reasons. In general, I'd budget around $100 for a motherboard (again, US$)

RAM: is incredibly cheap right now, running at about $10/GB. I'd get at least 2GB and I recommend going for 4. Unless you get something really unusual you will need DDR2 800, don't get anything beyond that, you won't be able to notice any improvement.

Case/Power Supply: Most of the cases you would be considering will probably come with a Power Supply, and in many ways the quality of the power supply is more important (technically, you could connect up everything without a case at all if you really want to). The Antec NSK 4480 is commonly recommended as a reasonable case with a decent power supply. The Cooler Master Elite 330 is another good option. I've already purchased my case and power supply. I went somewhat higher end on them and got an Antec Solo Case and Antec Earthwatts 430 Power Supply.

Hard Drive: These just keep getting cheaper. The sweet spot right now is probably to buy something in the 500GB to 750GB size, but if you know you don't need that much you can still buy smaller. I'm partial to Western Digital myself, and I think they are the only major manufacturer still offering a 5 year warranty on consumer hard drives.

CD/DVD drive: Yeah, you need one, it doesn't really matter what.

Video: Tom's Hardware Guide recently did a best graphics card for the money. It's here (http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/geforce-gtx-radeon,2151.html). Pick your price point and follow their advice. They actually don't recommend the 4670 I'm planning on getting because you can get better performing cards for just a little more. They are right, but the 4670 doesn't take as much power. I'm trying to keep this computer a little quieter than my current jet engine.

Monitor: I'm going to keep my existing monitor, so I haven't been paying much attention to these. Check Ars technica or the TechReport link I posted earlier.

Sound: Any modern motherboard has adequate sound onboard, don't even think about a separate card unless you're an audio nut.

keyboard/mouse: Pick your own here. I'm a trackball guy myself.

OS: Unless you want to run Linux (which it sure doesn't sound like you have any intentions of doing) you'll end up getting Vista. I believe if you get at least the Home Premium version you get downgrade rights to XP, but you have to find an XP install disk yourself. If you go through a big retailer (Dell or whoever) most of them still offer to downgrade it to XP for you, but possibly with a small fee.

OK, this has been more than long enough now, but I think I covered everything. Feel free to send me a PM if you have further questions.

[thestarvingpoet]

If you live in Calgary, Edmonton, or Winnipeg I'd highly recommend you check out Memory Express (http://www.memoryexpress.com/) - I went to them when getting a computer custom built and got a tonne of help from them. I went in with a budget and a relatively good idea (aka processor level, etc) of what I wanted and they helped me get everything within my price range.