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mcomp

New Member
Hi guys. I recently started my freshman year of high school and decided I should learn something about computers. That lead me here. I'm not completely computer retarded. I would say I'm an intermediate as far as using windows goes and can do basic functions.

One of my friends built his computer and told me it wasn't hard. Now I'd like to try. I want to build a low-budget computer for my grammie. Shes using a 10 year old IBM Aptiva (fit for a museum) and is too cheap to buy a new computer. Really anything I could build would be better than what she has.

Heres my problem. I don't know wear to start. What should I buy first? Whats all this business about motherboard slot size? Any help is appreciated.
 
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Does a motherboard need a chipset as well or does it come with one? Also what are the 478, 754, 939 sockets for?
 
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Does a motherboard need a chipset as well or does it come with one? Also what are the 478, 754, 939 sockets for?
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Check out the CPU 101 for a definition of most processor's and usages. You may also want to read up on the other 101's. They are in each of the sections of the forum.
 
mcomp said:
Heres my problem. I don't know wear to start. What should I buy first? Whats all this business about motherboard slot size? Any help is appreciated.
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A good place to start is a budget, how much do you want to spend?
 
Go to ebay, and find some cheap parts to start with, and go from there. For about $100, you could put together a decent PIII (800-1000 MHZ) computer, which should be a big improvement compared to your grandmother's present computer.

Start with your motherboard and processor. Look on ebay for 'motherboard cpu', and you will find a selection of motherboards that include processors. Make sure that the people you deal with have a good 99.5% minimum rating with over a 100 transactions, and they say the items work. Try to avoid "sold as is" components, as that is usually what they are, 'as is' and nothing more. Once you have your motherboard and driver, then you can go from there, such as to the case, power supply and various PCI cards. You might be able to use parts from her old computer also.
 
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It will be pretty tight for only $300, for that price your better off buying an older computer on eBay or something.

But if you insist on building, you may be able to do it. Best place to buy parts is www.newegg.com, and every person starts where they feal most comfortable, i usually install the Power supply, then the motherboard, drives, hook up cables, and install all the cards.

Have a look at the 101's, they should help you.
 
Oh, I can spend more than $300, but I'm not looking for a super machine.

Just something very simple. Like 900Mhz, 256 RAM, and about 20GB of storage.

Very similar to this one. Thats all.
 
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