by Nathan Edwards

Created on: April 22, 2008   Last Updated: April 09, 2009

So, you want to fight all the establishments, wavier all possibilities of getting a warranty on the computer, and build your own? Good. Let's begin.

The first thing that you want to do is decide how much you want to spend on said computer. If you are a hard-core gamer who wants the ultimate computer, you should budget about $2500-3000. If you are just an average Joe who just wants a computer to do the basics, such as internet browsing and word processing, then your budget should be about $600-1500 (the wider range is because there are many, MANY different options that come with mid-level PCs).

The next step is to gather your parts together.

1. Case + fans- Almost every case that you can buy is a tower case, which usually comes with fans, and they can range from $25-150, depending on how much cooling they perform. Even gamers might want to stick with the cheaper cases and buy some extra fans if necessary. Also, if necessary, you can leave your case open while running the computer to generate extra cooling (just don't touch the inside parts).

2. Power supply- Some cases also come with power supplies, but most don't. Depending on how much power you need to give to the computer, the price will range from $35-180. Unless you are going to have a lot of peripherals attached to the computer (i.e. a bunch of hard drives, optical drives, etc.), you should be fine with a 430W model.

3. Motherboard- This is probably one of the most customizable aspects of your computer, as there are many different models out there. You will want an ATX form, as this has been the standard form for desktop motherboards since the mid-90s. Now, the rest of the motherboard is up to you. Different motherboards have support for different types of processors, have different RAM capacities, and have different bus speeds for the chipset. They can also range from $50-500. If you are just looking for a mid-range motherboard, then get one that can support a dual core processor, have a maximum RAM capacity of 4GB (you will not need this much RAM), and have a bus speed of 533MHz.

4. CPU- This is probably the least customizable aspect of the computer, as there are only a few forms out there. A medium-range processor will be a dual-core 3GHz processor, and will cost you about $200. However, depending on what kind of processor you get, the range is $50-400.

5. Video card- There are a bunch of video cards out there, but before you go gallivanting for the latest, greatest, and most expensive model, ask yourself,

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