Never had a decent computer but want one.

gneGne

In the world of computers there is no such thing as real future-proofing. The best future-proofing is to get a computer that isn't totally crap when you first buy it and then save up to buy a new one in 3 years.

tsmvengy

At this point it seems worthless to spend $400+ on a Motherboard & 2 Gigs of RAM just so you can have the chance to add a couple more gigs of ram later. Just go for 4GB of DDR2 and a $100 Motherboard; it costs half as much, and you've got as good as things are going to get until you need to be running a 64Bit OS. You're not future-proofing against anything by spending twice as much.

Regicid3

The computer I built two weeks ago almost matches the Ars System Guide perfectly, that makes me very happy.

Manufacturer: GIGABYTE GA-EP35-DS4 LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX
Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo CPU E8400 @ 3.00GHz (2 CPUs)
Memory: 2046MB RAM
Hard Drive: 250 GB
Video Card: NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GTS 512
Monitor: KDS 24' Widescreen LCD Monitor
Sound Card: Realtek HD Audio output
Speakers/Headphones: Zboard GH-100 Gaming Headset
Keyboard: Zboard Merc Gaming Keyboard
Mouse: Logitech MX518
Mouse Surface: X Trac Ripper
Operating System: Windows XP Professional (5.1, Build 2600) Service Pack 2

I spent just about $1500 . . . :winky:

Moe Fwacky

Hey Regicid3, wrong thread
http://forums.penny-arcade.com/showthread.php?t=54595