Need help on choosing new computer for under $1000 Options

[mrgrape]

so yeah im moving out and going to community college
I am getting 500 from my dad..... im thinking about building a computer but not really sure
can anyone reccomend me a new computer w/monitor or a good laptop?
thanks!

[aflacattack]

then you'll want to invest in a decent video card and sound card
a 9800gtx or w/e nvidia is calling it now a days and a high end soundblaster sound card.
then a decent processor and a good base motherboard.
for memory its cosiar or nothing for me. But a couple other brands make good memory.
and for a hard drive, if your gonna spend some money on it, get samsung spinpoint F1, single best hard drive on the market. i have one and a WD raptor 10k drive, the samsung outperforms it by a mile!
oh i forgot power supply. Stick to antec, enermax, or thermaltake(sp, and i dont have one, but i've only heard a few bad things about them) get one with over 500w rating.

now because the modern computer blasts out more heat then a hair dryer, your gonna want a case that has good airflow, but since its a budget pc your not gonna want to spend a lot on it. honestly, my server is living in a 25$ case modified to fit a couple 120mm fans in the side. but if you dont want to modify a case, then do research, google is your friend.

spend time looking up things on all the parts you want to buy, and run them by everyone you can. The more time you spend looking up stuff the less head aches you will have later. and i agree completely with what 97celica said, building pc's is fun, and i love doing it! plus, its a great skill to have cause you can save some money!(or lose it if your not careful, yay overclocking!)

This post has been edited by aflacattack: Aug 13, 2008 - 11:39 PM