Computer Building Guru's Please Read!

[clocker]

Most of the hard work in building a PC comes before you have any parts in hand.
Determining what kind of PC the customer needs and what components will best serve those requirements while keeping to their budget is the whole trick.
Actually assembling the hard parts into the case and installing Windows is cake.
I probably spend twenty hours a week scouring forums and tech sites to see what is available and how other folks are doing so I can speak with relative authority to the customers at my shop.
Even then it's a crap shoot and you need to allow for the extra time you will spend working around the inevitable hangups and glitches.

To begin learning about parts go here....
http://www.ocforums.com/
or
http://forums.anandtech.com/

Just be aware that building a new PC and selling it to a customer is much more involved than you probably suspect.

[zapjb]

newegg.com strongest customer service

[_John_Lennon_]

Sink or swim.

That was my method for learning, and when I had questions, and problems I went to a motherboard site that wasnt even for my brand of Processors!

http://amdmb.com

Thats what it was when I joined, and the scope of the help areas has broadened so its now called http://pcperspective.com

Another great site up there with anandtech, or hard forums, etc.


www.newegg.com is a great place to get parts, they are one of the big sites. www.chiefvalue.com is owned by the same company, so look on both and u might save a buck.

www.directron.com
www.zipzoomfly.com
www.monarchcomputers.com
www.sidewindercomputers.com

the list goes on.

[Peerzy]

2 Years ago i wouldn't have been able to build a computer either, i didn't set out to learn either, just by watching threads in Hardware world, replying and stuff i slowly got the basics untill a finally build one. Its not someone you can rush.

[Virtualbody1234]

... Its not someone you can rush.

Who?

Just like you can't rush when typing.

[Peerzy]

Who?

Just like you can't rush when typing.

My computer is a real person no matter what anyone tells me

[Virtualbody1234]

My computer is a real person no matter what anyone tells me

Not your computer... Isn't it your learning that you cannot rush?

[bigdawgfoxx]

Yeah same here...I really dont know how I started to learn it all..but then I got on here and learned littttle by little...till finally i know how to do it

[Snee]

Ive had my dad take apart my computer without me watching and build it back up. I just dont know what parts you need. I know all the impotand stuff like mobo, gfx card, hardrives, cd rom, dvd rom, sound card. But other things I don't know what they are. But I can build it.

Why did you have to go through that little exercise?

Besides, it's pretty weird if you think that's a challenge. Most parts only fit in one place or socket anyway.

I built my first (ibm compatible) PC from parts, and it was all pretty logical how things fit together even back then.

[DDRFREAK1030]

trying to steal my idea

nah jk

um, i did this for a while. it turned out well but it ended up taking too much time too do. make sure you have people who are will ing to put their time into this. ( i am 17 and i could not handle doing too many thiings at once). It ended up stopping for me bvecause i had lack of time to study and also my friend who "delivered" the computers for me, moved. it is possible to have something lkike i had (not sure if it is legal though) but it is hard to manage time. Where to get parts? i dont really know seeing as how my friend took care of that. go to some cheap computer stores or something.

good luck man but at least try to learn most of the basics first

ive only been into computers since may 2004, learned from books and hands on. it worked