As I research building or buying, I've found many of the posts here very helpful--thanks to everyone who has contributed so much info. My situation - I'm thinking of building the following system:P4 2.4 533MHzGiga-byte GA-81EXP Crucial 512 DDR PC2700 memoryGeForce 4 Ti4200 (already own)80 mb 7200rpm hdWindows XP proMinus the graphics card, which I already own, the system will probably come to about $900 with case, power, drives etc.Through dell, I can get the following system for $630:P4 2.4 533MHz w/512 L2 Cache (their dimension 4550)128 DDR SDRAM (I'd add more)30gb hd (I'd add another drive)windows XP pro, etc.First, am I putting in enough quality components in the built system to 'get what I pay for', and second, if I'm not a power user, what are the advantages to building? Is the system I've listed more upgradeable than the dell? Which way to go? Thanks so much for any advice.

Adavantages of building (and I'm sure there are many more than this):- No proprietary MB- No proprietary version of the OS.- Better chance of overclocking.- Education.- Getting exactly what you want.- Allowing the geek in you to be completely released :).Avantages of buying a built system:- Turn on the switch and go.- Warranty.- Tech support.If you plan on spending more than $270 for memory and a drive then you're no cheaper building it yourself.I just tried the Dell site, and a 2.53 wasn't available for the 4550. Nor was 128MB (for the 2.66). However, a 2.66 with 256MB of 333, no monitor, 30G, and XP pro prices up at $978USD + shipping. I also priced up a 2.4 with 128MB, 30G, XP pro, no monitor at $719 (including $100 rebate) + shipping.I just build a 2.53 for a friend. Tearing apart his old Dell to salvage a few components didn't reveal anything special. They're solid and have a good company behind them, but I'd rather build it myself and get exactly what I want.

You never know what parts you are going to get with store bought systems. I know I'm biased, but I think custom built machines with name brand components are the way to go. Cheap motherboards will cost you frames per second. Some hard drive brands are more reliable than others etc.

I have mentioned in another thread: reputable discount houses will configure a machine for you with brand-name parts that you choose, AND provide warranty support, and that is the route that I took and recommend. About the only downside was that they refused to put on a cpu heat sink other than the AMD-supplied one, or they would not warranty it.Looking at your specs: sooner or later, with XP, you will find your disk requirement growing. I have had my system 2 months, and with little effort, my disk-used is now 34gigabyte, and I do not consider myself a "real" power user!! Although I admit I have not "cleaned" it recently.. So, if you can afford to go to at least 120 on the disk, do it. One other thing: How was I going to back-up 120gb? So I bought two and put them in a RAID-1 array, so at least I am sort of covered for an immediate 1-drive hardware failure. Art.

go to the reply here by ccgr and click on the site they have listed, think you will like them. they just built a computer for me and I love it.here's what I bought:Intel 2.53GHz 533Bus MSI 845E Max1 AGP, 6PCI, USB 2.0512MB PC2700 DDR80GB 7200 RPM WD hard drivePNY GF4 Ti4200 64meg AGP (this I already had)Realtek 10/100 NICLite-On 52x24x52 CD-RWLite On 16X DVD56 V.92 winmodemP4 300Watt case1.44MB floppycase fanam using on board sound No OS I put 98SE into it .Whole package with out Vidio card and OS came to a little over $900with shipping.Besides the numerious emails back and forth untill I settled on what I wanted, and could afford, they constantly emailed me on the progress with pics. Very friendly and know what they are doing.Cheryl if you see this again a big thanks.http://www.enter.net/photoalbum/data/reddog/905260.jpgSceenshots and Pics athttp://community.webshots.com/user/reddog18951USMC Retired

Thanks for the recommendation. Glad you're loving your new system. Be sure to share some screenshots from it. :)