• Tower (or mid-tower) case
• Motherboard
• CPU (with heatsink/fan)
• RAM
• Graphics/video card
• Sound card
• Hard drive(s)
• Speakers
• Keyboard
• Mouse
• Monitor
• CD-ROM or DVD-ROM or CD-RW or CD-RW/DVD-ROM
• Surge Protector
• Floppy Drive (optional)
• Zip Drive (optional)
• Network Interface Card (optional)
• Modem (optional)
• FireWire/i.Link (IEEE 1394) Card (optional)
• Printer (optional)
• Scanner (optional)
  

Motherboard - The motherboard holds a CPU socket/slot, sockets for RAM, IDE hard drive connectors, and many input/output features such as a parallel port and serial ports. Most motherboards now come with USB 1.1 (although not USB 2.0) on-board. Also included on the motherboard are typically three to six PCI slots for cards, and one AGP slot for a high-speed graphics card.

CPU (with heatsink/fan) - The CPU is more or less the brain of the computer's computations. It fits into the motherboard. You must get a motherboard that matches the CPU you want. The heatsink and fan take the heat away from the computer, and your computer will probably fry fairly quickly without one because the CPU generates a ton of heat.

RAM - Random access memory is extremely important in running programs. Most operating systems require at least 32MB of RAM, although it's fairly safe to have a minimum of 128MB now Be careful! Not all motherboards take the same kind of memory, and not all can take all sizes

Graphics/video card - People who play games like graphics cards.

Sound card - Lots of motherboards come with a built-in 16-bit sound card. For lots of people that isn't enough.

Hard drive(s) - A hard drive holds all your data. Don't think less than 20GB. By the time you read this, it will probably be more reasonable to not think less than 40GB.. Most people like Maxtor and Western Digital hard drives.

Speakers - They have a stereo cable that connects to your sound cards output. They range in price from $10 to $100 or more.

Keyboard - Some are curved in ways that are better for your hands If you don't need one that fancy, get a standard one.

Mouse - I have a $6 serial mouse that I'm happy with. You may wish to get an optical USB mouse with doesn't have a ball to get caught. But they cost more.

Monitor - If you use your computer for less than an hour a day, you might be able to get away with a 14 or 15 inch monitor. You'll regret getting one that small if you suddenly start using it a lot more. Your monitor needs to do a minimum of 1024 x 768 comfortably, and have the option of going higher, so think 17 inch to 21 inch.

CD-ROM or DVD-ROM or CD-RW or CD-RW/DVD-ROM - This is more or less a money issue. I have a CD-ROM and a CD-RW on my computer. a CD-ROM only reads CDs, a DVD-ROM reads CDs and DVDs, a CD-RWn reads CDs, writes CD-R, and writes CD-RW. A CD-RW/DVD-ROM reads DVDs, reads CDs, writes CD-R, and writes CD-RW. If I were putting together a
new computer, I'd get the CD-RW/DVD-ROM and throw in a high-speed CD-ROM. That way I could still copy CDs (for backup purposes of course) directly.

Surge Protector - Your computer will last longer. They don't do anything if lightly strikes the telephone pole outside your house, but the standard, more likely surges are usually protected. Get one with protectors for your Network Card and/or Modem connectors. People frequently burn out parts of their computer by phone surge.

Floppy Drive (optional) - You'll find yourself using a floppy drive less and less over the next few years. They are typically used only for compatibility. Most of us use CD-RW/CD-R or Zip disks to transfer files, if we can't just move it over the network. Standard 1.44MB 3.5 inch will do if you must have one.

Zip Drive (optional) - They come in very handy. The 100MB or 250MB choice is yours... lots of people only have 100MB drives so you'd have to use those disks if you're giving them a large file, but the 250MB drive reads/writes both 100MB and 250MB disks.

Network Interface Card (optional) - If you're on a network, you need one of these. A good 10/100 card is fairly cheap.

Modem (optional) - For those of us will dial-up ISPs. Think v.90 or v.92.

FireWire/i.Link (IEEE 1394) Card (optional) - FireWire is a high-speed connector common on digital video cameras and other neat devices. The card isn't very expensive, and if you're doing digital video, you'll need one

Printer (optional) - We are a society with a paper base. At least we're not printing on plastic.

Scanner (optional) - Handy for scanning important documents and photos

Computer Guruz - Paul Botzon