hi, i wanna get a new computer. which is better? DIY or the whole set? i wan a good and fast com.
if DIy wat are the best parts i needa buy?

computer idiot

In general, building your own computer will cost more than purchasing a complete system. It is similar to trying to build a car by purchasing all the parts individually, it would cost much more.

Having said that, the advantage to building your own is that you have the option to pick out and install just the components that you want. As well as the fun of building it. The other advantage is that you don't get stuck with any proprietary items, so if something goes wrong later on, you can just run down to the nearest computer store and purchase replacement items like power supplies and such.

As far as the best parts, to each his own. Everyone has their own opinions. Just stick with name brand parts. Like:

Motherboards - Intel, Asus, A-bit, etc.
Hard Drives - Maxtor, Western Digital, Seagate, etc.

Be carefull of house brand parts like CompUSA brand. They often work at first, but difficult to upgrade or find drivers later on if you update your system.

You get the idea...

Paul is somewhat correct. You can buy a pre-built system from Dell, Gateway, etc. for less cash, and to the uninformed person, good specs. The issue is this. You may be comparing apples to oranges. If you build your own system you will need to get an operating system. You will have the right to use that OS one any one computer at a time. With the prebuilt systems you get the right to use the preinstalled OS on only that machine. This may seem OK but it isn't. Computers need constant maintanence and occasional upgrades. The former is a hassle with restore disks and the latter is usually not possible. In addition to all that if you build a system with a decent AGP graphics card and compare the cost to build with what an IDENTICAL Dell would cost you will find you can be competitive even then. Buying Dell is good for corporate america, for reasons I won't go into here. Not so good for the individual PC user.

Paul and Hill are correct, mainly because most of the public doesn't understand or care what makes a powerful and fast computer. Most of what is sold off the shelf is integrated, shrink-wrapped and slow. A few months ago I built a screamer for a dear, old friend's daughter who is majoring in graphic arts.
I won't go into extensive detail, but it is a black "alienware" type box w/ lighted window, CDRW and DVD, black wireless keyboard and mouse, everything running 333FSB.
This loads PhotoshopCS from cold boot in 3.5 seconds (accurate timing). She regularly works with 40meg files, with P/Shop and Illustrator and sometimes Quark Express all open at the same time. There is 0 waiting from command to execution.
Including a 21" Sun Microsystems CRT monitor,
total was $700. There is no way in *$&# a retail store could sell you that unit at that price.
However, I also have my sources and leads for bargains. I also understand that most folks just do not have the need for that kind of power, either.

Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day;
Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime;
Then industry pollutes the water and kills all the fish.

I saw this site posted in the gaming forum when a similar question was asked about building your own vs buying prebuilt. The prices are reasonable & they have some fairly decent configurations. I'm not endorsing this site, just posting it as an example:

http://www.cyberpowersystem.com/

Asus A7N8X-X
1800+ @8x210mhz
512mb PC3200
Ti4200/8X 128mb
WDC 60GB

Good advice from above. I advise against getting a OEM box from Dell, Gateway, etc for the reason given by the others. Either build your own or buy a generic one built by a local merchant. It `might' cost a little more, but you will avoid major problems later on.

you can buy computer from eaby for good price too. just read carefully. like last time i bought a dell dimension 3000, man it doesnt have AGP slot. and i have to pay $70 for the shipping to return that. so if you buy computer online, you gotta read carefully.

shut the f--- up

"I advise against getting a OEM box from Dell, Gateway, etc for the reason given by the others."

You know I always hear this from the folks that frequent these forums. But honestly, I don't see the logic. I am a single working mom, with no time to spend researching the latest and greatest graphics card, os chips, etc. I need my PC to work. When it breaks, if I can't get someone on the phone to tell me how to fix it, that means I am going to have to carry it somewhere and leave it - and that does not make me a happy camper. So if the brand offers in-home warranty - then so much the better. My sister had a PC that was basically put together for her by a geek friend (no offense - I work in the field too!) and she moved away later. When her PC slowed to a crawl, I tried what I could do, but hey I'm no expert - so she took it to a shop who promptly charged her $150, and never fixed the problem. She took it somewhere else - same results. She now has a new Dell. And she is ecstatic. I understand that for the person that has the time to learn, and the time to spend staying up on the latest specs, building your own is really great. But I don't have the time. So I will be buying an off the shelf model.

Just wanted to present my perspective here.

If you do get tech support from Dell then that is fine. Add additional hardware or sofware to that machine and see what Dell tech support tells you then. If you don't want to bother with building your own computer, which I fully understand, at least go to Bestbuy or some place close to purchase. That way when you want to add that DVD burner you didn't originally buy at least someone can install and troubleshoot it for you. I look at maintaining a computer like maintaining your health. You need to be proactive and find competent people to maintain before you need them. My sister bought a Dell, against my advice, when her son kept going to Kazaa who did she go to, not Dell. They weren't very sympathetic. Kazaa isn't sotware that came with the machine, therefore no obligation to support.