UNIX for Dummies Questions & Answers

Well, I am new to Linux/Unix, and I have decided to get a new computer to experiment w/out fear of screwing up my work computer. I was debating between getting a refurbished Dell, and building my own. I am starting to lean towards building my own, then I saw how the AMD Athon XP out-performed the P4, and that just won me over. So, now I need to know where to get good stuff. I can install all of the cards, RAM, and hard drives. I am not quite sure about the fan, motherboard, or the jumpers. How complicated are these. Also, I checked PriceWatch.com, and after a bit of exploring, I found This set of Hardware and it looked like a really good way to get started. How do I know if these sites are very reliable. Does anyone have a good suggestion on a site where I can buy a good Motherboard+CPU combo (Athlon XP only please). Also, how complicated is it to install everything and get the box up and running right out of the packaging. Should I take any classes or buy a nice book?
FYI-My budget is below $1000, just incase...
Thanks alot guys!
JayDee

I'm not familiar with the site you mentioned. You might want to check out www.compgeeks.com. They usually have some good prices. I don't think you will have much trouble building a box, for the most part it is pretty self-explanatory -- hook up power supply to motherboard, install PCI cards, connect hard drive/cdrom and you are done. If you don't have any experience with x86 hardware you might want to buy a book -- there are many good ones. Go to your local book store and browse around.

Good luck

That site is nice, but I can't find any motherboards that support AMD's faster than 1.2 gHz. Any other suggestions?

Good motherboard CPU combos can be found on ebay.

www.ebay.com

Try this search:

http://search.ebay.com/search/search...rboard+CPU+AMD

Well, after looking around on E-bay, trying to decide on motherboards, I decided that the one that looked like it would suit my needs more than nicely would be the Shuttle AK31 V.3.1 with an AMD Athlon XP 2000+, but after reading a review or two, I saw someone say that the AK31 only supports AMD's up to the 1800 architecture. Is this true? Has anyone seen any reviews or had any experience with this motherboard? How is it working out for ya?
Thanks alot!
Jay Dee

Im not sure about the Shuttle thing, but if i where you I wouldn't go with Shuttle at all. I have a Asus A7V266-E and it works fine, im using a Athlon XP 1700+ with it, but im sure a 2000+ would work just fine. My mobo even has a Promise RAID controller, sound card and DDR RAM support all built right into it - I like it alot!

Later,

Grayson

Asus does have its upsides, such has the 4x usb ports (2 usb 2.0), but it is also lacking. With usb, you can just buy a new card to upgrade to 2.0, but the ASUS only has 3 DDR slots where the Shuttle has 4. Also, the ASUS only has 5 PCI slots, where-as the shuttle has 6. Any opinions on which way I should go and why. DETAILS PLEASE!
Thanks alot!
Jay Dee