My new computer is finally done
A month ago I posted about how I was finally getting a new computer after 6 years with an old Dell P4 1.7GHz machine. I know it's safe to say that all of the little kinks are out of the system after using it for about three weeks now.
When I first stated to build the PC it was really hot in the room so I had to occasionally get up and run my hands and arms under cold water for fear of accidentally sweating onto the motherboard. Now I've never built a PC before, but I assume that it's bad to get any type of liquid on the motherboard so I wanted to play it safe 
. So after several trips back and forth to the sink and my old computer where I was posting questions and various PC building forums I finally got the heatsync onto the processor. Putting the heatsync onto the processor was especially nerve wracking because at the time I didn't know you had to push down on the screws to mount it in place. So the whole I was trying to mount the heatsync I was worried that I'd hear a snap and have to wait two weeks for a new processor to replace my broken one, but fortunately my fears were unwarranted. I later found out that obviously you have to press down really hard while you're mounting the heatsync on the processor because they both need to be in constant contact or the processor would get damaged from the extreme heat.
After putting on the heatsync, the rest of the stuff was pretty easy, although I still continuously ran into little problems that I had to solve with the help of some random forum members. Needless to say, I learned a ton of stuff about building computers - most of which came from my choice of PC parts. The next time I build a PC I'll know a lot more about what to watch out for (like power connectors from the power supply matching up with the motherboard). Now that it's over and the computer has been running smoothly for a while now without any issues there is a great sense of accomplishment. I also loved the fact that after running into all the little problems while building it the PC started up without issue on the first try 
If you want to build your own PC and have never done it before I'd highly recommend having a buddy with you that has built one before. It's a lot easier to build a PC when you can ask a person a question that can physically see what you're working on than posting questions on forums. Either way, I'll gladly do it again as you can save a lot of money by building your own PC than if you buy it from Dell or some other company.
Here are the specs again in case you didn't see the first post I made about the new PC:
Intel Q6600 - Quad Core 2.4 Ghz Processor
EVGA LGA 775 Nvidia nForce 680i SLI Mobo
EVGA GeForce 8600 GTS 256MB
Antec Performance One P180B Case
FSP Blue Storm II 500 ATX 2.2V 500W Power Supply
G.Skill 2GB (2×1 GB sticks) DDR2 800
Lite On 20X DVD Burner
500 GB SeaGate SATA HD
Zalman 9700 (Aftermarket Heat Sync)
Total came out to about $1200 (before $100 in mail-in rebates).
Have you ever built a PC before? I'd like to hear some of your stories so please comment on this post.
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