Help with a computer

[Teamboca]

Recently as some of you may know my computer was fried... literally. It is now time for a new computer and i am willing to spen about 1000-1500 dollars. I am looking for any kind of gaming computer that i can order online. I would build one if i knew what the hell i was doing and i didn't want to break anything so that is out of the question. I honestly know nothing about computers so all help will be much appretiated, i guess im looking for a computer that has the ability to 5-box. I looked at newegg.com and didn't understand anything or know where to spend my money. If you would please direct me with a link to a computer i would love you forever. Thanks a lot. :thumbsup:

[Eteocles]

First off: Do not ever buy an eMachine ever again. :P

Second, if you know someone technically inclined IRL, get them to put together yer stuff for ya, or buy the parts cheap(custom built is always more powerful and cheaper for the same/better power than any prebuilt brandname shit, always.) and pay labor at a local computer store to set 'er up right for ya. I'd suggest some specs but judging from what you said it probably won't help alot; just make sure you get at least 2gb DDR2(NOT DDR, make sure it's ddr2) ram, a Quad-core processor(if you wanna 5box on one comp, you gotta go quad, dual won't cut it.

I also personally prefer AMD over Intel, but either should work); and I personally recommend going with Nvidia video cards, 7900 or higher, preferably an 8800 as that's the best bang for your buck on the market right now; I'm not a fan of ATI whatsoever, and Nvidia's products have always worked well and lasted me long enough ;p Plus it's easier to keep track of their upgrades via the numbers, an 8800 is obviously better than a 7900, whereas an ATIXVQRWTF could be better or worse than an ATVXBBQLOLZ, I hate their numbering system lol

Try to get a SATA harddrive if you had an IDE one before, as that'll help some speedwise. I have a SATA but I've been too damn lazy to hook it up since I bought it months ago, still using an IDE >.> And make sure you get a power supply that can support it all, at -least- 500w, maybe 550-700 for added protection. It's really not all -that- complicated to do Hardware, it's mostly connecting wires and screwing drives in, the only trouble you'd have is if the drive is brand new and you need to install & update windows/drivers/etc which can be a pain in the ass.

If you still would prefer non-customs, honestly, I don't know who the "reliable" names are for prebuilt nowadays; I don't hear alot good about Alienware anymore, and I'm not sure how well Northwest/Falcon/whatever it was is doing nowadays. I'll leave those suggestions to other posters ;p

[Atorifan]

I was a panicky noob in 89/90, and without paying money I didn't have, I couldn't get any help. I finally learned how to at least do the hardware. While I know nothing about what's out there today, it's really basic and simple. First thing, you build up static by walking, moving, esp socks on carpet. Touch the bare metal of the inside of the case frequently. At least the first time. Most things are a simple screw fastened. Move wires, almost all are in the way at some point for many of us. It's all just physical slot a goes into hole a, they're matched you can't screw it up. Video cards tend to have their own special slot, and it's obvious once you take it out and compare. While I can't recall the names of differing things, used to be all pci, now there's pci-e, agp, etc. You'll get lost. So try and learn a bit about your own workings on the fried computer. It's dead, pull stuff out, jam it in, try jamming it in to a wrong slot. Flip the ram around, move the processor upside down. Play around, and explore the parts that enable the gaming joy. But pulling things out of your board can save you hours of downtime and hundreds over the course of your life. Sometimes the simple fix is really remove the component, and reinsert it. Voila done. Versus 2 days and about 100$ at a local shop. Disconnect the power cord from the PC and it's as simple as pulling things out, moving things around, plugging them back in.