Building my first computer!

[techieMoe]

No, this is a completely new system. I guess I also need cables like IDE or SATA and stuff to attach all the stuff together to the motherboard...I also don't know which cables I need to buy.

Those will come with your drives and your motherboard. No need to buy them separately.

[sentralorigin]

Thanks for the great assistance techieMoe! You've been an awesome help. I now look forward to ordering the parts I need and having a fun experience puzzling everything out ^_^

[distronoob]

For that budget and building an entirely new system you might want to consider buying whats called a barebones system. Usually they are towers that are like 90% complete. Just missing a video card or ram or something. But, they can be a cheaper way to go than buying all your components individually. If not, you can actually just buy a whole pre-assembled system already for that price. I would definitely consider getting a case. You can get a lightweight one with front side audio and usb ports for like $30, so why not? It protects your components you just spent your money on from all sorts of things (static, coffee, small children) plus they are designed to provide better airflow than sitting on a shelf. You can also customize a case over time to express yourself. Is space an issue? I would also consider buying some sort of voltage regulator or battery backup as they are the best thing (better than a lowe's surge protector) to protect your shiny new system from lightning or fluctuating power from the power company. As cheap as like $50 for one from APC or something. Building your own system can be a lot of fun, and isn't too hard at all if you take your time and research first.

I would definitely stick to LCD's for a new monitor as you can get a larger one for cheaper than an equivalent CRT, and they save space. For any easy cheap AMD setup, I would recommend going with a 939 socket CPU and board, you can probably even find a combo cpu and board on newegg, which by the way is a great site. 939's have been around for a while meaning you will get lots of support, flexibility, and future upgrade ability for relatively cheap, and a lot of the boards have onboard sound and video, perfect for web browsing and videos. The only thing you really need a video card for is demanding things like new video games, video capturing and graphical compiling. 939 processor's power can range anywhere from like 1.8ghz to like 4500+ so it's up to you. For your needs I'd think even something like a 2ghz is fine. If you have an questions about building your system or what brands/parts to choose let me know as I've built custom systems for customers for several years.