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[NivlacMom]

fm87, on 10 January 2013 - 07:13 PM, said:

The build has a couple of problems that we will revise.

Do you or your son have a preference over Windows 7 or Windows 8?

There is quite a (visual) difference between the two, with 7 being similar to older operating systems (start menu, text menus, etc.) while 8 is more similar to 'apps' and slightly similar to some aspects of OSX as well.

I'd probably stick with win8, given their situation. 4GB is definitely enough as well.

We have no preference on an OS because no one in our house uses a PC so everything would be new to us. Even the old PC that we got from his grandfather has only been used a few times because of the lag problem with Minecraft so my son is not used to PC (it has windows 7)  Anything that is closer to an Apple OS would be an easier transition for us as now he uses Minecraft on our Mac.

[fm87]

Mhyles, on 10 January 2013 - 07:16 PM, said:

We took out parts that were not needed in this case, overall making it slightly cheaper for the same performance.

Here's the final product: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/wStU

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU:  AMD A10-5800K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($119.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard:  ASRock FM2A75M-DGS Micro ATX  FM2 Motherboard  ($60.98 @ Newegg)
Memory:  Kingston HyperX 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory  ($26.99 @ Newegg)
Storage:  Seagate Barracuda 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($54.99 @ NCIX US)
Case:  Fractal Design Core 1000 MicroATX Mini Tower Case  ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply:  Corsair Builder 430W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V Power Supply  ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive:  Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer  ($18.98 @ Outlet PC)
Operating System:  Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit)  ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $431.89
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-10 14:13 EST-0500)

The choice of Operating System is completely up to you.

This parts list seems right, everything looks good on it.

NivlacMom, on 10 January 2013 - 07:18 PM, said:

We have no preference on an OS because no one in our house uses a PC so everything would be new to us. Even the old PC that we got from his grandfather has only been used a few times because of the lag problem with Minecraft so my son is not used to PC (it has windows 7)  Anything that is closer to an Apple OS would be an easier transition for us as now he uses Minecraft on our Mac.

In that case I would definitely recommend going for Windows 8. It's not exactly similar to how the Apple OS looks and feels, but it is more similar than windows 7.

(I think, as of this post, 8 might also be cheaper than 7 too if I recall correctly, anyways.)

<---------------------->

Oh right and one more very important thing to note on the subject of parts and building:

Keep all packaging, boxes, etc. for at least 6 months, just in case you need to RMA anything. This includes plastic bags, wrappings, and things like that.

For manuals, needless to say, please also keep those in case you need them at some point as well.

[Mhyles]

NivlacMom, on 10 January 2013 - 07:18 PM, said:

We have no preference on an OS because no one in our house uses a PC so everything would be new to us. Even the old PC that we got from his grandfather has only been used a few times because of the lag problem with Minecraft so my son is not used to PC (it has windows 7)  Anything that is closer to an Apple OS would be an easier transition for us as now he uses Minecraft on our Mac.

Have you ever used Windows 7? Even at a friends house, library etc? It's quite easy.

In that case, I suggest getting Windows 8. I'll add the list to this, which will be your edited and ready to buy system!

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/wStA

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU:  AMD A10-5800K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($119.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard:  ASRock FM2A75M-DGS Micro ATX  FM2 Motherboard  ($60.98 @ Newegg)
Memory:  Kingston HyperX 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory  ($26.99 @ Newegg)
Storage:  Seagate Barracuda 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($54.99 @ NCIX US)
Case:  Fractal Design Core 1000 MicroATX Mini Tower Case  ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply:  Corsair Builder 430W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V Power Supply  ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive:  Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer  ($18.98 @ Outlet PC)
Operating System:  Microsoft Windows 8 (OEM) (64-bit)  ($87.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $429.90
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-10 14:27 EST-0500)

As fm said, if you ever need any help with anything, come to us. We're always happy to help!

Also, I think your an awesome mom for doing something like this. I bet your kid adores you.

[BKrenz]

Mhyles, on 10 January 2013 - 07:28 PM, said:

Also, I think your an awesome mom for doing something like this. I bet your kid adores you.

Funny, coming from you

[JoeTheTechPro]

Mhyles, on 10 January 2013 - 07:28 PM, said:

Also, I think your an awesome mom for doing something like this. I bet your kid adores you.

I wish my mum was that great. Mhyles's final build should easily be sufficient for all your needs, not just minecraft

[PartyPoison98]

To the mum of the child, building a PC is a bit like putting together flat pack furniture. I just built my first PC and I can assure you that Mhyles, BKrenz, fm87 and various other frequent posters on this forum will be able to answer pretty much any question you have about the build

EDIT: Also guys, perhaps it's MAYBE worth adding a GPU, just so that the PC can get top performance on MC and can also play other games

[NivlacMom]

Mhyles, on 10 January 2013 - 07:28 PM, said:

Have you ever used Windows 7? Even at a friends house, library etc? It's quite easy.

In that case, I suggest getting Windows 8. I'll add the list to this, which will be your edited and ready to buy system!

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/wStA

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU:  AMD A10-5800K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($119.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard:  ASRock FM2A75M-DGS Micro ATX  FM2 Motherboard  ($60.98 @ Newegg)
Memory:  Kingston HyperX 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory  ($26.99 @ Newegg)
Storage:  Seagate Barracuda 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($54.99 @ NCIX US)
Case:  Fractal Design Core 1000 MicroATX Mini Tower Case  ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply:  Corsair Builder 430W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V Power Supply  ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive:  Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer  ($18.98 @ Outlet PC)
Operating System:  Microsoft Windows 8 (OEM) (64-bit)  ($87.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $429.90
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-01-10 14:27 EST-0500)

As fm said, if you ever need any help with anything, come to us. We're always happy to help!

Also, I think your an awesome mom for doing something like this. I bet your kid adores you.

  Thanks Mhyles. I adore my kid

Thanks for all your help, tutorials links.  Much appreciated!~

fm87, on 10 January 2013 - 07:27 PM, said:

This parts list seems right, everything looks good on it.

In that case I would definitely recommend going for Windows 8. It's not exactly similar to how the Apple OS looks and feels, but it is more similar than windows 7.

(I think, as of this post, 8 might also be cheaper than 7 too if I recall correctly, anyways.)

<---------------------->

Oh right and one more very important thing to note on the subject of parts and building:

Keep all packaging, boxes, etc. for at least 6 months, just in case you need to RMA anything. This includes plastic bags, wrappings, and things like that.

For manuals, needless to say, please also keep those in case you need them at some point as well.

Will do.  Wow. Never thought about all these things so thanks for the heads up on everything and pointers.  Thanks fm87!

[Mhyles]

BKrenz, on 10 January 2013 - 07:31 PM, said:

Funny, coming from you

It is, eh?

Cleared stuff up so we're good. Thankfully.
Honestly, I'd love my mum whatever she did tbh, it's just moms like the one in this, who go out of there way to do things for their child that gets me..

Anyway, mother, your good to go. All I can say is, best of luck, have a lot of fun, and come back if you need any help! Please post back and tell us how you got on, when you get it!

[fm87]

Indeed you are all set with the above parts list Mhyles posted.

Just remember to follow all the advice I and others posted, the video guides, and if you have any problems/issues or questions feel free to come here again and post. (Just note that depending on the time of day, you might not get a good response from us regulars until the next day or so.)

PartyPoison98, on 10 January 2013 - 07:33 PM, said:

To the mum of the child, building a PC is a bit like putting together flat pack furniture. I just built my first PC and I can assure you that Mhyles, BKrenz, fm87 and various other frequent posters on this forum will be able to answer pretty much any question you have about the build

EDIT: Also guys, perhaps it's MAYBE worth adding a GPU, just so that the PC can get top performance on MC and can also play other games

Nah, an APU build will be more than fine for their uses, a dedicated low end GPU would not add much over the A10 APU.

The A10s are pretty powerful:

http://www.tomshardw...0k,3224-15.html

[NivlacMom]

Hi all,



Sorry to ask another question on this.  But I went to the link on the partspicker to order and got this compatibility note:  is this an issue? If not, then I will proceed with ordering. Thanks again for everything!  



Compatibility Notes

• ASRock FM2A75M-DGS Micro ATX FM2 Motherboard has an onboard USB 3.0 header, but the Fractal Design Core 1000 MicroATX Mini Tower Case does not have front panel USB 3.0 ports.

[BKrenz]

NivlacMom, on 10 January 2013 - 09:42 PM, said:

Hi all,



Sorry to ask another question on this.  But I went to the link on the partspicker to order and got this compatibility note:  is this an issue? If not, then I will proceed with ordering. Thanks again for everything!  



Compatibility Notes

• ASRock FM2A75M-DGS Micro ATX FM2 Motherboard has an onboard USB 3.0 header, but the Fractal Design Core 1000 MicroATX Mini Tower Case does not have front panel USB 3.0 ports.

That's not an issue at all really. Nothing to worry about. You'll still have access to the USB 3.0 ports on the back of the machine, just won't have any on the front.

[jppk1]

NivlacMom, on 10 January 2013 - 09:42 PM, said:

Hi all,



Sorry to ask another question on this.  But I went to the link on the partspicker to order and got this compatibility note:  is this an issue? If not, then I will proceed with ordering. Thanks again for everything!  



Compatibility Notes

• ASRock FM2A75M-DGS Micro ATX FM2 Motherboard has an onboard USB 3.0 header, but the Fractal Design Core 1000 MicroATX Mini Tower Case does not have front panel USB 3.0 ports.

That should not be an issue, it only means that you can only access USB 3.0 from the back ports of the motherboard.

[fm87]

NivlacMom, on 10 January 2013 - 09:42 PM, said:

Hi all,



Sorry to ask another question on this.  But I went to the link on the partspicker to order and got this compatibility note:  is this an issue? If not, then I will proceed with ordering. Thanks again for everything!  



Compatibility Notes

• ASRock FM2A75M-DGS Micro ATX FM2 Motherboard has an onboard USB 3.0 header, but the Fractal Design Core 1000 MicroATX Mini Tower Case does not have front panel USB 3.0 ports.

Not an issue at all.

All this means is you need to plug the front panel USB header into the USB 2.0 port of the motherboard, rather than the USB 3.0 one.

Remember, everything on the motherboard is labeled in very small white text.

[Wolley74]

fm87, on 10 January 2013 - 10:08 PM, said:

Not an issue at all.

All this means is you need to plug the front panel USB header into the USB 2.0 port of the motherboard, rather than the USB 3.0 one.

Remember, everything on the motherboard is labeled in very small white text.

-snip-

most cases use this for USB 3.0

it's not a single one like USB 2.0 most the time

[fm87]

Wolley74, on 10 January 2013 - 10:11 PM, said:

most cases use this for USB 3.0
-snip-
it's not a single one like USB 2.0 most the time

Oh good then there should be no issue.

[NivlacMom]

Excellent!  Thanks so much BKrenz, jppk1, fm87, Wolley74
I will order everything and let the fun begin.....
Thanks again for all your help and support on this.  You guys are the best!

[fm87]

Once again you need anything or have problems or anything like that do feel free to ask and post again. No matter how stupid or insignificant it might seem.

Good luck!

[BKrenz]

You are quite welcome!

I would like to thank you as well for being quite considerate and polite, unlike a lot of others who ask for help here.

I wish you the best of luck, and as others have said, please do come to us when you have any questions or concerns.

[The_Pastmaster]

fm87, on 10 January 2013 - 07:06 PM, said:

• If the computer does not turn on, or all the fans turn on but nothing happens, or the computer beeps more than once (one beep is a successful boot if you have the PCB speaker installed) do not panic. The motherboard manual will help you diagnose the beeps, and if nothing happens or the fans just spin, there are very common mistakes first time builders make that can easily be fixed and do not damage anything. Again, I can't stress, this is very common, and is usually a simple oversight so do not panic.

I really recommend remembering this one. I thought I destroyed my computer once buuut I had put the RAM in backwards. >_<

[Mhyles]

Best of luck! I hope you have fun, and come back if you need any help, and tell us how it went!