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In this guide, I will show you every part in a computer, which ones to get, and which ones not to get. I hope for a sticky, but my hopes are not too high.

*All pricing from PCPartPicker




The CPU, or central processing unit, does the majority of the work for the computer. Processors have two brand names, intel and AMD. Though there are only two brands, there is a bounty of sockets. The processor must correspond with the socket of the motherboard to work. CPUs have two distinguishing specifications. Cores, essentially multiple processors on the same die, can take on more tasks at once. More cores doesn't mean better performance. Many games and programs don't use more than 2 cores at once. Buy 4 cores or more for intensive tasks like engineering software, modeling software, video editing etc. The other specification is clock speed. This tells you very little when comparing two different CPUs. 3GHz for an Intel Ivy Bridge is different than 3GHz for an Intel Sandybridge or AMD Piledriver. Most processors are clocked reasonably. Just skip over it. Note: you can raise the clock speed for modest gains in performance, depending on the processor.
Information of each company:

Intel: Their most recent line is the Ivy Bridge line, or the third generation i series processors. Ivy Bridge CPU's use the socket type LGA 1155 and utilize the chipsets H67, P67, Z68, Z77, and a few other obscure ones.
Highly recommended processors are
Intel Pentium G620 Sandy Bridge (Dual Core) $78
Intel Pentium G620T Sandy Bridge (Dual Core) $83
Intel Pentium G840 Sandy Bridge (Dual Core) $87
Intel Pentium G850 Sandy Bridge (Dual core) $85
Intel Pentium G870 Sandy Bridge (Dual Core)
i3 2100 (Dual core with hyperthreading) $125
i5 2500 (Quad core) $210
i5 2500K (Quad core) $220
i7 2600 (Quad core with hyperthreading) $305
i7 2600K (Quad core with hyperthreading) $315
i5 3750K (Quad core)
i7 3770K (Quad Core with HT)
K meaning that it is possible to overclock past 400 Mhz.

AMD: AMD fills the gap of moderately priced CPUs. Their most recently released CPUs are called Piledriver. They have fantastic price to performance.
Recommended CPUs by AMD:
FX-4300 (Quadcore) $120
FX-6300 (Hexacore) $130
FX-8320 (Octocore) $175
FX-8350 (Octocore) $190
(Don't be fooled by more cores. If you're a gamer, the 4300 will suffice, but considering the 6300's price, you might as well spring for that)




Motherboards are the middleman of the computer. The motherboard is the house, and the other components are the people inside, so to say. Again, there are two motherboards, AMD and intel. As said in the CPU portion, they must match sockets with the CPU to work. Getting a Motherboard with plenty of features is very important. Having the ability to go SLI/X-Fire is very nice to have. Overclocking might also be a deciding factor. Keep in mind the chipset, which tells you what your motherboard can and can't do, essentially. For intel, the most recent line up that supports ivy bridge (and legacy 1155 CPUs) are H77 (basic motherboard, no overclocking) and Z77 (allows overclocking). They closed the gap in featuers fairly well with the newer chipsets. More details can be found here. The basic AMD chipset line for Piledriver is the 9xx series. Look here for details. They are all fairly similar.

Intel:
MSI Z77A-G45 (Chipset: Z77, Socket: LGA1155, SLI and X-Fire Compatible) $100
Gigabye Z77-UD3-B3 (Chipset: Z68, Socket: LGA 1155, SLI and X-Fire Compatible) $136
ASRock Z77 Extreme4 Gen3 (Chipset: Z77, Socket: LGA 1155, SLI and X-Fire Compatible) $130
Gigabyte Z77A-D3H-B3 (Chipset: Z77, Socket: LGA 1155, SLI and X-Fire Compatible) $115

AMD:
Gigabyte 990XA-UD3 (Chipset: 990X, Socket: AM3+, SLI and X-Fire Compatible) $120
ASRock 970 Extreme4 (Chipset: 970, Socket: AM3+)
MSI 990FXA-GD65v2 (Chipset: 990FXA, Socket: AM3+, SLI and X-Fire compatible) $120


Video card is probably an important part of a computer because this is a forum with games. Video cards allow for graphics to load faster, ergo, higher FPS. Video cards also have VRAM, standing for Video RAM. 1GB is usually good for a single monitor set up. In a multiple monitor setup, 2GB+ does come in handy. There are two brands, both are very good. AMD and Nvidia. AMDs latest line is the 7000 series. Nvidias latest line is the 600 series. AMD has crossfire that can support up to 4 graphics cards. AMD also has eyefinity that allows for up to 6 monitors, thats if you have 6 monitors and enough ports. Nvidia has SLI that allows for 4 GPUs. Nvidia has 3D capabilities and Phys-X. AMD is currently well regarded for their price to performance.

AMD:
Radeon 7770 $120
Radeon 7790 $140
Radeon 7850 $170
Radeon 7870 $210
Radeon 7950 $310
Radeon 7970 $400

Nvidia:
GTX 650 Ti Boost $170
GTX 660 $200
GTX 660Ti $310
GTX 670 $400
GTX 680 $500




The most important part you can choose. This powers your whole computer, and if you buy a bad one, it takes all the parts down with it. Getting a high quality PSU is key. You also must know what wattage to get, and if that PSU actually uses that wattage. Some are low quality and use less wattage than stated. You can use a PSU calculator to help you out.
PSUs:
Seasonic M12D series
Seasonic S12D Series
Seasonic X series (if you have the money)
Corsiar HX Series
Silverstone Strider Plus Series
Silverstone Strider Gold Series
XFX Core Edition
Sentey Gold Steel Power 850W
NZXT HALE90














RAM stands for random access memory. Ram allows for the CPU to quickly access data in use. Ram takes information from the hard drive to cut down time for the CPU. The standard is 4GB. There is also dual channel and triple channel memory, corresponding to the motherboard. Two sticks of ram, comparable to one, is a lot faster. I recommend at least 2x2GB. If you are a video editor, I would recommend 2x4GB, it speeds up video rendering a lot. There is also different types of ram. DDR3 is on all current motherboards. Also 240 pin is on all current motherboards. Refer to the glossary for these terms. The speed of the ram should be 1333Mhz, high speed ram (eg. 1600 MHz) hardly makes a difference in real time. Heat sinks are not required either, and can save you money if you buy ones without them. Timings, 5 or 4 numbers with dashed in between, are defined in clock cycles. The represent the different latencies that can have an affect on the speed of a computer. The tighter the timings, the better. Here are 3 sections for different types of people:

Non Overclocker:
DDR3 1333Mhz
No heatsinks
9-9-9-24

Mid Overclocker:
DDR3 1333Mhz or 1600Mhz
Basic heatsink
8-8-8-24

High Overclocker:
DDR3 1333Mhz+
Advanced Heatsink (eg. Ripjaws X)
8-8-8-24 or better.




HDD stands for Hard Disk Drive. It stores information and is one of the only parts in a computer that moves (optical drive and fans move). 1TB is a good amount of space and 7200 RPM(rotations per minute)is a good speed. There is 2 types of drives I would recommend, SATA II and SATA III. SATA II is 3GB/second and SATA III is 6GB/second. SATA drives are compatible with each other, meaning each drive will work in each slot. However, if you plugin a SATA III drive in a SATA II slot, it will only perform at SATA II speeds.

Popular HDDs:
Samsung F3 Spinpoint 1TB 7,200RPM SATA II $65
Western Digital Caviar Black 500GB 7,200RPM SATA III $60
Seagate Barracuda 1TB 7,200 RPM SATA III $65

Any GB variation of these drives will do, long as the other specs stay the same.
HDD prices are up, I recommend you stay away until the prices go back down, try and salvage an HDD and buy an SSD



Cases reflect who you are and are very important. But you must choose carefully. Cases should, first, have good cooling. Heat brings death to components, and fans keep them cool. Second, cable management. It makes your case nice and neat, and improves air flow. Third, tool less installation, this makes your job a whole lot easier.

Cases I recommend:
CM HAF 912 (Mid tower) $60
CM HAF 922 (Mid tower) $110
CM HAF 932 (Full tower) $160
CM HAF X (Full tower) $200
CM HAF XM (Mid-Full Tower)
CM Storm Scout (Mid tower) $100
CM Storm Enforcer (Mid tower) $90
CM Storm Sniper (Mid tower) $160
NZXT Gamma (Mid tower, low budget) $50
MZXT Lexa S (Mid tower) $90
NZXT Tempest Evo (Mid tower) $120
NZXT Source 210 Elite (Mid Tower)
NZXT Switch 810 (Full Tower)
NZXT Phantom (Full tower) $140
Lancool K62 (Mid tower) $150
Lancool K63 (Mid tower) $130
Corsair 600T (Mid tower) $160
Corsair Carbide 400R (Mid Tower) $100
Corsair Carbide 500R (Mid Tower) $110
BitFenix Shinobi (Mid Tower)
Fractal Design R3 (Mid Tower)








SSD's are similar to HDD's in the fact that they store data. However, they are smaller, use non moving parts, and are much faster. They are also more expensive. SSD's speeds are measured by their read and write times, and MTBF. MTBF stands for mean time between failures. The higher these numbers the better. High read and write times show how fast the drive is. High MTBF means that there is less mistakes. SSD's are used a lot as boot drives. People put their OS and other important software on the SSD. As a boot drive, 60 GB is more than enough for your OS and other programs. SSD's are only for people with a big enough budget. By no means, should you get an SSD if you're budget is low. These are some of the best drives on the market for the money:

SSDs:
Crucial M4 (Good boot drive, amazing read times, lower than average write times)
Patriot Pyro
Corsair Force 3/GT
Mushkin Enhanced Chronos
Corsiar Performance Pro
Intel 330 Series
Intel 520 Series
Samsung 830 series
OCZ Vertex 4
Plextor M3
Corsair Neutron
Corsair Neutron GTX









Optical drives are pretty simple. They simply read, and sometimes write, disks. These are necessary if you are booting windows 7 from the disk. But, you don't need an expensive one. Most optical drives on the market are fast and don't need to be more expensive than $20 dollars with shipping. I can't give you any specific models. Just get whats cheapest on whatever site you are ordering from.




Monitors are tricky ones, they are. The standard resolution is 1920x1080p. Monitors run at cycles of 60 Hz and that is as fast they will go. 3D monitors are 120 Hz. Monitors are measured in size from one corner to the other. The amount of pixels vertical is usually considered the monitors resolution. A 1080p monitor has 1080 pixels from top to bottom. 1920 is the amount of horizontal pixels. The "p" at the end of 1080p means how the monitor refreshes. "p" stands for progressive, because it progressively refreshes the pixels. There is also "i", which stands for interlaced. Interlaced does all the odd lines and then all the evens. Many people prefer "p" monitors over "i" There is also monitors that have LED back lights. LED back lights are very useful, because when viewing a LCD monitor without them, its similar to low light reading. You should also consider an IPS model, if affordable. IPS monitors have enhanced viewing angles, when calibrated. They look absolutely stunning. Here are some monitors:

Monitors:
NEC EA232wmi (IPS, 1920x1080p, 23") ~$300
Dell U2410 (IPS ,1920x1200, 24") ~$400
ASUS ML239H Black (IPS, 1920x1080p, 23") $250
Dell U2211h (IPS, 1920x1080p, 21.5") ~$200
ASUS VS228H-P (1920x1080p, 21.5")~$150
Dell U2312HM (IPS, 1920x1080p, 23")~$300
ASUS PA238Q (1920x1080p, 23")~$270
Dell U2412M (IPS, 1920x1200p, 24")~$370


If you can't afford any of these, Acer makes some nice and cheap models. Just make sure its a reasonable size and its 1920x1080p.











CPU: Computer Processing Unit. Processes tasks given out.
RAM: Random Access Memory. Memory that holds information that needs to be used by the CPU quickly
Overclocking: Pushing a component or components past what they were meant to do. Most people do CPU overclocking, RAM overclocking, and video card overclocking.
Socket type: The position of pins on the motherboard or CPU, depending on whether its an intel or AMD, that corresponds with the pads on the opposite part. eg. LGA 1155 CPU can only fit in a LGA 1155 motherboard
Clock speed: How fast a CPU can process information. Clock speed = FSB * multiplier.
FSB: Front Side Bus. This is the base amount of Mhz that is multiplied by the multiplier to get the clock speed.
Multiplier: A number that affects the FSB to get the clock speed.
CPU Cache: Small amounts of memory stored on the CPU to make accessing ram quicker. There is a L1 cache, L2 cache, and on most CPU's today there is a L3 cache, each are different in ways I can't even explain. If you want to know more, look at the wikipedia.
K/Black edition processors: CPU's that have a fully unlocked multiplier.
SLI: The two or three way set up for nVidia graphics cards to work in sync.
Cross Fire: The two to four way set up for AMD graphics cards to work in sync.
Chipset: A group of circuits that control the flow of data on a motherboard.
Motherboard: A thin board that links all the other components of the computer.
Video Card: A designated card specifically meant for the processing of graphics.
Eyefinity: AMD's graphics cards ability to have up to six monitors
PhysX: Nvidia's solution to offloading physical calculations.
Wattage: the amount of power in a PSU.
Rail: A wire in a PSU that supplies volts to the computer.
DDR3: The latest and greatest type of ram. Only works with motherboards that support DDR3, which is almost all new ones.
Latencies: The amount of time between the ram being told to access data and when it is ready to be outputted.
Ram clock speed: The cycle speed doubled, measured in MHz.
HDD: Hard Drive Disk. Stores data and is one of the only moving parts in a computer
SATA Serial ATA. 3 types. I, II, and III. III is the most current and is 6.0GB/s
Mid tower: Moderately sized case.
Full Tower: Bigger than average case.
SSD: Solid State Drive. Stores data, and is faster, and more expensive, than traditional drives.
IPS: In-panel switching. Enhances viewing angles of monitor.
LED: Creates viewing a monitor easier on the eyes.
Resolution: The amount of horizontal pixels by the vertical pixels followed by the refresh pattern. eg. 1920x1080p
p: The refresh pattern of a monitor that updates pixels as it goes.
i: The refresh pattern of a monitor that updates the odd, than the even lines of pixels.
More Definitions to Come!