Re: How to build a working computer, for under $200. All components, and software lsi
Personally I'd never recommend doing what they did.
$29 for a case and PSU will come back to bite you in a couple months (or sooner). Generic PSUs with crappy parts inside are more likely to blow up in your face then function
When they say "base functionality", they really mean it. You couldn't do more than maybe create RTF docs and play pong on that PC.
As a server (which tbh is pretty much what that build is geared towards being), it would be unreliable. I'd NEVER run something like that in my server room
No Monitor, keyboard or mouse, optical drive, graphics card, speakers, no decent amount of storage, what more can I say? Yes it's possible to build a 'working' computer for less than $200, but whether you'd actually be able to 'work' on it is what I'd question.
It's simply an article.
You're looking way too into it.
As previously stated, it would be a good beginning builders. and it can be upgraded later.
You can get a better PSU if you wanted. You can get more storage if you wanted. It's simply a template design you can build on. It's not ment to do any actual "work" outside of Open Office/filing software. It's not ment to be a gaming PC, it's only ment so you can use the internet for general purposes, and play around with the formatting.
The monitor, speakers etc. again, aren't a part of this, because it's only speaking for the tower. It's assuming you got some stuff from a garage sale, etc.
It's simply a hobby computer, that is ment to be a learning experience if you had read the article. Later on, you can spend another $60 for a fine PSU. You can turn around, and invest in that 1TB hard drive later on, once you have the cash to spare.
You can turn around later, and get that $250 motherboard you wanted later, when you got the cash. But since you already have background in installing hardware, it wont be a problem once you have the money to BUY the hardware.
For a little kid, most I can see a computer being used for, is stuff on the internet which a flashplayer/java wont be an issue for. and playing little kid games which barely exceed a couple hundred megabytes, if not a single gigabyte if it's a real hard core program. (which for kids, are few and far between)
Something like this could even be a father-son project. show a son how to put a computer together, how to upload software, and teach him how to maintain his own computer, which later on, as said several times already, can simply be upgraded down the road. You're looking into it far too much.
PS, the computers at my old High School, barely have 80GB hard drives. barely have 1GB of RAM. I'd even bet the PSUs are cheaper than $20 a piece when they bought them.
But yet, they are good enough for webdesign using HTML, and Java for the Multi-Media classes. They are good enough to run accounting and database software for the accounting courses, they are good enough to operate CAD software, they are good enough to maintain a network across the school, and the school district itself. (it's a wonder Windows XP even works on them, let alone Windows VISTA coming Winter Break)
and those computers are crappier/more "basic" than the $200 build could even come close to being. It's simply a computer for basic function, You'd pee yourself if you saw what the Elementary Schools have. This build isn't ment to be a super computer, or anything of the kind. Just ment to be a basic computer for function, and to use as a learning tool. It'll do the job if you're just going on facebook, e-mail, youtube, etc. And still store documents etc.
As an experience to build, and upgrade later on, it's pretty good. Compared to computers that are found in a High School, this build is superior to them.
