Hello everybody, it has been 6 years since the help of tech-forums for my first PC build. Now that the computer has been retired and I'm ready for a new PC to build. Now, I'm getting my Masters in Information Assurance (aka Cyber Security) and my laptop nearly died last semester with all the penetration testing I was doing with the various Virtual Machines I was running at once. I need this built to handle the amount of stress to handle such testing. As for gaming, I might, even though PS3 and soon PS4 has been keeping me busy since my last built. My budget for this computer is between $1000-$1200. I have to include the keyboard, mouse, and 22" HDMI\DVI monitor in this budget also. Last, should I stick with Windows 7 or go with Windows 8? Since I'm going to be using VMs a lot, I don't know if Windows 8 is good for that. Any help is very appreciative.