Building a computer

Depends on what you are going to use it for, and no.

can make one with 200 dollars, can be made with 3000 dollars, the budget is up to you

also; it's easy. basically, you just buy parts and everything is just connect this thingy to that thingy

Set your budget
Then Find out what type of computer you need. (Laptop, Desktop, Multimedia, Gaming, Etc...)
I like to use Websites like ibuypower to see what parts are out there and it shows what you need in your computer.
You want to look for a good processor like a i5 or a i7(I hate AMD)
Find a good Graphics card that will last you about 1.5 - 2 years.
then just add all the parts that you desire.
But its really up to you, to the extent of what you want.

As long as you can figure out that the plug shaped like a circle goes in the circle slot, and the one shaped like a square goes in the square slot, you'll do fine. Youtube is insanely helpful for this sort of thing. Did it on my own for the first time about a year ago just using google+youtube (the building part that is, Newegg or Tom's Hardware are good for ideas on buying)

It's quite simple, it's like putting legos together, just make sure to handle the parts with care, always discharge yourself on the case (assuming it's metal) and don't force things in except for maybe the cpu lever

hardest part is picking the parts. choose a processor, motherboard, case, and then the rest (the processor will narrow your mobo choices, the mobo will usually determine case size, and the case size/layout can narrow a couple more options (huge graphics cards or cpu coolers, for example)).
the comp I've been using for the past 3+ years is my first self-built and cost me $1400 vs. retail for a comparable config being $2000. it was built primarily for silence/audio recording, budget, and then gaming.

I say if you do build your own rig make sure your able to upgrade it easily in the future with newer parts.

Dont listen to these noobs. You can build one for like $50 and all it takes is a few screws and some glue.

Done & Done.

Pretty easy stuff, you definetly need a rubber chicken to put everything together though....

Jokes aside, you should use google, thats a good guy untill he tells you he remembers everything you asked to him ever since you said Hi back in 2000, you cant expect a full, nice and clean answer in a forum like this.

It's not too expensive. $400 for something low end to $800 mid and $1,500+ high end, not including monitors and peripherals. It consists of a case (self explanatory/s-e), a motherboard (the part that connects all of the other parts together), cpu (the brain. It's important to figure this out beforehand, cause your motherboard won't take any cpu), RAM (controls on-demand data), graphics card (probably the only thing you're aware of right now), hard drive and dvd drives (s-e). That should be all of it.

Putting them together is both easy and difficult. Once you build one, the rest are easy. The first is always the hardest. You have to take that first step and just go for it if you want to do it though. That's just how it is. Youtube will be your best friend.

Find your local Computer Shop, and ask if they can help you build a computer. Before going there though, you would need to know what kind of budget you have, which more or less depends on what you need the Computer for. If you need it for gaming, it can be ~$800 for a Decent one (A Desktop would be better for this), or if you need it for things like Browsing the Web and watching videos, a $400 Computer would do (Laptop or Desktop would work for this. Laptop if you want to bring it places with you, but then you would also need a router).

So, To sum it up:
I would ask your Local Computer shop to help you build it/find what you need.
Before doing that, Find out your Budget, which you give to them when they ask. Also, what exactly you need the computer for, which can majorly change the budget.

Edit-
Also, if you REALLY don't want to/can't do that, or even if you want a Second Opinion on whatever they say (With that kind of money you want to be 100% sure), Try this site: http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/

This seems decent, jump on it before its gone though

Throw in a gtx 460 or gtx 560ti and you are pretty much set to run games high/max.

Need 8-10 parts
Costs: $200 - $1500

You'll need:

• a motherboard (included will be the sound card and the ethernet card. All in one). Some have a video card integrated, but I wouldn't trust them.
• a CPU
• several fans (don't underestimate the air flow) - 3 minimum
• a video card
• some RAM - you could buy a single 4096 but I recommend two 2048 in case one breaks. These are very cheap too.
• a power supply
• a hard-drive
• possibly a CD/DVD player.

And this is only the first part. Next you'll need to decide on a single part and this'll dictate your whole computer thanks to the motherboard. For example, for your CPU, you can grab a motherboard with an AM2, AM2+, AM3 or AM3+ socket, which will tell you which AMD processors are compatible (note that they're retrocompatible so if you grab an AM3+ you can put anything).

If you get an AM3, you'll only see DDR3 RAM - that means only DDR3 RAM cards can be put here, and not DDR2 (you're lucky though, they're discontinued).

Long story short, you'll also need a different power supply - when I changed my processor to a crappy AM2 to a Phenom II x6 (AM3), I had to also buy a more powerful power supply. Check the wattage.

In any case, what I recommend is buying a prebuilt computer and changing the parts as needed as time goes by.

It's very easy to change parts though, everything just clips in in today's computers.

I'd say this is a good place to start! :)

This site has come in handy to me in the past: pcpartpicker.com

http://tinyurl.com/falconguide

Newegg has a great three part series about choosing components, building, and then installing an OS. I would highly recommend watching it.