1.raid doesnt rly help much at all unless ur in a server development. so unless he know the risks of it and the pain in the butt of it, then he can do it. does he want a raptor? or a large hdd? 2.2gigs or ram is a for sure. if you go amd then get high frequencies, if you go intel then get tight timings 3.for amd get am2 and the dfi board, but its not out yet... 4.for amd, wait until the opterons come to am2 or until 65nm processors come for am2. but if u want intel then a conroe would be a good choice. the conroe is expensive but is worth it, beating every amd processor out there. 5.you do not want an all in one card. get a good video card such as a 7900gt or an x1800/x1900. and then you would want to get a tv tuner such as one by hauppauge. 6.http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.asp?Order=REVIEWS&Page=1&N=2010190020+1309821317+1109909237&Submit=ENE&Nty=1&Subcategory=20 viewsonic seems to be a great brand. i personally have the samsung 940b and its great, no ghosting. 7.ocz GameXStream 600w 8.plextor is just way overpriced. go for a nec 3550a. so how much are u planning to spend on this and where are u buying it from? is this in USD?