The wonderful world of cases
 
Well, here we are at the first part, the basic of the basics, the foundation for your new computer. But first, another analogy.
When you build a jigsaw puzzle, which pieces do you start with? For the average jigsaw-puzzle builder, the edge pieces are the easiest to work with at first. It gives you a solid frame on which to base the rest of the work to be done. Of course there are those who save the edges for last or who buy puzzles without any edges
 at all, but we'll just stick with the 'build the frame first' method. So, you can think of the case as the frame of your computer.
I'd say that 99% of computers have a case of some kind, otherwise the computer parts would be loose and wobbly. The Case is what you see when you look at a computer. Look at the computer you are sitting at now. Yup, thats the case.
So, first off in your adventure of Computer Making is to get a Case!! When you buy a case there are a few things you should know. They are discussed in detail below:
• Physical Size: Will the case fit on/under your desk?
• Looks: Remember this is the part that everyone will see!
• Power Supply Unit: Some come with one, some don't.
• Cooling: Most cases come with at least 1 cooling fan. Sometimes Not :)
• Drive Bays: Will you have room to expand?
Choosing a Case
Obviously, the case of your computer is the first thing people see, unless they have x-ray vision of course. Thus, you want the outside of your case to be presentable. Find one that fits your style. There are so many cases, I'm sure you will find one you like. I've seen them made of wood, glass, plastic, aluminum, steel; in the shape of a car, pyramid, snail, even a rocket launcher! Check out the sites listed at the top of the page for starters. Xoxide has a wonderful collection and pleasantly low prices, in fact, the computer I'm using to write this has an Xoxide case around it.
Once you get a feel for the type of case you want you need to start looking at the functionality of the case. The first thing you might have noticed is that all cases are not created the same size, at least I hope you noticed that. So, make sure the case you are getting fits where it supposed to and fits your needs.
Sadly, physical size isn't all you need to worry about. If you like the look and the case fits where it's intended to fit, that's half the battle! The next thing to inspect is the inside of the case. Namely the mounting layout. ATX is the most common standard for mounting and also the type we will be using throughout this tutorial. 'ATX' is a standard set years ago that basically is the physical mounting layout inside the case, and was set by Intel to create a standard for motherboards. For instance, if you get an ATX motherboard, an ATX power supply, and an ATX case, they will all screw together; all the holes will line up, everything will fit.
So far we've done this:
- Picked a case that looks nice.
- Made sure the case will fit its surroundings.
- Checked the Style of the case (ATX, etc).
Trust me, you'll see why sticking with ATX is handy :)
Does the case meet your standard so far? Then you might have found the one!! One last thing to check is the drive mounting capabilities. Find out how many 5.25" and 3.5" mounting brackets there are inside the case. The 5.25" brackets are used for CD/DVD drives, Zip Drives, some Card Readers, and a few others. The 3.5" mounting brackets are used for Hard Drives and Floppy Drives (and a few others that you don't need to worry about). For most people, if the case has at least two 5.25" brackets and two 3.5" brackets, the case will work fine.
Summary: The case provides the framework for the rest of the computer system. Be sure to choose a case that you think looks good because you will be seeing it often. Make sure the case fits physically, is an ATX case, and has the desired amount of mounting brackets. If it does then you have yourself a fine case! Now, for the easy parts...
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 Tutorial:
• Intro
Hardware
• Cases
• Power Supply
• Cooling
• Motherboards
• Motherboards - Pt 2
• Processor
• Memory
• Kingston
• Corsair
• Hard Drive
• Video Card
• AGP Cards
• PCI Cards
• Express PCI
• Fun Stuff!
• CD/DVD drives
• ZIP/Floppy drives
• Other Drives
• Networking
• Cables
• Sound Card
• Modem
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