Idle question for all you oh-so-knowledgeable computer geeks

[kellinator]

What's the cheapest that one can get a decent computer?

The IT department here was selling off some old computers for ten bucks apiece, but of course they ran out before my turn in line came, dammit. The professors got their pick before the staff. I'm not in urgent need of a computer, but I would like to upgrade one of these days. What are the least expensive options out there?

Comments

[skellington.livejournal.com]

To mirror other questions:

What do you have now, and what would you consider "decent"?

My brother's idea of decent is considerable more powerful than mine, and I'm a hardcore geek. (He plays latest-and-greatest games on his.)

I have a couple of REALLY old computers that have been looking for a good home, and I could help you put something together for relatively cheap as well. I also have some spare parts lying around that might be of use.

Although getting a complete working system from Dell is nice if you're able to afford it. On the "Small Business" site (you can order from it), they have a brand new computer with decent specs for $349 (not including monitor and printer). Although you'd probably need to add a few things, including anti-virus, etc.

(And it's cheaper to buy most of the add-ons yourself on sale than have Dell do it... if you want some advice, post on your LJ and I'm sure plenty of people will let you know what's a good deal from Dell, and what isn't..)