Read the sticky post at the top of this forum, then go to Newegg and watch the video clip of the guy there, showing how to build a PC.
Keep a few things in mind:
1) Static kills electronics! So does dirt, hair,coke,and even dirty hands. Before you work on your build, wash your hands, and touch something that will ground you (I work on a counter near a sink, so I touch the stainless steel sink), immediately before you handle the board. Don't walk around carrying the board, handle the board by the components attached to it, or drop anything on the board. Handle the boards by the edges like your hands were the jaws of a gentle vise, coming together.
A static wristband is not out of order, and worth every penny. NEVER wear either wool, or synthetic clothes (rayon, nylon, etc.), when building a computer. They're famous for huge static buildups, as are carpets with either of these kinds of fibers.
2) Take your time. Rush nothing! It's not a race. Only work on it, when you can concentrate on it, without big distractions. Keep the screws (which will probably be in little baggies), inside their separate baggies, except when you're working with them. Don't mix them up.
3) Don't force anything - you may have the right size screw going into the standoff of the mobo, but it may have the wrong thread - the bigger headed screws (6x32) are for the card slots. The smaller 6x32 screws, are for the standoffs. The big headed screws have coarse threads, and the smaller headed screws (which are for the standoffs), have fine threads. If you force the coarse screws into the standoff, you can do it - and you'll wreck the fine threads in the standoff.
Right now, I'm working on an aluminum case, and according to the instructions, the top can be lifted off, after removing two screws. Didn't work, though - came part way off, and stopped. My version of the case, has another two screws that needed to be removed, that you can't see without removing the face of the case, first. If I had forced it, that aluminum panel top, would have folded up like a soda can will, when you squeeze it.
Don't force anything!
4) The little battery on the mobo is likely to explode if you put it in, backwards. It will already be installed in your mobo, but if you ever need to take it out - be SURE you put it back in, with the correct orientation!
5) Your mobo will have pins which may have jumpers on them, that can be removed, depending on the options for your board. Once the jumper has been removed, the pins look like you should plug in a connector - maybe a fan or something -- that will short out your board, if you do it. BEFORE you connect anything to the mobo, double check and know EXACTLY where it goes. Especially, do not connect any wires to these jumper pins, whether they are closed with a jumper block on them, or open and have no jumper block on them.
6) Use a power strip with a breaker (or fuse), (normal is 15 amps), between the PC and the outlet in the wall. If there is a short, a fuse 5 ft away will shut off the power a LOT quicker than a 20 amp breaker in a panel 50 ft. away. A good one will also remove some spikes before they can damage your computer.
7) Remember to use a TIM (thermal interface material), like Arctic five, etc., on top of your cpu, before you put on the heatsink (your heatsink may already have TIM on it, check it, and remove the clear plastic tape, if present, before you attach it. An amount the approx. size of one pea, is about right - don't let the TIM ooze outside the heatsink.
8) Check your memory sticks twice for the notch (female) at the bottom, being in the right place, lined up with the notch (male), in the connector, before you squeeze them down into place.
9) Get everything working right, before you quit. Take breaks as needed, of course, but don't procrastinate on getting it done. Later on, you won't remember half of what you know as you're building the PC.
10) Wash your hands again, when you finish each session. Boards have lead, and you will get some of it on your hands.
11) Before you apply power, double check everything. Connections should be tight fitting - never wibbly-wobbly. Make sure all your RAM sticks are all the way down, and the "ears" on the connectors, have closed up on the sticks. Never open up a power supply.
12) Dogs, cats, kids, phone calls, snacks, etc., are all unwelcome interruptions around the build. Tell them "later", and close the door, if possible.
Long winded, ain't I?
