I'm putting together a super cheap AMD build for a friend. I just wanted to confirm with you folks one thing regarding the onboard video on this MoBo:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813128056

It's an AMD 690G Chipset w/ Radeon Xpress 1250 onboard video.

Will this video chipset be good enough for AutoCAD work, Adobe InDesign, normal usage and the occasional movie watching?

I have no idea about the current integrated graphics chips anymore. Years ago I would have opted for a video card for sure, but I'm curious if these newer chipsets are any good for this type of stuff nowadays.

Thanks in advance!

edit* Oh, and I know this isn't the right forum section, but can anyone give me a quick yay or nay on this RAM for the build? As stated, it's an AMD build with a X2 Brisbane CPU.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820211066

The Radeon Xpress 1250 will probably be enough for what your friend needs. It is by no means a replacement for a gaming video card, but it will do in a pinch. I actually have a board with that chipset, though I haven't tried it yet. I read that it will play most games that are a couple years old on medium settings, so I bet it will do auto cad.

Line work... sure. There are some CAD programs that do a lot with graphics. Hope what your friend does, isn't one of those apps. Also, the on board video will take up some of his system memory. Just fyi. Ram looks good from my point of view.

The RAM is ok, however an ATI 2000 will perform much better than onboard.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814102703
at $90 + S&H it is still a good option/upgrade path (it can only get cheaper)

bad option. The 2000 series are more hungry then the 3000 series.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814102726
less money and less energy used.