Best bang for buck CPU for everyday computing?

I would not overclock the cpu for her computer since she doenst need the extra power. what are the motherboard spec or you going to buy the motherboard and cpu at the same time?

yes i am, i first wanted to choose the CPU then pick out the other components.

Low demanding games... bang for your buck? EVGA nvidia GTX 9800+ 512mb 256-bit for $135? I personally own 2 of these and they aren't the most expensive or greatest... but one of them alone can run a mid graphics game at high settings with good Frames per second.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

or Pre-built computer for $609?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

or $539 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...

I would go with Intel Core i5 750 and a good EVGA P55V SLI Motherboard

well she doesnt game at all maybe some cheezy games that can be ran with integrated graphics. I have an old geforce 8400 or something i can put in it. She just needs something functional that can load everything speedy. Not going to have any demanding programs other than dl movies and music lol.

I'd look into an Athlon IIx2 based system, 4GB memory for windows 7 and an SSD under $200 if she doesn't need more than 60GB capacity. If by cheesy games, you mean online flash or java, the still don't make use of the GPU and are more CPU demanding. But any modern CPU can handle them, unless they are poorly coded. Even HD movies can be handled by an AMD 3200 or 4200 IGP.
I do have another suggestion, have you considered Linux? If boot times and speediness is what she is looking for, and it sounds like she doesn't have a real need for any windows programs, it could be a consideration. It would also reduce the amount of money needed to be spent on RAM.

I'd grab an Athlon II X2/X3 and pair it with an AM3 785G based board and use the online graphics. 2Gb ram minimum, preferably 4Gb because it'll offer a quicker/snappier OS.

I believe you mean "onboard graphics", but overall I agree with you.

An Athlon II X2 240, 785G with sideport memory and 4GB of RAM (assuming you're using Windows XP 64-bit, Vista or 7) are the way to go

now even though the board have built in graphics in the future there is an option to get say a gt 240 graphics card nothing major correct?

if it has nvidia chipset, then yes you can put a nvidia graphics card in, every motherboard comes with a pci-e slot nowadays.

You don't need an Nvidia chipset in order to run an Nvidia graphics card.

k1ngkev1n1: now even though the board have built in graphics in the future there is an option to get say a gt 240 graphics card nothing major correct?
Correct. You can put any graphics card, Nvidia or ATI, that is a PCI-e card, in that PCI-e 16x slot.

^ Glad to know, that's something i've always gotten confused about. Sorry k1ngkev1n1 for misdirection.

Best answer selected by k1ngkev1n1.