Budget Solid Works Build

dieck5353[at]yahoo.com

I am currently trying to get information on possibly building a new system to work with Solid Works. I have never built a system before but would like to in order to know what is going into the computer and also gain a better understanding and appreciation for computers.

I am a student who wants this system for a class I'm taking this summer and also for my senior design project this coming fall and spring. I would like to start the build within the next week or two. There will not be any very assemblies to create since I am a student and not a professional. Bearing this in mind I would like to build a computer that can handle the smaller than professional tasks that I will be throwing into it.

Being a student also restricts my budget. I would like to keep the cost down as much as I can with a maximum cap of $800 (but less would be appreciated). This will also need to cover the operating system, which will be Windows 7 64 bit I believe. I have been looking at the Intel Core i-series CPU's and would like to use one of them in the build. I am open to any and all suggestions of what to buy.

Don't need:
Monitor
Mouse
Keyboard
Speakers

I have a Compaq desktop that I purchased in January of 2005. I know close to everything is outdated on it but if anything can be spared I would like to reuse it. It has a 250 gig hard drive that I was wondering if it could be reused or not. It also has a dvd drive that I would like to reuse if possible.

I am also open to any suggestions of pre-built desktops or laptops if you know of any that will suffice.

Thanks ahead of time!