I’ve built hundreds of PC’s in my day. That includes dozens of one-off systems that I’ve configured and assembled for my own use as well as for friends, family, and customers. It also includes batches of new systems that I build during the summer at my full-time job. The following are just a couple of tips that I’ve picked up along the way that make the system-building process as painless as possible.

If you intend to run niche software or devices, think twice before switching to a 64-bit operating system.