i agree with getting one with some kind of warranty! Most machines (except dell i guess) have one year warranties through the company in case you have problems. i suggest you get a machine with a warranty like that.

what brand is this off brand one? it might just be a smaller company that makes perfectly good machines.

as far as monitors go, i suggest getting cheaper ones on clearance unless you really need a top of the line one. i've done that with several of my friends and they've all been happy.

as far as getting ps7 and whatnot: windows XP comes standard but you usually have to buy office (for word processing and whatnot) and ps7 separate. i may be able to help you out with that, however, so we can pm about that at your convenience. most machines don't come with that stuff. gateway sometimes comes with office, but i don't generally suggest gateways because i think their "warranties" are kinda like dell's. not that great.

the one you found sounds pretty good.

i think one thing to think about is that as long as it comes with standard options and nothing too fancy (say, a dvd burner, a high-end graphics card, etc), you can't really go wrong with an "off brand" machine... a mother board is a mother board, and i fyou get a warranty and beat the hell out of it in a short period of time, you'll be able to test how good it is for you. before it runs out.

good luck (and feel free to pm me again!)
ghost