The following is the recommendations for purchasing a new PC with XP

2.6 Ghz or better

1333 FSB (front side bus)

2 gig ram

160gig hard drive or more

XP Home or Professional (do not get Vista just yet)

Office (Office for Student is cheaper but does not include Outlook)

DVD burner

12 mo. McAfee Internet Security

If laptop - 3 yrs onsite warranty.  If desktop - one year is fine

Operating system and driver restore DVD set (you have to ask for these)

If you do get Vista - get 3 or 4 gigs of ram.