help with finding decent lintel hardware

[choasforages]

hmmm, i have never had much luck with finding reliable x86 hardware, within the last year i have lost two mother boards and i have a feeling that another one is going to die soon. i also am not overclocking anything and have three fans in the case. I also know that linux doesnt crash much, its the hardware that screws it up. the bad part is that since i don't have a job yet (im not 16 yet, three more months to wait) i don't have a big wad of money to work with, around $200-$300.  i would appreciate some info on motherboards and processor combos that kinda last. most places i checked out use the "Broken OS" for testing if you know of a place thats reviews hardware for use with linux i would be very very happy. also if you have any hands on experiance with dec alpha machines that you could share i would also appreicate that, since i am considering saving up and buying one off of ebay. sorry about the spelling
o, my email addres is [email protected]
yes you probably think it is a joke, but it is more reliable then my dads isp adelphia, that will be another post
thank you,
choas

[Chooco]

go with AMD and not Intel, it's cheaper  
check out this prices in Canadian dollars (multiply by 2 then divide by 3):
AMD Athlon XP 1800+ Retail Boxed  $   190.00    
 AMD Athlon XP 1900+ Retail Boxed  $   235.00    
 AMD Athlon XP 2000+ Retail Boxed  $   290.00    
 AMD Athlon XP 2100+ Retail Boxed  $   345.00  
Intel Pentium IV 1600A Retail Boxed  $   235.00    
 Intel Pentium IV 1800A Retail Boxed  $   295.00    
 Intel Pentium IV 2000A Retail Boxed  $   345.00    
 Intel Pentium IV 2200A Retail Boxed  $   430.00  

as you can see, the AMD is hella cheaper lol