First, as a general rule, motherboards are NOT upgradeable.
Sure, you will see BIOS updates for the first year or so. But after that, what you have is what you have.
The only upgrade I leave for the future is a faster CPU.
If I am installing W2K or XP, I install as much RAM as I can afford. This way,you don't end up fighting RAM compatibility problems later on.
If you are going to use Intel CPUs, buy Intel motherboards.
They cost a little more, but are worth the extra cost in terms of reliability.
For AMD CPUs, I recommend in no particular order:
A-Bit
Asus
Shuttle
Epox
ECS
These are the brands that I have used that have given me the least problems, and best support from the mfg.
AVOID OEM motherboards. You will get NO support for them. An OEM motherboard is different from a white box in that an OEM motherboard was produced for a particular PC and the motherboard manufacture usually offers NO support for them.
Most OEM versions of plug-in cards are fine, as the chip manufactures provide reference drivers that usually work fine.
Unless it was a lot cheaper, I might avoid OEM video cards as they may have a custom video BIOS that could cause you problems.
Motherboard brands that I avoid:
PC Chips - poor compatibility and support
Jet, FIC and SOYO - just don't seem as well built to me.
Chas
