Overall Description A Deus Ex inspired build that is also my first foray into PC building. This PC will mainly be used for data science, visualization and machine/deep learning applications. My school's data science program is pretty good, so they have some amazing machines for us to use when doing our schoolwork, but that's only for doing schoolwork. I wanted a machine that could perform near their level for personal projects, Kaggle competitions and allow me to game at 1440p 144Hz. That's the main reason I went with the 1080ti, specifically the EVGA ftw3 edition. The RGB lighting of the G. Skill Trident Z RGB RAM alongside the motherboard lighting accents allow it to maintain a subtle and clean color scheme that can be customized to suit the exact case lighting I was looking for. The gold anodized screws from CableMod add a flash of contrast to the PCIE brackets and match the black and gold theme well.

Initial Prep Seeing as this was my first build, I was excited and nervous at the same time. I had spent nearly 9 months properly researching every single part I was considering and my part list went through numerous changes that were spurred by either new/improved technology and advice from my professor and the buildapc subreddit. Factoring all this in. I finalized my list in mid-August and started ordering the parts in late-August. Alongside my components, I ordered some other materials from Amazon that would help me build my PC. I got my inspiration from this video, where Bitwit (Kyle) went through some helpful tools for building PCs. I ordered short and long magnetic screwdrivers, XL microfiber cloths and the assorted ziptie pack. Armed with my trusty tools, I went in confident that everything was gonna go fine.

Building the PC I initially went into this with a concept in my head and a ton of YouTube reviews on all the components I was considering. I can say wholeheartedly that seeing it on a video screen with dimensions is a far cry from holding the components in your hand. This held especially true to the GPU as the sheer length and bulk surprised me out of box. I started to get nervous that it wouldn't fit inside the case I had purchased. It fit perfectly fine, just as I had been assured it would by the case manufacturers, but the initial feeling of anxiety didn't leave me. The main reason that everything went astonishingly well was due to me thoroughly watching and keeping in sync with a step-by-step tutorial video by Bitwit. He goes very slowly and the process was made simple for me as I was able to follow his instructions clearly.

Lessons Learned After everything was properly assembled and looking gorgeous, I decided to write down a couple notes for my self on what I learned and important takeaways from building that I could use for my next build. In no particular order:

• Always check for post outside the case
• Do not over-tighten anything
• Thoroughly read your manuals both before you start assembling and during assembly
• Properly manage any and all screws and hardware
• Keep your work space as tidy as possible to avoid misplacing any small items