1st home PC - what do I need for gen use and digital photos?

[mccrackenj]

I badly need your advice.
I've now decided to enter the 21st century and get into digital photography, which also gives me another reason to finally get a PC at home.

I will use it for the usual stuff ie: word-pro, spreadsheets, e-mail & internet, but also want to be able to download photos from a digital SLR and manipulate them. I'm not interested in altering the actual images, just storing them, e-mailing them and putting onto DVD (is that difficult?). Also - I've no interest whatsoever in gaming or downloading music or playing DVDs etc on it.

I'm a complete computer numpty (used 1 all day, every day for years but I haven't a clue what's 'under the bonnet' - the nice people in IT give me a new one every few years and I'm happy) so I need advice on what size memory I'll need, what software etc. Also I don't need a notebook jobbie.

For example: Dell have a Dimension 5150 with

Intel® Pentium® 4 Processor 630 with HT Technology (3.00 GHz, 2MB L2 cache, 800MHz FSB)
Windows® XP Home Edition
Windows Media Centre Software
512MB DDR RAM
15" Analogue Flat Panel Monitor (15.0" v.i.s)
80GB Hard Drive (7200 RPM)

for £489

Is that any use for me? What other software will I need? What else would you recommend as well / instead?

Sorry for the long post, grateful for any advice you might have

Cheers

John

(PS: I've also posted on the photography forum)

[mccrackenj]

Thanks everyone for your advice so far, very useful. The choice of specs on the Dell site included the following CD / DVD drives:

48X/32X DVD/CDRW Combo Drive + DVD 5.1 Power Software + Sonic DigitalMedia v.7 [Included in Price]

16 X DVD +/- RW + DVD 5.1 Power Software + Sonic Software for DVD/RW+R [add £58.75 or £1/month1]

48X CD ROM + 48-32X CD-RW IDE + Sonic DigitalMedia v.7 [add £11.75]

16X IDE DVD ROM + DVD 5.1 Power Software + 48-32X CD-RW IDE + Sonic DigitalMedia v.7 [add £29.38]

48X CD ROM + 16 X DVD +/- RW + DVD 5.1 Power Software + Sonic Software for DVD/RW+R [add £70.50 or £1/month1]

16X IDE DVD ROM + 16 X DVD +/- RW + DVD 5.1 Power Software + Sonic Software for DVD/RW+R [add £88.13 or £2/month1]

As I said, I'm a numpty in this field so I've no idea what the difference is between these. All I want to be able to do is store my pics on a DVD so that I can bung it into my DVD recorder and watch the pics on TV - is that possible easily or am I missing the point and talking out of my ar$e?

Thanks again everyone.

[mccrackenj]

Jimothy, Page3 etc

Interested in your suggestions re: a Mac - where's best to get one? (on-line or otherwise)

Thanks for all the responses so far everyone, just what I'd expect from PH.

[mccrackenj]

Thanks for all the replies everyone.

Thanks to you guys and those on the photography forum I think I now have a decent idea of what I need (and what I don't). I'm going to 'build' a PC on the Dell website and also call into my nearest PC world to have a look at Macs, then I'll get me credit card out.

Cheers everybody.

[mccrackenj]

Thanks for the advice Page3. Unfortunately I'm in Belfast so I think PC World is the only option for Mac.

I'll bear your comments in mind though, and treat what they tell me with the appropriate degree of scepticism.

Cheers