About the only thing I would add is that installed memory -will- affect the rendering time of that specific render node, but -only- depending on the load you place on it. The three box rendergarden I'm playing with are all running 256megs each; one is PC133 (and old Athlon &00 SlotA), the other two are PC2100 (An XP-1800 and an XP2500+...yah, I know I'm choking the Barton core down. The cheapy DDR2700 stick was =bad=...so it's only running at about 70% ability at the moment). With only Vue materials, even the K7-700 is a help. If I do Poser imports with high res textures, then they all bog down due to the need to use the swap file so heavily. If you are wanting to play with distributed rendering, here's a couple of things to consider. (1)One of the handiest toys I've gotten is a KVM switch, which will allow one keyboard, monitor, and mouse to work with, in this case, up to 4 seperate computers. Do a hunt on Pricewatch, and you can find a fully electronic one for around $40. (2)Use a seperate switch for the renderfarm. Keeping all the dedicated function boxes on the same switch simplifies your wiring. (3)Desktop cases. You can get them for about $40 (no power supply), and there is plenty of room. (4)Less is better. The fewer things you have to plug in, the better off you are. Get the el-cheapo video cards; all you need is enough to render the desktop; an accelerator is just using power you are paying for. (4)Consider color coding everything. Each renderbox I have has an LED lighted cooling fan added, and the cat5 cables for that box matches the fan color. That way I avoid having to tag and bundle cables to keep things traceable. Another thing to keep in mind is that you need to decide which unit will be the controlling unit. Vue becomes the manager for the rendercows, and you are flirting with almost certain termination if you try and do anything with that unit. You might want to consider leaving your Vue install on your current system, making a new box, and simply having a 'cow on it. That way you -should- be able to do other things while a render is in progress.