Arcade Project Gets The Green Light

I have had an ongoing interest in a new project, which I am officially starting today. I am giving myself a time line on this project to have it completed some time around next Fall (so, about 1 year). The 1 year time line is so that I don't feel pressured to get anything done on it right away, I won't need to slack on any other projects I have going on, and having that determined deadline will help me to keep on track without being disappointed with the slow progress.

I'm going to buy as little equipment as possible to fund it. I will ask for supplies that nobody needs any longer, and reserve the cash for supplies I HAVE to buy. Fortunately, I can use some of the hardware I originally purchased for the HTPC project (which died a while ago), and 60 - 80% of the other stuff I need will be salvaged.

The Project: A MAME Arcade system, including a stand-up cabinet, 2-player controls, and hundreds of original arcade games running on an internal PC system. Hell yeah.

I'm really thinking about custom building the cabinet, since finding a used one in decent condition has been pretty tough. Plus, I would rip out most of the internal components anyway. Time to break out the tools!! I am going to scrounge a monitor off of work or somewhere and the PC will either be something salvaged or some pre-built system from Fry's for under $200.