if it was for my mum…
athlon 200ge
cheapest 2133mhz ddr4 I could find
cheapest 128gb ssd
A320 board (perfectly fine for stock cpu’s)
…and give her a vetted selection of cases that she can choose from
…Let her control the aesthetics of the build so it fits nicer with the decoration/ furniture 
Guess I’m piling on here, but I’m in the laptop camp- especially a chromebook. Get a docking station, and it will look and feel like a desktop (monitor, keyboard, mouse etc) and easily connects/disconnects. Unless one is a serious gamer or content creator, there just isn’t much reason to have a tower anymore.
If sticking to a desktop, this forum doesn’t disappoint- great advice on the offerings from AMD and Intel NUCs for sure.
Upon further consideration, just get her this.
Chrome OS is great for web stuff.
@anon46267848 I forgot this is a thing, Chromebooks are coming up haha. The Linux app support is getting really cool as well, but in ‘mum use case’ just the security is a selling point IMO.
Yeah, if he’s dead-set on a desktop, the chromebox makes a lot of sense. I actually used to use an earlier model as a little home server running linux. That’s a real kaby lake celeron in there too, not an atom variant.
I’d suggest dc-dc powered NUC-like x86_64 thingy
I second the 2200G build. If there are going to be any uses that need the GPU for more than video decoding I’d suggest two sticks, but I’d bet 8GB will be plenty. I’d also recommend a M.2 drive, even if it isn’t NVMe it’s just another move towards hardware simplicity (fewer cables and connections).
There are boards with DisplayPort also. I have one (Gigabyte) in a mITX 2400G build with a Chopin case and it’s pretty rad.
Edit: is there any software that she uses specifically? My mom for instance is going to be stuck in Windows forever because if she can’t play her favorite Scrabble game, no dice. It’s not demanding but it’s definitely a requirement in her case, and her next computer will probably be a 2200G, or maybe the next iteration if it waits that long.
Thanks a lot for the help. i am going to go for the 2200G and a simple board.
i explained her what the different form factors on motherboards are and how to use the search. that she can choose her own case.
@Steinwerks she uses the Foto app on her Mac besides internet browsing and emails. looking for a windows alternitive at the moment.
Seriously, for every person who asks me for PC recommendations for basic web use, my first question is “why not an ipad?”.
Whilst you may have been “tasked with building her a PC”, I’d seriously ask the question of whether or not an iPad will do the things she wants to do better.
And don’t look at it with your PCMR gamer glasses on. Look at it from the “what does SHE want to use it for” perspective.
edit:
s/ipad/tablet/g
But seriously, if its a tablet… for basic use the ipad is just the slickest tablet out there.
Yeah, I suggested an ipad also, but he knows his mom’s preferences best.
For photo editing on windows, I suggest paint.net. You can download it for free from their website, but it’s also on the windows store for like five bucks for auto-updates. Same software, the windows store uses project centennial. I bought it, like to support developers who make products I enjoy.
Depending on how the search is going, you could open another thread for additional input.
It’s hard to argue with this, Chrome OS or iOS device is the way to go.
iPad is a great little toy but if want to get work done i need a keyboard. Typing just sucks on an iPad. and we already having one lying aroung that she never uses.
and about the photo stuff. she dont edit them. just for importing. using folder and drag and drop would be to easy
Bluetooth keyboard cases are cheap… Will bring up the cost of a regular ipad to maybe $400-450 US…
It’s been mentioned in the thread before IIRC, OPs mother doesn’t want a tablet or a laptop, she wants a desktop. The first dozen or so posts of this thread discuss it.
greetings to you too / Ein freundliches Hallo nach Deutschland!
I second this.
I agree, this might be more important than everything else 
Which functionality does she need? We might be able to give a few suggestions. Also, make sure to provide alternatives for all the software she uses. Changing an OS is hard after a certain age when someone isn’t interested in the tech itself. (I am also techsupport for my parents)
Also, set up a reliable backup solution of some kind, especially when she has photos and important documents on there!
My mother got one of those WD mycoud mirrors (NAS with Raid 1). Is probably the easiest way to get someone to do backups.
I ended up liking that thing way more than I should have for someone with my skill level, and access to higher-end storage solutions.
With the right firmware, you can just put Debian on it. 
Even without it, it runs Docker, so you’ve got a lot of flexibility.
That works fine, just wanted to make sure you are not forgetting about backups. 
Just remember updating the firmware/os on that thing. They have fixed a couple of security bugs over the years.