Hi everyone - I've researched some older threads and I'm sorry but I'm asking for some help which has appeared before. I have an emachines T3828. The motherboard died (common problem - I'm learing) and I need help in determining what motherboard I can use to replace it. The "mom and pop" place I took it to, told me he could replace it for about $100. Do you think I can replace it myself? I'm pretty handy, I just need to know what type to get. I've read about Micro ATX motherboards as well as someone suggested anything with a 478 socket and a FSB of 400 MHz or higher. Would that apply to my model? I can't find the motherboard info in the specs anywhere and I've gone online to emachines as well as just searched blindly. Any help or info anyone might have would be much appreciated. Thanks!! I have an Intel Celeron D processor 335 - 2.80 GHz 256 L2 Cache 533 MHz FSB

Sorry to be the one to tell you, but not many good fixes are possible.
Your Windows will not work on another board without the restore-recovery disk, and the disk will not work if you don't have a eMachines motherboard. And the eMachines motherboards are junk.
However, many TechSpot users have reported that they did get away with using the eMachines disk.
If you do not have the disk, you cannot get it unless you find it on eBay.
You can replace the motherboard yourself and it is fairly easy, but you have to match the new board to the processor.
Remove the processor, carefully so as not to bend the pins, clean off all the thermal paste with denatured alcohol, then report all the numbers on the CPU to us...
or if you know the CPU and the motherboard it takes, just buy the board... not easy to find new since the T3828 is a 2004 computer.
There are ASRock and Intel boards that work.
Look for an Intel 845GV made by intel, not made under contract by eMachines.
Your CPU is usually a Celeron D335, but a Pentium 4 if available at plenty extra cost.
The Celeron is 2.8 GHz, and has a 533MHz Front Side Bus.
You need a system board that has a PGA478 Socket also commonly called a 478 motherboard...
One board on eBay that is sold new and fits is the Gateway DX200 series... there are a lot of similar boards by Gateway since Gateway once owned eMachines. The Gateway boards do not fail like the eMachine boards do.
Still, the install disk set is critical.
Do a Gurgle search for eMachines T3828, or 378 motherboard, as a start.
Good luck.