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A few suggestions:

1. Make sure that there aren't any extraneous posts -- the connectors which attach the motherboard to the case -- underneath the motherboard which are causing a short-circuit.

2. Unplug as much stuff as possible. That includes all cards except for your video adapter, IDE cables, SCSI calbes, etc.

3. Make sure that your processor is seated properly. Most of them have a little notch in the corner which tells you how it's supposed to be aligned.

4. Make sure that the power connectors are in the right place. Some motherboards will refuse to POST if you don't have the CPU fan connected to a specific power connector on the motherboard.

5. Speaking of power, make sure that you have a power supply that is approved for your CPU. New Intel and AMD CPUs require a new 300W, 12V power supply.

6. Make sure that the motherboard jumpers are set properly (most settings should be set to Auto).

7. Make sure that the connectors from the case to the motherboard (power switch, reset button, etc) are set up properly -- with proper polarity.

8. Do you have the thermal protection connector attached? Is it faulty? Your machine will refuse to boot if it thinks the temperature is too high. If you think the temperature is cool enough, remove it temporarily.

9. Is the memory seated properly? Have you tried replacing the memory with known-good sticks? Try only using one. Maybe one of the slots is bad.

10. Is your video card bad? Try putting it in another machine to test.

11. Generally speaking, if you've done all that and you still don't boot, you have (a) a faulty CPU, (b) a faulty motherboard, or (c) faulty memory. The only way to tell for sure is to use them in conjunction with known-good components.