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RAM
Jul 25, 2008 7:30:51 GMT -5
Post by Nicky Peter Hollyoake on Jul 25, 2008 7:30:51 GMT -5
I'm not to sure what RAM 100% is, I just know it has soemthing to do with the speed and the more you have the more speed? Got a couple of questions ... * Where can I get it from? * How much does it cost? * Do I need a certain one for my computer? (com details below) * Would anything happen putting on loads? * Are they a limit? * Can I even have it? Thanks, - Nicky COMPUTER DETAILS: (Don't know what part you need or if you even need it ill show it all) Windows Edition - Windows Vista Home Premium Copyright 2006 Microsoft Corporation. All rights Reserved. Upgrade Windows Vista ( ) System - Manufacturer: IE SystemRating: 3.0 Windows Experience Index: UnratedProcessor: Genuine Intel(R) CPU 2140 @ 1.60GHz 1.60 GHzMemory (RAM): 1014 MBSystem type: 32-bit Operating System----------------------------------------- I'm sure thats about all you need.
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RAM
Jul 25, 2008 7:39:58 GMT -5
Post by matthew on Jul 25, 2008 7:39:58 GMT -5
Just use the system scanner tool at Crucial.
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RAM
Jul 28, 2008 3:49:56 GMT -5
Post by James :) (aka Madcow) on Jul 28, 2008 3:49:56 GMT -5
Ram is memory, the more of it you have the more you can do and some things go faster when you have more of it.
you can get it from any computer store, it will be labeled as memory or DDR2.
The Cost depends on the size of the memory and the shop, 512 mb is the cheapest while 2 GB will proberly be the most expensive.
certain types of memorys might not work with your computers motherboard but over 1/2 of them should work.
i don't know if anything would happern apart from speed and multitasking enhancments.
the only limit is How Many DDR Slots your motherboard has.
yes all computers should have a form of DDR (memory) as its memory as it is the standard.
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RAM
Aug 2, 2008 0:38:50 GMT -5
Post by Pizzasgood on Aug 2, 2008 0:38:50 GMT -5
When you use a program on a computer, the computer needs someplace to store the data you work with. The harddrive is used for storing things long-term, since it has the handy feature of not being deleted when you shut down the computer. So it's great for storage. But access speed is very slow, so it's not very convenient to use while you're actually manipulating the data. That's where RAM comes in. RAM is fast. When you run a program, the program is copied into ram and then executed from there. This way the next instruction can be read quickly. When the program creates data to work with (say, you open paint and draw a smiley face), that data is generally held in the ram also. Then when you save, the data is copied onto the harddrive for safe keeping (very necessary since RAM requires a power source to store data, unlike the HD).
If you don't have enough RAM, the computer can use "virtual memory", AKA swap. Basically it allocates a chunk of the harddrive and pretends that it's RAM. This way you can run more programs without being limited by RAM, but it's slower.
Sometimes the OS will move data which is in ram but not being used over to the swap. When you eventually do want the data, it will take longer to get, but in the mean time there is more space in RAM for the things you're using now.
The amount you can have is limited in several ways. Most obvious is by the number of slots on your motherboard. But the motherboard and processor also have a limit. Older computers can be limited to only 128 MB or less. Even modern systems with 32 bit processors are limited to 4 GB because the processor can't handle a larger number of memory addresses. This is one of the reasons for the move to 64 bit processors, as they can address much much more RAM. Along with a 64 bit processor you also need an operating system which has been compiled to use the 64 bit processor, otherwise the processor will be able to address the memory but the software will not.
The OS can also be a limiting factor (aside from 32 vs 64 bit), but that isn't a big issue unless you have an old OS on a new machine.
RAM is most useful for graphic and audio processing, because raw images and sound can be very large, and it's very annoying to have a lag when you're editing things. Games and simulations can also use a lot of ram (for example, storing all the models and levels in RAM from the get-go, so that level load times are shorter). Otherwise it's mainly needed for running multiple programs without them having to be swapped to the HD, which would slow down your window-switching.
Another thing that can be handy when you have lots of RAM is creating a RAM-Disk, which is sort of the opposite of Swap. It's taking a chunk of RAM and pretending it's HD, which lets you store normal files there and then access those files very rapidly. Of course, you need to move them back to the HD before you shut down or you'll lose them (sometimes that is desirable - you may have been dealing with sensitive data you don't want any records of). My favored OS (Puppy Linux) uses this to copy the entire OS into a RAM-Disk as it boots, which makes program start times a bit snappier at the cost of ~80 MB of RAM and a slightly longer boot-up (from HD anyway, if you boot from CD or USB the delay is more significant).
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