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Thread ID: 30909 2003-03-06 12:10:00 memory and computer speed nimrod (2932) Press F1
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126042 2003-03-06 12:10:00 My computer currently has 512Mb PC2100 DDR RAM. If I add another 512Mb of this giveing me a total of 10024Mb will that increase the speed of the machine by much? I currently play simulators such as Microsoft Train Simulator and Flight Simulator 2002.

Also what is the difference between PC2100 and PC2700 DDR RAM? If my computer has PC2100 in it, can I remove it and add PC2700 if upgrading ?

Regards
nimrod (2932)
126043 2003-03-06 12:28:00 Your motherboard will dictate what ram to use so check the manual. My guess is that if it has PC2100 in it now that is probably all it will take. mikebartnz (21)
126044 2003-03-06 21:07:00 depends a bit on what os you have and what you do with the pc.

for games i doubt it will make much difference. it will be usefull for video editing.

as far as the ram speed goes, check what your motherboard can use. it may only run at pc2100 so a pc2700 will simply run at pc2100.

one advantage of such a large amount of ram is you could disable the swapfile.
tweak'e (174)
126045 2003-03-07 00:09:00 > one advantage of such a large amount of ram is you
> could disable the swapfile.

I'd suggest that you set it to start at something like 5 megs, and have a max of 20 or whatever.. just in case ;-)
Chilling_Silence (9)
126046 2003-03-07 02:35:00 I have 2048MB PC133 SDRAM (4x512MB Max my board could take).

You're probably wondering why I'd needed that much, simple answer I didn't but the price was right. Complicated answer, I thought having no swapfile would make accessing the hard drive quicker and defragging the system quicker (since the swapfile makes a mess of your files), also I do a lot of multitasking involving CAD\Graphics, Programming, Gaming and Everyday Office Apps.

Another thing I noticed with having a lot of RAM is that the BIOS POST takes a couple more seconds longer counting your RAM.

I disabled my swapfile thinking I wouldn't need it but then when I tried running Adobe PhotoShop it shat itself and said it needs a swapfile, so I set the minimum swapfile of 2MB. Now Photoshop is happy! Strange thing though Adobe ImageReady didn't cry when there wasn't a swapfile.
Kame (312)
126047 2003-03-07 03:05:00 You're probably still not using the swapfile. Photoshop probably checks for a swapfile, because most (:D) people have less memory, and Photoshop and all other graphics programmes run out of memory quickly. It's easier for the programme to assume that it will need a swapfile, and not start without one. Saves complaints from people who have 32MB and multimegabit pictures. Graham L (2)
126048 2003-03-07 03:07:00 Try seeing if there's a 'Quick Boot' or similar option in the BIOS! Chilling_Silence (9)
126049 2003-03-07 06:57:00 > My computer currently has 512Mb PC2100 DDR RAM. If I
> add another 512Mb of this giveing me a total of
> 10024Mb will that increase the speed of the machine
> by much? I currently play simulators such as
> Microsoft Train Simulator and Flight Simulator 2002.

Not sure what OS your running so its hard to say how much performance would increase, but i'd say maybe 1-2% in a normal day situation. so its not really that much! cause 512MB is sufficient for todays activities
roofus (483)
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