" Sweet Spot" for XP SP3?

[Sue]

Hi,
I am getting to the point where I will need to buy a new laptop and want to
have it configured to make optimal use of the XP SP3 OS. When XP came out,
those in the know reported that 2 GB of RAM was ideal for XP and more would
actually slow it down. I am wondering if the new SP makes optimal use of
additional RAM or it remains best to stick to 2 GB.
Thanks!
Sue

 

[Leonard Grey]

Whoever told you that 2GB was optimal for XP was wrong. The amount of
memory you need is determined by the software you use. By itself, XP
runs fine with as little as 128MB.

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

Whoever told you that 2GB was optimal for XP was wrong. The amount of
memory you need is determined by the software you use.

Right. And as a matter of fact, 2GB is *far* more than most people can
make effective us of.

By itself, XP
runs fine with as little as 128MB.

And that is also false. For almost everyone more than 2GB (even more
than 1GB) would provide no performance increase, but it certainly
wouldn't hurt.




Since it was never true, it almost certainly will remain untrue with
SP3.

 

[smlunatick]

Right. And as a matter of fact, 2GB is *far* more than most people can
make effective us of.


And that is also false. For almost everyone more than 2GB (even more
than 1GB) would provide no performance increase, but it certainly
wouldn't hurt.


Since it was never true, it almost certainly will remain untrue with
SP3.

SP3 is not a newer version of Windows. SP means Service Pack and will
still use the same resources that the original XP version used.
Microsoft would not rewrite the core XP kernel now since Vista is out.

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

SP3 is not a newer version of Windows. SP means Service Pack and will
still use the same resources that the original XP version used.
Microsoft would not rewrite the core XP kernel now since Vista is out.

Why are you telling me this? I know that, and said much the same thing
myself in my message you quoted above.

 

[Anteaus]

Too MUCH memory on a laptop wil cause hibernation (if you use it) to take a
long time and consume large amounts of disk space. 1GB is enough, 2GB plenty,
unless you run some very heavy-duty apps, like 3D CAD packages.