How many ram is enough?

[Guest]

512mb vs 1024mb ram, will my window applications run faster if I use 1gb ram
instead of 512mb ram? Will the games like doom3, half-life 2 run smoother if
I use more ram?

Wilson Chu

 

[Linda B]

512 is enough for the vast majority of applications. 1024 is becoming more
popular these days, and is *more* than enough -- but you may well see a
perfomance boost with a gig if you're running graphics- and
processing-intensive apps (like games). There's really no need for anything
over a gig for most users' needs.

--LB

 

[Mike Hall \(MS-MVP\)]

Games benefit from loads of video memory.. graphics programs like Adobe
Photoshop or video editors benefit from lots of RAM.. for General computing
and the odd game or two, 512mb is enough..

 

[Galen]

In

512mb vs 1024mb ram, will my window applications run faster if I use
1gb ram instead of 512mb ram?
Yes.

Will the games like doom3, half-life 2
run smoother if I use more ram?

Yes and no. It depends on how much of the game is being held back due to
running processes vs how much it can be improved by GPU speed and RAM. I'd
guess yes knowing only the information that you've given us. It probably
will improve quite a bit.

Galen
--

"My mind rebels at stagnation. Give me problems, give me work, give me
the most abstruse cryptogram or the most intricate analysis, and I am
in my own proper atmosphere. I can dispense then with artificial
stimulants. But I abhor the dull routine of existence. I crave for
mental exaltation." -- Sherlock Holmes

 

[Ken Blake]

512mb vs 1024mb ram, will my window applications run faster if
I use 1gb ram
instead of 512mb ram?

That depends entirely on what applications you run. More RAM will
help your performance if it keeps you from using the page file.
For most people, 512MB is more than enough, but your needs may be
different, depending, again on what apps you run.. For some
people, for example those who edit large photographic images,
more than 512MB--even much more--can be required for good
performance.
If you are currently using the page file significantly, more
memory will decrease or eliminate that usage, and improve your
performance. If you are not using the page file significantly,
more memory will do nothing for you.

Go to http://billsway.com/notes_public/winxp_tweaks/ and
download WinXP-2K_Pagefile.zip and monitor your pagefile usage.
That should give you a good idea of whether more memory can help,
and if so, how much more.

Will the games like doom3, half-life 2 run smoother if
I use more ram?

I don't play computer games, and know nothing about these, so
can't help you there.

 

[Al Smith]

512mb vs 1024mb ram, will my window applications run faster if I use 1gb ram

instead of 512mb ram? Will the games like doom3, half-life 2 run smoother if
I use more ram?

Wilson Chu

My guess is that you would not notice the difference. Once you
have enough RAM, any RAM you buy beyond that amount is a waste of
money.

 

[BBUNNY]

I have been listening to this same old crap since the 286 days with the
question being
whether to add a 1MB cockroach to upgrade the system to 2MB.

 

[Yves Leclerc]

Windows (any) will always run faster if you add RAM.

 

[Ken Blake]

In

Windows (any) will always run faster if you add RAM.

Not at all true!

Windows will run faster if you add RAM *only* if you are
presently using the page file. The reason it runs faster is that
more RAM will result in less use of page file and access to RAM
(which happens at electronic speeds) is much faster than access
to the page file (which happens at physical speeds).

How much RAM you need to keep you from using the page file
depends on what apps you run. If you are running Windows XP with
128MB, unless you do nothing with your computer besides playing
Solitaire, almost everyone will be using the page file and more
RAM will provide a significant improvement in speed.

If you have 256MB, many people will be using the page file hardly
at all, and more RAM will do little for them. Others will see an
improvemnt.

If you have 512MB, most people will hardly ever use the page
file, and more RAM is a waste of money.

For those people who do highly memory-intensive things, like
editing large photographic images, even 512MB isn't enough to
keep them from paging, and more RAM, even much more, can be
beneficial.

 

[R. McCarty]

Having a large amount of RAM can actually be beneficial to
performance in one regard. I have 1.0 Gigabyte of RAM.
Unless I'm doing Audio mastering, a large portion of that
goes unused.

For Day-to-Day use, I sometimes toggle the LargeSystemCache
memory management option to 1. Right now typing this post,
with 2 or 3 other apps open, the System Cache is at 710 Meg.

It hurts nothing and gets reallocated when more applications are
active. So instead of having a higher available pool, I just use that
extra memory for caching.

I wouldn't recommend buying & installing 1.0 Gig just to enable
LargeSystemCache, as it's primarily a Server type of feature.

Most times, with average usage - 512 Megabytes is more than
enough.

 

[Alias]

Most times, with average usage - 512 Megabytes is more than
enough.

For now. I remember when 32MB was considered a lot.

 

[R. McCarty]

Absolutely, I had to upgrade an "Old" system a few weeks
ago and could not find any 16 Meg modules in my Parts bin.

Luckily, I know a local shop owner who never throws anything
away. He's like the Noah's ark of computer parts - Usually has
two of everything.

 

[Alias]

I have 64 megs of that RAM in the other room from a Pent 166 MX that died
after a very long service. The RAM's still good, though.

 

[Bob I]

Heck that USED to be alot for a harddrive.

For now. I remember when 32MB was considered a lot.

 

[Ron Martell]

512mb vs 1024mb ram, will my window applications run faster if I use 1gb ram
instead of 512mb ram? Will the games like doom3, half-life 2 run smoother if
I use more ram?

Wilson Chu

The right amount of RAM is whatever amount it takes to eliminate any
actual usage of the virtual memory paging file. By actual usage I
mean the actual movement of active memory content from RAM to the
paging file so as to allow that RAM to be used for other, currently
more important tasks.

The right amount is therefore highly variable, depending on just how
the computer is used - which applications are run, how many of them
are open at any given time, and the size of the data files used by
those applications.

A free utility written by MVP Bill James that will report the amount
of actual page file usage can be downloaded from
http://www.dougknox.com/xp/utils/xp_pagefilemon.htm or from
http://billsway.com/notes_public/WinXP_Tweaks/
If that utility shows actual page file usage of 50 mb or more on a
regular basis then that is indicative of fairly significant paging
file activity. Adding more RAM will reduce or even eliminate entirely
this activity thereby improving performance.

This apples regardless of how much or how little RAM is currently
installed in the computer, at least up to the 4 gb RAM maximum for
Windows XP.

Good luck


Ron Martell Duncan B.C. Canada
--
Microsoft MVP
On-Line Help Computer Service
http://onlinehelp.bc.ca

"The reason computer chips are so small is computers don't eat much."

 

[Andrew Murray]

I have been listening to this same old crap since the 286 days with the
question being
whether to add a 1MB cockroach to upgrade the system to 2MB.

You applications will run fine with 512MB.

Games use loads of memory - particular for the graphics, so a good fast
graphics card (say 6x or 8x AGP with 128mb or more video memory) will be
recommended, however the individual games also have their minimum
requirements, so check the specs on those as well.

Games depend on a lot more than just RAM to run.