Posted on 04/11/2015 11:25:09 AM PDT by Utilizer
Typically, todays budget PCs come with 4GB of RAM. A mid-range configuration may offer double that, and high-end gaming systems and workstations go as high as 16GB or more.
Theres no doubt which way the winds blowing, either: Windows 8 supports up to 128GB of physical memory (assuming youre running the 64-bit edition), while Windows 8 Pro can go up to 512GB.
Does anyone really need this much RAM? Memory isnt as expensive as it used to be, but theres obviously no point paying for gigabytes of RAM from which youll receive no material gain.
Does more equal faster?
Many people assume that adding memory makes a PC significantly faster, and in some cases it does. Sticking an extra pair of DIMMs into a motherboard wont change the speed at which the processor executes code, but it can help in other ways, especially on older systems with 2GB of RAM or less, since adding RAM reduces the need for Windows to rely on virtual memory.
Simply put, virtual memory is a file on your hard disk that serves as temporary storage when your PCs real memory is full. Virtual memory makes it possible, for example, to have several heavyweight applications running at once, even if they wont fit simultaneously in RAM. When you switch from one to another, Windows quickly swaps the relevant data from the disk into real memory, which explains why the virtual memory file is sometimes called a swap file. If youve set Windows Explorer to show hidden files, you can see the swap file in the root directory of your system disk; depending on which version of Windows youre using, it will be called pagefile.sys or swapfile.sys.
(Excerpt) Read more at pcauthority.com.au ...
Heh, I still remember my very first hard disk drive purchase, about the mid-80s or so. 10 MB. Ten. Mega. Bytes. I remember plugging it into my expansion slot, powering up my PC, seeing the "D:" drive show up and thinking "Wow! What am I gonna do with all that storage space?"
You had to write to the printer one line at a time from a specific memory location. No I-O routines. But it was an improvement over those primitive first generation mainframes.
Just imagine what another fifty years will do.
And I was just thinking how an Internet application can consist of code from multitudinous sources.. one day perhaps even including the human brain. Can't wait for that. We think we got problems today. . . .
Totally agree. I made the shift to Mac after my Vista experience. I bought a MacBook Air with an SSD that goes from cold iron to working in 22 seconds. It also runs windows very quickly
All I know is since I got this new computer my solitaire game really smokes now.
My opinion is RAM first SSD next. RAM will make everything work better and you won’t rely on your hard drive for swapping.
Once you quit swapping say 16GB, then an SSD makes sense because programs load and boots happen so much faster. You don’t want to use an SSD for Virtual Memory swap space. It’s faster but SSD’s have other issues. RAM is so cheap that it’s you big hitter day in and day out.
Which brand of dinosaur do you ride to work? I don’t know anybody using those tiny specs of RAM. Did you buy your computers in 2001?
Now , in all seriousness... if all you do is balance your checkbook, do email, and browse the web you’re probably ok right where you are... unless you’re using three seperate applications tto do those things..
If it’s not broke you probably don’tt want to fix it
best wishies
It depends upon the useage. On the server/downloading machine I run uberstudent linux for its lightweight default desktop and included programs.
For general usage, widest number of machines it will run on, and stability; Mepis 8.0 for machines with only 512MB of RAM, and Mepis 11.0 for machines with 1GB or more with the default KDE desktop. Also because Mepis is the easiest to configure for networking and file sharing.
For the Apple-users, I recommend Linux Mint with the Gnome or Cinnamon desktop, depending upon their preference.
On the main machines, I am currently running Mint with the KDE desktop for its better video file workabilities, and for future Virtual Machine configs.
On the older vintage 98SE machines I am running Pupppy Linux for its tiny footprint and ability to run on 64 Megs of memory and older CPUs.
That's going to depend on things like usage patterns and power settings. Probably less than an hour. The SSDs also generate substantially less heat, so you may also get some incidental power savings by not have the cooling fans run as much.
The old 10MB full height. It always killed me when people didn’t know the difference between disk space(storage) and memory.
How'd he carry all that with him? :)
Browsers don’t forget anything until you kill the task. On my Mac, my Inbox is a pig too. I never clean it out so it keeps getting bigger.
My wife still doesn't, even though she's lived with this Software Engineer for almost 35 years now. Oh well, it's not her line of expertise.
Hey, you want to totally confuse them, talk about virtual memory!
Not to mention applications open almost instantly as is graphic rendering.
I got used to it and my laptop with a HD is so boring now.
He would say the most expensive part of computers back then was building size and air conditioning
Ahhhh! That explains why Mint annoyed me (other than puking within a week on the machine I installed it on).
I'm using Lubuntu v12s & v14s, because I like the desktop.
The disk space is your file cabinet, and the memory is your chalkboard. :)
I think the analogy works for a lot of the older crowd.
They used to sell those as a build it yourself machine.
Mine is still up in the attic somewhere.
I got to play with one of those Timex computers once. It was small for it’s time.
Mine was a SWTPC 6800, very fast for it’s time, but also large.
Most kids toys have more computing power than those machines now.
She’s a people person.
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