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Everything your PC does requires memory. This you may already know. And with increases in memory, a certain increase in speed follows. Why else would those advertisements trumpet the virtues of adding more Random Access Memory (RAM) to your computer? "Make it faster. Make it less prone to crashing. Proudly tell your friends you've got massive amounts of memory." However, speed increases only to a point, and that point varies with the advance in technology. There's always something to get excited about if you keep one eye on the marketers. RAM is called that because it can be randomly accessed. Brilliant, eh? Well, books have been written about the relationship between Windows and memory, so let's just say the more memory you have, the happier your computer will be. It's kind of true in life, too. If you had more memory, wouldn't you be happier? RAM lives in a chip, but you can't eat it. Actually, RAM chips are made of silicon, metal and plastic. Cute little gizmos they are, and they reside on your main board (or motherboard as it's commonly referred to). RAM chips are lightning fast. As an analogy, your hard drive is the tortoise and RAM is the hare. However, unlike the story, your hard drive will never win the memory access speed race. Normally, programs just sit on your hard drive. When you click your favorite word processing icon, data has to dash off to the confines of memory lane, where it fills little registers (think of pigeonhole-like locations) in memory. It's all more complex than this, but we're not studying for a computer science class, are we? Windows 98/95 both work so much better with at least 64 megabytes of RAM installed. XP works best with at least 256 - 512 is better. Give yourself room to roam with a memory upgrade. More memory, more room to rumble. But not necessarily any increase in the speed you see things appear on the screen. By the time I post this, these figures can change. Speaking of upgrades, you'll need to find out what kind of memory your computer uses. Check your computer manual. Look in Yellow Pages. No luck? Call your computer maker, or check your computer manuals. Still no luck? Call any RAM manufacturer's toll free order number, and tell the sales rep your make and model. He'll consult his own resources, and be able to steer you in the right direction. Here's an overview list of memory types: DRAM Dynamic RAM. EDORAM Extended Data Output RAM. SDRAM Synchronous Dynamic RAM. How old is an "older system" anyway? By computing terms, it could be as ancient as three years old. This stuff changes rapidly, but that doesn't mean you have to stay on the cutting edge. All you need to do is grab a nerdish type and ask questions. Or any computer sales person will do. It's best to keep the same memory speeds together. Which brings up the concept of RAM speed. RAM is measured in nanoseconds. The measurement is actually the speed with which RAM can store and 'unstore' data. The easiest way to deal with a RAM upgrade is locate a memory dealer, call them up and give your computer model to them. They'll take it from there. It couldn't be easier. If you don't know what kind of computer you have (special built, gift, no-name on the box, whatever) then you may have to have someone actually look inside. Any shop that's going to sell you RAM will tell you what kind it takes. You can put faster rated RAM in a slower computer and it won't speed it up. But you can't put slower rated RAM in a faster computer, because it won't work. The memory can't keep up with processing demands, so only buy RAM rated at the speed suggested by the manufacturer. Speed is measured in nanoseconds. That's one-billionth of a second. Fast RAM runs at 60 nanoseconds. Slow RAM runs at 100 nanoseconds. In the computer world, a difference of 40 nanoseconds is pretty significant. SDRAM breaks the measurement rules, since it's rated in Megahertz (MHz). It has to match the speed of the motherboard's bus. Your computer dealer or salesperson can track this info for you. Think of the bus as a central path through your computer. Everything in your computer communicates via this central pathway (bus), and at a set speed. Even though your processor may run at a particular speed, your system may only run at less than that. Data is crunched quickly, then is passed to your video card, modem, or hard drive at the speed of the bus.
Found in older systems and usually require adding two chips at a time. Comes in 30 pin modules.
Used by earlier Pentium computers. Usually requires adding memory chips in pairs. Comes in 72 pin modules.
Pentium II or faster computers need this. Add one chip at a time if you want. Comes in 168 pin modules. Speed is measured in Megahertz instead of nanoseconds.
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