Ram question

  • Thread starter Thread starter Gaffer
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Gaffer

Is there anyway I can test if my ram (512MB DDR 333) is damaged in someway
because I've noticed my PC being somewhat slower of recently?

_____
Gaffer
 
Gaffer said:
Is there anyway I can test if my ram (512MB DDR 333) is damaged in someway
because I've noticed my PC being somewhat slower of recently?
Click to expand...

You can check your ram for errors with memtest 86 from
http://www.memtest86.com, but afaik memory does not
"slow down". You might do a virus scan, and also scan your
computer for spyware (http://lavasoft.element5.com/). What
have you done recently that might have caused the slowdown?

-- Bob Day
 
Bob Day said:
You can check your ram for errors with memtest 86 from
http://www.memtest86.com, but afaik memory does not
"slow down". You might do a virus scan, and also scan your
computer for spyware (http://lavasoft.element5.com/). What
have you done recently that might have caused the slowdown?

-- Bob Day
Click to expand...


It could be a problem with my virtual memory because I've been fiddling
around with that recently and am not sure if it's set at it's best.

_____
Gaffer
 
kony said:
I agree with all of the above and can confirm that memory will not, cannot
slow down a system if damaged.
Click to expand...

Can it affect the speed in games or affect the graphics even?

_____
Gaffer
 
It could be a problem with my virtual memory because I've been fiddling
around with that recently and am not sure if it's set at it's best.

_____
Gaffer
Click to expand...

Virtual memory is not in your 512mb of ram. It is space on your hard drive
where ram memory is swapped in and out of when you don't have enough ram
for everything. Fragmented swap files, and bad vcache/virtual memory
settings can cause system slow downs, as can unnecessary, memory hungry
background programs, virus, trojans, and spyware.

Clean up your system first. Stop all unneeded background programs. Do a
defrag of your hard drive, etc.

Your ram is not the problem.

JT
 
Can it affect the speed in games or affect the graphics even?
Click to expand...

Speed, no, errors, yes. If the graphics look wrong/corrupted/etc it could
be the memory but it wouldn't be even the slightest bit slower.
 
kony said:
I agree with all of the above and can confirm that memory will not, cannot
slow down a system if damaged.
Click to expand...

so why do we increase the ammount of memory to improve performance?
I do not question your knowledge, I just do not understand.

Daniel
 
Daniel Louwrens wrote:

so why do we increase the ammount of memory to improve performance?
I do not question your knowledge, I just do not understand.
Click to expand...

Damaged RAM and insufficient RAM ar two different things. Damaged RAM
can cause all sorts of problems when a program looks there and finds
incorrect information. To little RAM requires Windows to write part of
what would have been in RAM to the hard drive. This slows the computer.

Virg Wall
 
Daniel said:
so why do we increase the ammount of memory to improve performance?
I do not question your knowledge, I just do not understand.
Click to expand...

Because most systems use virtual memory when real memory runs out,
which involves disk access, which is something like 1000 times
slower than direct memory access.
 
so why do we increase the ammount of memory to improve performance?
I do not question your knowledge, I just do not understand.
Click to expand...

As others have already mentioned, it reduces or practically eliminates use
of far slower hard drive for virtual memory. Another benefit is allowing
for large cache of files read from HDD, so each time a file is (re)
accessed it can be read directly from memory. This behavoir can be easily
noticed while loading something like MS Office... 1st time it might take a
few seconds to load an app but the subsequent time(s) it may load in under
1 second, providing the system has amply memory to the extent that the
files weren't flushed out of the memory cache to make memory available for
something else.
 
Daniel said:
so why do we increase the ammount of memory to improve performance?
I do not question your knowledge, I just do not understand.
Click to expand...

Innsufficient memory can slow down a PC but memory itself can't suddenly
start running slower. You're talking amount of memory, not the speed of the
memory.
 
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