Tag: RAM

Speed is not Everything in a PC

When you get a new PC that contains the latest specifications offered in the market, you will always be thinking of speed. Normally, a new PC will perform up to par but if you notice, at some point it will deteriorate and slow down.

A lot has to do with the programs you install and use. The more programs you have on your PC, the larger the load will become. A PC user cannot help but install as they wish the programs that they have and normally it eats up space and adds to the usual processes that a standard computer has to run.

Once that happens, you can notice a decline in system performance. You may even think you have a worm or a virus inside. But while that would be a good conclusion, do consider the fact that there is such a thing as overdoing it when it comes to your computer capacity. No matter how large the hard drive may be, it remains that processors and memory chips also have their limitations.

That is perhaps the wrong notion that most people think. While it is apparent that some computers come out with awesome specs, they also have limitations. And depending on the type of program you use, the latest it is then the higher the specs needed.

Try to limit what you install. Avoid overloading your hard drive and of course your desktop. The decline in speed is normally because of this and before you know it, you may be depriving yourself of a good performing PC.

Studying the PC Upgrade Options

For sure, most of us will not be content with the current PC configuration that we have. Depending on the length of time that we have had our personal computers, we are bound to want more in terms of speed and features of personal computers offered in the market. But the real question is what in particular do we look for?

There are a lot of options we can think of today. Ranging from processor chips, memory modules and video cards, it may seem that the possibilities are endless. But considering that these upgrades carry costs, it would be wise to determine what you really need. There are some who go for overkill specs and traditionally these would not be put to full use. Some only need a computer for word processing or browsing the web. So how sophisticated of a specification would you need?

Others tend to be drawn into tempting sales talks from PC vendors. For example, you would seek a certain specs and the usual thing you would hear is for an extra couple of bucks, you can get this higher version. Some do it to help a buyer decide and get more value for their money while others just want a better sale. When these factors set in, you are bound to go for the higher priced and supposed higher specs.

But in the end, it all depends on you. You are the buyer and depending on your sound judgment, it will be you who will be paying for it. Think wisely and broadly and work on a budget.

Avoid PC Crashes from Memory Module Inconsistency

If people had their way, as long as a memory module would fit onto the motherboard slot, they would install them. But wait. Memory modules also have their proper classifications as well. This dates back to the type of memory modules that are acceptable.

We look back at the Pentium III or IV. If you will recall, they had these tags of either a PC 100 or PC 133. To this day we see them still and one thing you will note, memory modules of a different kind do not work well together. You will notice this if you dare try. Other than seeing your operating system not loading properly, you will get tons of blue screens which will point to numbers which you may try to figure out.

While you are busy trying to determine which hardware component this may be, take out one of the memory modules and see if the blue screen will go away. If it does, then you are trying to do something that will be constantly giving you headaches.

At times when you may not even know which is the proper ram module to use, it would be best to try them one at a time. Module compatibility also depends on how the motherboard will accommodate them. After you have determined which specific module type is acceptable, then that is perhaps the best way to stick to the brand that suits your PC.

Testing memory modules will not really hurt your PC immediately. But if you are wise and cautious, it would be best to stick to the actual PC specs given and avoid experimenting for the proper well-being of your PC.

Your RAM, Check It!

RAMHere’s a way to check if your computer RAM is having problem or it’s faulty.

Now usually there are signs that you should tell you that it leads to bad RAM. But if you are not sure what those signs are then it would take you a very long time since system diagnostics are pain! What would seem like a couple minutes of diagnosing would take about 2 hours or even days sometimes. You think you’ve located the problem and fixed it, later to find out that it leads to more problems, hence the cycle of diagnose, repair, testing repeats itself, you will find your self feeling nauseous.

The SIGNS of bad RAM

Remember when diagnosing PC components always start with the computer RAM.

  • If you are plagued by the dreaded blue screen of death (BSoD), this is the time you ask yourself, ” There must be something wrong with my RAM”.
  • Errors like PFN_LIST_CORRUPT and PAGE_FAULT_IN_NONPAGED_AREA and so on including include system stalls, reboots, and weird PC behavior are the signs of bad RAM.

If you think you have a problem with bad ram check it with these tools:

Speed Up My PC – (FREE Scan)

Uniblue’s Speed Up My PC repair tool will scan your RAM for errors plus automatically free up memory where it can on top of a slew of other very useful performance tweaks. It’s a free download so it is a great diagnostic tool to try before anything else.

Memtest86

It might be a little difficult or the average user, but it isn’t a bad way to check RAM. It is a useful tool, this app runs tests on your RAM, checking it out for errors.

Once you have the latest version of Memtest86, then make a diagnostic disk make it bootable, then boot from it. The cool thing about it is that it loads before the PC loads Windows drivers and such. Hence, No BSod! As Memtest86 run and diagnoses your PC, any suggestion or fixes it comes with would give a clear idea if you have bad or good RAM.

One last tip

Another thing to try would be to test one stick of RAM at a time. and test the stick(s) in each DIMM slot to rule out the possibility of a faulty slot, while also providing you with an opportunity to verify you’re using the correct slots for dual-channel operation.