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09-06-2009, 05:50 PM
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Location: Bellingham, WA
9,746 posts, read 15,928,400 times
Reputation: 14875
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I have a question about RAM which I imagine will be simple for anyone more knowledgeable than myself. Here is what is currently in my system:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v214/lamplightsg/DSCN0392.jpg (broken link)
I have two of these, but for whatever reason only one is working now, so I still only have 256mb. I don't know if the malfunction is with the RAM or the motherboard itself. But that's not really the issue for me. I've searched online and found RAM that matches this, but it seems I am limited in the maximum MB I can get. Is there another, more modern version I can get that will allow me to have at least 1GB? Forgive me for my vagueness, but I don't know what any of the numbers mean besides 256MB.  |
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09-06-2009, 07:33 PM
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Location: Knoxville, TN
2,170 posts, read 7,336,836 times
Reputation: 1532
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You can get much more "modern" RAM than that, but can the motherboard handle it? That's the question. What's the make and model of the mother board?
How much RAM you can put in and what type is limited by the motherboard. So see if you can find some information on it. Or if you have the make/model number of the computer, go to crucial.com and go through their RAM finder.
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09-06-2009, 09:21 PM
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16,294 posts, read 27,299,538 times
Reputation: 8357
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Quote:
Originally Posted by knoxgarden
You can get much more "modern" RAM than that, but can the motherboard handle it? That's the question. What's the make and model of the mother board?
How much RAM you can put in and what type is limited by the motherboard. So see if you can find some information on it. Or if you have the make/model number of the computer, go to crucial.com and go through their RAM finder.
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Yea, but it won't work in his computer. The can get larger ram and upgrade in the process, and for very little more than just replacing the bad stick of RAM.
Faster RAM or DDR2, etc. will either gain no benefit, or simply will not work or even install in the slot.
But going to kingston.com or crucial.com and enter your systems make and model is the way to get the memory that will work. |
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09-07-2009, 08:38 AM
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Location: Bellingham, WA
9,746 posts, read 15,928,400 times
Reputation: 14875
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Thanks for the info! :thumb: Looks like I'll have figure out which model I have now. I had the motherboard model written down, but I can't find that sheet of paper. |
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09-07-2009, 09:04 AM
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Location: West Virginia
15,509 posts, read 13,926,315 times
Reputation: 9883
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If your computer was made after ~2003, it will almost certainly support at least 2 GB on the motherboard. If you replace those 2 256MB sticks with 1BG sticks, it would be a huge improvement in performance for your computer. I've replaced PC2100 memory with PC2700 memory when that was all I had available and had no problem. That being said, some motherboards require specific types of memory, so checking at crucial.com is a good idea. PC2100 memory is DDR RAM that runs at 266 MHz. PC2700 is also DDR, but is designed to run at 333 MHz, but will slow down the 266 if that is what the motherboard runs at or if a piece of PC 2100 is also installed. My experience with this has been on Dell and Compaq computers. Yours may be different.
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09-07-2009, 11:53 AM
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Location: Bellingham, WA
9,746 posts, read 15,928,400 times
Reputation: 14875
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Mine is a Dell Optiplex from late 2002, so it's getting on in years. I'm not sure of the exact model still, and I haven't had a chance to look at the motherboard yet. I've also considered just waiting until Windows 7 comes out and buying a new computer. This one needs upgrades in a lot of ways, plus the sound no longer works (I started a thread about that, a couple of weeks ago) and I still haven't fixed that. I'm starting to think it might be worth it to completely replace it, though it has been fairly reliable over the years.
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09-07-2009, 12:34 PM
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Location: West Virginia
15,509 posts, read 13,926,315 times
Reputation: 9883
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Look at the circle around the power button. It should say Optiplex around the top and the model around the bottom. I'm guessing it says GX 260.
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09-07-2009, 12:35 PM
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Location: Bellingham, WA
9,746 posts, read 15,928,400 times
Reputation: 14875
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mensaguy
Look at the circle around the power button. It should say Optiplex around the top and the model around the bottom. I'm guessing it says GX 260.
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Oh, good call. I never noticed that before. |
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09-07-2009, 12:43 PM
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Location: West Virginia
15,509 posts, read 13,926,315 times
Reputation: 9883
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If it is a GX-260, you can put a 1GB stick in each of the two slots on the motherboard. If you can't find PC2100 memory, PC2700 will work.
With 2GB, Windows XP can work comfortably in most cases.
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09-07-2009, 01:35 PM
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Location: Bellingham, WA
9,746 posts, read 15,928,400 times
Reputation: 14875
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Thanks mensaguy! :thumb: I'm actually running Windows 2000, which is what my computer came with. I know it's old, but I've always liked it.
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