Posts Tagged ‘gig’

As you install and run more software on your computer, over time, the computer will start to run more slowly. This happens because the additional software is making greater demands from your hardware. You can address the problem by either reducing the software or increasing your hardware resources.

If you decide to upgrade your hardware, there are 3 parts of your computer that can be upgraded to improve your PC speed: the RAM memory, your disk drive and the CPU+motherboard combo.

Upgrading your RAM or a disk drive is easy and you can do it yourself, in a few simple steps. Upgrading your CPU is difficult and involves replacing the whole motherboard. I would not recommend upgrading your CPU, yourself, unless you know what you are doing.

Upgrading your RAM

Dollar for dollar, increasing your PC’s RAM is the best value for money upgrade you can perform. Right now I would recommend having 1 Gig of RAM for low end machines, 2Gig for middle of the road machines and 3 Gig for high end computers. You are unlikely to benefit from having more than 3 Gig.

You can tell how much RAM you currently have installed, in Windows XP and Vista, by opening the  control panel and going into the system section.

There are a number of different types of RAM and they operate at different speeds. RAM speed is measured in MHz. The type of RAM and the speed that is allowed is determined by your motherboard. You can look up the type and speed of RAM you can use in your motherboard manual. I recommend getting the highest speed RAM allowed.

Open the computer tower and locate the RAM slots there could be 2-4 slots, if you don’t see them check your motherboard manual. After locating the nearest available Slot simply insert the new module into the slot, taking careful note of the groves on the DIMM and the Locking clip to position the Module properly. If the DIMM does not fit you probably have it positioned incorrectly so flip it around and try reinserting it. Once the RAM module is in place apply pressure to the locking clips to secure it, you should hear a click as they close on the DIMM. Then just re-start your PC, go to the control panel and open the system section to ensure your computer has detected the new DIMM and it is working correctly.

Upgrading your hard drive

Hard drive speed is measured in RPM, that is the number of times the hard drive rotates in one minute. I recommend buying a 7,200 RPM hard drive. Before purchasing a new hard drive consult your motherboard guide to find out what type of hard drives are supported. If your motherboard supports SATA drives, buy one of those.

Once you have purchased your new hard drive it is time to prepare for the install. First install any software that came with your drive. Then power down the computer and open the case.

Setting  jumpers (This is only for IDE hard drives):

The different jumper settings will be shown on a diagram on top of the hard drive. If you have one drive that drive should be set to the single drive mode. If you have multiple drives, the one drive needs to be set to master and the rest of them to the slave mode.

Insert your new drive in an open drive bay. These bays are generally located in the front of the tower. Fix the drive in place with screws.

Look at both your mother board and drive manual and connect the drive using the relevant IDE or SATA cables.

Now that the hard work is done the only thing left to do is close back up your system, plug it in, and turn it on to verify that the new hard drive is working properly.

If you are looking for some software fixes for your computer, visit us at slow computer.

Author: Sid Gaunt
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Humorous photo captions

My ram type is PC2700 DDR i would like to get 1GB ram. could anybody give me links to site where i could get it?Thanks

Answer:
You can go to several manufacturer’s sites directly to scan your system and get recommendations. You can then comparison shop on line (use a search engine with the specific memory) or get it directly from them. I’d be cautious with return policy on memory but you may do well to check newegg.com or tigerdirect.com once you have your specific info. Your system manufacturer may also have it….at a premium. Also, make sure you know how many memory slots your motherboard has as that may affect the RAM size you can purchase and install. (e.g. your current MB has 2 slots filled with 512 meg each. You’d need 2 1 gig RAM sticks to get to 2 gig and 1 to get to 1.5 gig while shelving the old RAM. Check your PC or motherboard Manual (usually avalable on line in pdf/Acrobat form) as they’ll usually have detailed RAM installation instructions. And remember…unplug every device before opening your machine…and ground…ground….ground yourself while seating the new RAM Examples: http://crucial.com/ http://www.kingston.com/ Good Luck

My laptop is running Vista and I would like to install XP on my external 500 gig hard drive. Would this be something I could easily do or would this best be left to a pro ? and if it is fairly easy how would I do this ? I know JUST enough to get into trouble da_hal, I’m assuming when you just say ” right click on it ” you mean in the “My Computer ” window ? 34th, I think thats what I’m going to do. I have a good friend thats does all the IT work for all the schools in this county

Answer:
Ooh, you’re heading for trouble. Your external hard disk may not be bootable It depends on your BIOS. You may need to enable various settings to get it to work or your BIOS may not support it at all. And I’d suggest that you’re doing it in the wrong order. I’d install XP first and then Vista. But you can do it your way round. First of all, read this article: http://apcmag.com/how_to_dual_boot_vista_and_xp_with_vista_installed_first__the_stepbystep_guide.htm It’s very detailed (with screenshots). I’d even suggest that you print it out before embarking on this project. And make damn sure that every important file is backed up before you start. You could very well end up with a broken system that’ll require you to format the hard drive. “I know JUST enough to get into trouble” – lovely quote!