SurClaro Flight Simulator Resources

Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2007 1:41 am Post subject: RAM Question(s)

Hey everybody. Hope everyone's doing alright! Yes I'm back and I have a computer so I can flight sim it out. But there is one minor downfall this machine has-- only a measly 128MB of RAM. I have taken the side of my computer off to examine the internal organs and I noticed there are two RAM card ports. One of them is taken by the one that's in there now.

MY questions are: Will a RAM card with more capacity fit in these same RAM ports? Or does more mean bigger?

And--- How much would a RAM card generally cost?

Some System Specs

128MB RAM 1.80Ghz Intel celeron processer (sorry, I'll have more info soon)

Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2007 3:09 am Post subject: find out...

Find out what motherboard it is, go to the manufacturers web site to get the full specs. Or, use one of the freeware memory test/recommendation utilities available on the web from several of the memory manufacturers.

Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2007 3:22 am Post subject:

Welcome to the computer world FSPilot! Congratulations on your first step towards becoming a computer-tech geek (lol).... The cost of a RAM stick varies IMMENSELY. It all depends on the speed and type of RAM. Briefly, there are two types of commonly used RAM: DDR and DDR2. (There is a DDR3, but this is emerging technology and I would not recommend it at this point) Each is not cross-compatible. So primarily, you will need to find out what type of RAM your motherboard supports.

Secondly, determine what speed your motherboard supports.

A list of DDR speeds:

PC2100 (DDR-266)
PC2700 (DDR-333)
PC3200 (DDR-400) <--most common

A list of DDR2 speeds:

PC2-3200 (DDR2-400) <--seldomly used. Considered weaker than DDR-400!
PC2-4200 (DDR2-533) <--popular especially on older mobos
PC2-5300 (DDR2-667) <--most common
PC2-6300 (DDR2-800) <--for gamers!

IMPORTANT NOTE: Although RAM types (DDR vs. DDR2) are usually not backwards compatible, corresponding speeds ARE. For example, your computer manufacturer should provide you the "memory standard," or the RAM speed in which the motherboard runs. If you buy RAM clocked faster than the "memory standard," the motherboard will automatically underclock the RAM. But in order to save money, it is crucial to determine the right speed, as price generally increases as speed increases.

I recommend this site for further reading on PC Memory and how to save money:
http://www.tomshardware.com/2007/10/03/pc_memory/index.html

Wow! I just kept rambling on and on and on. If this is too confusing for you, let us know. Perhaps someone else on this forum can nail down the really important facts. Good luck!

Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2007 3:25 am Post subject: Re: find out...

Posted: Sat Nov 03, 2007 4:40 am Post subject:

Crap! I don't know what is what all about bu this computer wouldn't load this on perticular web site for a while. Darn. Well, I appreciate the information guys. I found out a little more from a few of my computer-guy friends.