RekaTech
Reka on Windows XP@www.RekaTech.co.uk©

Difficulty Level: Average

Low Memory (Ram) is one of the most common reasons a PC slows down. It's not that the Ram installed in your Pc has deteriorated but as more and more programs/updates are installed they use more memory. All the software and XP battle for the free memory and can drastically slow your PC down. There are ways to free up some of this memory, like described in the "start up/msconfig" article. The other way is to actually install more memory. Microsoft say XP needs a minimum of 64MB of Ram and recommends 128MB Ram. Personally I think that level of Ram is laughable, it does not take into account any other software that may be loaded on the system. For you to gain decent performance from your PC you need 512MB Ram minimum, 1GB (1024MB) is recommended.

Microsoft: 64 MB minimum | 128 MB recommended
Rekatech: 512 MB minimum | 1 GB recommended     

Ram has dramatically come down in price, you can now buy 1GB of Ram from £20 and the difference it can make to your PC is phenomenal. Before you run out an buy some Ram, there are a few things you need to take into account:

How much Ram do I have currently?
What type of Ram do i have?
What type of ram can i install and how much will my PC accept?

To find our how much Ram you currently have installed go to:

Start>Control Panel>System

You will now see a list of general specs for your PC. At the bottom you should see the amount of ram you have installed. I have found with allot of PCs that the there is often faster ram available than that is installed, but you need to know what is installed. To find this out you need to download CPU-Z, you can select open rather than save, then click cpuz.exe. Once cpu-z opens you need to click on the SPD tab at the top. next to max bandwidth, you will see something like PC3200, PC2700, this is they type of ram you have installed. its worth clicking on the slot arrow above to see how many sticks of ram you have installed and if they are all the same speed.

Now you know how much ram you have installed and what speed it is, so you can just go any buy more. However, i recommend you go to your manufacturers site of the motherboard (can be found in CPU-Z under mainboard with model) to see what the maximum amount of memory can be installed, what speed and in what denomination. For help installing memory read article on Installing Memory

(Update: You can also go to crucial.com and run their memory configurator to see what memory you can install)

Difficulty Level: Average

Installing new RAM is a relatively straight forward process. You should already have the ram you want to install and know if you are replacing the existing RAM with the new RAM, or simply adding more.To install the RAM the your first step is to TURN OFF the PC and touch the case. Remove the left side panel to the PC case, usually 2 screws at the back of the PC hold this in place (some cases don't have side panels and the whole outer case needs removing). You should now see the main circuit board of the PC (motherboard). Have a look as to where the memory is, it looks like the memory you just bought. The RAM is held in place by little clips at either end of every "stick" of RAM. Pressing these clips down gently will release the RAM so you can remove it. If you are keeping the existing RAM and just adding more you do not need to remove the existing ram. Line up the notches on the RAM you want to install to the notch on the motherboard. When they are lined up correctly apply pressure evenly to the RAM modules so they sit properly in the space. The clips either side will close and grip the end of the RAM when installed correctly.

All you need to do now is replace the side panel/outer cover. Power up the PC and check XP has recognised the new memory.