Cheap RAM
- Thread starter lonny
- Start date
GadgetLover
Senior Member & Tech Guru
The short answer is: yes! RAM is considerably faster than hardrive memory (by a quantum leap); thus, if you create a RAM drive and 'copy' applications to it (which of course must be re-done at startup) these applications run SIGNIFICANTLY faster. Also, in general (not using a RAM Disk), any application that requires a significant amount of RAM--such as Photoshop or Virtual PC--will run MUCH faster. Photoshop rendering, for instance, is considerably faster as a percentage of the RAM you have. The reason for this (as well as why it is good to have ample RAM in general) is that both Photoshop and OS X use "page caching" --essentially creating a virtual harddrive file for "swapping" memory. The more RAM you have, the less swapping is necessary, the larger the swap file can be (Photoshop also uses a disk swap file), and the more efficient the app runs. I am sure others can say this more elegantly than I, but the bottom line is RAM IS ALWAYS A GOOD THING.
simX
Unofficial Mac Genius
lonny: Like GadgetLover said, more RAM is DEFINITELY advisable. You seem to have only 256 megs. OS X runs much better if you have more. I would suggest maxing out your PowerBook, if possible. RAM, even notebook RAM, is considerably cheap these days.
When I bought that first 256 meg chip to boost my comp to 448 megs of RAM, OS X ran much better. So when I saw that an online retailer was selling 512 sticks for under $50, you know that I sprang for the opportunity -- and now I have 896 megs (64 meg stick had to be removed
).
As a side note, I would definitely recommend www.boundlesstech.com for memory. They had EXCELLENT customer service (by this, I mean that when I ordered the wrong RAM for my dad's old G3 powerbook, I left a message with them, and the guy called me 3 minutes later and told me he would waive the restocking free and send me the correct RAM of the same amount for no extra charge), excellent prices, and so far it seems, excellent quality.
When I bought that first 256 meg chip to boost my comp to 448 megs of RAM, OS X ran much better. So when I saw that an online retailer was selling 512 sticks for under $50, you know that I sprang for the opportunity -- and now I have 896 megs (64 meg stick had to be removed
).As a side note, I would definitely recommend www.boundlesstech.com for memory. They had EXCELLENT customer service (by this, I mean that when I ordered the wrong RAM for my dad's old G3 powerbook, I left a message with them, and the guy called me 3 minutes later and told me he would waive the restocking free and send me the correct RAM of the same amount for no extra charge), excellent prices, and so far it seems, excellent quality.