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RAM |
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Jeffrey Carter
since 2000-04-08
Posts 2367State of constant confusion! 
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If you were going to build a computer what type (and be specific with name brands please) of memory modules would you use? You want the maximum amount of memory available on the market today. |
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| © Copyright 2004 Jeffrey D. Carter - All Rights Reserved | |||
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Ron
Administrator
Member Rara Avis
since 1999-05-19
Posts 8669Michigan, US |
That's like asking what type of piston would you use in a car, Jeffrey. Select the make and model of the car first and the type of piston available becomes somewhat limited. Select the motherboard first and the type of memory available will also become limited. And in both instances, I think the first question should be how will the unit be used. |
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Jeffrey Carter
since 2000-04-08
Posts 2367State of constant confusion! |
Ok Ron, say you are going to build an office computer for a small start-up tech company. The computer will be doing basic tasks. The motherboard I would choose would be the ASUS P4R800V Deluxe .... now what type of memory would you use (or do you think is the best for this particular motherboard for the basic tasks it will be used for? I know it supports dual channel for DDR and can hold up to 4 MB, so is that something I should look into? I am still in the very early learning stages of all this technical stuff, so I really appreciate all your input. |
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Ron
Administrator
Member Rara Avis
since 1999-05-19
Posts 8669Michigan, US |
What operating system? What chip set? Your MB choice suggests the unit won't be used for graphics intensive programs, so I'm guessing that "basic tasks" means word processing and spreadsheets? |
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Jeffrey Carter
since 2000-04-08
Posts 2367State of constant confusion! |
Windows XP Pro Chipset 875 (I think) I'm still a little confused on this part of the techie stuff lol and yes it will only be for word processing and spreadsheets. |
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Ron
Administrator
Member Rara Avis
since 1999-05-19
Posts 8669Michigan, US |
Sorry, by chip set I meant what P4 you intended to plug into it. Doesn't matter, though, because if the computer is only used for Office type stuff, virtually any modern P4 will be more than you really need. With the possible exception of really, really huge and complex spreadsheets, the bottleneck will be the disk drives rather than the CPU. With XP, you need at least 512M to avoid sluggishness, and a gig would be better. Unless the user is doing something very unusual, anything over a gig of RAM would probably just be wasted. The harder choice is deciding how many SIMMs to use. Fill both slots and it will be more expensive to upgrade later, but using only one slot will be more expensive now. IMO, you will probably never need to upgrade later, but that's obviously going to be a judgment call only you can make. I would go with DDR400, often designated as PC3200 (named similarly to the almost defunct Rambus memory from a few years ago, with 3200 representing a 3.2 GB/s bandwidth). Your motherboard supports the newer dual-channel DDR400, raising the bandwidth to 6.4 GB/s, but I honestly think that would be a waste of money for simple word processing and spreadsheet applications. Use the money on dual IDE drives, instead, and you'll likely see a much more significant increase in performance. BTW, I'm really not up on this stuff as much as I was before retiring, so someone with more recent experience might have better advise. I know Ron (C'Pat) and Christopher usually stay abreast of this stuff. |
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Jeffrey Carter
since 2000-04-08
Posts 2367State of constant confusion! |
Thanks Ron, you have been a tremendous help. Maybe, I'll email Christopher or Ron and see what they suggest as well. Thanks again. |
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Aenimal Member Rara Avis
since 2002-11-18
Posts 7350the ass-end of space |
Not that it would help you at the moment, but there is another type of RAM that may hit the market within the next year or so. The RAM, i forget the name, is currently being used on some US military systems and has a capacity to store up to 10 times as much as DDR. I'll find and post the article if anyone's interested. Simply amazing what's on the horizon. |
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Jeffrey Carter
since 2000-04-08
Posts 2367State of constant confusion! |
Hey Raph, find that article for me, please, I'd love to read it! |
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Aenimal Member Rara Avis
since 2002-11-18
Posts 7350the ass-end of space |
http://www.nve.com/otherbiz/mram.php Actually, as the article was an old one, I recently found that they've moved onto a new technology and were awarded a contract with the Air Force and later with DARPA(Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency). Above is a link to the manufacturers site and relevant press releases. If you're interested here are some links on Quantum computing which is simply fascinating http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2004/04/040430054755.htm 'Teleporting' potentials in transporting information: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2004/06/040621075032.htm |
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