Memory questions

http://forums.whatthetech.com/index.php?sh…=112843&hl=
LDTate from your Spyware forum helped me clean up my daughters Dell Inspiron B130 and referred me to this forum. Not sure what info you may need but here is some:

* It is extremely slow, takes over 5 minutes to boot up. I had been getting low memory messages but not lately.
* My Computer properties - 1.5 GHZ 504 RAM.
* Per disk defragmenter 1.04 GB free space or 2%.
* There are two 512 MB (DIMM) memory cards installed in the only two available slots that I know of.

So I don't know if this is a hard disk or RAM problem or both, whether I should buy one or two 1GB cards and do I replace the existing 512MB cards with these.

Any assistance you can give would be greatly appreciated.

Hi, if you have only 1.04GB of free space (2%) on your hard drive then this could be a major source of problems with your machine….
As a first step you need to consider getting the free disc space up to 25%…Windows needs "elbow room" to operate efficiently. (Currently with only 2% [1.04GB] available it is being "choked"…. ) if you have an external USB drive then moving some of the the data files..music , videos, photos etc. so that 25% or more of disc space is freely available will help greatly.
You say that:

My Computer properties - 1.5 GHZ 504 RAM

if you actually have only 504MB of RAM available, then this is also very low….. to check go here:
www.crucial.com
and get the Crucial scanner to scan your system and identify your memory and price up any upgrades that may be available.
NOTE you will be asked to accept an ActiveX control ( for the scan to work) and this is generally considered safe from that site.

I noticed from your logs over in the malware removal forum that you had installed AVG anti virus, Avast anti virus, Spybot Search and Destroy, and AdAware, this is a large load to have have running especially if resident in memory and absorbing system resources…..although I see from subsequent logs that you have uninstalled AVG
I suggest that you firstly free up disc space to 25% free , complete the Crucial scan, posting the" results" back here. Next go here:
http://www.malwarebytes.org/startuplite.php
and download and run the "start up light" to remove unnecessary programs starting up and hogging memory.
Regards
paws

To add just a little to what paws has said, I would suggest you go into Control Panel > Add and Remove Programs, and uninstall any programs you don't use. If you don't know what something is, don't uninstall it. I agree that you are critically low on disk space and this is likely much of your problem.

504Mb of RAM is also a bottleneck. When that system was new, it probably was considered more than you will ever need!. But, much in thanks to badguys, we have been forced to load up our systems with security software just to be safe while idling so the demand for system resources, which includes RAM, has increased as well. And it would seem you are using on-board graphics which means some of that RAM is snatched and dedicated to graphics processing. The "sweet spot" for XP and single core CPUs is 1Gb. I would consider buying two 512Mb modules and tossing the others. There will be a RAM "wizard" at the Crucial site paws recommended that should identify your motherboard, and recommend compatible RAM.

Note that 512 - 504 = 8. That would indicate only 8Mb is being dedicated to graphics processing and in today's graphics oriented world, that is a minuscule amount. Adding more RAM will allow you to dedicate more to graphics, but just about any graphics card, including an entry level PCI card will yield significant performance gains over your on-board. Not only will the card have a better graphics processor, but it comes populated with its own RAM tweaked for graphics processing. This frees up any previously snatched RAM.

The downside to adding any new hardware is adds to the demands of the power supply. This is especially true of graphics cards. So, you may need a new PSU too.

I do not have an external USB drive. Can you recommend something and would I be able to use it for my computer in addition to her laptop and will she be able to access her music and pictures easily. Copy and paste of Crucial scan: Guaranteed-compatible memory upgrades for your Dell Inspiron 1300 Laptop/Notebook . Scan Id: 91B0CBBB31D926C3 Crucial Recommends Your system configuration 512MB Total 512MB current memory 512MB 1 empty slots EMPTY Our suggested upgrades 1GB Total 512MB current memory 512MB 512MB new memory added 512MB US $17.99 Part No: CT943154 Qty: 1 US $17.99 ea. —————————– Total Price: US $17.99 1.5GB Total 512MB current memory 512MB 1GB new memory added 1GB US $24.99 Part No: CT492894 Qty: 1 US $24.99 ea. ——————————————————————————– Total Price: US $24.99 2GB Total 512MB current memory removed * 1GB new memory added *1GB 1GB new memory added 1GB US $49.98 [X] Part No: CT492894 Qty: 2 US $24.99 ea. ——————————————————————————– Total Price: US $49.98 view all compatible memory upgrades Your Dell Inspiron 1300 Specifications Currently installed memory: 512MBDDR PC2-5200 EMPTY Each memory slot can hold DDR2 PC2-5300 with a maximum of 1GB per slot.* *Not to exceed manufacturer supported memory. Maximum Memory Capacity: 2048MB Currently Installed Memory: 512MB Available Memory Slots: 1 Total Memory Slots: 2 Dual Channel Support: No CPU Manufacturer: GenuineIntel CPU Family: Intel® Celeron® M processor 1.50GHz Model 13, Stepping 8 CPU Speed: 1496 MHz A little concerned Crucial refers to it as a 1300 vs B130. Much more concerned they say I have one of two slots open. I remove three screws and a plate on back. There are two slots labeled DIMM A and DIMM B. in each slot there is a Hynix My52 card installed (512MB 2Rx16 PC2-4200s-444-12). Does their scan mean one is defective? Sorry I went out of order but I downloaded the startuplite and disabled both entries which they identified. I have uninstalled as many programs and deleted as many files as I am currently comfortable with. My remaining security programs are ATF, AVG, Malewarebytes, CCleaner, Regseeker, and Online Armour.