HELP is at hand for General PC queries, not Foxestalk ones

[davieG]

I wouldn't bother going to 4gb yet. Just put another 1gb in if you want a boost.

Not worth going to 4gb if you'd have to change to 64bit (and you're not already on it). Just go to 3gb

What's the net difference between 32 bit & 64 is one inferior to the other?

I was only planning to get the extra 2 to start with but thought that if I eventually need the extra 2 I might just as wll move to 64bit now.

[coale39]

What's the net difference between 32 bit & 64 is one inferior to the other?

I was only planning to get the extra 2 to start with but thought that if I eventually need the extra 2 I might just as wll move to 64bit now.

The upside to 64 bit is that it supports more memory. Downside is that not all your programs will be compatible with it. Research on the internet what programs you use and if they work on a 64 bit system.

[davieG]

The upside to 64 bit is that it supports more memory. Downside is that not all your programs will be compatible with it. Research on the internet what programs you use and if they work on a 64 bit system.

Ok thanks for the info, I was worried about compatibility, I'm already having problems with stuff I bought for XP. Looks like I'll stick to 2 GBs then.

[coale39]

Ok thanks for the info, I was worried about compatibility, I'm already having problems with stuff I bought for XP. Looks like I'll stick to 2 GBs then.

Why dont ya buy 2 1gb sticks, put one in now to speed it up then keep the other one when you want to upgrade?

[davieG]

Why dont ya buy 2 1gb sticks, put one in now to speed it up then keep the other one when you want to upgrade?

I think they come as 2Gb units, is there any reason for holding back on one of the 1 GBs?

[coale39]

I think they come as 2Gb units, is there any reason for holding back on one of the 1 GBs?

You can either buy ram sticks as either one 2gb stick or 1gb sticks. You say you have two slots? Im guessing uve got one slot filled with the original 2gb stick and ya want to upgrade it further? You can stick a 1gb stick into the other slot. I did a simular thing with my last laptop.

edit I see what you mean now. i think unless you run some serious programs, 3gb is a fine amount. I think by the time you need to upgrade it after that, it will be time to get a new laptop!

Edited 9 January 2009 by coale39

[davieG]

You can either buy ram sticks as either one 2gb stick or 1gb sticks. You say you have two slots? Im guessing uve got one slot filled with the original 2gb stick and ya want to upgrade it further? You can stick a 1gb stick into the other slot. I did a simular thing with my last laptop.

edit I see what you mean now. i think unless you run some serious programs, 3gb is a fine amount. I think by the time you need to upgrade it after that, it will be time to get a new laptop!

I was trying to edit a 3.5Gb video using Windows Movie Maker and my PC ground to halt and I had to stop. I'm hope the extra memory will do the trick perhaps I've got this wrong.

[DB11]

I was trying to edit a 3.5Gb video using Windows Movie Maker and my PC ground to halt and I had to stop. I'm hope the extra memory will do the trick perhaps I've got this wrong.

Could be a number of things like you just have too much junk in general on the PC?

[davieG]

Could be a number of things like you just have too much junk in general on the PC?

Well that was part of the problem, I did have 30Gb out of 100GBs free, that's now 50/50 and it is running faster but still slows down when I put the 3.5 GB video on and try to edit it.

[DB11]

Well that was part of the problem, I did have 30Gb out of 100GBs free, that's now 50/50 and it is running faster but still slows down when I put the 3.5 GB video on and try to edit it.

Try closing down all other running processes. You can also use tools to cut down on the start up programs to make it bit faster and that stops all the crap you don't need running in the background.

[davieG]

Try closing down all other running processes. You can also use tools to cut down on the start up programs to make it bit faster and that stops all the crap you don't need running in the background.

My start up is next to nothing, I've closed down a few processes but under task manager there's so many listed that I haven't got a clue what they are.

[the_bowman]

I've got a Phillips X58 Freevent Laptop with 2GBs of memory. I've been told I can upgrade to a further 4GBs over two slots but that I'd need to change from 32 bit to 64 bit if I go above 3GBs.

Questions:

What affect does using the 64 bit have on my pc?

Will it affect/be compatible with my existing software?

Is there a cost attached and where do I get it from?

Finally anyone know of a good inexpensive provider of memory other than Crucial who I have dealt with so far who are quoting £17.24 for 2GBs.

Thanks

Speaking first-hand, I've just built myself a new gaming PC and installed Vista 32-bit on it.

It had 4GB RAM, but it only registered 3.

I upgraded to Ultimate 64-bit and the difference is phenomenal.

Basically, you processor processes strings of binary in what are called 'words'.

Normally processors use a 32-bit word, 32 characters long, and run at whatever speed (say 2.4GHz), which means it processes a command (a word) 2,400 times a second.

Upgrading to 64-bit means it stays at the same frequency (2,400 processes per second), bit instead of each process being 32 bits long they're now 64-bit.

There's a summary of what it does, and about your q's.

What affect does using the 64 bit have on my pc? Increase on performance for your processor, support more RAM. See above.

Will it affect/be compatible with my existing software? Like I said, I'm running on Vista Ultimate 64-bit and I haven't come over any compatibility issues yet, because (I believe) that Vista 64-bit can also work backwards in 32-bit, so if a program doesn't support 64-bit it will run it in 32-bit. However, I don't think XP has this feature, and it can be quite hard to get drivers for XP 64-bit too.

Is there a cost attached and where do I get it from? Basically it's an operating system. Vista Ultimate 64-bit will set you back around £150 if you get it good and proper. However, I've got mine on disk and just run a crack to activate it online. Works a charm

Finally anyone know of a good inexpensive provider of memory other than Crucial who I have dealt with so far who are quoting £17.24 for 2GBs. I couldn't tell you about that one, but try eBuyer or Scan, they're both pretty reasonable.

That's my good deed done for the day anyway!

[BoneDog]

Finally anyone know of a good inexpensive provider of memory other than Crucial who I have dealt with so far who are quoting £17.24 for 2GBs.

Thanks

There is a site called 'aria' who used to sell good pc stuff very cheap. Don't know how cheap they are nowadays

[davieG]

Speaking first-hand, I've just built myself a new gaming PC and installed Vista 32-bit on it.

It had 4GB RAM, but it only registered 3.

I upgraded to Ultimate 64-bit and the difference is phenomenal.

Basically, you processor processes strings of binary in what are called 'words'.

Normally processors use a 32-bit word, 32 characters long, and run at whatever speed (say 2.4GHz), which means it processes a command (a word) 2,400 times a second.

Upgrading to 64-bit means it stays at the same frequency (2,400 processes per second), bit instead of each process being 32 bits long they're now 64-bit.

There's a summary of what it does, and about your q's.

What affect does using the 64 bit have on my pc? Increase on performance for your processor, support more RAM. See above.

Will it affect/be compatible with my existing software? Like I said, I'm running on Vista Ultimate 64-bit and I haven't come over any compatibility issues yet, because (I believe) that Vista 64-bit can also work backwards in 32-bit, so if a program doesn't support 64-bit it will run it in 32-bit. However, I don't think XP has this feature, and it can be quite hard to get drivers for XP 64-bit too.

Is there a cost attached and where do I get it from? Basically it's an operating system. Vista Ultimate 64-bit will set you back around £150 if you get it good and proper. However, I've got mine on disk and just run a crack to activate it online. Works a charm

Finally anyone know of a good inexpensive provider of memory other than Crucial who I have dealt with so far who are quoting £17.24 for 2GBs. I couldn't tell you about that one, but try eBuyer or Scan, they're both pretty reasonable.

That's my good deed done for the day anyway!

There is a site called 'aria' who used to sell good pc stuff very cheap. Don't know how cheap they are nowadays

Thanks for all the info, I can't afford the 64 bit then and I don't want to risk doing it under the radar.

[the_bowman]

Thanks for all the info, I can't afford the 64 bit then and I don't want to risk doing it under the radar.

Fair enough, don't blame you, although I don't think I've ever used an entirely legal OS!

And yeah, Aria is a pretty good site too, but not quite up to eBuyer standard.

[The Reverend]

I've got a Phillips X58 Freevent Laptop with 2GBs of memory. I've been told I can upgrade to a further 4GBs over two slots but that I'd need to change from 32 bit to 64 bit if I go above 3GBs.

Questions:

What affect does using the 64 bit have on my pc?

Will it affect/be compatible with my existing software?

Is there a cost attached and where do I get it from?

Finally anyone know of a good inexpensive provider of memory other than Crucial who I have dealt with so far who are quoting £17.24 for 2GBs.

Thanks

You can still get the 2gb memory and put it into your laptop to make it 4gb, but it will only be working using the 3gb - but like i sasid, you can install it, but it will only be running at the 3gb speed. I'd put it anyway in case you do get 64 bit.

64 bit is not needed for normal usage though. What do you use the laptop for? I've got a similar scenario to you - my laptop came re-installed with 4gb ram, but can only use 3gb due to 32 bit vista. Mines fast as **** though - i can run Iexplorer, Itunes, Football Manager 09 and Photoshop without any slowdown at all.

3gb is plenty enough. It could be to do with your processor speed if you are struggling to run movie maker - because 2gb is plenty for that.

[davieG]

You can still get the 2gb memory and put it into your laptop to make it 4gb, but it will only be working using the 3gb - but like i sasid, you can install it, but it will only be running at the 3gb speed. I'd put it anyway in case you do get 64 bit.

64 bit is not needed for normal usage though. What do you use the laptop for? I've got a similar scenario to you - my laptop came re-installed with 4gb ram, but can only use 3gb due to 32 bit vista. Mines fast as **** though - i can run Iexplorer, Itunes, Football Manager 09 and Photoshop without any slowdown at all.

3gb is plenty enough. It could be to do with your processor speed if you are struggling to run movie maker - because 2gb is plenty for that.

I use a number of different video packages along with Paintshop Pro, I had to remove Photoshop as it was using far too much memory and I couldn't remove it from my start up.

At it's worst stage, with 30gb of my 100gbs free I was sitting waiting for programmes to open.

This is my system details:

[stez]

is there an easy way to number the 'track' part of the mp3 properties without having to go and number each one individually, i have 65 to do in an 'audio book' to make it play in the right order!

also davieg, i'll fire the laptop up and find the name of that software i was telling you about a bowling (i'd not forgotten......!)

Edited 11 January 2009 by stez

[davieG]

is there an easy way to number the 'track' part of the mp3 properties without having to go and number each one individually, i have 65 to do in an 'audio book' to make it play in the right order!

also davieg, i'll fire the laptop up and find the name of that software i was telling you about a bowling (i'd not forgotten......!)

Me neither are you still interested?

[hairy]

Does anyone know how to convert avi, mpg etc to vob or ifo for free? I got OJO but had to pay to convert more than half the file. I wanna put films on dvd but need to convert to vob 1st

Are you still looking?

[The Reverend]

I use a number of different video packages along with Paintshop Pro, I had to remove Photoshop as it was using far too much memory and I couldn't remove it from my start up.

At it's worst stage, with 30gb of my 100gbs free I was sitting waiting for programmes to open.

This is my system details:

Couldnt remove Photoshop from your statrt-up? Odd. Its not on my start-up.

I think the pic has expired.

#edit: ooh excellent, it hasnt.

Edited 12 January 2009 by The Reverend

[The Reverend]

Do a prt scr of this DavieG --- Start > Control Panel > System and Maintenance > Performance Information and Tools.

[davieG]

Do a prt scr of this DavieG --- Start > Control Panel > System and Maintenance > Performance Information and Tools.

Not as good as yours.

[The Reverend]

Not as good as yours.

Theres not a lot of difference between the two processors, though i've got dual core processors - to be honest i'm not sure how the windows index gauges processors, but it doesnt look like you've got dual processors.

I would assume that the dual core decreases strain on CPU - so why theres sych little difference between the teo scores im not too sure.

Of course theres a fair difference in RAM - my 4 to your 2. It would be worth adding the one gb RAM - its not too pricey and will give you a nice little boost. Dont get 2 though, like i said previously, unless you do plan on getting 64 bit Vista.

What did your laptop set you back? And what brand is it? How old is it?

Do you do regular virus scans? What have you got running in the background that your unaware of? If you've got several programs running in the background at startup, it will of course slow things down.

[davieG]

Theres not a lot of difference between the two processors, though i've got dual core processors - to be honest i'm not sure how the windows index gauges processors, but it doesnt look like you've got dual processors.

I would assume that the dual core decreases strain on CPU - so why theres sych little difference between the teo scores im not too sure.

Mine's a dual core

Of course theres a fair difference in RAM - my 4 to your 2. It would be worth adding the one gb RAM - its not too pricey and will give you a nice little boost. Dont get 2 though, like i said previously, unless you do plan on getting 64 bit Vista.

What did your laptop set you back? And what brand is it? How old is it?

Nearly 2 years, just after the dual core came out, about £500 to £600 I can't remember exactly. Its a Philips X58 Freevents

Do you do regular virus scans? What have you got running in the background that your unaware of? If you've got several programs running in the background at startup, it will of course slow things down.

Scan it regularly. I don't think I have much running in start up