Re: RAM Question

From: Tom (noway_at_nothere.com)
Date: 03/30/04 

Date: Tue, 30 Mar 2004 14:13:03 -0500

"Alex Nichol" <alexn.mvpdts@ntlworld.delete.com> wrote in message
news:o31j601i4qgbcokg383fqrf8kj82oju1ks@4ax.com...
> Tom wrote:
>
> >I recently got my new PC and I have 2gigs of RAM on it. I noticed, after
it
> >finishes loading Windows, that it has already used 250mgs of RAM, this
after
> >clearing out my startup items. On my previous PC, I had 512megs of RAM,
and
> >after booting, it would only use just over 100megs.
>
>
> I am very surprised that on the earlier machine it only appeared to be
> using 100MB. Either you are measuring with a different tool, or were
> running one of the programs that purports to 'free memory' (Don't).
> Windows tries at all times to find *some* use for all of RAM, even if
> trivial. This means that at the time mentioned it will still have the
> code of the startup programs around - just in case they are called
> again; and be caching in RAM all the files that have been accessed
> during boot. I would expect that to add up to around 250MB; but it does
> not prevent the RAM being instantly available when some more important
> use come along. On a moderate size RAM - 256 up to around 512MB -
> expect to see all of RAM in use almost always
> Read more at www.aumha.org/win5/a/xpvm.htm
>
> --
> Alex Nichol MS MVP (Windows Technologies)
> Bournemouth, U.K. Alexn@mvps.D8E8L.org (remove the D8 bit)

Hi Alex,

Thanks for the reply, I understand that RAM is used in virtually its
entirety, even if for trivial things since it cannot remain in a static
state so to speak. I didn't use or install any special monitoring program to
read the RAM availability, just what the Task Manager says (though I know
that isn't accurate, it would at least be consistent). It used 100mgs on the
TM with 512 RAM, and now over 250mgs with my 2gigs. And I use less startup
items (actually less programs loaded) now than was with the previous
machine. By the way, both machines has/had XP-pro.

Thanks,
Tom