Installing RAM Help

I currently have a five year old Compaq computer running Windows ME with
128mb or ram. More and more my computer is crashing. The max ram I can
install is 512.

Ok, here is my problem. I have not opened up the case at all for the
last five years until today. I had no need to open it up plus I did not
want to mess up anything inside.

Well, I have had it with my computer crashing. I want to install 512mb
or ram. So today I opened up the case for the first time to find the ram
area. Just about everything was covered with dust (five years worth.) I
think I have one just one bank of ram installed (128mb). There is another
opening for another bank or ram. The one bank with the 128mb is covered
with dust but the other unused ram part is not covered. What I want to do
is pull the 128mb out and replace it with a 256mb bank, plus put another
256mb bank in the unused ram part.

What I'm worried about is the dust. If I pull the 128mb out that's
covered with dust I'm worried I might accidentally shove dust when I install
the 256mb.

So, what do I need to do? Use compressed air to clean it the dust? Is
there a certain way I should clean it? What about just blowing air from my
mouth and blow the dust off?

What's the best way to tackle this?

Thanks!

Start by getting a can of compressed air and a soft artist's paint brush. Use
the paint brush to gently break loose the dust that is sticking to all the parts
inside the case. Then take the computer outside and repeatedly blow the dust
out from the case, until there is no more dust. Pay extra attention to the
rotating fans, the one that cools the processor and the one that is inside the
power supply. You can gently pick up large dust bunnies and remove them with
your fingers.

Once you've cleaned out all the dust, it is possible your computer may not crash
any more. Dust prevents the system from cooling itself properly, and the
crashes may be caused by overheating.

In addition to adding memory, there are a lot of other maintenance tasks
necessary to keep a system running smoothly. If you are running Windows 98 or
later, look for System Cleanup among the system tools. Delete whatever files it
may find. This should help somewhat... Ben Myers

On Sun, 10 Jul 2005 02:42:02 GMT, "Von Fourche" wrote:



I currently have a five year old Compaq computer running Windows ME with
128mb or ram. More and more my computer is crashing. The max ram I can
install is 512.

Ok, here is my problem. I have not opened up the case at all for the
last five years until today. I had no need to open it up plus I did not
want to mess up anything inside.

Well, I have had it with my computer crashing. I want to install 512mb
or ram. So today I opened up the case for the first time to find the ram
area. Just about everything was covered with dust (five years worth.) I
think I have one just one bank of ram installed (128mb). There is another
opening for another bank or ram. The one bank with the 128mb is covered
with dust but the other unused ram part is not covered. What I want to do
is pull the 128mb out and replace it with a 256mb bank, plus put another
256mb bank in the unused ram part.

What I'm worried about is the dust. If I pull the 128mb out that's
covered with dust I'm worried I might accidentally shove dust when I install
the 256mb.

So, what do I need to do? Use compressed air to clean it the dust? Is
there a certain way I should clean it? What about just blowing air from my
mouth and blow the dust off?

What's the best way to tackle this?

Thanks!

Just to make sure, you do realize that upgrading to 512MB will not, in any
way, fix the problem of your computer regularly crashing. Windows Me was
never a great OS and over time it accumulates crap.

My suggestion would be to reinstall Windows Me and all your applications and
start fresh. Back everything up first!

Tom
"Von Fourche" wrote in message
nk.net...


I currently have a five year old Compaq computer running Windows ME
with
128mb or ram. More and more my computer is crashing. The max ram I can
install is 512.

Ok, here is my problem. I have not opened up the case at all for the
last five years until today. I had no need to open it up plus I did not
want to mess up anything inside.

Well, I have had it with my computer crashing. I want to install 512mb
or ram. So today I opened up the case for the first time to find the ram
area. Just about everything was covered with dust (five years worth.) I
think I have one just one bank of ram installed (128mb). There is another
opening for another bank or ram. The one bank with the 128mb is covered
with dust but the other unused ram part is not covered. What I want to do
is pull the 128mb out and replace it with a 256mb bank, plus put another
256mb bank in the unused ram part.

What I'm worried about is the dust. If I pull the 128mb out that's
covered with dust I'm worried I might accidentally shove dust when I
install
the 256mb.

So, what do I need to do? Use compressed air to clean it the dust? Is
there a certain way I should clean it? What about just blowing air from
my
mouth and blow the dust off?

What's the best way to tackle this?

Thanks!

ben_myers_spam_me_not @ charter.net (Ben Myers) wrote in message
...
Start by getting a can of compressed air and a soft artist's paint brush.
Use
the paint brush to gently break loose the dust that is sticking to all the
parts
inside the case. Then take the computer outside and repeatedly blow the
dust
out from the case, until there is no more dust. Pay extra attention to
the
rotating fans, the one that cools the processor and the one that is inside
the
power supply. You can gently pick up large dust bunnies and remove them
with
your fingers.

Once you've cleaned out all the dust, it is possible your computer may not
crash
any more. Dust prevents the system from cooling itself properly, and the
crashes may be caused by overheating.

In addition to adding memory, there are a lot of other maintenance tasks
necessary to keep a system running smoothly. If you are running Windows
98 or
later, look for System Cleanup among the system tools. Delete whatever
files it
may find. This should help somewhat... Ben Myers




Would it be safe to just install a 256 bank or ram and keep the 128mb
ram in place (totaling 384mb)? Would that cause any more problems if I
mixed up the ram?

Another thing, instead of ordered off the web I was just going to get
some memory at Circuit City. Does it really matter where I get my memory?

I'm not sure what is the largest capacity DIMM your system will take. The HPaq
web site says nothing useful about your specific model. RSVP with the processor
type (Pentium II, Pentium III, Celeron, Athlon) and socket type, and I'll be
able to give you an educated guess.

As a rule, older motherboards accept low-density DIMM memory with more chips.
Newer motherboards are not as particular. Lacking any other information, I
would look to get PC133 DIMMs with low-density memory. PC133 usually works in
motherboards designed for PC100, but not vice versa... Ben Myers

On Sun, 10 Jul 2005 16:57:57 GMT, "Von Fourche" wrote:


ben_myers_spam_me_not @ charter.net (Ben Myers) wrote in message
...
Start by getting a can of compressed air and a soft artist's paint brush.
Use
the paint brush to gently break loose the dust that is sticking to all the
parts
inside the case. Then take the computer outside and repeatedly blow the
dust
out from the case, until there is no more dust. Pay extra attention to
the
rotating fans, the one that cools the processor and the one that is inside
the
power supply. You can gently pick up large dust bunnies and remove them
with
your fingers.

Once you've cleaned out all the dust, it is possible your computer may not
crash
any more. Dust prevents the system from cooling itself properly, and the
crashes may be caused by overheating.

In addition to adding memory, there are a lot of other maintenance tasks
necessary to keep a system running smoothly. If you are running Windows
98 or
later, look for System Cleanup among the system tools. Delete whatever
files it
may find. This should help somewhat... Ben Myers




Would it be safe to just install a 256 bank or ram and keep the 128mb
ram in place (totaling 384mb)? Would that cause any more problems if I
mixed up the ram?

Another thing, instead of ordered off the web I was just going to get
some memory at Circuit City. Does it really matter where I get my memory?

ben_myers_spam_me_not @ charter.net (Ben Myers) wrote in message
...
I'm not sure what is the largest capacity DIMM your system will take. The
HPaq
web site says nothing useful about your specific model. RSVP with the
processor
type (Pentium II, Pentium III, Celeron, Athlon) and socket type, and I'll
be
able to give you an educated guess.


It's a Pentium III 850MHz. I have no idea what the socket type is.

I think instead of rushing out and buying ram the first thing I will do
is clean the inside out. Get some compressed air and start dusting. I just
don't want to hurt any of the circuits on the mother board.

A Pentium III running at 850MHz indicates a board capable of accepting 256MB
DIMMs of the right type. PC133 with 16 chips, 8 to a side, should work well.
Non-parity, non-ECC, non-registered. In other words, garden variety.

But, yes, a good cleaning is in order first... Ben Myers

On Sun, 10 Jul 2005 19:42:08 GMT, "Von Fourche" wrote:


ben_myers_spam_me_not @ charter.net (Ben Myers) wrote in message
...
I'm not sure what is the largest capacity DIMM your system will take. The
HPaq
web site says nothing useful about your specific model. RSVP with the
processor
type (Pentium II, Pentium III, Celeron, Athlon) and socket type, and I'll
be
able to give you an educated guess.


It's a Pentium III 850MHz. I have no idea what the socket type is.

I think instead of rushing out and buying ram the first thing I will do
is clean the inside out. Get some compressed air and start dusting. I just
don't want to hurt any of the circuits on the mother board.

"Tom Scales" wrote in
m:

Just to make sure, you do realize that upgrading to 512MB will
not, in any way, fix the problem of your computer regularly
crashing. Windows Me was never a great OS and over time it
accumulates crap.

My suggestion would be to reinstall Windows Me and all your
applications and start fresh. Back everything up first!

snip

I agree with Tom. If you are short of memory, your system will run
very slowly as Windows has to spend time swapping programs and data
between memory and disk. A much more likely cause is that Windows
Me is screwed up so try a wipe-and-reinstall first which should
restore stability.

Then consider adding more memory if the system slows down
dramatically as you run more software.

BTW: Clearing the dust inside the box every couple of years is
still worthwhile, to maintain cooling efficiency.