Half life 2 vid specs (1 Viewer)

[Scott L]

Overheating ram is not really a problem but as a rule of thumb, the cooler a PC component is the better it runs. Data will probably flow faster if the ram isn't too hot to touch. If you have good airflow in your case it isn't an issue.

 

[Greg_S_H]

I checked my manual, but I found an even easier (though perhaps not perfect) way to get the right RAM. I have a Dell, and their website matches the proper memory to your system. It looks like I can buy a 512MB stick from them and I'll be okay.

 

[Michael St. Clair]

Greg,

1) Go to Kingston.com and look up your Dell model.
2) Find the Kingston part number for the RAM you need.
3) Search nextag.com for a good price on that Kingston part.

Kingston is the same quality as Dell for less.

 

[Greg_S_H]

Thanks, Michael. I'll do that.

Wowee! $1,072 for a 1GB module! Think I'll just go for the 512MB.

 

[Scott L]

??? No, that's a mistake. Check out www.crucial.com for the same choices, but better ram.

 

[Michael St. Clair]

Crucial is also good. I have become partial to Kingston since they have kept an entire enterprise server farm at work happy with zero memory failures (I'm talking the expensive RAM).

Also, price varies depending on what is going on in the memory war. Sometimes Crucial is more expensive, sometimes Kingson is. Typically, Crucial's prices go up faster because they supply their own chips.

You probably can't go wrong with either.

 

[Greg_S_H]

Here's that $1,072 figure:

http://www.ec.kingston.com/ecom/conf...submit1=Search



I have one more question. These sites all say the memory has to be installed in pairs. If I have one 512M stick in my system right now, I'd only need one, right? I'd have to check to make sure I don't have a pair of 256s.

Edit: Okay, according to the Dell website, I have two 256 sticks. Guess I'll need either two 512s or two 256s.

 

[Brett Hancock]

I don't know the specifics of what systems they are talking about but I only had one stick of 256 ddr in my hand made machine and it runs like a champ.

 

[Romier S]

These sites all say the memory has to be installed in pairs. If I have one 512M stick in my system right now, I'd only need one, right?

Again, depends in your motheboard. I have a P4 3.06 gig that *REQUIRES* memory to be installed in pairs (PC 1066 RDRAM). In other words, I cannot have just one 512 stick sitting in there. I need to have either 2 128 chips or 2 256 chips. Currently I have 2 256mb sticks and 2 128 sticks for a total of 768. Newer P4's use DDR ram now and dont have these requirements, but youll need to check the motherboard documentation again to get the answer to your question.

 

[Kelley_B]

Newer P4's use DDR ram now and dont have these requirements, but youll need to check the motherboard documentation again to get the answer to your question.

Actually Romier the new 800Mhz FSB P4s do require that also.

 

[Romier S]

Actually Romier the new 800Mhz FSB P4s do require that also.

yep, I believe there was an interim Intel chipset that did not require as such. Can't think off it off the top of my head.

 

[Kelley_B]

845 didn't require it. The new 865 and 875 are Dual Channel though.

 

[Greg_S_H]

My motherboard requires pairs as well, according to my manual. I did read that, but my mind turns to jelly when it comes to upgrading memory. "Does it really mean I have to buy two, or are they kidding?"

 

[MikeAlletto]

Actually Romier the new 800Mhz FSB P4s do require that also.

They don't REQUIRE it to work, they only require it if you want to take advantage of the dual channel boost. You can just add 1 stick if you want. Rambus on the other hand requires 2 at a time.

 

[Kelley_B]

Mike, true...but why not take advantage of it if you got it.

 

[Greg_S_H]

If you're not on Steam, you might want to consider downloading it soon. Within the next couple of days, Valve hopes to make a high quality version of the E3 video available over the network. How high will the quality be? Try 1024x768. They are breaking it up into several videos to make it easier to download, and the parts should add up to about 800M. According to Valve, it should look just about how the game will look on your system in that resolution (providing you have the muscle to run it with the same settings). Also, I believe they said that won't be the only HL2 material released over Steam in the very near future. After the E3 vids are done, they hope to offer new, unspecified material.

 

[NickSo]

That $1,072.00 price tag's gotta be a typo... wow...

 

[Greg_S_H]

Looks like it's right, but a little high:

http://www.nextag.com/serv/main/buye...search=KTD4550

You can get the part in the $800 range. Fortunately, that won't work in my system anyway, based on the part number. I have a 800MHz FBS, so I need DDR400, not 333.

I suppose there are gig modules that'll work for me, since I have four slots and can have a total of 4G. I don't see them at Dell or Crucial, though. At any rate, I'll just get a pair of 256s for now.

 

[Romier S]

They don't REQUIRE it to work, they only require it if you want to take advantage of the dual channel boost.

Thats prety much a requirement in my eyes Mike. Like Kelley said, it would be silly not to take advantage of it but point taken.