The Hindu Business Line : Memory usage

I use a system with P4 Intel processor, 40 Gb HDD, 128 RAM and drive, partitioned into two, with Windows Me in C drive & XP in D drive. When I checked my system with Everest home edition, it showed 98 per cent use of physical memory.

The problem I face is that my system is very slow in opening files and takes a long time to open structure design files. I have scanned with antivirus and Lava antispyware. There was no change in the memory usage. Please suggest a solution.

S.S. Deswal

Memory of 128 MB is the requirement for running XP with normal applications such as browsing. If you want to run design applications or graphic applications, then 128 MB RAM will not suffice. You will need to upgrade to 256 or 512, depending on the application you are running.

The amount of physical memory used up depends on the number of programs open at a point of time which includes the programs running in the background as services and the programs you have opened and have minimised on your task bar.

Each of these applications will take an amount of physical memory and virtual memory. This varies from application to application. If you have too many applications open and actively running, meaning you use them alternatively by switching between them, then they tend to take up more of physical memory. Please try running just the application you intend to use and close and exit other programs. Remove unwanted or rarely used programs from the start-up and service list.

To do this, please go to Start -{gt} Run and type in msconfig and press enter. In the dialog box, uncheck rarely used and unwanted applications. This will free up the memory used by these programs.

The tool you have used for analysis (Everest Home Edition) is a good one. It gives a descriptive information of your configuration.

Computer users who would like to used this tool can download it at http://www.majorgeeks.com/download4181.html

Please e-mail us at eworld@thehindu.co.in

if you have queries on computer usage or if you find an interesting way of using a computer.

Solution by G. Rajah

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