Anyway, it appears to work fine......computer recognizes it and everything, no beeps or error messages when I started it up.
However, I want to make darn sure since I had a bad memory chip once before and it didn't really pose too many symptoms (that brief time when I upgraded). Now, my computer (Dell Dimension 4550 400 bus) is definitely running faster and everything, but the one thing I have noticed, at least the first time I rebooted, was that the computer lagged on the welcome screen. It didn't really take more time to load up than normal, it just showed the welcome screen for XP longer than usual.
I find this annoying, and wonder if there is a way to fix it. It will probably stop in a couple days, but I also thought I better check and make sure it may not be a sign of a RAM problem. I am doubtful since the welcome screen lag seems to be something that happens for a couple days whenever I do an upgrade, at least sometimes.
But, I don't want to take any chances.
Some more questions....I have a different brand of memory for the other RAM stick. Is this okay? Some forums say it is a bad idea to mix RAM brands. If so, I may get another stick of Crucial memory.
Both sticks are DDR DIMM 2100, though one says 2100U. What does the U stand for....are these 100 percent compatible? One stick is CL 2.5 and one is CL2. What does this mean, and does it present compatibility issues?
One more thing. I installed the new, bigger stick in slot 1, though I did not realize it was slot 1 instead of 0 at the time. Now, I have looked and my computer manual does not indicate the sticks have to be put in a particular order; it doesn't really care, and I also read online that for DIMM DDR, you do not have to have the bigger stick in slot 0 like I have read people saying you must do to avoid doom and failure on other forums. Is this correct?
If they must be put in the order from 0 to 1, I need to switch the sticks.
As far as I know, the memory is working fine. The computer is running much faster.
Are there any software programs I can download that will monitor the RAM and confirm it is working fine?
But, after that last experience, I want to make dang sure it is, so sorry about being anal in this post.... I am probably fine, but there are people smarter than me. I just know how to install the sticks. I can't do all the diagnostics stuff.
Edited by rwfromkansas, 13 June 2005 - 09:59 PM.
Sign In
Create Account
