How to Upgrade the Memory in Your Computer

The best way to improve your computer's performance is to add random-access memory (RAM). Installing new RAM is quite straightforward for most PC owners, but if you're not confident of your abilities, have a store technician do the work.

Instructions

Difficulty: Challenging

Things You’ll Need:

• New memory cards

1. Find out how much memory your computer has. Here's how:
2. In Windows XP, click on Start, then Control Panel, then Performance and Maintenance, then System. In other versions of Windows, double-click on My Computer, then double-click on Control Panel, then double-click on System.
3. In Mac OS X, find the Applications folder, double-click on the Utilities folder, and double-click on Apple System Profiler. In Mac OS 9 or earlier, select the Apple System Profiler (usually found in the Apple menu).
4. Check your manual or manufacturer's Web site to determine whether there are open memory slots on the motherboard. Also see what the maximum amount of memory your computer can take, as well as the type, category and speed of memory it uses. For example, PC2100 DDR 133 MHz RAM means PC2100 is the type, DDR is the category, and 133 MHz is the speed in megahertz.
5. Compare your current memory with the maximum. You have two choices: Add new memory in open slots; or, if all slots are full, replace the existing memory with new, greater-capacity modules.

What to Look For:

• Current memory
• Maximum allowable memory
• Type, category and speed of memory
• Open slots

Tips & Warnings

• Good tools for choosing memory are available online, including Crucial.com (you don't need to purchase from them to use the selector tool). You can also check the shopper sections of most computer magazines.

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