I need to boost my RAM

Guardian

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Here's the situation.

1. My mom will go nuclear if we can't install the printer.

2. The printer demands 512 MB of RAM to install.

3. 512MB is our MAX RAM, so obviously we've only got 98% of that available.

4. I'm trying to use a 4GB flash drive to increase the RAM, a la this ReadyBoost method, and it just refuses to work. :|

5. Please don't tell me to go buy actual RAM chips because I need that to be our last option for various reasons. :p Let's try to make the flash drive thing work instead? Or another method?


Additional info: My desktop is a 2005 Dell that came as windows XP and has been upgraded to Win7. The printer in question is an HP Photosmart. The flash drive shows that it's being used as RAM, but checking the system info and attempting to install the printer reveals that it is really not working.

Anyone got a clue how I can boost my dang RAM? :(
 

Ken

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... one thing you might do for starts is to delete any program you don't need on your computer, e.g. windows media player. Another way to tackle that is to clean up your system by getting rid of folders you don't need. Norton can do that I think. You'd be surprised how much memory you can free up that way. (ps Just make sure you don't delete anything you need.)
 

Guardian

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... one thing you might do for starts is to delete any program you don't need on your computer, e.g. windows media player. Another way to tackle that is to clean up your system by getting rid of folders you don't need. Norton can do that I think. You'd be surprised how much memory you can free up that way. (ps Just make sure you don't delete anything you need.)

Hmm... but would that even work? How can I possibly free up 100% of my RAM to install the disk? Isn't that impossible?
 

Ken

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... well it would be a start. If you could free up 200MB then you'd only need another 300. Another thing to consider is the HP program itself. Once you install it you can delete parts of the program. HP sticks a lot of unnecessary stuff in that you don't really need like the HP store, etc. Again, though, just be sure you don't delete something you need.
 

alleycat

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This is a way to tell an install program to use less RAM than it really wants, but it's something of a "tech guy" thing and I've forgotten how to do it offhand.

I will try to resist telling you to buy more RAM since you specifically said you don't want to do that . . . but it's hard not to.
 

alleycat

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Guardian

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... well it would be a start. If you could free up 200MB then you'd only need another 300. Another thing to consider is the HP program itself. Once you install it you can delete parts of the program. HP sticks a lot of unnecessary stuff in that you don't really need like the HP store, etc. Again, though, just be sure you don't delete something you need.

Ah, but I've got 510/511MB of RAM that are free. I'm not sure how I could max it out to all 512MB.
 

Guardian

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This is a way to tell an install program to use less RAM than it really wants, but it's something of a "tech guy" thing and I've forgotten how to do it offhand.

I will try to resist telling you to buy more RAM since you specifically said you don't want to do that . . . but it's hard not to.

It went through my head to tell the printer to use less RAM but since it didn't give me the option of what to install, I was rather at a loss.

And thanks for trying to hold back. ;) I WILL get some RAM, or a new tower altogether, but that's a later issue.

I did a quick Google search. This is kind of what I was talking about, a print driver editor:

http://support.ricoh.com/html_gen/util/PDE/PDE.html (I'm just posting this as an example; it's for a Ricoh printer).

Geez that looks tricky. I'll give it a shot, though.
 

alleycat

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I don't think I would start deleting any programs. I'm not sure, but I think the install program will hang no matter what when it reads that you have 511 mb available.

I could be wrong. I don't install printers often enough to be an expert. If you still have the problem Monday I'll talk to an IT friend of mine who has to constantly deal with this sort of thing.
 

alleycat

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Geez that looks tricky. I'll give it a shot, though.

You might want to spend a little time Googling for a possible solution to this problem.

Who knows, maybe there's a simple solution we just don't know about.
 

kuwisdelu

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Here's the situation.

1. My mom will go nuclear if we can't install the printer.

2. The printer demands 512 MB of RAM to install.

Is that a hardware requirement? Or is it asking for 512 free RAM to install?

3. 512MB is our MAX RAM, so obviously we've only got 98% of that available.

4. I'm trying to use a 4GB flash drive to increase the RAM, a la this ReadyBoost method, and it just refuses to work. :|

5. Please don't tell me to go buy actual RAM chips because I need that to be our last option for various reasons. :p Let's try to make the flash drive thing work instead? Or another method?


Additional info: My desktop is a 2005 Dell that came as windows XP and has been upgraded to Win7. The printer in question is an HP Photosmart. The flash drive shows that it's being used as RAM, but checking the system info and attempting to install the printer reveals that it is really not working.

Anyone got a clue how I can boost my dang RAM? :(

Sorry, but the best way is just buy more RAM. Memory is pretty these days, and 512 MB is... very 2005.

The other alternative is not install the printer software. You probably don't need to, especially if it's on Windows 7 now. I doubt the drivers need 512 MB to install, and the software that comes bundled with printers is mostly crapware that you don't actually need.

... one thing you might do for starts is to delete any program you don't need on your computer, e.g. windows media player. Another way to tackle that is to clean up your system by getting rid of folders you don't need. Norton can do that I think. You'd be surprised how much memory you can free up that way. (ps Just make sure you don't delete anything you need.)

That will do absolutely nothing to help. That's freeing up storage, not memory. An installed program isn't going to be using up any RAM if it's not running.
 

Guardian

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uh...Guardian...how much money is your time worth?

Are you propositioning me, sir???! :p

You might want to spend a little time Googling for a possible solution to this problem.

Who knows, maybe there's a simple solution we just don't know about.

I've been Googling... right now I'm giving up and sitting on the problem before I get too frustrated with it. I sure hope there is a simple answer. My brother has figured out this problem before but he doesn't remember what he did. He certainly didn't have to upgrade the RAM.
 

Guardian

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Is that a hardware requirement? Or is it asking for 512 free RAM to install?

Dude yeah, it's asking for 512 of free RAM to install. It refuses to install because only 511 MB is available. *facepalm*

Sorry, but the best way is just buy more RAM. Memory is pretty these days, and 512 MB is... very 2005.

alkfsdfldshgsdlkgsldgds;gsdjgds. :(

We managed to make this work somehow last time. *is stumped*
 

Deleted member 42

You might want to spend a little time Googling for a possible solution to this problem.

Who knows, maybe there's a simple solution we just don't know about.

RAM for a PC from 2005 is really really inexpensive. Less than a cartridge for the printer, possibly less than photo paper.

It's easy to install, as well.
 

alleycat

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RAM for a PC from 2005 is really really inexpensive. Less than a cartridge for the printer, possibly less than photo paper.

It's easy to install, as well.

I'm trying to resist . . .


;-")
 

kuwisdelu

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Dude yeah, it's asking for 512 of free RAM to install. It refuses to install because only 511 MB is available. *facepalm*

That wasn't as dumb of a question as you think.

Any modern, sanely-programmed software shouldn't care how much memory is free. The OS handles that, and pages to virtual memory when there isn't enough physical memory.

I would expect it to do a hardware check for whether 512 MB is installed or not. If it's actually checking for whether you have 512 MB free, that's some bizarre programming. It's not the 90s anymore. We have virtual memory now. A printer software installer shouldn't *need* 512 MB free memory.

(Sorry, I know this doesn't help you. Just sayin'.)
 

Guardian

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RAM for a PC from 2005 is really really inexpensive. Less than a cartridge for the printer, possibly less than photo paper.

It's easy to install, as well.

I'm trying to resist . . .


;-")


Yes yes yes yes yes I already KNOW that getting RAM is the best solution. :p I'm just trying to find a way to get the printer installed NOW before my mother has a shit fit. She wants to make wedding invitations for August right NOW and she... she's a very angry person... (and the printer has a scanner to scan the invitation design she wants so it's just a frigging mess. I wish she'd be more flexible, we could avoid this whole issue....)
 

Guardian

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Locally used RAM for a typical PC c. 2005 is 2 gig for 10.00.

alleycat, that's a nice avatar.

If you can find a GB or more of RAM for a Dell Dimension 4700 that's going for less than $17.99, link me up.

In the meantime, I'm going to try to keep my mom off the computer so she doesn't blow up at me for not being MacGyver. :|
 

alleycat

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Locally used RAM for a typical PC c. 2005 is 2 gig for 10.00.

alleycat, that's a nice avatar.

See my post (#5) above. I was trying to resist saying "get more RAM") . . . but, of course, I have twice now. :)
 

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If you can find a GB or more of RAM for a Dell Dimension 4700 that's going for less than $17.99, link me up.

In the meantime, I'm going to try to keep my mom off the computer so she doesn't blow up at me for not being MacGyver. :|

This is the best source for new RAM I know of:

http://www.crucial.com/upgrade/Dell...nsion+XPS/Dimension+4700+Series-upgrades.html

You can use the specs there to look for used RAM locally; I went straight to Craig's List, but you need to be careful there.
 

alleycat

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In the meantime, I'm going to try to keep my mom off the computer so she doesn't blow up at me for not being MacGyver. :|

Good luck with that.

My mother is not much in to computer, but I would hate to have her around whenever I was doing anything with one.

"Shouldn't you attach that wire to that other wire?"

"I would if I wanted to blow up the computer."

"What if you unhooked that thingy?"

"That's the power supply, mom."

"What if you . . . "