11-28-2007, 09:56 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by Oistrakh
^what "speeds up" your computer then, that you can easily upgrade?
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A computer's
actual speed is based mainly on the processor and the hard drive. If you have a system where these things are upgradeable, then you will notice an
actual increase. For most of your average tasks though, this increase would be almost unnoticeable with the exception that they would load up faster. You wouldn't really see the dramatic difference until you used applications that are processor intensive. Things like games, or other high data-crunching apps.
Otherwise, the 200Mhz to 400Mhz boost really isn't a huge deal.
A faster hard disk would speed up the VMM when using the swap file.
Those things add real speed, but for the average user, they are overkill.
Don't get me wrong with my last post, adding RAM isn't a bad thing. A computer that operates more efficiently (due to added RAM) is in many ways better than a true "speed demon". It all depends on what you plan on using the computer for.
Generally speaking, if your choice was between a 2.2 Ghz or a 2.6 Ghz processor, then go for the slower processor and boost your RAM.
@ Geeky:
Quote:
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Significant enough that I was considering selling or returning the machine when I bought it (with 2GB) because it was a slug compared to a fresh install of XPSP2 on my desktop (C2D E6600/2GB DDR400 on an i865/6800GT)
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You are comparing similar hardware setups, yet two very different operating systems. They each use the hardware in unique ways and how efficiently or fast they run on a certain set of hardware will vary greatly. You really cannot compare the "speed" of OS X to the "speed" of Windows when the hardware is similar. OS X is a bit more of a memory hog than Windows. Granted it handles the RAM more efficiently, it just tends to use a little more of it for some tasks. As you stated, it all depends on how the user utilizes his machine.