640 MB of ram available with only firefox and atmonitor open

I have a uni mbp with 2gb ram. Is it normal to have about 640 megabytes of ram available with only firefox and atmonitor open? seems like something is wasting my ram but I can't figure out what...

Have you selected "show all processes" in the "Activity Monitor"? You'll get a better idea of what's using the memory that way. Actually, there's a lot more going on than just the Activity Monitor and Firefox. The 640 MB left is probably normal.

Regards.

Yes, that can indeed be quite right. Compared to that other OS most of us use to use, OS X seems to handle RAM very nicely. It will put as much as it needs into RAM to prevent the need of using Virtul Memory. It could still have things in memory that you had opened and closed for quick access to them again.

I spent a lot of time with that windows attitude on my first Mac of monitoring everything all the time like I was making sure I kept my old Win machine purring along and probably 25% of my time tweaking it here and there. There really is no need with OS X to spend all that time worrying about how the machine does what it does (unless that happens to be your career path). Just let it do it's thing.

Unless there is some problem or issue that is raising it's head due to a lack of memory, there really is no point in troubleshooting a non-existent problem. A run-away app will gobble all your RAM and slow the machine down. Just use the thing and be happy. It takes awhile and can be a hard thing to let go of, but your Win days are behind you now. No point in looking for problems where none exist.

As for wasting RAM, the waste would be to have it sitting there unused and have an OS that still keeps stuff in virtual memory instead of using the much faster RAM. That is what it's there for.

I was just asking because it has seemed to slow down compared to when I first got it. I was also asking because to have 1.4 out of 2gb used up while the only program you open is firefox and stats is not something to look over! I could just as well not care about what it is doing but, I do because I did not spend 500 bucks on it...i spent more than 2 GRAND!!!!

Still, with that much RAM available, the machine has not slowed down due to not enough RAM.

It could be time to start doing some regular maintenance.

Every so often, if using Safari - hit the Reset Safari option in the menu and let it clear all that old junk out - I only do this about once a month. There will be similar options for FF and Opera.

Also, grab Onyx or Main Menu - both free - and put them through their paces. Have used and like both - currently using Onyx - try the automation tab and check off everything in the Maintenance and Cleaning sections every couple of weeks or so.

Don't know how full your drive is getting, but do keep in mind, you will notice some slow down as you start hitting the 50-60% full range. Shouldn't be much, but this is normal with any drive and any OS.

ok, I'll give Onyx a try