I recently put a stick of PC133 in a board that only supports PC100 and it worked fine...(or was it the other way around...)

It's not the ram that's the problem....it's the motherboard. I would update that (it's certainly cheaper) before I updated anything else...

I agree. That would make better sense. May I suggest a good AMD setup? I'm getting mine cheap.

It's not the ram that's the problem....it's the motherboard. I would update that (it's certainly cheaper) before I updated anything else...

Yep, I third the agreement. But, it will turn out to be a more expensive proposition too. I just did it myself. $380 for pentium 4 motherboard and 3 Ghtz processor. That was a good price. The problem was that my power supply,case and memory weren't compatible. Dumb Gateway led me to believe that they were compatible. Also, I just found out that Windows 98 won't run with 1GB memory, 512 MB is the maximum. So, until I figure out a way around that problem its bye-bye win98.

It really depends on what one is trying to do. More memory works for programs that use a lot of system resources. But, if you enjoy running the newest games, then a PIII is totally out of date now.

New motherboard`s definitely an option but that's a whole other can of worms. On that track, I would then think about new motherboard versus whole new machine. RAM sticks versus motherboard versus new machine really depends alot on TacoMan's comfort/knowledge level with each alternative.

Options and options !

My MB is 12/99, 100MHz frontside but I`ve milked it along and milked it along. I'm not a gamer, so I may milk it along another couple of years. With the RAM at 640 MB versus 768 max and the P3 CPU upgraded from 500 MHz to 1 GHz it does pretty decently on amateur photos and graphics which are the heaviest demands I put on it (while servering the other 2 machines on my home LAN).

Older ram types are at premium prices as production ends...a respectable sized stick of EDO will set you back more, than 5 times its size in DDR.

Chas...there are work-arounds for running 98 'efficiently' in 'too much' ram....

The motherboard!!! Isn't that all of my ports AND the CPU AND expensive???

ChasUGC - you should have went with what I am going with. AMD 2600+ (2 Ghz) CPU and a MSI mobo ran me less than $135 dollars.

The motherboard!!! Isn't that all of my ports AND the CPU AND expensive???

Not expensive if you know where to look.

... and what you're doing.

so true!!

#58 by Citizen TacoMan2004 - 6/7/2004 10:36:02 AM The motherboard!!! Isn't that all of my ports AND the CPU AND expensive???

Read #56...you need to get away from ECC-Registered ram. If you want you can get a board that will accommodate your present CPU (and everything else) without the ram restrictions or (and this is certainly what I would recommend) go for a board that will allow the majority of ram and a Celeron processor or a P4. The Celerons are the low end of P4's, but are cheap and fast.

I am running a Chaintech mobo that supports socket 370 CPUs all the way up to 1.4 ghz AND DDR RAM and the cool thing is it was cheap.

Dude, then I might as well get a new computer. Thanks for the help.

I don't have a clue who you're calling 'Dude', nor whether that response was in jest. I do, however, know that if you don't want to know the answer, don't ask the question.......