Suggestions on improving my comp?

for all i know, its a miracle my computer is even running. i'll just cut to the chase and show u my specs. Maybe it will be of some help for sum1 to suggest wut i should do to improve performance cause its choppy on the world map, and lagmillion in town(btw, im running on 56k ATM, but im planning on getting my DSL in a few). permission is granted to laugh ur azzes off...

AMD Athlon(tm) Processor, MMX, 3D Now 1.4GHZ
Microsoft Windows ME
128MB RAM
40GB Memory
Sony 19" SDM-HS73
Radeon 9200
Creative Sound Blaster PCI

I think thats it.

RAM. RAM, RAM, and more RAM! Everything else is pretty reasonably low-mid end, but more than capable of running the game. You RAM on the other hand is, well, pitiful. I'd upgrade to at least 512MB, which will probably cost less than $100. Also, you are going to lag pretty hard on 56k no matter what, but your loading times, game pauses, etc. will be noticably less. Other than that, I'd just suggest building a new computer with Windows XP and all, something more up to date. I have a P4 2.8 system, 1GB DDR400, GeForce 6600GT, 120GB HDD, built it from scratch for about $1000. I keep it maintained well, and I can run GW at max settings, 1024x768, 2xAA/8xAF pretty smoothly (haven't tried any higher than that, because it suits me just fine at these settings.)

do u think i should just go buy microsoft XP and more ram rather than get a new computer all together?

I would build a new system altogether...but maybe keeping the graphics card for a little while longer until you can get the money for a new one, say a Radeon 9800/Geforce 6600GT at the bare minimum now really, my system runs Guild Wars fine:

Athlon 2500+ Overclocked to 3200+
1GB PC3200 DDR RAM (Another 512MB stick is coming in a few days, I have 512MB at the mo though and it runs fine)
120GB SATA Maxtor HDD
Radeon 9600 Pro 128MB

I can run it at 4X AA at 1152X864 from the ingame options. Never tried AF with this.

But IF you really wish to play GW on that system, then get more RAM. As recommended above.

If you do decide to buy a new computer, try to buy one that doesn't come with an Operating System. It's a lot cheaper if you find a cheap copy yourself or better if you get the CD/software for free ;D.

NO

any *cheap*os is most likely pirated with who knows what extra nasties you dont know about and dont want.

if a new pc price is out for now get more ram.

it you get win xp get twice as much ram.

the recommended minimum ram to use with win xp for the game is 512

recommended for good game performance with win xp is 1 gig memory

both the game and win xp are ram hogs

Not entirely true. OEM copies aren't usually pirated, it is just when the company which is selling them bought the copies in bulk, for computer manufacturers to customize. They're sold cheap because they don't come with packaging, and usually just a manual.

When I bought a copy of Windows XP Home from htp://www.overclockers.co.uk it was OEM, and it was cheap, and didn't come with any nasties, it came with Service Pack 2 installed on it, and nothing bad. It was a totally genuine copy.

Well I guess I didn't really elaborate on what I said. But since I'm doing an internship at a government agency right now, I can get all the Windows XP CD keys that I want. All the computers still use Windows 2000 but they came with XP codes. All I needed was a Windows XP Professional CD and there was my free OS. So if you have a friend or family friend who works with the government, you can just get a copy for free =). I wasn't talking about pirated ones (sorry about that).

Wow, this information is great! thanks a lot everyone!! Just wondering, what would be the estimate cost of windows XP and 1gig of ram? (and possibly a nice video card). I have 300+ dollars to spend ATM, probably going to Fry's or Best Buy to look for some reasonable prices in a few minutes.

Well, WinXP Pro cost me $200, but I doubt a new OS will really increase your performance. For your RAM, it depends on the speed. Older stuff like SDRAM I've seen go for up to twice as much as newer DDR stuff. My 2 sticks of 512MB DDR400 cost $160, so if your computer isn't too terribly old, you should be fine.

I heard Windows ME was the "failure" OS of Microsoft. Anyone know why people are saying that? (if it is true)

You don't really need a new OS. WinXP won't improve your preformance, it will just drastically reduce the frequency that you crash. If you still want to upgrade, Windows 2000 Professional offers almost everything that Windows XP does at a lower price (and depending on how many of WinXP's features you use, Win2K might be faster).

Here's what you need, starting with the most important:
1. RAM!!! Go for at least 512 MB, preferably 1GB. You should be able to get a gig of decent RAM for under $100.
2. Video Card. If you've only got a PCI slot, then you can't really upgrade to anything worthwhile. If you've got AGP, then a Geforce 6600GT has the best bang for your buck at under $200.
3. CPU. You'd probably have to buy a whole new motherboard to support a new CPU. If you eventually decide to do this, get an Athlon64. They are cheaper and faster than Pentiums.

I always shop at www.newegg.com. They've got great prices, fast shipping, and great reliability.

yeah ive heard athlon 64 is real nice. Yeah, im looking in my comp manual to see wut kind of ram i have so i can get sum more. BTW, does upgrading the OS remove all the progs. or sumthing like that? I have windows2k, but im aprehensive to upgrade because i still have a lot of files that im working with.

If you upgrade your OS, it will likely require a reformat, in which case you will lose all your data (so backing it up to a CD/DVD would be best, if possible.) You probably don't need to upgrade your OS that badly though, and if it's a pre-built PC, then I would be hesitant to do that since most of the drivers and such are likely on the CD that was included, and might be difficult to install if you get a different OS.

On a non-ram related question, does ne1 have SBC Yahoo DSL and paying for the $20ish per month plan? If so, do the monthly fees change after the 1-year-plan expires? (ie. u pay for a $24.95 1-year-promotional-plan until it finally expires, after ur forced to pay for the rediculously expensive plan?) Iono, im getting cofused with these promotionals and prices. When i see promotional, i see meat hook.

i would say, if you are used to ME, then stick with ME...then again, i have Win98 Se, lol, and i will not update unless i *have to*
(like their poking me with sharp pointy objects and telling me my games are all now totally unsuported and i must, on pain of never being able to play anything again, upgrade to Xp lol)

definately RAM....no matter what OS u get or keep, ram makes the difference to speed of PC being able to do stuff.

not sure how it works in the uSA, but our boradband companies, (along with our phone companies ^^) are slicing each other up to try to offer the cheapest BB they can...^^
where i am, i can get cable telephone, with standrard package satelite tv (cabled version) AND 512 bb for about 17.99 (brit pounds) per month 0.0 if i didnt have their service from 4 years ago ^^ i would be on that now hehe (dont want the fart about of unsubscribing then re-subscribing)
so....sometimes it does mean meathook, and sometimes it means despirate for your cash

a lot of folks call ME the failure cause they thought it crashed more than 98, and for the fact that they took out the DOS part that let you play older DOS based games.
but those same peeps are usually the first ones to upgrade to the latest OS, and are all now saying that anything but winXP or XP64 is <expletive deleated> lol.

you dont *have* to get a 6600, but it is a great card *grins*
however, i have a GeForce4 Ti 4800 se and its running the game fine.
my friend has the FX 5200, and yeah, he has to keep it turned to min graphics, cause all the grass in Pre Searing turned to sand^^ but that still looks great

just budget for the best BB you can afford to pay per month, then get some more ram and maybe a bit better card. all the ram and spany new cards in the world wont help you if your connections going down ect all the time...

Windows ME was an attempt by Microsoft to use a new memory allocation engine....however the method was flawed and the programmers that coded it were high school drop outs....because it never even came close to working. There were serious(and I say serious because ALL windows versions have this problem) problems with memory handling and allocation tables. To the point where the majority of your RAM would be lost in memory data allocations that according to Windows no longer existed....

basically memory handling of ME was awful.


I should also mention that a number of the computers that were bundled with Windows ME use Windows ME reliant hardware. Which means the hardware is specific to Windows ME and would not integrate with another operating system. So you might find yourself attempting to install Windows XP on a system that can't even run it. I would suggest getting a copy from a friend/internet and installing it to see if it's going to work. After that you SHOULD go out and buy the OS....but what you do after you install the pirated Windows XP is your business, not mine

If he's got Win2K, he might as well upgrade. XP/2K are much, much better than 95/98/ME. They are more stable by an order of magnitude.

yeah, but how much mem does 2k actually *NEED* compared to the 128 meg that XP sucks up ^^

thats what i was meaning....since GW and XP BOTH are RAM hogs, makes sence to me to stick to something that uses less mem if i was short on reddies to buy RAM.

and, i spend all day re-installing windows on 2k and xp machines, for people that dont bother with antivirus or firewalls....where as i barely get one a month that needs to be wiped now for 98.
98 may be old, but at least most of the stuff they make virus for are now xp only, or at least, NTFS only..like sasa was...

the reason you only get one 98 system a month is because nobody is still using 98...it makes sense that you'd only get one system a month when only 1% of the population is using that OS. I get 0 linux systems a month that need a reinstall...because .001% of the world uses linux...not because it's a superior OS(it is...but for other reasons)

Windows ME...is NOT the OS for people trying to save Memory....Windows ME memory management is AWFUL...to be nice.

Win2k only needs 64 megs. It's runs very well on crappy systems.

The reason you see so many 2K/XP systems is that the install base is much larger, like Algren said. 2K + XP make up 82.6% of the market (http://www.w3schools.com/browsers/browsers_stats.asp). I've used 95, 98, ME, 2K, and XP, and I say that 2K is the best (XP is second, because it uses more resources without having better features; 95/98/ME are way behind).

I wouldn't touch Windows ME with a Barge Poll. After I tried it, I went back to Windows 98se because it was such a better OS and didn't crash anywhere near the amount of times the ME did.

ME would crash and need a rebuild almost every month due to bad corruption, where as 98se would need a rebuild less often, it crashed a lot less.

Personally, I would go with XP or 2k because they are so much better and the stability far out ways the cost. If you get the upgrade version, you don't need to buy the full version if you keep you old 98 or ME install disks, so that is a saving there.

XP and 2k take a lot less time to install and don't need so much nanny sitting while it installs. ALso, you only have to reinstall them maybe once every 6 months or even once a year. This is mainly to give you back the performance increases that a reinstall gives.

I would highly recommend a clean reinstall of any OS and not just installed over your exisiting OS, and don't choose the upgrade option. That will totally knacker your PC after several months of use, due toall the conflicts that occur.

i aint readin all those posts

RAM like everyone else said, XP needs 128mb to run the OS at its best. so there you are out of RAM. 512 min. these days is needed.

I would keep the video card and just get a new system, maybe a cheap dell and I assume you ATI is standard PCI so you can shove that in the new dell which will come with XP and will be worlds faster. catch the deals as you may get free memory upgrades or other crap.

The 1.4ghz. is getting old, Strive for the 2ghz range, like at least a 2.4ghz.

memoy is cheap so if anything work on that.

Also, the broadband will help TONS as you will get data transfer that much faster.

If you want to get a new OS get Win2K as it is a non-pretty version of XP

scan for spyware and viruses as well, mybe you lossing speed there too, Defrag you Hdd.

The 2.4 ghz processor is already going to be around the 150-180 dollar range and if you only have 300 dollars to spend, I would focus more on the RAM.

Even though Windows 2000 is quite similar to XP since they are basically the same operating system, Windows XP DOES have better performance. With your computer, as long as you upgrade your RAM, Windows XP will work better. It is true that Windows XP is not required as Windows 2000 works perfectly fine, it might be something for you to think about if you can find a CHEAPER [REAL] CD. Also since XP is the current OS, most manufacturers will develop software for XP than 2000.

Summary:
RAM>>OS

don't waste money on a processor...processor are over rated. you need more RAM

The ram suggestions are great! thx again. i am currently looking for ram to buy now.

http://www.crucial.com/store/listparts.asp?Mfr%2BProductline=Compaq%2BPresario& mfr=Compaq&cat=&model=Presario+7000Z+Series+Model+ 7QSME2&submit=Go

Im thinking about getting the suggested 256mb upgrade but im not sure if i can get another 256mb for the other slot to make 256? does it work like that? Im looking to get the max ram my comp can handle (512). ne suggestions would be great.

are you sure your motherboard only supports 512MB RAM? Even my MSI KT3-UTLRA Aru(almost 4 years old now) supports 1 gig.

That's an awful price. You can get 256MB RAM for less than $20. One of these would probably work perfectly, bringing you up to 640MB:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...mit=Propert y

how can i tell if the ram is 2 seperate cards? im thinking about getting 256mb x2. iono, maybe ill get the 512 cause i heard that having 2 cards is better than just having 1. (ie. 256mb x2 > 512 x1) is that right?

btw, can ne1 clarify how to figure out which ram works for me? is it based on the 184-pin dimm ddr sdram? or wut? im friggin confused >_>

single sticks of higher ram work better than double sticks of smaller ram. The latency is going to be lower if the memory handling is done by one interface.

also need to know what motherboard you are runnign to figure out what RAM you need....but if your motherboard supports DDR RAM...it's most likely 184-pin

Well, newer motherboards support Dual Channel RAM, so two sticks can be faster than one. His computer is probably too old to support that, so it's a moot issue.

If you do have the Presario 7000Z, like it indicates on the page, then any of the RAM that I linked to should work fine. I'd get 1x512MB rather than 2x256MB, since you would be able to use your current RAM, which would give you 640MB, instead of 512MB (although if your current RAM is really slow, then any new RAM that you get would be slowed down to your old RAM's speed, so it may be smart to take your old RAM out). Plus, if you get 1x512MB that leaves you room to upgrade to 1GB in the future, whereas with 2x256MB, you probably won't have any more free slots, meaning you'd have to ditch one piece in order to upgrade.

well actually, guys, we have a 40% win 98, 40% winXP pro and 15% 2K 5% ME ratio round where i am....

guess its cause most people round here are skinflints that borrow their OS from friends or download them...*sighs*

so its not the fact that there is less 98 systems, its that they dont contract the NTFS based virus as much and most of them use free anti-virus that catches the older FAT32 type ones....

(guess if more peeps spent cash on a proper copy of XP, enough RAM to run it and a good anti-virus program, we could spen our time building rater than wipe/re-install lol)

supposedly, my comps max is 512 ram, so would that mean i would have to take out my 128mb or should i still try to run it when both are in? (both being the 512 and the 128)

opps didnt read your post thuroughly :P my mistake. so i guess i should take the 128 out

aye, then flog it on ebay

no seriously, people that have ancient PCs tend to buy stuff off that type of place and you could make a few coppers to put towards your next RAM stick

i recently made £25 for a stick of 512 from a regualr instore that had tried new PC133 and his machine rejected it so i sugested my stick, which i wasnt sure worked, and it worked fine for him and he returned the favour with 25 smackers