RAM is an acronym for Random Access Memory. RAM is an important part of any computer system. RAM is memory to hold frequently used bits of data for the computer to access in an efficient manner. Accessing RAM as opposed to the hard disk is a lot easier and quicker for a computer.

RAM is essential for several different applications, but more so for some than others. For example encoding video would take up a large amount of RAM as it is RAM intensive. Database applications also use up a lot of RAM due to the amount of data involved. Surfing the web and using word or powerpoint for example would not use much RAM at all. The question you need to ask is do you need the upgraded RAM. If you don’t then save your money. If you do please read on.

There are several options to choose from when upgrading RAM. The first is the size of RAM you want to purchase. They come in 256mb, 512mb, 1gig and 2gig varieties. Just as a quick reference 1gig of RAM will be enough for most things you want to do, 2gig might be overkill.

Once you pick the size of the RAM you want you have to choose the type of RAM. There are two main types of RAM. DDR and DDR2. What you have to take into account when buying the RAM is which type your motherboard will support. Most new Intel motherboards will take DDR2 as this is the latest technology. At present AMD boards are not compatible with DDR2 so if you have an AMD board then you will have to buy DDR RAM.

Once you buy the RAM then you have to install it. Installing RAM is really quite simple. Firstly you need to remove the case in order to be able to get to the motherboard. Once this is done you simple need to put the RAM into one of the free slots on your motherboard. Something to take note of would be the particular slot you put the RAM in. Some motherboards can be particularly fussy so read the user manual of your motherboard before upgrading the RAM.

There you have it, improving the speed of your computer by upgrading the RAM is very simple and can be very effective.