[Mousey]

Originally Posted by kris23

are you talking about RAM? even if its only a 32 bit OS, 4GB of RAM is still better than 2GB

32 Bit editions of Vista can only identify a maximum of roughly 3.5/3.6GB of the 4 installed, where people got the idea it'll slow your system down i'll never know I'm not entirely sure but i think XP Can only identify 3GB. Spose it still beats 2 though.
I'm a photoshop user myself and i can sympathise with your need for space, when i'm saving PSDs of my work (I make things from scratch usually, i'm not a photographer) they sometimes total 100mb+ and my HDD Space quickly disappears. Have you considered buying an external HDD to store the raw photos on then save the edited ones on the internal HDD?

[Jeimygirl]

Originally Posted by Mousey

32 Bit editions of Vista can only identify a maximum of roughly 3.5/3.6GB of the 4 installed, where people got the idea it'll slow your system down i'll never know I'm not entirely sure but i think XP Can only identify 3GB. Spose it still beats 2 though.
I'm a photoshop user myself and i can sympathise with your need for space, when i'm saving PSDs of my work (I make things from scratch usually, i'm not a photographer) they sometimes total 100mb+ and my HDD Space quickly disappears. Have you considered buying an external HDD to store the raw photos on then save the edited ones on the internal HDD?

Well before my laptop crashed I was getting ready to buy an external one since my computer was running slow. I'll probably buy one in the future, just for my pictures and photoshop items.

[Jeimygirl]

Question, since I was able to raise my budget a bit should I...

get a better RAM, HHD or Processor or other? I was thinking about getting a quad processor instead, but you all know way more than me, so let me hear the opinions!

[Judas]

Ram will always be your biggest assets... you simply can never have enough if your dealing with photoshop and images...

[Jeimygirl]

Which is better?

Newegg.com - AMD Athlon 64 X2 5400+ Brisbane 2.8GHz 2 x 512KB L2 Cache Socket AM2 65W Dual-Core black edition Processor - Processors - Desktops

or

Newegg.com - AMD Athlon X2 4450B 2.3GHz 1MB L2 Cache Socket AM2 45W Dual-Core Processor - Processors - Desktops

[Jeimygirl]

Oh and I already have the 4GB RAM btw... (well not have it but it's in my list)

Kingston 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model KVR800D2K2/4GR - Retail

[kris23]

the brisbane Black Edition Athlon X2 is better but consumes a bit more power not that much though so it is good if you can get it

and the RAM, while i dont exactly recommend it over anything, it was the only thing that fit into your budget, it still is better to get lower latency sticks if possible

my recommendation would be to get the $750 model i listed in my new thread:

Building a new system and not sure where to start? Click Here!

its a real nice system, very well suited to you, has all the features you want and then some

you can always modify it if you want, like remove the OS, or swap out the RAM or remove the 3470 and all that good stuff.

[Judas]

imo.... quantity over speed of the ram is always better... as if the fast ram is consumed before everything has a chance a load.. the result is slower performance due to hd thrashing..

4gb is an excellent start... only way to go is 8 gb if it was realy nessary... i'd stick with 4gb atm... that's fine

btw

while i would technically lean towards the 5400+...... it's a hard considering the nice low power usage and extra cache the 4450 has.

[Jeimygirl]

how about the internet? I got DSL with a wireless router.

[temeteus82]

Originally Posted by Jeimygirl

how about the internet? I got DSL with a wireless router.

Usually motherboards has built in LAN controller so can connect your PC to the net. All you need is Ethernet cable

[shaman9876]

I was reading this thread and realized that you could use the OS that was installed on the laptop. All you would have to do is call Microsoft when it comes time for activating and tell them the motherboard of your laptop died and they will allow you to activate it. If you do not have an original CD for the OS of the laptop you can barrow from somebody that has a HP install cd and use your key that is on the sticker on the laptop. Or get a hold of a OEM install cd for the version of windows you had on the laptop. I have done this many times for friends of mine that had there pc's die.

Also don't forget that there is nothing wrong with the laptop drive and can also be used as external storage for the pc using the hard drive case that was linked above.

Hope this helps

[Jeimygirl]

Originally Posted by temeteus82

Usually motherboards has built in LAN controller so can connect your PC to the net. All you need is Ethernet cable

This I did not know. And yes I have a cable. Thanks!

I was reading this thread and realized that you could use the OS that was installed on the laptop. All you would have to do is call Microsoft when it comes time for activating and tell them the motherboard of your laptop died and they will allow you to activate it. If you do not have an original CD for the OS of the laptop you can barrow from somebody that has a HP install cd and use your key that is on the sticker on the laptop. Or get a hold of a OEM install cd for the version of windows you had on the laptop. I have done this many times for friends of mine that had there pc's die.

Also don't forget that there is nothing wrong with the laptop drive and can also be used as external storage for the pc using the hard drive case that was linked above.

Hope this helps

I appreciate your advice. My friend has a copy I can use because my laptop actually didn't come with one. Thanks for letting me know!