SD Ram Memory maximisation

Hi all,

After a good hard look at the ageing PC, I've managed to squeeze more RAM out of it (buying and filling out all its SDRAM ports/regular maintenance and clearing of the hard drive/looking for memory-hogging programs like Itunes which I couldn't have done without the people here) but recently it just seems like it's slowed down significantly.

While it just might be the fact that I upgrade to Firefox 3 and Itunes 8 and it is simply superceded by the programs that come out these days, I just want to be sure.

What I am really wondering is a) is my memory being drained some way I haven't figured out, b) have I used the best system tools/downloadable programs correctly to clear the crap out and c) how long I can continue to get away with the current rig before I absolutely must retire it.

Many thanks, I understand I will have to give some specs/run some basic scans first but I am unsure whether I should go the whole malware removal process yet.

 

A little info on system setup wouldn't hurt. You can check with Task Manager(processes) to see what is using RAM.Might also want to check on startup and running processes. Some unneeded programs start at startup and can be a huge drain,especially if you have very limited resources to work with.