Need some help on my Pc

[G-Uni7]

Alright, this is like my 2nd post on these forums, cuz I mostly just enjoy reading everything people say cuz I don't exactly know alot about PCs, but anyways; I need help wit my system, and you all probably are sick of 'will my pc run hl2' threads, so this is it:

- AMD Athlon XP 2000+, MMX, 3DNow
- 1.7GHz
- 256Mb RAM (I'm sticking in another 256 stick, will this make much of a difference to fps etc. ?)
- Sapphire Radeon 9600 Atlantis (128Mb)

Alright, so sorry if these posts are common and hated, but I would really apprechiate the help guys. What settings would you recommend running Hl2 on, and around what fps would I tend to expect? (After the RAM upgrade to 512mb). On Cs:S, I get around 45-60fps mostly, and when no one's around, I get like 80 odd fps when I'm lucky. :naughty:

Cheers ~

 

[blahblahblah]

We don't have HL2, so anything we say will be purely guessing. However, I would bet that you will play HL2 with medium (possibly with a couple options set to high) graphical settings. It will have most of the fancy things like reflective water that make HL2 look graphically amazing.

The RAM will help you out big time. Be sure to get that upgrade before HL2.

 

[G-Uni7]

Alright, cheers for that man. I'm getting the 256Mb stick sometime this week I don't get it, though. DDR 256mb is only £35 in the Pc store I usually buy from.. and the other type is like twice as much. Any difference really in them?

Yea, I think you're right. I play Cs:S on medium and some high settings and it runs smooth as.. although it sucks when I come into a firefight with like 5-10 people, nades flying etc. and my fps jerks way down :angry: So that's my only worry.. that cuz of Hl2 being packed full of atmosphere, it will be practicly the same as a massive firefight on Cs:S.. so my fps will be crap. I really don't know.. guess I'll find out on 16th :smoking:

Ooh, and btw.. what difference will I notice doubling my Ram from 256-512?

 

[blahblahblah]

I can't tell you the differences between different types of RAM unless I have more information (like a link or something).

RAM will help you out in numerous things.
1) It will improve general Windows performance
2) Loading in to games will be quicker
3) Less frame rate stuttering when you first enter into a level
4) Less frame rate stuttering when you enter into new areas of a level
5) You may notice higher frame rates when a lot of action is happening on screen.
6) Games will exit quicker to the desktop

I think the RAM is well worth the cost in your case.

 

[G-Uni7]

Ahh, I see. Thanks a lot, that means alot, now I know exactly what I need :cheers:

That is my only problem wit my Pc.. Just the fact that it takes AGGGGES to load Cs:S, and when I exit to desktop, I gotta wait like (no joke) 5-10 mins for my Pc to go back to it's normal speed, or it takes like 1 minute to load Internet explorer :dozey:

Cheers :bounce:

 

[BIG]

I'm just guessing you're running Windows XP and not a lesser version - the minimum I'd ever run on an XP machine is 256 (128 if you're solely browsing the net). That extra 256 megs will help ALOT. If you really want to see what your machine is capable of plop down the money for two 512 sticks and turn off your page file

 

[G-Uni7]

Hmm, I could buy two 512 sticks, but it just wouldn't do my processor any justice lol I'm gonna get a full upgrade for Christmas to like:

2.5Ghz+, 1gb RAM, X800 Ati, etc.

Oo, and yea I'm runnin Xp. Will my pc run quicker if I use the classic theme or what?? :O

 

[Subatomic]

If I turn off my page file, and I run out of RAM, will the computer crash? Yes you can use more than 1GB of RAM.

 

[blahblahblah]

If you really want to see what your machine is capable of plop down the money for two 512 sticks and turn off your page file

Not a good idea. Right now, I have several instances of firefox open (each with several tabs), iTunes, Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Outlook and Microsoft Great Plains (business software) and that uses 470 MB of RAM alone. My page file is currently using 368 MB. I have 1 GB of RAM on my computer.

I wouldn't want to turn off my pagefile.

Will my pc run quicker if I use the classic theme or what??

No

 

[Johan_Tayn]

but it will run faster if you do the following:

Right-click on My Computer>Properties>Advanced>Click Settings on the Top one>Set to Best Performance.

I do that on all of my computers.

 

[G-Uni7]

Alright, I set it to best performance, and believe it or not I've seen practicly an instant change Runnin quite a few programs and it's runnin really quickly, which is cool. Thx for that!

Ooh, so I've decided I'm gonna get a 512mb stick DDR, which aparently will cost around 60quid