umm need a bit of help please

[auzzie72]

Hi everyone,
Okay firstly let me apologize for my computer knowledge hence the fact that I am here.
I have got a old computer that belongs to my girls and wanting to up grade the insides so that they can play sims 3 when it comes out. at the moment i have figured out that it has:
Intel(R) Celeron(R) CPU 2.80 GHZ adapter RAM 256MB
Nvidia GeForce 6600
512Mb of ram

Now my question is, how do I find out what sort of ram it is? I recall reading or getting told that there are different sorts. I dont want to sound like a dipsh*t when going into the pc shop so I thought I would come here and ask you guy first.

To play sims 3 it says that the system specs are:

The Sims 3 requires at least the following:

FOR WINDOWS XP
* 2.0 GHz P4 processor or equivalent
* 1 GB RAM
* A 128 MB Video Card with support for Pixel Shader 2.0
* The latest version of DirectX 9.0c
* Microsoft Windows XP Service Pack 2
* At least 6.1 GB of hard drive space with at least 1 GB of additional space for custom content and saved games

NVIDIA GeForce series
FX 5900, FX 5950
6200, 6500, 6600, 6800
7200, 7300, 7600, 7800, 7900, 7950
8400, 8500, 8600, 8800
9300, 9400, 9500, 9600, 9800
G100, GT 120, GT 130, GTS 150
GTS 250, GTX 260, GTX 280, GTX 285, GTX 295

So reading this I am figuring that the graphics card is okay, so is the processor. THe rest is boggling my mind. So if any one has any answers in plain english it would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks so much for reading this and thankyou in advance for the answers.

 

[C0RR0SIVE]

Download CPUz from cpuid.com and run that, go to the spd or memory tab and it should list the type of RAM...

 

[Trotter]

Is it a custom built PC, or a pre-built (Dell, HP, etc.)? If it is a pre-built, give the make and model and we will look it up.

 

[auzzie72]

Download CPUz from cpuid.com and run that, go to the spd or memory tab and it should list the type of RAM...

Okay thanks for that, this is what it tells me;


Processor Name; Intel celeron 336 2.80 GHZ
Ram;ddr 512 MBytes,channels # Duo,Apacer Tachnology
Motherboard; Gigayte Technology Co, 81915PL-G


All this means nothing to me???

 

[baron5]

Actually a 2.8ghz celeron is probably worse then a Pentium 4 2ghz, but besides the point, chances are you have ddr ram modules which are actually quite expensive since they don't manufacture them on a large scale anymore (old). But yeah, get cpu-z or complete specs from manufacturer so we can tell you what to upgrade.

EDIT: i see we posted at the same time. Well your motherboard here GIGABYTE - Product - Motherboard - Overview - GA-8I915PL-G (Rev 2.x) natively supports ddr400 but is max limit of 2gb. You could either get another 512mb stick to make 1gb dual channel or just but a set of 1gb sticks for 2gb. Your looking at spending about 120 for a set of 2gb from msy or anywhere from 40-70 for a 512mb stick. You could probably run the game with 1gb fine as long as the settings are low.

 

[auzzie72]

Thanks for the reply, if i was to buy 2 x 1 gig can i put them in myself? is it easy enough?
Have had a quick look on ebay but getting more confused as time goes by. Is there a special "brand" that I have to buy or can I just buy two the same make?

 

[baron5]

You current stick is made by apacer but i doubt you will find another stick by them without searching for ages, but since you want to get 2gb set anyway that's irrelevant. You don't need any specific brand however make sure it's ddr400, and not generic ram. Reason for this is because many generic sets won't wont in all motherboards, stick to brands like kingston, g.skill, geil, corsair to name a few who make ddr and are popular in Australia. And yes the ram is very easy ton install just follow this guide in the RAM section.

Build a PC - Introduction to Building your PC - PCitYourself.com

 

[auzzie72]

ok put in search for kingston ram on ebay and 82 came up. What is the diffence between ddr and ddr2 ram? maybe i might ring local pc shop and ask them how much to buy. Now I have to get two 1 gig ones and I cant just get a 2 gig one can I?

 

[baron5]

you can get 1 2gb module, but then that will leave one DIMM slot (ram slot) left unused because your max limit is 2gb, if you get 2x1gb modules you will run in dual channel which offers better performance.

 

[auzzie72]

thanks for that. so all I have to change is the RAM for it to run sims 3? Better clarify that before I go spending money.