Anyone who has used a computer for more than a few weeks will be aware that the word ‘memory’ is bandied about a great deal.

From the amount of memory a computer has installed and the size of hard disks, to the amount required by a particular program to run, the world of kilobytes, megabytes and gigabytes can be a confusing one.

In this feature we cut through the jargon and uncover what you need to know about different types of memory.

We will also take a look at some of the memory tweaks that can be used to boost computer performance. While many adjustments can be made to increase performance, memory is at the centre of it all.

So join us, as we reveal everything you ever wanted to know about memory but were afraid to ask. Whether you’re using Windows XP or Vista, there is something for everyone.

What memory?
Inside every computer there are various different types of memory, each of which serves a specific purpose. Some types of memory are used to store files on a permanent or semi-permanent basis – such as hard disks, CDs, DVDs and memory sticks – while others are used as very temporary stores as data is moved from one place to another.

Ram, or Random Access Memory, is the fastest type of memory in a computer and is used to transfer data and instructions to and from the processor. The more memory that is installed, the more instructions can be stored at any one time, helping to improve a PC’s performance. Computeractive refers to Ram as memory, but for the purposesof this feature we will call it Ram to distinguish it more easily.

Ram is described as volatile memory, which means that it only stores information when it has a power supply – so when a computer is switched off, any information stored in Ram will be lost.

Every computer has a limited amount of Ram installed, and with Windows running along with other applications, it doesn’t take long to fill up. The Task Manager is a useful tool that can be used to monitor how much memory is being used by programs running.

Right-click on an empty section of the taskbar and select Task Manager before moving to the Performance tab. If the Available or Free figure displayed here (depending on the version of Windows) is a small number, it would mean that no additional programs could be launched.

Ordinarily, a computer would grind to a halt while each instruction was carried out and moved from the memory, but thankfully this is not the case due to virtual memory.