RAM issue on Windows7 Home Premium

It should be recognized right away. The first thing is the ram sticks. While it can be done, you'll have less potential for problems if both sticks are bought as a package or at least the same make and model number. But, that does not seem to be the problem. I would go back and re-seat both sticks of ram to make sure they are properly installed. Then go into bios and see how much ram it sees.

first of all, are you sure your laptop supports 8gb of ram? if you are follow these steps

click start orb and type "run". then type "msconfig" and hit enter. Click on the boot tab and then advance settings, and make sure the maximum memory box is unchecked.

Try putting the new stick in where the old one was and leaving the old one out. You may have a bad slot. If it works that way, try putting the old stick back in along with the new one, but leave the new one in the slot originally used by the old one.

I've also seen many cases where it magically seems to work after removing and reinstalling the stick a few times. All I can figure is that it never made good contact until it was reinserted enough times.

What does the BIOS say about memory with both sticks in?

I should have added that there might not be anything wrong with either the RAM or the slot. Some combinations just don't work well together.

Glad you got it going!