Most Windows 7 PCs max out memory.

[pillainp]

The word would be "dissemination".

And I have never ever seen my system go above 2.5GB, no matter what is running.

 

[seekermeister]

In this usage, propagation and dissemination are synonyms.

 

[whs]

The word would be "dissemination".

And I have never ever seen my system go above 2.5GB, no matter what is running.

Right, that's the word I had in mind, but somehow it came out wrong - LOL.

 

[Barman58]

I suppose that Microsoft could always put a little mod into the next update to Internet explorer - blacklisting their site :devil:

Even though IE doesn't have the monopoly it once had - any site would suffer through that sort of power

 

[Win7User512]

About a dozen programs open one being VirtualBox with 3 VMs running (1000MB, 1500MB, and 1000MB RAM allocated).

 

[Buttoni]

Unused RAM is wasted RAM.

And that is exactly the point that many people do not seem to understand. They always want to "save" RAM for a rainy day.

Dang, ya beat me to it. I was reading down the thread and was about to post just what you said! Why have it if you're not gonna let Windows use it? Who you gonna save it for? But at 61, may be I'd better save some of it for MYSELF!

I have 8GB and presently 6GB free. Only Avast5 AV and CIS FW with D+ enabled, only 0-2% CPU usage. My system never slows down, not even during my AV scan while also surfing the net!

 

[whs]

My system never slows down, not even during my AV scan while also surfing the net!

This is normal. A CPU intensive application (scanning, video conversion, etc.) and browsing the web mix very well because you need very little CPU power for browsing the web.

 

[Night Hawk]

Free Memory is wasted memory.

Yup. I'm surprised how many people still believe that free memory is a good thing, like it makes your machine magically faster to have a lot of free memory.

I've heard that one all too often where you need 4gb+ for gaming and in fact a faster cpu and better graphics card do a much better job. For most desktops in use a good 4gb even with the 64bit Windows is quite adequate there alone. A little over the actual need at times can help Windows run a bit smoother while too much is best put as overkill and goes to waste.

For the next build 8gb was in consideration for running multiple VMs as well as some Cad programming where the need for 6gb would then have a place. The expense of DDR3 1600 memory however may see a wait on that sufficing for another 4gb added to initial setup. Running 4 VMs with two at 2gb plus another 1gb between two others rather pushes the need for 6gb. 8gb matched however.

The article note on XPnet's supposed find suggests the writer was simply reflecting their attempts to hold onto XP as the name of the site implies. When considering Vista and 7 use more system memory then XP you also have to account for XP using more memory then previous versions there.

----------------------------

Here's an update on the original article by the OP since found at COMPUTERWORLD.

Metrics vendor defends Windows 7 memory claims

'Everyone thinks they're a performance expert,' rebuts Devil Mountain CTO

By Gregg Keizer
February 19, 2010 06:01 AM ET

Computerworld - Editor's note: The person quoted in this story as "Craig Barth" is actually Randall C. Kennedy, an InfoWorld contributor. Kennedy, who presented himself as the CTO of Devil Mountain Software, no longer works at InfoWorld. Given that he disguised his identity to Computerworld and a number of other publications, the credibility of Kennedy's statements is called into question. Rather than simply remove stories in which he is quoted, we have left them online so readers can weigh his data and conclusions for themselves.

The Florida firm that on Wednesday said most Windows 7 machines exhaust their physical memory, and as a result take a performance hit, defended its data and conclusions after naysayers dismissed its findings.

"Everyone thinks that they're a [Windows] performance expert," said Craig Barth, the chief technology officer of Devil Mountain Software, a performance metrics software maker. "They look at their PC and say, 'My PC doesn't do that.'"

Barth was reacting to the firestorm of criticism over his claim that 86% of the Windows 7 PCs among the 23,000 tracked by Blue Mountain's community-based Exo.performance.network (XPnet) exhibit signs of severe and sustained memory exhaustion.

The rest is seen at: http://www.computerworld.com/s/arti...efends_Windows_7_memory_claims?taxonomyId=125

Note the next part of that where they are attempting to defend XPnet's conclusions.

Readers of Computerworld's story of Wednesday repeatedly said, sometimes stridently, that they thought XPnet's data was bunk. "Vague reports that a little-known outfit somehow has managed to get metrics on 23K machines, and has found their memory utilization to be abnormally high without explanation as to how, is not a reliable source," charged Micah Haber in an e-mail to Computerworld.

 

[dmex]

FAKE, I guarantee this whole story was faked and by none other than Randall C. Kennedy!

http://www.sevenforums.com/news/65518-windows-metrics-source-lies-about-identity.html

Edit: He's been fired from Infoworld for this; http://infoworld.com/d/adventures-in-it/unfortunate-ending-357

 

[arkhi]

Hey, I just maxed out my memory to 40%!!

 

[z3r010]

Edit: He's been fired from Infoworld for this; An unfortunate ending | Adventures in IT - InfoWorld

I read this over an hour ago and I'm still laughing, it's about time RCK was found out for the slime ball he is.

 

[Scotteq]

FAKE, I guarantee this whole story was faked and by none other than Randall C. Kennedy!

http://www.sevenforums.com/news/65518-windows-metrics-source-lies-about-identity.html

Edit: He's been fired from Infoworld for this; An unfortunate ending | Adventures in IT - InfoWorld

Oh.... It gets better: *MUCH* Better:

Source: Why we don't trust Devil Mountain Software (and neither should you) | Between the Lines | ZDNet.com

Who the hell is Devil Mountain Software? And can you trust them?
A small software company based in Florida, Devil Mountain Software regularly releases studies filled with detailed performance and market data about operating systems and browsers, with a special emphasis on Windows. When DMS publishes a report, it invariably makes headlines in some of the leading tech publications on the web. The company isn’t modest about its work, either: ComputerWorld reporter Gregg Keizer last week quoted a company source as boasting, “Outside of Microsoft, I don’t think anyone knows more about Windows performance than us.”

Devil Mountain Software was in the news again last week, with a report claiming that 86% of Windows 7 PCs in the network of 20,000+ machines it monitors worldwide are regularly reaching the breaking point in terms of memory usage. Our in-house Windows experts are skeptical about this data and the company in general.

We asked a team of researchers to look more carefully at Devil Mountain Software and its Exo Performance Network (XPNet) to find out more about the company and its data. What we found is alarming: Dubious claims about the company’s products and its customers; violations of privacy involving the company’s data collection software; and Web posts and interviews with a source who appears to be certainly fictitious.

..and it gets better and better from there.

 

[patio]

FAKE, I guarantee this whole story was faked and by none other than Randall C. Kennedy!

http://www.sevenforums.com/news/65518-windows-metrics-source-lies-about-identity.html

Edit: He's been fired from Infoworld for this; An unfortunate ending | Adventures in IT - InfoWorld

Just recieved that Story in my Inbox via TechSpot newsletter so you beat me to it DMex....
Utter rubbish.

 

[Wordsworth]

A screen shot of Task Manager from a moment ago.

Besides many services running in the background, I have two windows of IE running, MS Word, Excel, Powerpoint, One Note, Nero, and a movie running in TotalMedia Theatre, and Task Manager and the Snipping Tool.

I was originally going to put 12GB of memory in this machine when I built it in November, but I haven't had a project yet that made me think the 6GB installed is insufficient.

I think Win 7's memory management works just fine, thank you.

 

[Win7User512]

A screen shot of Task Manager from a moment ago.

Besides many services running in the background, I have two windows of IE running, MS Word, Excel, Powerpoint, One Note, Nero, and a movie running in TotalMedia Theatre, and Task Manager and the Snipping Tool.

I was originally going to put 12GB of memory in this machine when I built it in November, but I haven't had a project yet that made me think the 6GB installed is insufficient.

I think Win 7's memory management works just fine, thank you.

Yes, but now Taskmanager is running out of space to show your CPUs!

 

[Wordsworth]

Yes, but now Taskmanager is running out of space to show your CPUs!

LOL. Where will Task Manager put Gulftown?

 

[CarlTR6]

Edit: He's been fired from Infoworld for this; An unfortunate ending | Adventures in IT - InfoWorld

I read this over an hour ago and I'm still laughing, it's about time RCK was found out for the slime ball he is.

He is a disgusting slime ball with a total lack of integrity. Hopefully, this will finish him.

 

[dmex]

Yes, but now Taskmanager is running out of space to show your CPUs!

LOL. Where will Task Manager put Gulftown?

It'll never run out of space

 

[Win7User512]

Yes, but now Taskmanager is running out of space to show your CPUs!

LOL. Where will Task Manager put Gulftown?

It'll never run out of space

HAHA. Where did you find that?

 

[Thorsen]

yes, but now taskmanager is running out of space to show your cpus!

lol. Where will task manager put gulftown?:d

it'll never run out of space

i want!!!!!11!