Help understanding what usable means (3.50GB usable)

[Keiki646]

Hi everyone,

This is the first time this has happen to me and now my system tells me that the memory that I have install is
saying 4.00GB(3.50GB usable).

What does that really mean

Now my system is running

Dual core 2.4ghz over to 2.89Ghz
ASUS P5KPL-CM LGA 775
A-Data High Performance and Gaming Memory 2x2GB
HIS HD 3850 512 GDDR3 256Bit PCI Express 16 2.0
250GB HD

 

[jsc]

You have a 32 bit OS. A 32 bit OS puts your 64 bit processor into 32 bit mode. In 32 bit mode, you can address "only" 4 GB. The CPU's depend on memory mapped i/o and therefore need some of that address space.

So, typically, a 32 bit Windows system will have between 3.25 GB to 3.5 GB available for use.

 

[Keiki646]

You have a 32 bit OS. A 32 bit OS puts your 64 bit processor into 32 bit mode. In 32 bit mode, you can address "only" 4 GB. The CPU's depend on memory mapped i/o and therefore need some of that address space.

So, typically, a 32 bit Windows system will have between 3.25 GB to 3.5 GB available for use.

So let me understand this better ok,
This means that nothing is wrong with the system since I am using 32bit OS

Note that I am running Intel dual core

 

[deadlockedworld]

So let me understand this better ok,
This means that nothing is wrong with the system since I am using 32bit OS

Note that I am running Intel dual core

Nope--nothing is wrong with your setup. The install you made was still a good choice--the 1.5 gb of ram you get out of the second card is worth it because 2 gb wasn't really enough--3.5 is though.

The only way to use more than 3.5 gb is with a 64 bit OS-- which you really don't need for a medium-powered system like yours.