Good morning, lovely people !

  • 5 November 2015
  • 9 replies
  • 27 views

Userlevel 5
I had come here yesterday to ask a question about my subscription renewal. I was concerned that the renewal had not processed properly. As advised, I waited patiently, and today payment was processed, and my Webroot is green once again (HOORAY) !!!
I wanted to take a moment to briefly introduce myself as a new and grateful community member. I am not technologically apt, and this is the first time I have joined such a community. I will be coming by A LOT, as yesterday was such a wonderful experience here! Today I ran my Webroot optimizer, and it told me my graphics RAM is low. From searching this question within a like forum, I see that there is not much to worry about, as long as my system seems to run fine. In fact, it does run fine, though I have noticed that for periods of time during the night time hours, the internet runs much more slowly. It makes me wonder if there is not internet issues outside of my own personal system. Has anyone else experienced this? Would anyone have any additional advice for improving RAM performance?
 
Thank you so much, and have a wonderful day!!

9 replies

Userlevel 7
Hello there ?, a good morning to you as well!
 
I hope you do not mind, but it's me again LOL!
 
In regards to Webroot being green again: Excellent!  Thank you for letting me know.  If you have gone over a lot of threads you may have noticed that SOMETIMES that does not happen even after the renewal has gone through, even though overall pretty rare.  I am glad that did NOT happen in this case!
 
About that RAM: you are right, it is not a major concern especially as it is in the video RAM.  That would affect you mainly if you were doing video editing, major photo editing, or playing really high end video games.  Most people do not fall into those categories, myself included!
 
There is a difference, by the way, between RAM and Video RAM.  While both are memory, the Video RAM is dedicated for the graphics ONLY.  The other RAM is the 'system RAM', and is the memory used by pretty much everything else.
 
Since your issue was with the Video RAM, there probably is not much you can do about it.  You might be able to replace the video card, but that is likely more expense than it is worth for you.
 
NOTE: I tend to use the term Video RAM, WSA uses Graphics RAM: they are the same thing :)
 
OK, onto the slow internet at night.  That could be a few things.  Your ISP could be a lot busier at night during the day, though that would be rather unusual.  Normally there is a lot more internet traffic during the day and evening hours.
 
How long do those period of slow internet at night run?  What time of night is it?  Peak internet hours would, I think, be in the 6 PM to 10 or 11 PM time, when everyone is home, watching Netflix, playing games, etc.  If your slowness is during that time frame, you might contact your ISP and have them check into it.  If the speed is significatnly below what you are supposed to have, a complaint to them, or repeated complaints, might get something done.
 
If the slowness is more at midnight or after, that COULD be something to worry more about.  Let me know if that is the time frame you mean please!
 
 
Userlevel 7
Badge +36
Welcome to the Community Tamela67..........................enjoy your stay!
Userlevel 5
Thank you so much! It is very comforting to have a trustworthy place to go for questions and answers. Though I do not have a lot of knowledge to share in return, that may change over time. This is certainly a good place for becoming educated 🙂 !
Userlevel 5
Hey, David!
 
No it is a pleasure, as your advice and thoughts are so thorough and easy to understand (layman terms for us non-techies, lol ). You know, the internet does seem to slow during the 6pm-11pm hours. I really should have put that one together, as it makes sense. It picks back up after that. I don't remember this always being a prominent occurrence, but it seems fairly consistent now-a-days. It's good for getting me off the system for awhile anyway!
 
I am glad you clarified video RAM and graphic RAM, as being one and the same. I was a little confused for a moment. You are right--I don't play elaborate games, or engage in heavy video designing, etc. I do have a rather off-the-cuff question, if you would know something about these types of programs. It is highly possible in my professional future, that I will utilize programs such as EMMAS WORLD and VR. These are virtual therapy programs utilized by various mental health counselors. I know nothing about these programs from a technological perspective--such as system requirements, are they hard on systems, and are there things that can be done to technologically accommodate such programs more optimally. If that is a too far off topic, please pass it by. I didn't want to start an entirely new discussion, as it is rather random. However, since I had a window of opportunity, I thought to ask for your insight! Thank you again, David. I appreciate all that you do!
 
~Tamela
Userlevel 7
? I think that question is right on topic... very very much so, given that we are discussing graphics RAM  I do not know much about the programs you refer to, nothing really, but generally speaking Virtual Reality programs sounds to me like it is going ot be graphic intense.  VR games certainly are!
 
Now we might have an issue with the graphics RAM.  Check out the requirements of the software, and when check the specs of your computer.  If you do not know the specs of your computer, chances are either I or another member here can look it up.  Usually we just need to know the maker (Dell, Gateway, etc) and model of the computer and we can look it up.
 
Please give us all the specs of the software you can, not just Graphics Ram but also just plain RAM as well.  Intense VR programs can use a lot of both: the plain system RAM to operate the complex crunching and the graphics RAM to provide smooth presentation.
 
I think I mentioned to you before to not worry about just where you post.  Try to decide where it fits best, but we can move it if we need to.  On this thred when you started it, I was really not sure just WHERE to put it as it can go under a bunch of different places.  I think given how the discussion is moving I will put it in the Techie Forum.  Techie is where we usually put things that are of technical nature, but not entirely WSA related.
 
I hope you don't mind the move!
 
 
Userlevel 5
Hello, David!
I don't mind the discussion being moved at all! You move things where you know is best 🙂 ! I know that I have a Dell Inspirion (?) 660. I could not find a model number anywhere else, and the rest of my components are a mix and match over time. I don't have personal access to a virtual therapy program as of yet. I imagine by the time I do, programs such as EMMA'S World will be obsolete (technology seems to fly fast that way). You are right , though, I am certain graphics will be intense, as these create a virtual reality to implement exposure therapy for people suffering from trauma and phobias (such as PTSD for example). These are utilized by licenced clinicians and clinicians-in-training via the internet for people unable to function well in their real-time environments. It will be a couple of more years before I will have the opportunity to do this. I thought to ask questions now, as I want to be prepared sooner than later. I wish I had more details about my system at the very least. I am sorry I went rather flat on this one :(
 
~Tamela
Userlevel 7
No worries!  Best thing to do is when the time comes that you will be getting the software, take a look at the required specs and then look at what you have, and ASK QUESTIONS of someone for advice.  Regardless of if you ask us, or someone else who is techie minded, ask someone.  One of the catches on software is that there is both Required specs and Suggested or Reccomended specs.
 
Required Specs: This is the minimum the software maker thinks is needed for the software to run.  Notice I do not say run well, just run.
 
Suggested/Reccomended Specs: This is the level that the software maker feels will allow the software to not just run, but run well without dragging.
 
As you noted, software changes a lot, so we will come back to this once the time is closer 🙂
Userlevel 5
Thank you so much for your patience, David. Actually, I received some information gems in this discussion. I will definitely be looking for the Suggested/Reccomended Specs in the future. I don't want the bare minimum system capabilities for sure! I will definitely be asking a lot of questions every step of the way. You are very thorough in your knowledge, and I trust that fact. I thank you for allowing me to touch base with this topic. Although the situation is not immediately at hand, just talking about it puts it into preparation motion. I will be ready for a new system at that time, so I will knock on your door for advice on that too. You have been such a wonderful and informative help, and I hope you have a lovely rest of your day! I certainly will, as I feel a little more technologically capable 🙂 !
 
~Tamela
Userlevel 7
@ wrote:
.....I hope you have a lovely rest of your day! I certainly will, as I feel a little more technologically capable 🙂 !
 
~Tamela
I will have a great rest of the day as my girls will be home from school in around 90 minutes 🙂  Have a great rest of the day yourself!

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