X= Fingers Crossed =X

UPDATE #1
UPDATE #2
UPDATE #3
UPDATE #4
UPDATE #5

What should be a pretty straightforward and everyday task to half the population, is about to take place in my kitchen. However, for me, it is a monumentous and frightening time: I am about to do my own computer upgrade. I just got my order from NewEgg. I was surprised to see such a tiny box, and even more surprised to find a much smaller box inside, and then triply surprised when I found everything thrown together and touching, and my copy of Windows XP Pro in a what appears to be the booklet and a single disk. It says on the disk "For distribution with a new PC only". And here I am, the idiot who thought he was going the "legal" right by not accepting the hundreds of offers for a free version. But, whatever. It's not my fault; it's NewEggs (but they're cheap and came well recommended). ANYWAY...



I've got both OCZ 512mb ram chips, and the cherry on top of the sunday; a Toshiba 100gb harddrive with 16mb cache and it actually jerks you off when you unseal the bag. I just hope my laptop understands all this new fangled machinery inside of it's virgin shell.



The lab experiment specimin is a Sony Vaio PCG-FRV25 with a 2.66GHZ Pentium 4 and a DVD/CD-RW. The rest of the specs don't matter cause they're moving out.



I've decided to risk losing some information. I really am not 100% sure how this works. I THINK that I should be able to do the install, and later on if I decide I want some files from the old hard drive I can pop it back in. That drive will have Windows XP Home, the other XP Pro. Is this wishful thinking? Am I really this naive? Yep. If I can't use that other drive again, I'll take it as a sign from Allah that all my writing and web design was meant to be started all over again from dirty thoughts and the occasional cat nap. If my next post is just a sentence or two long then that means I really messed things up. Wish me luck!



Update #1:Well the RAM failed to install. After a BIOS update and help from a tech savvy friend (guy I'm moving in with actually), it still don't work. I mean it recognizes and uses the ram, but it doesn't use it to it's full potential. My $80 512mb cards have been reduced to 192mb. And somehow, when combined, they equal 433. That's also the amount I used to have (although it was "technically" 512". I think there's a problem here. It's like my laptop's favorite number is 433. Move past it! Anyway, wheras this was the most important part of my upgrade, I am going to move on and upgrade the hard drive and operating system. Maybe my friend can help me when he comes Saturday to save me from this hellhole that I lovingly refer to as "Tampa Florida". Toodles... till the next update.



UPDATE #2:Ghosts are haunting my computer. The RAM issue continues. No matter what chip I put in; be it either of the 256 or 512's, it reads it the same. Even stranger is how it reads it: a 512 reads as 192? Even the original 512 combo reads as 448. Huh? I made some calls today; to say the least...



UPDATE #3:After working on the problem all day on and off while at work via MSN on my phone with a friend/techy, we discovered a whole treasure chest of problems that the Sony Vaio has with memory alltogether. And it turns out that my mother's Vaio tower pc is experiencing the more usual symptoms: random reboots, problems booting from an off positon, etc. The problem lies in the connection between the SO-DIMM slot and the motherboard. Apparently there are a lot of unhappy customers, and Sony has yet to address the problem. BTW, my version of Vaio is a recall according to this (depending on it's manufacturing date, which is unkown to me). Luckily, I have no plans to use a dialup modem. Ever. Again. Ever. Anywho, the hunt continues...



UPDATE #4:After some intense research, numerous phone calls, and experimentation with the actual RAM and laptop (and some "minor" mistakes; such as changing the RAM with the AC still plugged in (computer off) and getting "tingles"; but ram still works), I've come to the conclusion that either my NewEgg.com chips have been mislabled, and both are really 256, Sony Vaio really does suck and only works with OEM parts (like Crucial.com promises these will), or Vaio's are simply "picky". I can live with picky. Picky means that there is a solution. An annoying and possibly expensive one (depending on how you handle the situation), but a solution nonetheless. I'm less than enthusiastic after reading a 1,500 signature petition against Sony's memory hardware, but there's no turning back now. Onward Ho!




UPDATE #5:The following week's experiments can only be achieved because I have mad ass money in the bank that I don't need immediate access to. Since I'm pretty much indebted to this laptop, I'm going to do some expensive testing. By that, I mean that it will cost a lot now but I'll get all the money back later. Here's the plan:

1) Instead of returning the OCZ chips to Newegg, I return them to OCZ as an EXCHANGE. I've been promised that the chips will be tested, guarenteed to be marked correctly, and possibly of a slightly different variety (but same capacity).

2)Meanwhile, tomorrow I purchase the Kingston 512 200p that I saw in this tiny shop on the way home. This will tell me whether the OCZ is, in fact, mislabled. If a third 512 shows up as less than half it's expected capacity, then the problem lies outside the realm of RAM experimenting. I've already inquired about their return policy: No Questions Asked. I like that

3)I order 2 512mb "Guarenteed to be compatible" chips from Crucial.com. I believe their policy is the same. It's that "Guarenteed" part that solidifies my faith. Course; I'll ask first. And finally...

4)Come Sunday or Monday, once moved and in North Carolina (and in desperate spastic mode for my upgrade to be complete), I'll go-a-shoppin' in some real brick and mortar stores (all with iron-clad return policies of course).



When all of this craziness is over, I will have purchased about 7 RAM boards (2 from NewEgg, 1 from place on the way home, 2 from Crucial, and 2 from some store in North Carolina). In all, it'll cost me around $560. That's more than $100 more than I paid for this entire upgrade. Thank God for return policies.