Cramming in the RAM

I don’t upgrade my computer regularly, preferring to wait until the current one is on its last legs before considering a replacement. This is partly because the setup is highly customised for my particular requirements, such as the many hotkeys that trigger useful writing shortcuts like the en-dash,

Three years ago, the fan on my old laptop gave out. I can’t recall whether I looked into a repair, but I ultimately opted for a new device – one that serves me to this day.

Before buying it, I knew it wouldn’t pack quite the same punch, with 4 GB of RAM and 128 GB of hard disc space, only half that of my previous laptop. However, I reasoned I could cope with the loss of computing power because I’d only use it for writing and for watching the occasional 1080p video.

The trouble is that the actual writing is only one part of the equation. If I want to type into a Google Document, the browser takes up a chunk of RAM. If I want to listen to music for concentration and/or talk to other writers via Discord, that’s extra memory in use. Meanwhile, Windows would increasingly use the hard disc as temporary storage to compensate for this.

A couple of weeks ago, I attempted to take off the back cover of the laptop to check whether extra RAM could be fitted. It was too thoroughly screwed on, so I took it to a repair shop last week. They tripled the memory for a reasonable price, bringing it up to 12 GB.

Part of me feels this is a ridiculously high specification for a computer primarily used for text, especially since I can recall using a family computer from 1998 that contained a whopping 4 GB of total hard disc space.

Yet it really does feel like a new machine. Even typing out this entry into WordPress, I haven’t felt the usual lag. I can even switch tasks without my video buffering or the screen blanking out.

So until this device is beyond repair, I’ll happily keep it in service as long as possible.