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[Nilocy]

Oki, so my conundrum is how much should I be spending on some RAM? A friend of mine really wants to play TF2 again, but she can't due to he PC lacking 'ze Randomised Accessable Memories. I know a 1GB stick should go down well, but what do I need to check before I buy it? (Such as make/model) And how will I know if her computer can run it?

[Akigagak]

1gb is actually quite low nowadays, although it should be sufficient if all she plays is TF2.

You can easily get 2gb for well under £100.

I don't think there are any compatibility issues with RAM, you just need to be able to access BIOS.

[Blacken]

I don't think there are any compatibility issues with RAM, you just need to be able to access BIOS.

Uh, what? There are three different form factors of RAM floating around (DDR, DDR2, DDR3) and they all run at different speeds.

Run CPU-Z on the machine and note down what it says, and buy that.

[Reasonableman]

And then there's the question of whether the RAM is going into a laptop or a desktop.

[Blacken]

And then there's the question of whether the RAM is going into a laptop or a desktop.

CPU-Z will tell them that, though. It mentions form factor, I think.

[Sensei]

2gigs of decent-quality DDR2 ram can go for under $100, to say nothing of pounds. 2gb of really cheap DDR2 can be less than $60. Newegg, dude.

[Nadaka]

Open the computer up. Try to find out the model and manufacturer of the motherboard. You should be able to find the memory compatibility list from the motherboard manufacturer's website.

Barring that, figure out what type (DDR, DDR2, DDR3), size and speed the existing memory is. If there are open memory slots, you can fill those, otherwise you will have to replace some memory. Some old machines may be unable to use larger memory sticks, something to be mindful of. Likewise, faster memory can be unstable and may require throttling back in bios in rare circumstances when the motherboard doesn't do so itself.