hi, you may think that this is a stupid question and that i am thick not to know it but if i was upgrading my pc, what would increase my computers speed the most, a new hard drive, more RAM or a new prossesor?
i have an Intel Celeron CPU 2.20GHz, 256mb of RAM and a 38.2GB hard drive with 25.5GB left
thanks, mike

For most people, the answer to that would be a faster processor. However, it really does depend on what you're doing on the PC (i.e. how much RAM is being used up).

A 40Gb hard disk is likely to be pretty quick. However, you'd need to know if it spins at 5400rpm or 7200rpm. If you've got the slower type, then buying a 7200rpm drive or even a 15,000rpm SCSI drive or a Serial ATA drive would make a difference. It's also worth noting that your 40Gb hard disk has probably got a 1Mb or 2Mb cache (which is kind of like a buffer for the most commonly used data to be held so that it can be accessed very quickly). Many new drives have an 8Mb cache - this is useful for handling large files such as pictures, photos, audio and video files.

I run a lot on my PC and I use Windows 2000 so, for me, upgrading to 512Mb RAM would probably give me the most benefit. But, if you don't do a lot simultaneously and you don't have many programs installed that load little bits up automatically whenever Windows starts, then you might not see any difference.

Similar to hard disks, processors also have a cache on them so that they can transfer the most frequently-used instructions very quickly indeed. I think your Celeron probably has a 256Kb cache, whereas new Pentium 4 processors have a 2Mb (2048Kb) cache.

In the absence of other information, I'd suggest that a top-end Pentium 4 processor would give the most benefit to the average user.

If you want to know how much memory (your 256Mb physical RAM and any virtual memory) that you're using, you can press Ctrl + Alt + Delete on Windows 2000 and Windows XP systems and go into Task Manager. The Performance tab in Task Manager will show you how much memory is in use. If you've got a load spare, then adding more memory will make no difference so you can rule that out.

Please post more detailed specs, like how fast (RPM) is your HD, if you have a 5400RPM drive, upgrading to a 7200 gives you some faster loading times. Celeron has, like DJNafey said, 256kb Cache, where most P4 has 1MB Cache, that can give you a huge boost. RAM depeding on your speed, do you have PC2100, PC2700, PC3200, or PC4000? You WILL notice a difference if you upgrade in speed/size of the RAM.

Ooops - yes, C0oLI2iCeF0o is right - even the latest Pentium 4 processors have a 1Mb cache, not 2Mb as I said, but that's still enough to make a big difference

Hehe maybe you mistaken it with the Pentium M series which has 2 MB cache

Ah, yes, maybe you're right - I've been looking at lots of adverts for new laptops lately!

ok, so how do i find out my HD's speed?
and how do i tell wether i have a PC2100, PC2700, PC3200, or a PC4000?

Thanks,
Mike

Run the D-A-L.com Online Hardware Scan (link in my signature) to find the full make and model of your hard drive, then paste that into Google and you should find some links to technical data for your drive

here is what i found:
Capacity 40 GB

Interface ATA-133

Rotational Speed 7200 rpm

Access Time 10 ms

Type of Drive Internal

Cache Size 2 MB

System Type PC

Cylinders 16383

Average Latency 4.17 ms

Additional Features Fluid Dynamic Bearing (FDB) motor, Data Protection System (DPS), Shock Protection System (SPS)
hope its all you need