[CS-FSLUG] Macs and Memory

[Nathan T.]

Hi CS List

I've been using the Activity Monitor application in OS X to try and  
figure out why my Mac Mini was running slow, and as it turns out  
Safari, FireFox, iTunes and iPhoto each use massive amounts of the  
memory. I've been watching the Activity Monitor application, and  
while the processor does top out  frequently enough, the one thing  
that is consistently low is the memory. When nothing is running but  
the OS there is only about 220MB of Ram free, that's about 10% of the  
actual ram that's in this thing, and when I start running any of the  
above programs it may take a few minutes, but eventually they reduce  
the available memory to less than 100MB.

I'd like some comments on what to do about this, if I upgrade the ram  
to 2GB would it be worth the large investment (1GB cost me ~$250CAD).  
Or should I simply wait and get a more powerful core Duo Mini with  
2GB of ram some time next year? If I get a new one should I really  
save up and get something with 4GB of ram?

Oh, and could anyone tell me how big of a difference there is on a  
Mac when it has a independent video card as compared to an integrated  
one?

Thanks

Nathan T.