Video files and RAM Memory

Hi ! .... can anybody enlighten me pse ! ?

Ok ; this may seem a bit of a dumb question because thinking logically it can be answered simply....lol ! ....but i'll still ask anyhow.... :cheesy:

I am on dial up (56k modem) and have 384MB of RAM.

I've been trying to watch some online videos (.swf files) and found that when i get to video files of 8,9,10 mins and over of playing time they seem to freeze up (not download from the providers server) after say 7mins of playing time. (ps. that 7mins is not standard across all files...it is only an example as each varies on play time & the stall is usually near the end part).

I've tried a couple of different video (.swf) files of varying play times and found that each stalls and halts loading a few minutes before the end. This is understandibly frustrating me.

Now....logic tells me it is because of dial up (???...or is it ?) and maybe also i'm short on RAM ?
Actually i was trying to watch these files a week ago when i had only 128MB of RAM on my PC.
I went out and bought a further 256MB of RAM which i've added now....but notice i'm still stuck with the same problem.

Also,I made sure that i didn't have any programs running in the background that was taking up memory but even doing this doesn't help. Lastly i've only been trying ONE file at a time & experiencing the above problems.


Any ideas how to remedy this ?

How does one manually clear Memory if i want to make sure that there is enough space for temporary storage of these .swf files ?
Any advice appreciated.

If you want to watch online video's you really need broadband connection, say minimum of 2GB connection and Ram minimum of 512Mb or better 1 or 2 GB, plus a decent graphic card with on board Ram of 128/256mb, Its a fast world out there and youre in the slow lane my friend, you can try to increase the pagefile size which may help, but its going to be an uphill task.............Good Luck

384MB of RAM is more than enough. As wheezer says get broadband and then try again. Broadband is now so cheap that if you are trying to watch video files you will find your phone bill will actually go down if you switch.

256mb ram is plenty for this, more is better but certainly not required. You don't need such a high-tech graphics card unless you're heavily into gaming, either.

Your connection is the problem as others have said - but try and get 512k minimum, 1mb would be better still (assuming you're in an area that supports it)

Ok....thanks for the replies gents (or lady/ies ?)...

As i said..it was a question that answered itself really.....that is... i need to move up in the world and get broadband.
But i thought i might get a way around it ! Thanks anyhow !

If you wish you can easily upgrade to BT, who are offering 2mb connection for around 25 GBP ,with support thrown in to, You should notice a difference in performance...............

Could try Flex Broadband
http://www.eclipse.net.uk/index.cfm?id=bbhome