Increasing memory on video card?

[Kodih]

First off, I'm just going to go ahead and say that I know absolutely nothing about computers, so keep the fancy words to a minimum please? I know how to go on messenger, post in forums and play some games, none of the technical stuff.


My setup (not sure what it means, this is just written word-for-word from dxdiag):

Operating System: Microsoft Windows XP Professional (5.1, Build 2600)
Manufacturer: Dell
System Model: OptiPlex GX280
BIOS: Pheonix ROM BIOS PLUS Version 1.10 A08
Processor: Intel(R) Pentium(R) 4 CPU 3.20GHz
Memory: 1022MB RAM
Page file: 1106MB used, 955MB available
DirectX Version: DirectX 9.0c


Video card:
Name: ATI Radeon X300/X550/X1050 Series
Chip Type: ATI Radeon Graphics Processor (0x5B60)
DAC Type: Internal DAC(400MHz)
Approx. Total Memory: 64.0MB



Let me know if you need more information.




Alright, onto my issue!

According to my friend, I have a half decent setup for what I use it for and that the cause of my lag issues in games is most likely due to the memory on my video card.
I'm just wondering if there's any way that I can increase the memory without spending any money.

If I absolutely have to spend money (buying online is NOT possible) then I would prefer the absolute cheapest possible route (I can drive to a store near me)


Main games played on this computer by various people in the house:
Counter Strike: Source
MapleStory
FlyFF

 

[JMMD]

If your PC is using on-board graphics (or in rare cases a discreet card) you can allocate additional system memory (in some cases) for the video card but I don't think that will solve your issue.

You can certainly replace the video card or add additional system memory to help improve game performance.

It's important to know what size power supply you're dealing with although lower end video cards don't require much power and you'd need to know if you PC requires a low-profile card.

Is it a slim case?

What's your budget for a video card upgrade?

 

[Ritwik7]

The cheapest possible route to handling CS: Source would be to get yourself a low end graphics card like the nVidia 8400GS or the ATI Radeon HD 4350. They should be able to play Source well.

 

[SNGX1275]

Depending on your budget it may not hurt to pick up more RAM as well, its DDR2 so it should be fairly cheap (although RAM prices are high right now). I don't know how many slots it has, or what the max capacity of each slot is, so you will want to figure that out...

 

[Manikle]

According to Newegg, and other sources, the Dell OptiPlex GX280 has 2 slots for RAM and can use up to 2GB
Here's RAM that will fit your system, according to Newegg:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...6&cm_re=OptiPlex_GX280-_-20-134-996-_-Product
Newegg also sells the video cards suggested--and I'm sure that many other places do, as well.

 

[red1776]

your dell 280 comes in 3 form factors. if you have the small form factor you will need a low profile discreet card card. for those games and the like, I like Rits suggestion as well. here is the low profile version.http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150335&cm_re=hd_4350-_-14-150-335-_-Product

 

[nissanman]

If you are using the on-board video, that is, using the motherboards built in video instead of a dedicated graphics card (being a dell, thats more then likely the case), then you MAY be able to allocate more system memory to be used as video memory. This configuration is done within the computers set up screen (BIOS). Because you say you have no technical computer knowledge, you will need to read your computers manual, it should say something in there.

If you are using a dedicated graphics card (a seperate card that plugs into the computers main circuit board) then you cannot change the amount of memory the card has unless you purchase a new video card.

Like red1776 said, if you dell is the low profile version, you will need to buy a low profile video card as a standard size one will be too tall for your case. Follow the link red sent you. That card should suit you fine, providing that your motherboard has a PCIE graphics slot and not an AGP one.

Any chance of popping the cover and showing us some pictures of the inside? That way we can be sure wether or not your motherboard is PCIE based or AGP.