XP and ram

[Steegs]

ive been readin threads and it seems that xp is real picky about ram. why? what are some good brands to use? i got some mushkin but my machine doesnt like it or its dead, currently talking to mushkin (going to send me a new stick). so with this being my first build i couldnt wait another week so i ran out and bought some ddr crucial 265megs.

im seeing signs that xp doesnt like this stick. during one install after it formatted my hdd to ntfs, it said it couldnt read my cd and suggested it might be a ram prob. some other problems arrised, cant remember exactly.

any harm in running with this ram or should i wait til i get a flawless stick?

-steegs

[cobra]

sounds like a motherboard problem, but I would not rule out ram
I had a similar problem on a board once, when I tried to install win2k, got about 75% finished copying files, gave me an error about corrupted files, so I tried multiple win2k cd's that I know are "not damaged", same problem.
Ended up being the motherboard, so I rma'd it and all is well in Cobra's Asus a7v133 land...

[Bobdog]

Cobra - I also get several errors usually when installing large programs suggesting corrupt files. I am also getting some hardware errors in XP and also got what appeared to be a RAM related problem (mixing manufacturers sticks I think) - I wonder if the real issue is that I have a m'board problem?

[Steegs]

really? well heck. i built my system so that makes it a little complicated for returns. me thinks i need a good reason to send it back and ask for a new one. what should i tell the comapny is wrong with it?

how can i make sure its the motherboard? i have a stick of mushkin coming in. should i wait and see if that helps any?

and if it is the mobo, and component athority wont take it back, wheres a good place to buy from that understands that parts sometimes have flaws and will exchange em if they do?

another problem im having is that on occasion my cd rw likes to disappear from my computer when i put certain cds in there. One cd it likes to do that for is for the dragon+ cd. at other times, my cdrw likes to take its time acessing the cd.

thanks a bundle for the help,
-steegs

[cobra]

Well, I was just speaking from past exper.
I have alot of times mixed ram brands, with no ill effects.
Your mileage may vary....
Good luck.