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One problem faced by most Photoshop users is the constant need
for more RAM. No matter how much you have, you always seem to need more, especially
when working with large files on multiple layers. The obvious solution is to buy
four 64MB simms and just forget about the problem, but for most users this is
unrealistic. However, there are ways that you can make maximum use of the RAM
that you have.
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One tip is to partition your hard drive so as to create a separate
swap disk. By setting one partition as the secondary drive in Photoshop's preferences
section, and keeping this drive completely empty if possible, when Photoshop inevitably
runs out of RAM and begins using the hard drive for virtual memory, access time
will be faster. You can also add the following line to your Autoexec.bat file
to set the new drive as Window's swap disk: |
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Another tip is whenever you need to use Photoshop,
restart Windows and open Photoshop before you do anything else. This will allocate
the maximum amount of RAM to Photoshop as is possible. For Windows 3.11 users
especially, never open other programs while you are working in Photoshop, as this
will use up valuable system resources. |
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Photoshop's Quick edit feature is another way
to economize on RAM. It allows you to edit an image, in small sections which can
help if you need high quality output, but realistically you don't have the RAM
to work with the full image. |
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Users with 32MB of RAM or more should also consider
upgrading to a 512k cache. While most motherboards are fitted with the standard
256k (which is enough for most applications), a bigger cache will give your RAM
better performance which can easily be noticeable when working with large files. |