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A FREE RAM Diagnostic Tool
By Stephen Bucaro
Do you suspect that your system has a problem caused by a bad RAM memory chip?
Download CST Inc.'s DOS based DocMemory utility to run a suite of tests. It supports
Windows 95/98/me/xp/2000. DocMemory runs test patterns such as walking 0's and
walking 1's to see how accurately your RAM stores and reads back data.
After downloading, double click on DocMem20.exe. WinZip self-extractor expands the
file and automatically executes the programs Setup. Click on "Make Boot-Disk", then
click [I Accept] to accept the license agreement, then insert a blank floppy disk into the
floppy disk drive and click [OK]. The Setup program formats the floppy disk with
FreeDos and copies docmem.exe and some other files to the floppy disk.
Shut down the system, and then boot it with the floppy disk. After a bunch of text
flies by on the screen the DocMemory Program appears. (Some of the text complains
about your mouse not being supported. Neither serial and ps2 was supported in my
tests, but my mouse worked anyway).
In the "Select Type of Test" menu, select "Quick Test". Watch the "Status" window in
the upper-left area of the screen to see what test is being executed. The "Test Results"
window on the bottom of the screen informs you as each test is completed. After
completion of the tests, the "Status" window informs you of the results of that test loop.
DocMemory's configuration menu lets you select to test Base and/or Exteneded memory,
Select the specific test patterns to run, how many times to loop the tests, and how
many Megabytes of memory to test. If your mouse does not work, you can press [Alt] + [C]
to open the Configuration menu, or [Alt] + [A] to open the Action menu (then use arrow
key to highlight "Run Test" and press [Enter]. You can press [Esc] to abort the test
at any time.
I tested a 120 MHz Pentium system with 32 MB RAM and a 1.5 GHz Athlon system with 120
MB RAM. Both computers passed. The second system crashes occasionally when running
Microsoft Word on Microsoft Windows 2000, but I think we both know what the problem
there is not the hardware.
CST exhorts you to "Download Now! a $100 value now available FREE for only a limited time."
DocMemory makes a handy little utility for your PC Tech Toolkit, but with #1-TuffTEST's
complete diagnostic program costing only $9.95, the makers of DocMemory need to place
a more realistic value on their product.
Download 271KB DocMem20.exe from www.simmtester.com.
You should also download the DocMemory manual, Docguide.pdf. You may find the manual
itself very useful. It describes the various tests and how to troubleshoot should your
system fail one of the tests.
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