RAM - What are the standards?

[skybolt_1]

Im trying to figure out the best type of RAM to put in my Asus K7V. Right now im looking at PC133 dimms, but Im seeing PC133 ECC's too. Whats the deal with ECC? What is it? Also, do name-brands matter, cause ive never heard of a defective memory chip. Thanx!

[Dominus]

ECC stands for Error Correction Code, and it's a protocol used in higher-end servers & whatnot that need far less errors & higher stability than normal PCs. It's significantly more expansive than standard SDRAM, and unless you are running something really high-end and "mission critical", then most likely you don't need it.

I've got generic PC133 SDRAM in my Athlon system, and it works just fine. Name brands don't really matter in my opinion, unless you want to run at a 150MHz FSB or something. Instances of bad RAM are just about as common as defects in any other PC product, which usually doesn't happen much.