Cache vs Ramdisk: Frequently Asked Questions                      00/07/20

Q:  What's better, a big HD cache or a Ramdisk ?
A:  That depends. On how much memory you have, how much free HD space,
    what applications you run, your flexibility requirements, who you ask.

Q:  I have more than 16Megs of memory and plenty of HD space. What's best
    for me - cache or ramdisk ?
A:  A big HD cache would be just as fast as a ramdisk for you.

Q:  I need to run many disk intensive applications throughout the day.
    Arachne is just one of them. What's best for me - cache or ramdisk ?
A:  A big HD cache would be useable by all programs - not just one.

Q:  I have more than 16Megs of memory but my HD is full. What's best for
     me - cache or ramdisk ?
A:  An 8Mb ramdisk will let you run almost anything fast, and if you load
    it from zipped sources your HD space requirements will be minimized.

Q:  I only have 8 megs of memory, but all I want to run is Arachne.
    What's best for me - cache or ramdisk ?
A:  A 4 to 5 Mb ramdisk would give you instant access to even infrequently
    used functions if you put all of Arachne on it.  The same size disk
    cache will function almost as well for most Arachne use and give you
    more available XMS memory, but you will have to wait for HD access on
    a few things that you may not need very often. Changing your personal
    preferences could take quite a bit of time for example.
    Of course, this will be much more noticeable on a slow computer.

Q:  I only have 2 megs of ram in my '286, but I want to run Arachne.
    What's best for me - cache, ramdisk or XMS ?
A:  With a '286 you can't have XMS. Make a 200k ramdisk. Put command
    on it. Put \TEMP on it. Use all the rest for HD cache.

Q:  I only have 4 megs of ram in my '386, but I only want to run Arachne.
    What's best for me - cache, ramdisk or XMS ?
A:  This is the most difficult one to answer.
    *
    The simple answer is: Make a 384k ramdisk. Put command on it.
    Put \TEMP on it. Allocate 1.5 to 2meg to the HD cache. (1536k-2048k)
    This will leave 1152k to 640k for XMS respectively.
    *
    The complicated answer is: Make a 2.3Mb ramdisk. (2312k) Put command
    on it. Put \TEMP on it. Put ARACHNE main directory on it. Delete all
    .gifs, .txt and .acf. COMPRESS the result. Use Stacker or Doublespace.
    Xcopy ARACHNE\system\and subdirs to it and delete WIZ*.* in system\gui
    and system\dgi. Deletree system\pktdrvrs and system\apm.db.
    Allocate 184k to the HD cache.  This leaves 576k for XMS.
    Try it. It seems faster this way.

Q:  Where do I find out how to set up a Ramdisk ?
A:  See the HOWto: ARAMDISK.txt

Q:  Where do I find out how to set up a Hard Disk Cache ?
A:  See the HOWto: ARACACHE.txt

Q:  Where do I find out how to optimize my Cache or Ramdisk for speed ?
A:  Try the utility Speedchk.zip


