Extra laptop memory cards - can I use them in my desktop?
 

Hello all

I have some extra 1G memory cards leftover from when I upgraded the memory in my laptops. 2 cards from a (new) MacBook and 2 cards from a (year old) Dell Inspiron (feel free to mock my selection)

My question: I have a very (4+ years) old Dell desktop as well. I don't recall how much memory I have in that machine, but assuming it's less than 2G (or 4G), could I simply insert any of these cards into that?

I guess what I am asking is this: (1) is there any difference between desktop memory cards and laptop memory cards, (2) is there a difference between Apple memory and Dell memory, and (3) is there a chance that my old desktop won't be compatible with new memory cards?

If it makes any difference, the old Dell desktop is running Windows XP.

Thanks in advance

big difference between laptop and desktop memory.

you'll have to know the kind of ram the mac ram is in comparison to the dell ram.

And there are also diffrent kinds of laptop and desktop memory.

Dell did use Rambus memory few years ago in desktop models, Rambus memory is expensive (if you can find it).

Yours
Zweiblumen

Short answers: 1) yes, laptop is unsurprisingly smaller 2) maybe 3) see 1

ooh that's right, I have some rambus memory laying about... I should try to sell it.

Also, desktop RAM looks very different from notebook RAM:

Desktop RAM
http://www.dansdata.com/images/ecsvsasus/asusram400.jpg

Notebook RAM
http://www.voxendirect.com/images/rambo-sodimm.jpg

the motherboard connections are different as well

Me too...

I actually rebuilt my Dell (purchased in '02, rebuilt in '06) so that I could get rid of the RAMBUS. New motherboard, new SDRAM...it was like a whole new computer. It was cheaper to do that than to buy additional RAMBUS.

I'm starting to get the itch to build another computer.

Ok, all solid advice. Sounds like it won't work. Off to Ebay, I guess!

Come to think of it, I have a very old Dell laptop lying around somewhere, and was thinking about trying to run Linux on it as an experiment. Maybe I'll try to the memory there...

Just a word of advice, not to be offensive, but if you asked the question about putting laptop ram in a desktop, you probably will have a really hard time installing, running, and using linux.

Installing ubuntu is a breeze, as long as you have a second computer that you can google stuff on. Most questions can be answered by googling "linux(or ubuntu) + [your computer's model number]".
As for RAM in general, some RAM manufacturers have a great guide on their site as to what type of ram is compatible with what computers. I'll try and find it for you.
Here, I got it: Memory upgrades, flash media, and usb storage at Crucial.com
Google is always your friend.

oddly enough people have told me that ubuntu was the easiest, even with a CD distro bootable. I've not ever gotten it to run on any of my machines desktops or laptops.

I don't doubt it! I have heard that there are some very user-friendly versions out there, complete with information about how to install.

In the end, I may well concede I lack the tech fu to actually do it.