14 DAY TRIAL // Sometimes, after a long use of the computer, I would notice that it would get a little sluggish. I thought to myself that it must be me imagining things. After a little research, I found out that indeed, my computer was moving slower from all the closing and launching of softwares, surfing the Web etc. And that happened because the RAM I had on my system was locked up in different applications that I was not using at the moment.
I thought to myself that there must be a software that can free my random access memory so that the machine would work properly. It did not take long to find the proper software. RamBooster is a free application designed to free up the locked unused RAM. The method used is to force the OS to remove from the memory all the data that is not currently needed.
Do not expect much from the interface as this is a utility software and the emphasis is on its functionality and not on its looks. On the application window the user receives 1 second updated information about the current RAM usage, free RAM usage and CPU usage. In memory control you get to choose the level of the memory to free. Just drag the slider until the desired amount is reached.
The Action buttons at the bottom of the window let you manually optimize the memory and change the view of the window. Toggle mode docks the window and will make the application display only the memory and CPU usage. To return to full view mode click on the background.
File menu is composed of three options. The first one is exiting the software. The next two are Quick reboot and Restart Windows. The difference between the two of them is that rebooting requires a complete shutdown and restart of the computer while Windows restarting is merely an OS restart.
The great thing about this software - besides the fact that it is free - is that it can perfectly run unattended. This can be achieved if you go in the Edit menu and choose Options. There are two separate sections in there. On/Off settings has six options waiting to be activated. The first one is sound, but the recommendation for this option is for it to be off. Any .wav file can be placed instead of the default one.
Next is turning on the auto optimization. If you activate this feature you will definitely want to set the software to launch automatically at startup. And if the application window annoys you, there is the possibility of starting the software minimized. Some users may be interested only in seeing the memory usage, so the developer added the option of enabling/disabling the CPU usage display.
If you want to know when the software is optimizing the memory, you can enable the Show Pop-up with the optimizing option. This way, you will know when the application is doing the required task.
The second section in Options is called Numeric Values. Here, the user can set the auto optimization level (when auto optimization is on) in MB (the default value is 50MB). This value is directly related to the next option, the setting of MB of RAM to free at AutoLevel (default value is 60MB). If the RAM goes below the auto optimization level value, then the software will try to free the amount of RAM set in MB of RAM to free.
The user can set the refresh interval in seconds, but - in my opinion - the higher the refresh, the faster the optimization. Sometimes, the software will not be available to free the memory. In this case, you can set the number of attempts to retry the optimization. The last option available in here is setting the CPU usage value to be set when Ram Booster should try to free RAM. This option is designed to prevent the software to slow down the system.
The Good
The software is free and it is working just fine. Using it is extremely easy and it will definitely not harm your system.
The Bad
A "facelift" would be indicated, but it would not be absolutely necessary. Also, I guess many users would like an upgrade to a new version, but unfortunately this is not possible yet.
The Truth
I really enjoyed using the software and I think I am going to keep the software on my computer for a while. The fact that it is free only adds up to its value.
If you are looking for a better interface, try RamSmash, but this software comes with a price tag.
Here are some snapshots of the application in action:
