Do I need more memory for my MBP?

[oxband]

So, I've been trying to figure out of I should get more memory from my computer.

this is my hardware. It's a 17" MBP i bought two years ago. i've been using Final Cut Pro a lot lately and it's been slow then. tonight, while using Compressor, it got super slow. I've been thinking of upgrading to 8GB of RAM thinking this might solve my problems. That said, I'm not sure how to read memory specs and make sense of them. hopefully some people here will. Any idea why it is slow? Should I get more RAM? I see OS X 10.6.7

I've attached two screen shots of Activity Monitor when it was acting very, very sluggish. This is my hardware:
Hardware Overview:

Model Name: MacBook Pro
Model Identifier: MacBookPro5,2
Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed: 3.06 GHz
Number Of Processors: 1
Total Number Of Cores: 2
L2 Cache: 6 MB
Memory: 4 GB
Bus Speed: 1.07 GHz
Boot ROM Version: MBP52.008E.B05
SMC Version (system): 1.42f4
Serial Number (system): 73936002ANE
Hardware UUID: C6B9FF1A-F420-5843-B7FE-C706ABE747A9
Sudden Motion Sensor:
State: Enabled

 

[iMemories]

Having more memory is best to have for the performance of your laptop computer. I have 8GB in mine and it runs alot faster and loads the app's I use on a everyday basis. So yes, more memory is a great thing to have. Check in to Cruicial memory that's what I have and my Macbook Pro screams!

 

[gr8tfly]

The page-in/page-out ratio is what you need to look at. It's about 10:1, so I'd say it's at the point where you might see some slow-down due to excessive disk access. When it's slow, you can check disk activity, too. If your apps are all trying to use the hard disk at the same time, that could also be a bottleneck. Adding more RAM might not help in that case.

In any event, 8GB RAM kits are very cheap these days ($70 at Amazon for 2x 4GB). I don't think you'll regret the investment. You'll see an immediate reduction in page-outs, which should be noticeable.

What hard drive are you running? Going from a 5400RPM to 7200RPM could help (also, if it's larger, with higher areal density, it will perform better). A hybrid (like the Seagate XT, which also has a larger cache than other 500GB drives) is another option; a SSD being the fastest).

 

[mabaker]

SL is a RAM hog unfortunately, and it seems that Lion will be even heavier on RAM so an upgrade of 8 GB would benefit you without a doubt.