Q. A message came up on my screen recently that read, “Virtual memory too low. Windows is adjusting virtual memory.” Could you tell me what this means, please? Many thanks, Mr. M.

A. When the amount of RAM (physical memory) installed on your computer is insufficient to accommodate the programs and other resources required by your system, Windows will commandeer some hard drive space to pick up the slack. That process frees up RAM to accommodate the shortage. The portion of the hard drive allocated to serve as RAM (physical memory) is referred to as virtual memory.

If you frequently see this message, having more RAM installed in your system will resolve the problem. If the message only appears once in a rare while, I wouldn’t do anything. Restarting your computer will clear out memory and you should be fine.

Windows ties the minimum size of its virtual memory cache to the amount of installed RAM plus 300 megabytes (MB), though you can easily increase the size of your system’s virtual memory:

If you’re using Windows XP, right-click My Computer and select Properties. Select the Advanced tab and click the Settings button under "Performance," followed by the Advanced tab. In the "Virtual Memory" section, it will show the total size of your Paging file, or virtual memory cache, which you can increase with the "Change" button. Be sure to press the Set button for your changes to take effect, then OK > Apply > OK.

If you’re using Vista, go to your Control Panel and click System and Maintenance > System > Advanced System Settings. On the Advanced tab, under Performance, click the Settings button > Advanced tab, then under Virtual Memory, click the Change button. Clear the “Automatically manage paging file size for all drives?” check box. Under Drive [Volume Label], click to select the drive that contains the paging file you want to change. (Typically the C: drive) Click “Custom size:” and type a new size in megabytes in the “Initial size (MB)” or “Maximum size (MB)” box, followed by Set > OK.

Q. I’m having trouble with some of the sounds that are supposed to be coming from my computer. I’m not sure what to do at this point. Can you help?

A. I always like to start with the basics when doing sound-related troubleshooting, so first check all cables and connections to make sure everything is plugged in solidly. If you have a power switch on your speakers, make sure it’s turned on.

Next, try plugging your speakers into a different jack on the back of your computer, if one is available.

To test your system, look in the System Tray, below the time display, and double-click the little speaker icon. Crank up any volume controls to be sure it’s good and loud. Next, go to your Control Panel and double-click Sounds and Audio Devices.

Click the Sounds tab, then scroll through the listing under Program Events and click any sound designation with a speaker icon beside it. Look in the Sounds: area at the bottom of the Sounds and Audio Devices Properties dialog box and locate the small button with an arrow pointing to the right. That's the Play button. Click it and you should hear the selected sound from your speakers.

If not, you may have a hardware problem that would be best assessed by a reputable computer repair facility in your area.

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