PC OS upgrade help

[technogeek019]

I own a dell latitude d620 which is running windows xp, now that xp has lost support I am planning on upgrading the OS to windows 7 or 8 or maybe even vista
and Ubuntu is not a choice cause I have some windows specific applications to run (mainly console emulators) to run. Though I do have another laptop with better specs I just want to know if the specs are enough to run the OS smoothly.
Specs
Intel Core Duo - 2ghz
1 Gb ram DDr2
Intel graphics
70gb hard disk

P.s (I mainly use this computer for emulation purposes and to run other games which are not so Hifi)
I do want to upgrade the ram hopefully this summer if I get my hands on some ram modules

 

[gerzhwin]

I think it would be best to check that with Microsoft's Windows Upgrade Advisor. Just bing it ...

 

[xandros9]

You computer is not going to be a speed demon by any metric.

1 GB of RAM is the bare minimum for Windows Vista, 7, 8 and I would recommend passing on Vista since I believe it is the heaviest Windows to date by a bit.

So whether Windows 7 or 8 its up to you. I'd recommend 8 since it can be lighter.

But regardless, those specs aren't going to be overly smooth, but they will work.

My recommendation is to grab at least 2 GB of RAM, then you should be OK for a super-basic machine and experience.

 

[technogeek019]

Well ram for a laptop this old is hard to find in the middle east and xp is quite the laggy computer
I only use it for emulations mainly so i really don't know

 

[vshlkmr40]

Well ram for a laptop this old is hard to find in the middle east and xp is quite the laggy computer
I only use it for emulations mainly so i really don't know

Order RAM from eBay if you can, the amount of ram is the most easiest and cost effective thing one can do to increase the life of a old computer.

On the software side, I'd recommend going with the latest windows 8.1 spring update, that OS also sports 1 gb ram as its minimum requirements..

If you are using that device only for emulation I'd recommend installing a very light weight Linux OS (Arch Linux, puppy Linux) on another free partition, these OS consume minimum of 200mb of your ram, letting the remaining free to run VMware and your emulation apps, and you can switch to windows when you want regular work to be done..

 

[technogeek019]

Right now I am still using XP while running kali Linux in a dual boot configuration. Here is a question if I should get ram for for my pc should I look for dell ram or will any other ddr2 ram module would do.

 

[gapost]

Any ram will do, Newegg.com - Computer Parts, Laptops, Electronics, and More! Funny, because I upgraded two Dell D620's to Win7 today. Basically, all the necessary drivers got installed and it runs fine for most things people would use it for, like Internet, Email, Word, etc. If you really wanted to boost the performance, throw in a 64 or 128gb SSD for about $100. Just so you know, my 620's would not run 64-bit so make sure you have a 32-bit disk to install.