areej wrote:
Ohhh....Thanks may be that is the problem because I have like 12 photos were opned at that time but I thougt I have a clean new empty computer I could open as many as I want and I am really new to raw and afraid to use it .
Thanks again
Tea8 wrote:
Are you opening more than one raw file at once to work on? When it says there is not enough RAM memory it means that there are too many things open on the computer at once and therefore it doesn't have enough to continue working on or saving anything. You have to be careful how many raw pictures you are opening at once because they can use up that space quickly.
Ohhh....Thanks may be that is the problem because ... (
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You are misunderstanding hard drives and RAM memory. This happens a lot so you're not alone.
RAM memory is memory chips that you put the Windows operating system, your editing software, and your photos you are working on into. There are also a lot of little software "applets" or mini-programs hiding in the background running in the RAM memory too.
If you unplug your computer from the wall, the memory chips are "de-powered" and all of the software and photos vanish and have to be re-loaded into that temporary memory when you turn the power back on. RAM memory is NOT permanent memory, nor permanent storage. It is just an electronic "workplace" for all of your various files to go into temporarily while you are working on your computer.
Unfortunately, if you have let's say 4GB of RAM, Windows itself will start first and take as much memory as it wants. All those other little mini-programs take whatever they want next. Your editing software takes as much as it wants when you double-click it to open. So effectively most of your 4GB of temporary memory is already used before you even open a photograph file.
Now, let's talk about hard disk storage for a moment. Some people call it memory but it's not. It is an actual disk plate with a material on it that will store (retain) digital information in the form of ones and zeros when a "read/write head" puts it on there, kind of like recording a TV show on a VCR or whatever. When your information or photo file is saved there, and power goes off because you unplug the computer, the file is still on the hard drive waiting for the "read/write" head to come back later when there is power for it to move around and "read" or retrieve the file when you request it.
The file is then put into temporary RAM memory for you to see it or work on it. The hard drive is a form of "permanent" storage that does not depend on power being on to retain the information. When you got your computer new, this hard drive had your Windows operating system, some software packages, and some other stuff on it and, as you said, it was a new clean storage device ready for you to put lots and lots and lots of picture files on it. The temporary RAM memory becomes new and clean every time you turn off your computer and then is reloaded with stuff the next time you turn it on.
The message you got was about insufficient RAM temporary memory. As I said earlier, most of your RAM memory was used already by Windows, your software, and other hidden programs. If you have 12 RAW photos open, that's a seriously HUGE amount of RAM being used by all of those as well. You're probably down to almost zero RAM available. When you try to convert a RAW file to a JPG file it needs room in RAM to process the file and do a compression routine, etc. So your 12 RAW photo files are too much.
Personally, I almost never open more than one photo at a time before saving it to the hard drive. Sometimes I might compare two or three JPGs because they're much smaller than RAW files but I never work on three photos at the same time, just look at them. You never know when the town drunk a couple miles away is going to ram his pickup truck into a power pole and cause power outage for miles around. Anything you're working on in temporary RAM memory at that moment is GONE FOREVER - except the file that is on your hard drive which is unaffected by power outage.
Even that one could be ruined too because your computer was in the midst of saving (writing) the file to hard drive when the power outage happened. That's one reason we save the original file from the camera and never save edited versions under the same name. At least you still have a chance that the original is still on the hard drive while your edited version might be ruined. It's also the reason you want to back up to CD, DVD, USB travel disk, or another hard drive. If the original file is destroyed because your hard drive was destroyed, there are other copies elsewhere.
This explanation is far too long for this forum. If you still don't understand or want more explanation, Private Message me and I'll work with you. I used to teach this in adult education so I am willing to help you out.