Windows 7 memory overload that wasn't

Earlier this week, a number of websites carried reports of how Windows 7 machines are running "alarmingly low" on memory. These sites basically cite statistics provided by Craig Barth, CTO of Devil Mountain Software, that 86 percent of workstations running on Windows 7 are running at 90-95 percent of memory utilization. Devil Mountain Software is a company that does performance monitoring software, and the statistics were obtained from community members who download a free performance tool.

My initial reaction when I first saw the report was skepticism, because I am infinitely happier with Windows 7 than I was with any earlier versions of Windows. I also recall reading about Microsoft engineers saying "free" memory is wasteful, since it doesn't really do anything in particular.

I wasn't the only one who felt that way, apparently. Peter Bright of Ars Technica actually downloaded the XPnet performance monitoring tool to try it himself. Well, Bright found that while the tool performed correctly in reporting "free" memory, the missing link actually resides within "available" memory, which the tool conveniently ignores.

"The important number is not free, but available [memory]" Bright wrote. "The available memory includes both memory that is free, and memory that can be trivially made available, and this figure is far more representative of the true amount of memory available to applications."

Taken this way, it is clear that attempting to track the amount of "free" memory alone is useless. Is it a genuine oversight though, or another case of Microsoft bashing in order to generate publicity?

For more on this story:
- check out this article at Ars Technica 

Related Articles:
Windows 8 development is well under way
No battery-related problems found in Windows 7, says Microsoft
Microsoft investigates Windows 7 battery life complaints
A behind-the-scenes look at Windows 7 changes
Hackers outwit Windows 7 activation process