Brand new, built to spec desktop computer w/ 2.5 ghz amd processor, 512 megs ram and 256megs video ram on 9250 radeon pro (w/ the most recent driver).
I have computer games, all of which have recommended specs lower that these. Like Escape from butcher's bay, Area 51, Stolen, etc.
They all have different problems.
Area 51, the video responds perfectly, but the gameplay, even at the lowest resolution, occasionally slows down.
Stolen, the video jumps skips and has a merry old time, no matter the resolution, but the gameplay is perfectly fine.
What gives?

Geez, I waited so long to be able to afford this computer and now one of its raison d'existences turns out not to work!

ARGGGGHHHHH.
Thanks in advance!

I think that a good thing to do is add some more RAM memory. 512 MB are really borderline. You need at least 1 GB, better if 2 GB

With AMD 3400, what type should I get? I keep finding 3200 and backwards compatible ram, but not 3400.
Should I just get another 512 mb?
Or a consolidated 1gb? - REMEMBER- JUST GOT PC, DON'T HAVE MUCH MONEY FREE.
Thanks!

The bottleneck on your system is the 9250 Raedon. Your processor is good for gaming. Depending on your videocard, you may only have a 64-bit or 128-bit memory interface. You need 256-bit memory interface or better for gaming. Instead of upgrading ram, It would be a better to get a 256-bit memory interface video card. If you're on a tight budget you might want something like this LINK or I suggest going on eBay and find a X800XL/XT/PE Raedon card. The only thing it is missing is SM 3.0. Off the top of my head I can only name two games that use SM 3.0. Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas and Splinter Cell Double Agent.

Other than that, the X800 series still have some real raw power with it's 256-bit memory interface. That makes the difference between the X1600 Radeons and the X800 series Raedons. The X800 series performs better than the X1600's and closely matches performance with the X1950 Pro series. The X1950 Pro only has more pixel shaders (36 of them) and 4 less pixel pipelines than the X800 series cards. The only thing the X1950 Pro's will improve on are games that are shader intensive. This is where the X800 series craps out at, in shader intensive games the X800 slows down behind the X1950 Pro.

But in a majority of games the X800 runs close to the X1950 Pro. As for nVidia cards with 256-bit memory interfaces, they may be out of your budget ( I don't know what your budget is). Most of their lower end cards are only 128-bit memory interface. If you want an nVidia card then the link I provided above is the cheapest 256-bit memory I could find. Otherwise you will have to try your luck on eBay. So save up and get a better card and grab an extra 512MB of ram when you get the chance to.

what about this one?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ATI-Radeon-9800-...QQcmdZViewItem

or this one?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ATI-Radeon-x1950...QQcmdZViewItem

And seriously, concerning the ram, which I can definitelty afford, what type should I get? I heard some operate at different speeds, and first, I don't know how to discover the speed of my current ram, and second, I want to buy something I know won't cause problems.

What processor and board do you have? You can find out by using this program CPUZ and it will give you information about your PC. The 9800 Raedon card is an AGP card and the X1950 Pro is a PCIE card. The fastest ram for DDR1 is PC3200. It would help if you gave your system's specs.

Using Everest, I generated this:
http://www.filefactory.com/file/4c0d6f/
downloadable .txt file- it was too long to post.

http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-NVIDIA-GEFOR...QQcmdZViewItem
how about this one?

Ouch! You have AGP with an AMD64 CPU. The best you can do is X1950 Pro AGP but that is too expensive and there are better options; you can also do X800 but that's pricey as well because you pay a premium with AGP. There is not much of a demand for AGP video cards anymore so to get an AGP you will have to pay about 40-60% extra over for the same model in PCI-E form. You might want to take a look at the 9600XT's or the 9800XT's on eBay if you're on a tight budget. The Geforce FX series aren't that great compared to the Raedon 9600/9800 series. However if you still insist on getting a X1950 Pro AGP, I would just do this

1. Grab another S939 board from NewEgg.com that has a PCI-E slot
2. Grab 1GB pair of DDR1 PC3200 ram from here 1GB PC3200 or you can grab another 512MB PC2100 stick to match your existing ram stick
3. Find a X800 PCI-E here X800

Otherwise if you're short on cash do this:

1. Buy another 512MB PC2100 ram stick here PC 2100 Sticks
2. Grab a cheap X800 AGP here eBay

and you will be good to go. The reason I say to consider the first choice is because you can't find 939 boards anymore, once they're gone they're gone. The 939 CPU you have still has plenty of processing power for you to use. Your current motherboard has AGP, if you decide to upgrade videocards later, you will have slim to no chance a new card is coming in AGP format. And if it does come out in AGP, you will more than likely pay 40-60% more than a PCI-E version of it because they will not mass produce AGP models. The 2nd choice is good if you're on a tight budget. In the long run, the first choice will be better if you decide to upgrade your videocard again later.

I got a fairly cheap ($100) x800 agp off ebay; will any model of ram, as long as it is pc2100, do? I mean, will it be compatible with what I already have?

Thanks!

Typically any PC 2100 DDR ram will work fine with your motherboard. But some motherboards are really pissy about what type of ram you put in. You shouldn't have a problem buying another PC 2100 stick of ram though. I went through 20+ PC builds without a problem with ram. It's not something I would worry too much about.

Thanks so much! Onward and Upward we slowly march!