Ipad 2, 16 gig, memory issues

[accessnubie]

Recently got iPad 2, 16 gig. Seems like it usually runs low on memory (usually under 15%, often as little as 5% according to the app System Status). I usually have about 5 websites open in safari, yahoo messenger , ipad forums,maybe my photos or the app store and the system status app. I've done the hard boot. Not sure why its so low on memory. Im only using 8% of storage space.

My brother has a 32 gig iPad, had about 12 apps running, never did a hard boot and had 25% memory free. Any ideas what gives? Thank you.

 

[accessnubie]

Forgot to mention that the hard boot did free up memory, bt then it fills back up again. Thanks.

 

[leelai]

Websites on Safari could be the culprit here, they can take up oodles of space. Close safari down and have a look. But close it totally in the multi task bar. Do the four finger swipe up or double tap the home button to reveal your bar along the bottom and it will show all the apps you have opened. Press one until it jiggles and a red minus sign will appear on all of them. Press the minus signs and this will close, not delete, the app completely.

Sent from my iPad using iPF

 

[Tip]

Websites on Safari could be the culprit here, they can take up oodles of space. Close safari down and have a look. But close it totally in the multi task bar. Do the four finger swipe up or double tap the home button to reveal your bar along the bottom and it will show all the apps you have opened. Press one until it jiggles and a red minus sign will appear on all of them. Press the minus signs and this will close, not delete, the app completely.

Sent from my iPad using iPF

Try using different browser.

 

[twerppoet]

Unless it is actually causing you problems with the iPad, ignore it. The iPad will free this memory back up as it needs it. There are a few exceptions, mostly with apps the do a poor job of requesting memory; but for the most part the iPad, especially the iPad 2, doesn't benefit from constant fiddling with the memory.

As Leelai said, how much RAM gets filled depends entirely on what apps and sites you use, and how much data you may use with those sites. It's going to vary tremendously from user to user.

You can get an idea of what kind of data a site is using by going to Settings > Safari > Advanced > Website Data. This is actually a catch in storage, not RAM, but (I'm guessing) it should be proportional to how much RAM the site will gobble if it is available. Well, besides the general data cache needed to display data more quickly.

You can also clear your Cookies and Data to see how much Safari is tucking away. Just be prepared to log in to all your sites again, since cookies are how a site does it's 'remember' me thing. This also clears all the Web Site I just talked about.

 

[jsh1120]

What he (twerppoet) said. Unless you are experiencing sluggish operation, pay no attention to the amount of free memory. That's what your OS is paid to manage. Unfortunately, there is a considerable amount of confusion over "memory" issues. And the confusion is not reduced by the fact that Apple intentionally confuses "memory" with "data storage" in their descriptions.

The iPad 2 has 512K of RAM (random access memory.) Think of this as a room full of 512 chairs. Or in the case of the iPad 1 256 chairs. When an app runs the CPU accesses the apps memory (chairs.) When the app isn't running, the app continues to "sit" in the chairs as long as there is room for other apps to come in and sit down. If an app comes in (is called) and there are not enough chairs for it, the OS asks one of the apps that is just taking up space to leave and come back later when it is actually called.

It's all somewhat more complicated than this simple analogy. Some apps continue to run (i.e. use cpu cycles) in the background. But the iOS allows only a few such apps (e.g. music). And apps may continue to occupy a few chairs while they're "suspended." In such cases most of the RAM an a running app occupied is vacated while leaving a few chairs occupied that define its state when it stopped running.

But as twerppoet notes, some apps need many many "chairs" in RAM to hold their data. Safari is an especially profligate and greedy seat occupier. And if you use your browser a lot, the OS will decide to ask other apps to leave before it disturbs the web browser. So clearing data and cache from a browser may be a good idea if your performance deteriorates. (This is because your CPU can't do what you want it to do because the OS is too busy rearranging chairs and handling traffic in and out of RAM.)

 

[twerppoet]

Heh. I like the chair analogy. I've never heard it put that way.

"Hey you, yeah you Mr. Angry Birds. Get the heck out of that seat. Can't you see that poor Pregnancy Calc? What kind of bird brain makes a pregnant lady stand?

Yeah? Well I don't care how angry you are. Take this pointy cap and go standby over in the corner. We'll call you when the guy with the slingshot fetish comes back.

Mutter mutter, darn game apps, mutter, a few months on the top ten list and their overheads get all swollen."

 

[accessnubie]

Thank v much for all the feedback, it's v much appreciated! I've been using PCs/windows for past 15 years so this is a whole new world for me.

This problem came up because I was using an app I downloaded called Perfect Browser which kept displaying low memory warning notifications. I'm not using the app any more.

I did check settings, safari, advanced screen. I see that m.mg. mail.yahoo.com is the biggest culprit utilizing 2.7 mg, and help.apple.com 2nd largest at 1.4mb.

I think my 2 big pet peeves right now r not having up/down, left/right keys on keyboard and no vertical scroll bar in safari. I just found out that tapping the status at top of screen in safari jumps u back to top of website. I was going nuts trying to figure out how to do that.

Thanks again!

 

[twerppoet]

No problem. Glad to help. You'll get used to the gestures and other tricks. In the end they aren't any harder than the old way, they just take getting used to.

A tip t help with the lack of arrow keys: To move the cursor when editing, tap and hold near where you want it. A magnifying glass will pop up letting you more accurately drag the cursor into position.

 

[leelai]

Have a look at this thread it will give you many tips and tricks to make life more enjoyable on the iPad
http://www.ipadforums.net/ipad-general-discussions/21590-tips-tricks-those-us-who-dont-know.html

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