Macbook 2009 takes 8GB max RAM !!! (or NOT)

UPDATE I recieved a Response from OWC, I am very glad for their input and can only recommend you stick to their recommendation of 6GB, here is their response:

“Here’s the scoop….

Yes – all of the models that take DDR2 and which we support 6GB on (4GB + 2GB) will allow 8GB installed and show it too.

But – there is a problem… As soon as you actually are using more than 6GB or thereabouts of physical memory active, the performance nose dives. Doesn’t crash, but the operational performance plunges. This is why we have maintained the 6GB maximum. With 6GB installed, it’s within the limits of the controller/chipset and no issues + the slow down that occurs when you start to actually utilize more than 6GB in active app space also gives the benefit to 6GB vs. 8GB anyway.”

     Long time no see, 2 months since my last posting, couldn’t find this anywhere else online so I thought it warranted a posting. My early 2009 Macbook (Macbook 5,2 2ghz) apparently supports 8gb of ram (shown in Activity Monitor). In my case it reads 8gb, but if OWC, Mactracker and Everymac are right it should read only 6gb. For example I have a C2D iMac (iMac 5,1), it supports 3gb of RAM but has 4gb installed, so Activity Monitor only shows 3gb. The RAM I used is CORSAIR VS8GSDSKIT800D2. To the right is a screenshot showing my Macbooks details and memory usage. At the top of the post I have shown OWC’s response to my query and can only recommend you stick to their advised 6GB (though I am tempted to try it out for awhile).

     Just as an FYI I am not really an SSD guy, but I do believe in upgrading HDDs and usually upgrade once a year, this years upgrade is a 750GB WD Scorpio Black and it performs wonderfully; enough to put off upgrading for now (I am dying to get my hands on FW800 & Thunderbolt though). I never used my Macbooks stock HDD, WD Scorpio Blue 500gb, 750gb and now black 750gb. Until SSD capacity hits 1TB and I have external transfer speeds practical enough to make fresh mirror backups once a week & reliability is proven I am sticking to mechanical storage. In terms of reliability and overall performance Intel’s 600GB SSD looks pretty good (not the fastest performer but Intel has been proven to be reliable). OWC also has some very enticing offerings especially for more performance oriented setups.

     UPDATE I have contacted OWC Everymac & Barefeats. OWC an expert source for performance oriented computer upgrades (especially for Macs) and once they certify something for a platform and offer it for sale it is a guarantee on getting your monies worth. Barefeats is a performance bencmark Mac focused site. Everymac is a Apple/Mac centric specification database and guide. All 3 are quite well respected and hopefully I can get a nod or confirmation from one of them. I have recieved a response from OWC (shown at the top), I hope Everymac will add the info th their FAQ as well in case of future misinformation from people like me.

Diary of a fatman: DOF 102

About DOF DOF entry number 102 maybe the last (at least for some time). My weight loss has currently stalled and my workout program has been completely changed to a less quantifiable one. At the moment I have been doing Aikido twice a week and try to run once a week if I can (so far I have been). So with the lack of any real progress (actually I think my weight is going up because of the muscle gain in my legs). Anyway it is a good workout, I am doing Yoshinka Aikido which is a hard style, I’m finding quite exhausting. On other evenings I am doing language lessons so I am keeping my mind and body in check. Anyway if your interested in Aikido Yoshinkan click on this link or this link. If your interested in Berlitz to learn a language click here or here. Also Casshern Sins sucks.

Week ending Stats : about 35.5″ 88kgs.

Pic of the week : Um yeah nevermind.

Diary of a fatman: DOF 100 101

As usual all calorie burn as per machine display unless I say otherwise (without age or weight). Late posting as usual.

Sun 20/02/11

Mon 21/02/11

Tue 22/02/11 400 cals after 33 minutes on bike (196 watts), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Wed 23/02/11

Thu 24/02/11 500 cals after 40 minutes on rowing machine.

Fri 25/02/11

Sat 26/02/11



Sun 27/02/11

Mon 28/02/11

Tue 01/03/11 400 cals after 34 minutes on bike (190 watts), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Wed 02/03/11

Thu 03/03/11 500 cals after 40 minutes on rowing machine.

Fri 04/03/11

Sat 05/03/11 360 cals after 40 minutes on treadmill (4.5km @ 6% gradient), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Weekly summary :For reference 30kg (bar + 22kg) 3×12 bench press (@-5 +5 +15º) 2×3 reverse curls 2×5 curls (1×10 light weight for reverse and normal curls). Crunches x50, leg raises x30, twisting crunch x35 per side, squats 3×12.

Week ending Stats : about 35.5″ 87kgs.

Pic of the week : Um yeah nevermind.

Diary of a fatman: DOF 98 99

As usual all calorie burn as per machine display unless I say otherwise (without age or weight). Late posting as usual but at least there is progress . With the new year comes the long overdue revision of my workout, also I need to get into some sports, I have a couple of weeks off so its a good time to get started, as it stands I’m probably staying at 3 workouts a week, weight when I do the treadmill and bike and with the rowing machine do rope and yoga. Hopefully this year will be the last I have to be so hard on my self (foodwise)

Sun 06/03/11

Mon 07/03/11

Tue 08/02/11 400 cals after 34 minutes on bike (190 watts), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Wed 09/02/11

Thu 10/02/11 360 cals after 40 minutes on treadmill (4.5km @ 6% gradient), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Fri 11/02/11

Sat 12/02/11 500 cals after 40 minutes on rowing machine.



Sun 13/03/11

Mon 14/03/11 360 cals after 40 minutes on treadmill (4.5km @ 6% gradient), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Tue 15/02/11

Wed 16/02/11

Thu 17/02/11 400 cals after 34 minutes on bike (190 watts), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Fri 18/02/11

Sat 19/02/11 500 cals after 40 minutes on rowing machine.

Weekly summary :For reference 30kg (bar + 22kg) 3×12 bench press (@-5 +5 +15º) 2×3 reverse curls 2×5 curls (1×10 light weight for reverse and normal curls). Crunches x50, leg raises x30, twisting crunch x35 per side, squats 3×12.

Week ending Stats : just under 36″ just over 87kgs. Well moving in the right direction again, should see some improvement over the next few months I hope.

Pic of the week : Um yeah nevermind.

Diary of a fatman: DOF 94 95 96 97

As usual all calorie burn as per machine display unless I say otherwise (without age or weight). Late posting as usual but at least there is progress . With the new year comes the long overdue revision of my workout, also I need to get into some sports, I have a couple of weeks off so its a good time to get started, as it stands I’m probably staying at 3 workouts a week, weight when I do the treadmill and bike and with the rowing machine do rope and yoga. Hopefully this year will be the last I have to be so hard on my self (foodwise)

Sun 09/01/11

Mon 10/01/11 400 cals after 34 minutes on bike (190 watts), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Tue 11/01/11

Wed 12/01/11 500 cals after 45 minutes on rowing machine.

Thu 13/01/11

Fri 14/01/11 360 cals after 40 minutes on treadmill (4.5km @ 6% gradient), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Sat 15/01/11



Sun 16/01/11

Mon 17/01/11 400 cals after 34 minutes on bike (190 watts), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Tue 18/01/11

Wed 19/01/11 500 cals after 43 minutes on rowing machine (),.

Thu 20/01/11

Fri 21/01/11 360 cals after 40 minutes on treadmill (4.5km @ 6% gradient), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Sat 22/01/11



Sun 23/01/11

Mon 24/01/11 400 cals after 34 minutes on bike (190 watts), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Tue 25/01/11

Wed 26/01/11 500 cals after 40 minutes on rowing machine (),.

Thu 27/01/11

Fri 28/01/11 360 cals after 40 minutes on treadmill (4.5km @ 6% gradient), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Sat 29/01/11



Sun 30/01/11

Mon 31/01/11

Tue 01/02/11 400 cals after 34 minutes on bike (190 watts), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Wed 02/02/11 500 cals after 41 minutes on rowing machine (),.

Thu 03/02/11

Fri 04/02/11 360 cals after 40 minutes on treadmill (4.5km @ 6% gradient), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Sat 05/02/11

Weekly summary :For reference 30kg (bar + 22kg) 3 sets x13 bench press x3 reverse curls x4 curls. Crunches x30+4kg, leg raises x30, twisting crunch x35 per side, squats 3×13.

Week ending Stats : 36″ 88kgs. Not gaining muscle gaining fat . Lacking motivation (need …something special).

Pic of the week : Next update, really I have a new toy to show off.

Diary of a fatman: DOF 93

As usual all calorie burn as per machine display unless I say otherwise (without age or weight). Late posting as usual but at least there is progress . With the new year comes the long overdue revision of my workout, also I need to get into some sports, I have a couple of weeks off so its a good time to get started, as it stands I’m probably staying at 3 workouts a week, weight when I do the treadmill and bike and with the rowing machine do rope and yoga. Hopefully this year will be the last I have to be so hard on my self (foodwise). First week was more or less a week off, food and exercise.

Sun 02/01/11

Mon 03/01/11 400 cals after 34 minutes on bike (190 watts), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Tue 04/01/11

Wed 05/01/11 360 cals after 40 minutes on treadmill (4.5km @ 6% gradient), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Thu 06/01/11

Fri 07/01/11 230 cals after 20 minutes on bike (190 watts), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches. (Strap broken).

Sat 08/01/11



Weekly summary :For reference 30kg (bar + 22kg) 3 sets x13 bench press x3 reverse curls x4 curls. Crunches x30+4kg, leg raises x30, twisting crunch x35 per side, squats 3×13.

Week ending Stats : 35.5″ 87kgs. Have a good tape measure and clothes fit fine so I guess I might be gaining muscle (though strength gains are lacking)

Pic of the week : Why do I keep this section?

Diary of a fatman: DOF 88 89 90 91 92

As usual all calorie burn as per machine display unless I say otherwise (without age or weight). Late posting as usual but at least there is progress .



Sun 28/11/10

Mon 29/11/10 400 cals after 34 minutes on bike (190 watts), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Tue 30/11/10

Wed 01/12/10

Thu 02/12/10 360 cals after 41 minutes on treadmill (4.5km @ 6% gradient), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Fri 03/12/10

Sat 04/12/10



Sun 05/12/10

Mon 06/12/10 400 cals after 34 minutes on bike (196 watts), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Tue 07/12/10

Wed 08/12/10

Thu 09/12/10 360 cals after 40 minutes on treadmill (4.5km @ 6% gradient), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Fri 10/12/10

Sat 11/12/10



Sun 12/12/10

Mon 13/12/10

Tue 14/12/10 400 cals after 34 minutes on bike (196 watts), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Wed 15/12/10

Thu 16/12/10 360 cals after 40 minutes on treadmill (4.5km @ 6% gradient), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Fri 17/12/10

Sat 18/12/10



Sun 19/12/10 360 cals after 40 minutes on treadmill (4.5km @ 6% gradient), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Mon 20/12/10

Tue 21/12/10

Wed 22/12/10 360 cals after 40 minutes on treadmill (4.5km @ 6% gradient), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Thu 23/12/10

Fri 24/12/10

Sat 25/12/10 360 cals after 40 minutes on treadmill (4.5km @ 6% gradient), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.



Sun 26/12/10

Mon 27/12/10 360 cals after 40 minutes on treadmill (4.5km @ 6% gradient), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Tue 28/12/10

Wed 29/12/10 400 cals after 34 minutes on bike (196 watts), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Thu 30/12/10

Fri 31/12/10 360 cals after 40 minutes on treadmill (4.5km @ 6% gradient), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Sat 01/12/10



Weekly summary :For reference 30kg (bar + 22kg) 3 sets x12 bench press x4 reverse curls x4 curls. Crunches x60, leg raises x30, twisting crunch x35 per side, squats 3×13.

Week ending Stats : 36″ 86.5kgs.

Pic of the week : No move Happy new year.

Diary of a fatman: DOF 86 87

As usual all calorie burn as per machine display unless I say otherwise (without age or weight). Late posting as usual but at least there is progress .



Sun 14/11/10

Mon 15/11/10 360 cals after 41 minutes on treadmill (4.5km @ 6% gradient), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Tue 16/11/10

Wed 17/11/10 400 cals after 34 minutes on bike (190 watts), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Thu 18/11/10 360 cals after 41 minutes on treadmill (4.5km @ 6% gradient), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Fri 19/11/10

Sat 20/11/10



Sun 21/11/10

Mon 22/11/10

Tue 23/11/10

Wed 24/11/10 400 cals after 34 minutes on bike (196 watts), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches. Exhausted no sleep.

Thu 25/11/10

Fri 26/11/10 360 cals after 40 minutes on treadmill (4.5km @ 6% gradient), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Sat 27/11/10



Weekly summary :For reference 30kg (bar + 22kg) 3 sets x12 bench press x4 reverse curls x4 curls. Crunches x70, leg raises x30, twisting crunch x35 per side, squats 3×13. Extremely depressed, I am obviously meant to die single.

Week ending Stats : 36″ 86.5kgs (both barely).

Pic of the week : No groove.

Diary of a fatman: DOF 85

As usual all calorie burn as per machine display unless I say otherwise (without age or weight). Late posting as usual but at least there is progress .

Sun 07/11/10 400 cals after 34 minutes on bike (190 watts), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Mon 08/11/10

Tue 09/11/10

Wed 10/11/10 360 cals after 41 minutes on treadmill (4.5km @ 6% gradient), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches.

Thu 11/11/10

Fri 12/11/10

Sat 13/11/10 400 cals after 33 minutes on bike (196 watts), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches. Exhausted no sleep.



Weekly summary :For reference 30kg (bar + 22kg) 3 sets x13 bench press x3 reverse curls x4 curls. Crunches x70, leg raises x30, twisting crunch x35 per side, squats 3×13. Not bad I guess, need to sleep more think of the girl ,who I found out is single and which I really dig for no reason, less. Ahhh demo shoujo totemo kawai. Rejection is hard, especially when it is there because it is not there :’( .

Week ending Stats : 36ish”? 87.5kgs. Still need a tape measure very very badly.

Pic of the week : No vibe

Diary of a fatman: DOF 82 83 84

As usual all calorie burn as per machine display unless I say otherwise (without age or weight). Late posting as usual but at least there is progress .

Sun 17/10/10

Mon 18/10/10 200 cals after 17 minutes on bike (190 watts) too tired.

Tue 19/10/10 200 cals after 17 minutes on bike (190 watts) bad week.

Wed 20/10/10

Thu 21/10/10

Fri 22/10/10 360 cals after 41 minutes on treadmill (4.5km @ 6% gradient), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches. Too few reps.

Sat 23/10/10



Sun 24/10/10

Mon 25/10/10 400 cals after 34 minutes on bike (190 watts). No weights no energy no time.

Tue 26/10/10

Wed 27/10/10 360 cals after 41 minutes on treadmill (4.5km @ 6% gradient). Again no weights

Thu 28/10/10

Fri 29/10/10 400 cals after 34 minutes on bike (190 watts), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches. Still less reps than I should do.

Sat 30/10/10



Sun 31/10/10

Mon 01/11/10 360 cals after 41 minutes on treadmill (4.5km @ 6% gradient), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches. Good workout, on track.

Tue 02/11/10 400 cals after 33 minutes on bike (196 watts), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches. Success.

Wed 03/11/10

Thu 04/11/10 360 cals after 41 minutes on treadmill (4.5km @ 6% gradient), benchpress, curls, squats, crunches. All this weeks workouts were good, YAY FINALLY.

Fri 05/11/10

Sat 06/11/10



Weekly summary :For reference 28kg (bar + 20kg) 3 sets x5 curls, x5 reverse curls & x13 bench press. Crunches x70, leg raises x30, twisting crunch x35 per side, squats 3×13. Totally back up to spec and running better than ever. Maybe I manage 85 by the years end (insha’ Allah).

Week ending Stats : 36ish”? 87.5kgs. Need a tape measure badly.

Pic of the week : No time