SysTrayMeter will display an icon in the system tray that shows both CPU and RAM usage. It is designed to have both metrics visible simultaneously in an extremely efficient visual representation.
I have on occasion received emails that would say something like: my computer has recently become unresponsive/erratic/slow, and what steps/software do you recommend to deal with the situation. I typically recommend a checklist of programs (someday I will write a detailed posting, I promise); however it is difficult to really know if these interventions are effective.
I always seem to have performance issues myself, probably due to the fact that I am constantly installing all kinds of software on my machine. However, these days I am thinking that the best way to approach performance issues is to observe what takes place within the system; specifically CPU and RAM usage. I have found SysTrayMeter to be a brilliant, small and effective tool to do just that. Here are some notes on this program:
- Displays CPU and RAM usage in a single, small yet very readable icon the system tray. You can also hover over the icon to display a more detailed tooltip.
- Color codes the different readings: green for good, red for critical, and shades of these in between.
- Takes only 1 meg of memory.
- You have to manually add this to the startup folder if you want it to start with Windows (which I recommend), or use a program like Starter.
Since I installed this I’ve been learned that my system’s memory usage was nothing like I expected it to be. I have also taken to intervening with SweepRAM, a memory optimization program that, coincidentally, is written by the same authoer as SysTrayMeter.
The bottom line is: if you have any questions about your computer’s performance, and/or if you want to be able to observe your computer’s CPU and RAM utilization at a glance, then SysTrayMeter is for you. (Thanks go to reader Fred for emailing me to let me know about this great utility).
Version tested: 0.2.0.5
Compatibility: Windows XP Sp1.
This program can be downloaded here.
