RAM usage?

[Fewmets]

How much RAM should an idle computer running the 32-bit version of Vista, w/ sidebar and aero interface, be using? Mine is using 25-30% (of 3.5GB detected by Vista), whether I use Objectdock or not. Does this seem right, or does it seem that there are unneccesary programs running in the backround (my speed isn't really affected, but I am curious)?

Also, when running a game (e.g. COD4, Bioschock), I opt to close the sidebar and any dock I am running - will this help boost the game's performance?

[Jalf]

Ideally? Something between 97 and 100%, I'd say.

And yes, Vista does put otherwise unused RAM to use storing recently used files and other stuff. As you've noticed, it doesn't affect performance adversely (but helps load times quite a lot in some cases)

As for closing the sidebar? Depends, you need to look at CPU rather than memory usage for that.
Any memory they consume will just get pushed to the pagefile if necessary, so that won't make a difference. But if it's ticking away at 20% CPU in the background, that will hurt.

[Eleison]

If you notice your system running slow, turning off the sidebar and dock will certainly help boost performance, just like disabling the Aero interface and Windows Prefetch will help boost performance (although you'll be right back to XP-level loading times). Unless you've got a ****e system, though, you probably won't be able to notice much difference between having those items enabled and having them disabled.