I am not saying stop the services, just stop them on start up. They should still start when you want them. Do they need to run all the time, or just when you need them.
Example, when I reformat, the first thing I do is turn off all services. Strip the ones I do not need. Then the only ones running on start, are my AV and Antispyware, and for some reason my printer.
Another example is Quicktime, I can start using it whenever I want, but it only runs if I click on it, not all the time. Me personally, I also kill MSN messenger, big resource hog, runs all the time. I use e-mail.
By the way I am running an AMD 3500 with 2GB ram myself. And it still makes a difference.
dlewis23, I think he is trying to hit his cap, not necessarily go over it.