I'm sure at some point I'll download and install more mods than the one's I have right now but last night I pretty much finished modding the game to the point where I want it. I have all the graphical mods installed, gameplay mods, etc. that may the game so much more alive and real. But there is one issue/topic that remains confusing to me and despite my attempts (yes, I've tried) to read or watch videos to understand what I'm talking about, it has failed. And I need some more help and a better understanding of a couple things.

What I'm talking about, as the title of the thread suggests has to do particularly with the memory patch. I've watched Gopher's videos on this and have a good sense for what the memory patch actually does. And while I've only had one legitimate crash so far I still would like to have it (the memory patch). But here's where my confusion is.

Originally I was under the impression that the ENB, Real Vision had the memory patch included in it. And since I have that ENB preset running I thought I had the patch. That, to my understanding now, is wrong. The patch is packed in the latest version of SKSE 1.7 (alpha) which I have. However, and I posted this on Gopher's YouTube page, in order to activate the patch and make it work we need to edit the .ini file inside the SKSE folder (which is located in the data folder). Herein lies the problem. I don't have an SKSE folder in my data folder. It doesn't exist. That is until I literally created a new folder there and named it "SKSE." After that I created an .ini file (as shown in Gopher's video) and added the necessary lines that should extend the memory and essentially make the patch work.

My question ultimately is twofold. First, why did I not have the SKSE folder in my data file to begin with? And two, is creating a folder in the manner (and the .ini file) okay to do?

As I've said a million times now thanks for all the people that have taken time to answer my questions, especially Jackstarr. Your patience is greatly appreciated and your explanations are thorough and applicable. I don't see any other way to play open-world role playing games ever again than on an PC. I'm a recent convert (long-time console gamer) who has had a very good experience thus far with PC games and modding.

ENBoost is not the same thing as Sheson's Memory Patch. You need both

ENBoost allows your graphics card to use more of its vram, taking the load off your system ram, and helping to prevent you from reaching the 3.1gb system ram limit.

Sheson's Memory patch allows blocks of memory to be allocated correctly, preventing CTDs when the 2nd block is reached.

Two separate bugs, and two separate fixes.

I thought that the installer also created that folder, but I may be wrong on that. The folder is not actually needed unless you have SKSE mods with their own dll files, or unless (as now) you need to edit the ini file. SKSE plug-ins such as Ely's Uncapper will create that folder for you when you install.

First off though. make sure SKSE itself is installed correctly - If you have a few files prefixed with skse in your Skyrim directory (not Data, but the main Skyrim folder) then it's installed fine, and you did the right thing by creating the folder.

I'm also going to complicate matters further here - on top of ENBoost and Sheson's Memory Patch, there's a 3rd patch that is worth looking into - http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/41592. It's advertised as helping with increased uGrids, but as the author explains, fixes another engine bug with the way cells are rendered and thus is recommended even if not using increased uGrids:

If you want things to be a bit more simpler you could download SKSE 1.6 and then use http://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/50305/? which basically gives you the memory patch but handled in a different way but equates the same effect.

I have SKSE files in my Skyrim folder so I think I'm good. And I think it would be apparent if I didn't have SKSE properly installed because certain mods that I've installed would not work correctly (at least I don't think they would). It even says the version of SKSE in the pause menu, so I think I'm good there. As far as the folder, Gopher's video makes it look as though the SKSE folder is installed upon loading, but I used the installer rather than the method he shows in the video. I guess I'm alright there. The only thing that concerns me is that in his folder (in the video) when he goes into his SKSE folder under his data folder he has a subfolder in there (inside the SKSE folder) titled plugins. I have no such folder because I created the SKSE folder in the first place. I hope all that makes sense, I know I used the word folder about a dozen times in two sentences.

So would you recommend that install Sheson's patch or do you think I'm fine with just having created the .ini file in the SKSE folder I created?

Lastly, I appreciate the advice on the third a patch but I have absolutely no plans to increase my uGrids to load. I feel like that's something I am not ready to mess with and really wouldn't give me any added benefit where I am now. The game (to me) looks absolutely amazing. I have all the mods I've wanted for so long but couldn't get because I was playing on the 360. It truly is like an entirely new experience and the only regret is that I didn't make the switch earlier. But when I think about it maybe it's a good thing. Because coming into Skyrim on PC after it's been out for over two years I get the benefit of many, many hours (and really years) of thoroughly tested mods.

But I will consider the third mod since you said that it has benefits even without the uGrids to Load being changed. I'll look into it more.