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   [ The PC Guide | Systems and Components Reference Guide | System
   Memory | Memory Technology Types ]
   
   Random Access Memory (RAM)
   
   The kind of memory used for holding programs and data being executed
   is called random access memory or RAM. RAM differs from read-only
   memory (ROM) in that it can be both read and written. It is considered
   volatile storage because unlike ROM, the contents of RAM are lost when
   the power is turned off. RAM is also sometimes called read-write
   memory or RWM. This is actually a much more precise name, so of course
   it is hardly ever used. :^) It's a better name because calling RAM
   "random access" implies to some people that ROM isn't random access,
   which is not true. RAM is called "random access" because earlier
   read-write memories were sequential and did not allow random access.
   Sometimes old acronyms persist even when they don't make much sense
   any more (e.g., the "AT" in the old IBM AT stands for "advanced
   technology" :^) ).

   Obviously, RAM needs to be writeable in order for it to do its job of
   holding programs and data that you are working on. The volatility of
   RAM also means that you risk losing what you are working on unless you
   save it frequently.

   RAM is much faster than ROM is, due to the nature of how it stores
   information. This is why RAM is often used to shadow the BIOS ROM to
   improve performance when executing BIOS code. There are many different
   types of RAMs, including static RAM (SRAM) and many flavors of dynamic
   RAM (DRAM).

   [navfwd.gif] Next: Static RAM (SRAM)
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