Computer systems are a combination of both hardware and software working together. Hardware is the physical components of a computer and software is the programs that run on a computer.
RAMRandom access memory. This is volatile memory that is constantly being written to and read from. It does not retain its contents without a constant supply of power. When a computer is turned off, everything stored in its RAM is lost. is volatile main memoryThe part of a computer that stores data.. This means that once the computer is switched off, the dataUnits of information. In computing there can be different data types, including integers, characters and Boolean. Data is often acted on by instructions. and instructionA single action that can be performed by a computer processor. held in RAM are lost. RAM is given the term 鈥渞andom access鈥 because data can be stored and accessed from any location within the memory.
RAM is used to hold data and programSequences of instructions for a computer. that are currently in use. In a modern PC, RAM is used to hold the operating system and any open documents and programs that are running.
The contents of RAM can be changed at any time, simply by overwriting them with other data and instructions. For example, a user might close one document and open a second, or run a different program.
The more RAM a computer has, the more data and programs it can hold simultaneously. RAM can also be upgraded fairly easily, unlike other types of main memory.
Question
How does ROM differ from RAM?
ROM is read only and non-volatile. RAM can be read from and written to and is volatile.