Flashcards
Chapter 2 - Memory and Storage
Cards in this deck (18)
- 1RAMShort for Random Access Memory.
The place in memory where all current programs and data in use are stored. - 2ROMShort for Read Only Memory.
The place in memory where the 'boot up' programs are stored. - 3Hard diskA type of magnetic storage device inside a computer that is used to store data long-term.
- 4Solid-state-storageA type of flash memory storage device used to store data long term.
- 5Flash MemoryA type of non-volatile memory (retains information even without any power)
Flash memory can be found in devices such as;
USB Sticks
SD cards
Solid-state drives (SSD) - 6Virtual memoryVirtual memory is a feature of the operating system. It is a way of allowing the hard disk in the computer to act as an extension of RAM by allowing (called pages) of data to be stored in the hard disk.
- 7PagingSeparating data into sections called pages and switching the storage of them between RAM and virtual memory depending on how often they are used.
- 8Secondary StorageRefers to any storage - either internal or external to a computer - that is not under the direct control of the CPU.
There are 3 types of secondary storage: optical, magnetic and solid-state. - 9Optical StorageUses a lens and a light beam to read and write data onto a disk.
- 10Advantages and disadvantages of Optical StorageDisks are small and light making them very portable.
Disks are cheap to manufacture.
Disks are fairly durable, meaning that they are safe to store data on for long periods of times.
Some formats, such as CD-R and DVD-R, mean that data cannot be overwritten.
The storage capacity of disks is relatively small compared to other storage devices. - 11Magnetic storageMagnetic Storage devices use magnets to record data on rotating metal plates.
- 12Advantages and disadvantages of Magnetic StorageLarge storage capacity
Fast access to read and write data
Fairly inexpensive to manufacture
Data can be lost or altered by magnetic field or mechanical problems.
Can suffer wear and tear due to moving parts. - 13Sold-state storageUses flash memories to store data
- 14Advantages and disadvantages of solid-state storageFaster boot-up as they do not need to 'warm up' duet to having no moving parts.
Can be made to be very compact in size
Large storage capacity
More robust than magnetic due to having no moving parts
Expensive to manufacture
Have a limited number of times that data can be written to and read from - 15Characteristics of secondary storage devicesCapacity - the amount of data we can store on the device
Speed - the rate at which we can transfer data. Measured in megabits per second.
Portability - whether we need to move the data around and carry it with us.
Durability - the number of read/write operations that can be preformed before a device may fail.
Reliability - how consistent the device is when storing data and the probability of it working when required.
Cost - the cost of manufacture and sale for a device. - 16Explain the difference between RAM and ROM. [2]ROM can hold data without power and RAM cannot.
Essentially ROM is meant for permanent storage, and RAM is for temporary memory. - 17Describe the characteristics of flash memory. [2]Flash memory has no moving parts so it tends to be more robust than a hard disk and is smaller in size.
Flash memory is a type of non-volatile memory (it will retain it's contents even without any power). - 18Explain why a computer needs both primary and secondary storage. [2]-----
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- Computer Science Flashcards on Chapter 2 - Memory and Storage, created by Caitlin Mulhall on 12/08/2019.
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