Memory

Question 1

What does RAM stand for?

Answer 1

Read Access Memory

Question 2

What does ROM stand for?

Answer 2

Read Only Memory

Question 3

What is often stored in RAM?

Answer 3

This type of memory is volatile and

all information that was stored in RAM is lost when the computer is turned off.

Question 4

What is often stored in ROM?

Answer 4

ROM is “built-in” computer memory containing data that normally can only be read, not written to.

Question 5

What happens to its RAM’s content when you turn the power off?

Answer 5

Memory is lost

Question 6

What happens to its ROM’s content when you turn the power off?

Answer 6

Nothing

Question 7

Explain why increasing the amount of RAM will improve the performance of a PC.

Answer 7

With more RAM, more of the program instructions can be loaded and there is less need to keep swapping data in and out to the swap file on the hard disk drive. The constant swapping of data slows down the speed at which applications can run, so increasing RAM will increase the speed of operation of the computer.

Question 8

Describe what happens to a computer system when RAM becomes full.

Answer 8

If your RAM is full, your computer is slow, and its hard drive light is constantly blinking, your computer is swapping to disk. This is a sign that your computer is using your hard disk, which is much slower to access, as an “overflow” for your memory.

Question 9

What is meant by virtual memory and why is it needed?

Answer 9

Virtual memory is a memory management capability of an operating system (OS) that uses hardware and software to allow a computer to compensate for physical memory shortages by temporarily transferring data from random access memory (RAM) to disk storage.

Question 10

how does Cache Memory improve the performance of the CPU?

Answer 10

reduces the need for frequent slower memory retrievals from main memory, which may otherwise keep the CPU waiting.