Memory: The Importance Of Computer Memory

The term memory identifies data storage that comes in the form of chips, and the word storage is used for memory that exists on tapes or disks. Computer memory is any physical device capable of storing information temporarily or permanently. Moreover, the term memory is usually used as a shorthand for physical memory, which refers to the actual chips capable of holding data. Some computers also use virtual memory, which expands physical memory onto a hard disk. For instance, when a program such as your Internet browser is open, it is loaded from your hard drive and placed into RAM, which allows that program to communicate with the processor at higher speeds. Anything you save to your computer, such as a picture or video, is sent to your hard drive for storage. Memory is important or needed for a computer because all of devices on a computer do not operate at the same speed and computer memory gives your computer a place to quickly access data. If the CPU had to wait for a secondary storage device like a hard disk drive the computer would be much slower.

There are two types of memory in computer. They are as follows:

1) Primary Memory

It allows a processor to access running execution applications and services that are temporarily stored in a specific memory location. The terms random access memory (RAM) and memory are often as synonyms for primary or main storage. Primary memory is also known as primary storage or main memory. Primary storage is the fastest memory in the computer, but it only holds information for a short period of time while the computer is running. The data from primary storage tends to go away after the computer is turned off. When a user activates a program on a computer, data is moved from secondary storage devices into the RAM and cache of primary storage in order for the computer to actually use