THE WHATIS.COM WORD-OF-THE-DAY December 20, 2002 cache memory ______________ TODAY'S SPONSOR: VeriSign - The Value of Trust
Secure all your Web servers now - with a proven 5-part strategy. The FREE Server Security Guide shows you how to: * DEPLOY THE LATEST ENCRYPTION and authentication techniques * DELIVER TRANSPARENT PROTECTION with the strongest security without disrupting users. And more. Get your FREE Guide now: http://WhatIs.com/r/0,,8655,00.htm?freeguide ______________ TODAY'S WORD: cache memory See our definition with hyperlinks at http://searchsystemsmanagement.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid20_gci211730,00.html Cache memory is random access memory (RAM) that a computer microprocessor can access more quickly than it can access regular RAM. As the microprocessor processes data, it looks first in the cache memory and if it finds the data there (from a previous reading of data), it does not have to do the more time-consuming reading of data from larger memory. Cache memory is sometimes described in levels of closeness and accessability to the microprocessor. An L1 cache is on the same chip as the microprocessor. (For example, the PowerPC 601 processor has a 32 kilobyte level-1 cache built into its chip.) L2 is usually a separate static RAM (SRAM) chip. The main RAM is usually a dynamic RAM (DRAM) chip. In addition to cache memory, one can think of RAM itself as a cache of memory for hard disk storage since all of RAM's contents come from the hard disk initially when you turn your computer on and load the operating system (you are loading it into RAM) and later as you start new applications and access new data. RAM can also contain a special area called a disk cache that contains the data most recently read in from the hard disk. RELATED TERMS: RAM http://searchsystemsmanagement.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid20_gci214255,00.html microprocessor http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/0,,sid9_gci212568,00.html cache http://searchwebservices.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid26_gci211728,00.html memory http://searchsystemsmanagement.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid20_gci212546,00.html disk cache http://searchstorage.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid5_gci211963,00.html ______________________ SELECTED LINKS: Kingston Technology offers The Ultimate Memory Guide http://www.kingston.com/tools/umg/default.asp Tom's Hardware Page includes The RAM Guide. http://www.tomshardware.com/ram.html ______________________ CROSSWORD PUZZLE #7 | Computer Basics Improve your flexible thinking skills. Print out the puzzle and keep it nearby to work on throughout your day! http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/0,,sid9_gci865741,00.html ______________________ QUIZ #32 | Securing Your Network How much do you know about network security? Take our latest quiz and find out. >> Take the quiz http://searchsecurity.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid14_gci857673,00.html ______________________ REAL-LIFE CHALLENGE #20 | When should you outsource IT? Is outsourcing the IT department under a contractual basis or a per-incident agreement ever a good way to cut costs? Nan, the Director of IT for a manufacturing company must decide. Can you advise? http://whatis.discussions.techtarget.com/WebX?[EMAIL PROTECTED]@.1dcfae0e/194 ______________________________ RECENT ADDITIONS AND UPDATES [1] NIC handle http://searchnetworking.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid7_gci867444,00.html [2] dumb network http://searchnetworking.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid7_gci867260,00.html [3] SoC testing http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/0,,sid9_gci866453,00.html [4] single-system image http://search390.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid10_gci866451,00.html [5] automated test equipment http://searchcio.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid19_gci866407,00.html ____________________________________________________________________ ::::::::::::::::::: WHATIS.COM CONTACTS ::::::::::::::::::: LOWELL THING, Site Editor ([EMAIL PROTECTED]) ____________________________________________________________________ MARGARET ROUSE, Associate Editor ([EMAIL PROTECTED]) Unsubscribe from 'Word of the Day' - Simply Reply to this Email with REMOVE within the Body or Subject > or - Go to: http://WhatIs.techtarget.com/register - Log in to edit your profile. - Click on the link to Edit email subscriptions. - Uncheck the box next to the newsletter you wish to unsubscribe from. - When finished, click "Save Changes to My Profile."
