1 INSTITUTO SUPERIOR DEL TRADUCTORADO-DIPREGEP 5649 Calle 6 N 843 (48 y 49) TRADUCTORADO OFICIAL

THEORY AND PRACTICE OF ASSISTED TRANSLATION

INSTITUTO SUPERIOR DEL TRADUCTORADO-DIPREGEP 5649





Memory is a storage capacity that comes as either a microchip or a backing storage
device. A microchip is a minute circuit made up of a tiny silicon square that has been treated
with photosensitive lacquer and bonded with gold wires to its connections. In a
microcomputer there are two types of memory chips: the ROM and the RAM. The main
memory is RAM. RAM is a chip that can be written to and read from. It is volatile.
ROM is usually used in microcomputers for programs which it is convenient to have
available at any time, in particular when the computer has just been switched on. Normally
the Operating System is in ROM. When the computer is switched on, the Operating System in
the ROM chip runs immediately. In order to change the Operating System, the actual ROM
chip must be removed and another inserted.
Some microcomputers save the date and time on Battery Backed RAM chip. This is a
small amount of RAM memory powered by a battery. The contents of Battery Backed RAM
can be altered, but because it is powered by a battery, these contents are not lost when the
computer is switched off.
To store large amounts of data when the computer is switched off, Backing Storage
devices are used. Backing Storage is long-term storage that is non-volatile. Data stored in the
backing storage memory is kept intact when the computer is turned off. When it is needed
again it can be loaded into the memory from the backing storage device. Backing storage
could be in-built or portable. The in-built backing storage device is the computers hard disc.
It is a rigid, inflexible disc that stores the most frequently used programs and data that are
needed for the computers operation. Hard discs may be single or stacked (i.e. several platters
piled one over the other). The read/write heads of a hard disc move in unison, floating just
above the surface of the platter. There is one read/write head for each platter. When a hard
disc is switched on, the disc spins at a uniform, high speed. The read/write heads are separated
from the discs surface by a cushion of air 10 to 25 millionth of an inch deep. When in
operation, the disc spins at an average of 3,600 revolutions per minute (rpm), so fast that a
speck of dust is sufficient to cause a head crash that will destroy the disc. For this reason,
hard discs come sealed into the disc drive unit.
COMPUTER MEMORIES
2 INSTITUTO SUPERIOR DEL TRADUCTORADO-DIPREGEP 5649 Calle 6 N 843 (48 y 49) TRADUCTORADO OFICIAL
Portable backing storage devices like magnetic tapes and discs are often used as a
convenient way of storing information. The magnetic discs are portable backing storage
devices that vary considerably, depending on the size of the computer. However, they all
provide faster access than the corresponding magnetic tape which is now obsolete.
Data is stored on a magnetic disc on concentric tracks. Each track is divided into
sectors, each separated by inter-sector gaps. A sector is a unit of data read from or written to
the disc by the computer in a single read or write operation. To form the tracks and sectors,
you format a disc. This means that the disc is divided into tracks and sectors on which files
can be stored. Most discs come formatted, but when you format a disc which has already been
used, you delete any files already on the disc to create new tracks and sectors.
The most common types of portable magnetic discs are the floppy discs.
The floppy disc is a flexible, circular, re-recordable plastic disc coated with a magnetic
material. It is contained in a protective sleeve (Fig. 4). The read/write heads access the disc
through the read/write hole. The heads are actually in contact with the surface of the disc as it
spins. This reduces the life span and reliability of the floppy disc. When inserted into the disc
drive, the disc is gripped by the drive through its central hole, and spun at approximately 350
revolutions per minute (rpm).

Protective sleeve Fig. 4
The write protect mechanism is used to protect files on the floppy disc. When the write
protect mechanism in a 3 inch disc is on (i.e. the write protect hole is open), you cannot
save files on the disc, delete files saved on the disc nor alter files saved on the disc.
There used to be two types of floppy discs in the market: the 3 inch and the 5 inch
floppy discs. At the same time they came in high or low density that means the disc can store
more or less information, respectively.
A standard 5 inch floppy disc can store 320K of data (320 Kilobytes), whereas a 3
floppy disc can store 720K of data (720 Kilobytes), or more (Fig. 5). At present, the 5
inch floppy discs have disappeared and the 3 , although they used to be the most widely
Central hole
Write protect notch
Metal cover
Read/write hole
3 INSTITUTO SUPERIOR DEL TRADUCTORADO-DIPREGEP 5649 Calle 6 N 843 (48 y 49) TRADUCTORADO OFICIAL
used ones due to their larger storage capacity, smaller size and low cost, are steadily giving
way to the rewritable CD-ROM discs and pendrives.
FLOPPY DISC DENSITY STORAGE CAPACITY
5 inch
Low 320K
High 1.2M
3 inch
Low 720K
high 1.5M
Fig. 5
The CD-ROM discs are based on the use of Compact Disc (CD) technology for
backing storage for computers. CD-ROMs can be used to store very large amounts of data on
a relatively durable backing storage medium that can be accessed at speeds comparable with
magnetic discs.
An advantage of CD-ROM discs is their very high on-line storage capacity. A CD-
ROM disc can store up to 1,000M of data. This could be up to 500,000 A4 pages of text.
Another advantage of CD-ROMs is the robust nature of the discs. A CD-ROM is 12 cm in
diameter. This is a relatively compact and easy to handle way of storing such high volumes of
data.
The CD-ROM is an optical medium. It is read by a laser beam which scans tiny pits on
the surface of the disc. Consequently the risk of damage when the disc is accessed is reduced
as there is no contact between the read mechanism and the disc. The discs are coated with a
protective layer that allows them to be handled without erasing the data or damaging the disc.
The robust nature of CD-ROMs makes them suitable for the long term storage of data and for
data in frequent use. Yet the information on not all CD-ROMs can be deleted or changed.
There are Write Once Read Many (WORM) CDs that enable to save data once. The
data can then be read as many times as you like but you cannot delete or change it after the
first recording. WORM discs are recordable CDs, but not rewritable.
To be able to re-record information on CDs, special technology is needed. This type of
backing storage is called RW-CD (Rewritable Compact Disc). To the advantages of the CD-
ROM it adds the versatility of a floppy disc.
In principle, almost anything we can hear or see can be digitally converted and stored
in any form that exists in two states: as laser-readable optical pits and smooth areas (CDs and
DVDs), or as positive and negative electric charges (magnetic tapes or discs). Ultimately, all
forms of computer memory store information using binary logic. Binary logic is two-state
4 INSTITUTO SUPERIOR DEL TRADUCTORADO-DIPREGEP 5649 Calle 6 N 843 (48 y 49) TRADUCTORADO OFICIAL
logic. This means that only two states are possible. These two states are voltage levels of 5V
(on) and 0V (off). 5V is used to represent the digit 1 and 0V to represent 0.
The memory of the computer is simply a very large number of 1s and 0s that form
patterns that are recognised by the computer. In binary logic each of the 1s and 0s that form
patterns is called a binary digit. This means one digit of either two: 1 or 0. Because
everything in the memory of a computer is represented using 1s and 0s (digits), the computer
is described as being digital.
Binary digits are also known as bits that is a clipping of the original name: binary
digits. The smallest memory unit is the byte. A byte is equivalent to 8 grouped bits, e.g.
01100110, 11010111, etc. A byte is enough to store an alphanumeric character (a letter or a
number). Each different character must have a different binary code associated with it. Hence
the number of bits used determines the number of characters it is possible to code. An 8-bit
code, for example, is capable of representing 256 different characters or combinations:
00000000, 00000001, 00000011, 00000111, 00001111, 00011111, 00111111, 01111111,
11111111, 1111110, etc. Each of these 256 combinations represents a character, i.e. any sign
or symbol, like a comma, a blank space, a numeral, an asterisk, etc.
Most computers and peripherals are digital but some are not. Sensors are analogue
devices. For example, a heat sensor produces a small voltage in response to temperature
changes. This small voltage is known as an analogue signal. When the analogue signal is
input to a digital computer it must be converted from analogue to digital form. This is done
using an ADC (Analogue to Digital Convertor).
Likewise, if a digital computer outputs to an analogue device then a DAC (Digital to
Analogue Convertor) is used. This converts the digital signal from the computer to an
analogue form.
Storing information in a memory requires large numbers of bytes. For this reason,
memory sizes are measured in larger units, multiples of the byte (Fig. 6).

UNIT OF
MEMORY SIZE
EQUIVALENT
IN BYTES
Kilobyte (Kbyte or K) 1024 bytes 2
10
bytes
Megabyte (Mbyte or M) 1024 K bytes 2
20
bytes
Gigabyte (Gbyte or G) 1024 M bytes 2
30
bytes
Fig. 6