Read-mostly memory (RMM) is a type of memory that can be read fast, but written to only slowly.
Historically, the term was used to refer to different types of memory over time:
In 1970, it was used by
Intel
Intel Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company headquartered in Santa Clara, California, and Delaware General Corporation Law, incorporated in Delaware. Intel designs, manufactures, and sells computer compo ...
and
Energy Conversion Devices
Energy Conversion Devices, Inc. (ECD) was an American photovoltaics manufacturer of thin-film solar cells made of amorphous silicon used in flexible laminates and in building-integrated photovoltaics. The company was also a manufacturer of Nicke ...
to refer to a new type of amorphous and crystalline
nonvolatile and reprogrammable semiconductor memory (
phase-change memory
Phase-change memory (also known as PCM, PCME, PRAM, PCRAM, OUM (ovonic unified memory) and C-RAM or CRAM (chalcogenide RAM)) is a type of non-volatile random-access memory. PRAMs exploit the unique behaviour of chalcogenide glass. In PCM, heat pr ...
aka PCM/PRAM).
However, it was also used to refer to
reprogrammable memory (REPROM)
and
magnetic-core memory
In computing, magnetic-core memory is a form of random-access memory. It predominated for roughly 20 years between 1955 and 1975, and is often just called core memory, or, informally, core.
Core memory uses toroids (rings) of a hard magneti ...
.
The term has mostly fallen into disuse, but is sometimes used referring to
electrically erasable programmable read-only (EEPROM) or
flash memory
Flash memory is an Integrated circuit, electronic Non-volatile memory, non-volatile computer memory storage medium that can be electrically erased and reprogrammed. The two main types of flash memory, NOR flash and NAND flash, are named for t ...
today.
See also
*
Read-only memory
Read-only memory (ROM) is a type of non-volatile memory used in computers and other electronic devices. Data stored in ROM cannot be electronically modified after the manufacture of the memory device. Read-only memory is useful for storing sof ...
(ROM)
*
Read–write memory (R/W)
*
Programmable read-only memory
A programmable read-only memory (PROM) is a form of digital memory where the contents can be changed once after manufacture of the device. The data is then permanent and cannot be changed. It is one type of read-only memory (ROM). PROMs are used i ...
(PROM)
*
Random-access memory
Random-access memory (RAM; ) is a form of Computer memory, electronic computer memory that can be read and changed in any order, typically used to store working Data (computing), data and machine code. A random-access memory device allows ...
(RAM)
References
Further reading
*{{cite patent , url=https://patents.google.com/patent/US4199692A/en , country=United States , number=4199692A , title=Amorphous non-volatile ram
Non-volatile memory
Computer memory