Read Only Memory: Difference between revisions

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[[Random Access Memory|RAM]] is meant to be ever changing, so that data can be dropped when it is no longer needed by the program. ROM does not work that way. It is meant to store data indefinitely~~. Even when a ROM device allows rewriting the data, it cannot be read until the old data is erased and replaced~~.

[[Random Access Memory|RAM]] is meant to be ever changing, so that data can be dropped when it is no longer needed by the program. ROM does not work that way. It is meant to store data indefinitely.

[[Compact Disc|CD]]/[[DVD|DVD-ROMs]], [[Cartridge|videogame carts]], and onboard firmware chips are examples of ROM storage. These are typically filled with data at the factory and used solely for distribution, thanks to their low cost.

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Now, as for why some of you are probably at this page:

"Rom" (or ROM) is also used colloquially to refer to files full of data normally stored on ROMs. Typically this is either firmware (very simple low-level control software stored on a computer's board) or videogames, ripped whole from their original media. Generally speaking, "ROM" is used for data from games on cartridges. This is because there are existing formats for producing disc images from disc-based games, and the terminology reflects that, with people calling such things "ISOs" and the like. Many fans are really sensitive about this admittedly rather fine distinction, so to avoid the [[Internet Backdraft]] never ever use, for example, the term "ROM" when referring to the digital images of [[ZX Spectrum]] games. There were only ''~~SIX~~'' games ever released on a cartridge for Spectrum, so all others are ''[[Insistent Terminology|tape/disk images]]'' and nothing else—Speccy fans can be really picky about such details.

"Rom" (or ROM) is also used colloquially to refer to files full of data normally stored on ROMs. Typically this is either firmware (very simple low-level control software stored on a computer's board) or videogames, ripped whole from their original media. Generally speaking, "ROM" is used for data from games on cartridges. This is because there are existing formats for producing disc images from disc-based games, and the terminology reflects that, with people calling such things "ISOs" and the like. Many fans are really sensitive about this admittedly rather fine distinction, so to avoid the [[Internet Backdraft]] never ever use, for example, the term "ROM" when referring to the digital images of [[ZX Spectrum]] games. There were only ''TEN'' games ever released on a cartridge for Spectrum, so all others are ''[[Insistent Terminology|tape/disk images]]'' and nothing else—Speccy fans can be really picky about such details.

Part of the above pickiness likely comes from the fact that the Spectrum, like a lot of home computers in that era, ''did'' have ''a'' ROM - it contained the operating system and BASIC interpreter, including the initial loading routine(s) needed to load games. In other words it was firmware, and every clone or emulator of such a machine needs to contain a literal ROM image to work.

The legality of the distribution of ROM files is a somewhat controversial topic, as it relates to [[Digital Piracy]] issues, though it usually produces less [[Internet Backdraft]] than the usual suspects (music and movies/TV shows). For what it's worth, the consensus is that it is illegal, though enforcement is not as prominent as for those other media, especially for older games, and such distribution may be part of the reason for the commercial success of such retro-gaming-related resources as the [[Wii]]'s [[Virtual Console]]. Newer games, and especially computer games, are more subject to [[Digital Piracy]] prevention and enforcement means, but are often inherently more difficult to distribute (due to their larger size) and use (due to their hardware requirements) anyway.