whats ram do?

[craig]

what DOES it do? i think i have an idea, but im just checking to make sure im right.

[witeshark]

RAM = Random Access Memory. It is live memory of a computer operating system loaded in an electrically live chip/circuit board combo that waits for and executes commands/instructions from the operator (person at keyboard) including auto commands from the OS (operating system) This is why a system shut down (or power loss) before data is saved to the more permanent hard drive is lost.

[Dudesky]

In its simplest definition, it's a buffer for storing data. Since access to RAM is much much faster than accessing the hard drive, it allows for multiple cpu executions simultaneously. Based on your input, the computer anticipates what data might be needed to complete your task, and puts it in RAM for on-demand access. As Witeshark said, the Word document you may be writing, for example, is in RAM until you save it to the hard drive