RAM is temporary storage which can be erased and reused. A 16 bit address allows 65,536 locations to be uniquely identified Newer PCs commonly have 32 bit addresses and 64 bit addresses. Addressable memory may be larger than the physical memory space available. In a virtual memory machine, data is swapped in and out of secondary storage automatically as needed creating the illusion of a much larger working memory than is physically present. External Storage External storage may consist of disk or tape, which are both magnetic media.
Optical media are also available.
FP, Miranda, etc. Some programs now have the capacity to read files created by other programs. Page last updated February, 2001. Although I will attempt to keep this information accurate, I can not guarantee the accuracy of the information provided.