On start-up the NC processor automatically checks to see if a new version of the OS is installed. Flash-based cards are primarily designed for software development purposes due to the relatively high cost of Flash memory. Flash card programmers are available from Acorn and future versions of the NC OS may support in-system programming of Flash cards. Standard NC units are manufactured with 8MB SIMMs. These are mounted in a single EDO SIMM slot on the motherboard.
Spare memory is used as a cache by the Web browser.
As an additional feature, once Java is loaded in order to execute an applet, it remains resident in RAM for a pre-set period. This means that subsequent applets start more quickly.