Here's my vote. EC channel has the most satisfying* videos of 2018! 🏆 * In all categories. Perfectly done. Refreshed my non volatile memory with facts of volatile memory.
Agreed, it's both refreshing and accurate to have a non-political fact based explanation. Non-political i.e. non-corporate biased standards explanation.
And if you use the new Microsoft Chromium based Edge replacement, you'll be able to open 6 tabs to download 6 different browsers to replace it... and never open it again.
The year is 2023, DDR7 with 2PB of capacity has been introduced. Deep in a dark room, an unknown being sits at his PC as he inserts the new module he has purchased. As the PC boots and he logs in, he is filled with emotions, anticipation, fear and happiness. And finally it happens, tears run out his eyes, and he jumps out of the dark chair as he screams in victory: *Google Chrome finally works.*
Dude, this video is golden. It can be used in schools as a part of standard educational program, like an actual piece of academic knowledge or whatever it's called. You should definitely make another video "Explaining More Ram" where you talk about ECC, timings and maybe even sub-timings. Your videos will become sort of a basis for all of the students in the world, not only for computer science students but for other specialities (as a part of Informatics)
I hope that in some way, shape or form you sir are receiving awards for all you do to present these videos. I have been blown away by your effectiveness to produce such informative 15 minutes of pure captivating enjoyment. My hat is off to you Chris!
Where I worked, we had a computer that used core (non-volatile) memory. I remember the circuit boards - they were maybe 18 x 18 inches. This computer was used to weld truck cabs at a GM truck plant in lots of stages, all running simultaneously. The computer was only 8K but took up a huge area. Two large mobile homes were put together to house it, the I/O being the reason for the size. For keyboards, we had maybe nine radio teletype machines (RTTY) and they were always on the fritz. To start this whole thing, you would pull a 'boot strap' through a reader. It was a ticker tape type of affair about six inches long and one inch wide with holes punched in it and it had to be pulled because the drive motor was shot. The curious thing about this was that it could do more than one thing at a time. This was before the Amiga and Apple ever even thought about time slicing. This is nothing now, but back then, that was a big deal. I know it could do more that one thing at a time because I ran some programs that I had written in basic while it was welding up truck cabs. Oh, and there were no monitors or CRT screens. Any visible output was on paper rolls e.g. my basic program(s). This was in the 70s & 80s.
I am a filmmaker in my early 20's, just starting out in my career. I am building two new computers for my studio this week, and I wanted to learn everything I need to know about computer components before I start the process. I've had so many questions for years that I have tried searching the answers for again and again. And you've cleared up half of them within about 30 minutes! For instance: RAM frequency. Never understood what it was, now I do. Thank you! At first, I judged your style because it isn't sleek and modern, but I was wrong. Your videos are wonderful. Also, please make a part 2 that goes into ECC memory and latency!
Thanks for this. :) However, I'd argue that my style is "sleek", if certainly traditional. "Non-sleek" I would argue is the jump-cut fest delivered by many RUclipsrs who cannot even be bothered to do re-takes or B-roll so that their final shots will smoothly (sleekly!) cut together. I'm very much in the Walter Murch school of editing, which is based on an understanding of visual perception.
@@ExplainingComputers With that I would agree! Your videos actually are quite sleek, in a more traditional way. Which, in my opinion, is better for portraying the information.
Excellent video on RAM. Once again your presentation reminded me of the lectures I used give at the university for department's computer literacy class. The only key difference is that the lecture started with measuring RAM in kilobytes. The presentation bring back fond memories of building my first PC in 1989 - carefully plugging in those individual RAM ICs, hopefully not bending any of the legs in the process. I also fondly remember attending computer shows where vendors would sell motherboards, RAM and other components so hobbyist could build their PC compatibles and buying SIPs for helping a friend build his first PC compatible computer. Thanks again for a wonderful video, and always keep up the good work!
RUclips viewers need communicative speakers like you to pass the knowledge efficiently. The key of success is to simplify knowledge in order to explain it easily. You have my respect sir!!!!
This is as great as ever, all your videos should be a compulsery schools program, you make a briliant teacher, please don't ever stop what you are doing.
Another very informative and well presented video - Brings to mind the perversity of some RAM manufacturers who used to label their modules with a whole string of numbers and letters displaying anything BUT the actual capacity of the module! I used to wonder why on earth they couldn't just state directly HOW BIG the damn thing was!
What I really liked is that I got to see older RAM. It kind of helps see how the advancements have been made. Otherwise, a very good intro to RAM. Thanks!
I've known computers since my 80286 back in 1990 and I'm very impressed with your channel and I still learn something from your streams or find them fun! Keep it going.
Amazing video! I understand everything now. Thank you for teaching me so much once again. I was researching why Amazon shows MT/s and I have only heard about Mhz and this is the best video I found to answer my question. Cheers. :)
Again a very informative video with densely packed information that is supplied easily understandable! I love your work! I hope you will do a video with a deep-dive into RAM timings because I still wonder if I am able to further overclock my RAM. Also, there is even Quad-Channel RAM, which is also really interesting and much harder to keep it stable when overclocking, which is important to me. I am currently running a Threadripper 1950X at 4 GHz overclocked and 32 GByte of 3200MT/s DDR4 Tcl 14 G.Skill RAM in Quad-Channel mode (Module spec).
Thank you for another entertaining video, EC. Just an interesting footnote to add here, core memories (at least as far as I have it) are actually non-volatile. When the power is switched off the core "doughnuts" still remain in their last programmed position and remain so until power is again restored. I believe it was even used on some of the American space shuttles.
This is true -- note that in the intro segment I describe *modern* RAM as volatile (ie not all RAM!). The script for this video had to be very carefully written! :)
I hope you never stop making video's. I love all your video's. I find them informing, interesting, fun, even hilarious at times, and soothing for some reason. Great job. Love you!
As always excellent video. And even though I thought I know everything about this particular subject, you sir have yet again prove me wrong. I have heard about magnetic core storage, had a PC with IC RAM (in a 286 powered desktop) but I haven't heard nor have I ever seen a SIP RAM.
Ur the man man .. Ur the man .. Really helpful and presented in a way anyone can easily grasp .. appreciate all the efforts and keep up the good work .
Thank you Christopher Barnatt, for explaining RAM (and all the other subjects you've touched) so well. I really feel educated. You are a perfect teacher.
I just love your videos. Straight, to the point, on topic, without all the dog and pony show bs. I especially love the history in them. Keep up the outstanding content!
I recall teaching my "data processing" students how core memory worked. The X and Y address lines, the sense wire, the hysteresis loop, etc. When IC RAM came along how it worked was no longer in the text books. Apparently the authors decided we did not need to know or maybe they did not know how it worked. But old terms do not go away very fast. 50 years later memory dumps as still called "Core" dumps by lots of folks. Linux still has core man page and the memory dump file is named "core".
Video is well done. I feel old now, because i upgraded my first MegaST1 to 4 by soldering the ram ages ago. That was 4 Megabyte RAM and it was one of the biggest computer available for money that time. Quite a while later at work i bought whopping 4 Gb of Ram for more then 22000 DM and put it into my RS6000 with AIX. Now I have several computers at home with 64 Gb and 32 GB for less then 1000 Euro.
Well that was spooky, firstly you talking about the Elliott 803 Core Store (no relation though) :) And secondly I ordered and fitted some extra RAM on Friday. So the video was a bit late for me, luckily I bought the correct RAM type and speed. Some great info as usual Chris.
In my lifetime we have gone from a computer that took an entire floor of a building to one you can hold in your hand. When we went from vacuum tubes to integrated circuits we had two problems. The power supplied by power companies was very unstable and the manufacture of integrated circuits was expensive and not good. The company I worked for once built a computer which used magnetic storage. We then went to the DIP integrated circuit rams in our computers. (We stopped making computers eventually.) As a service engineer I spent a lot of time changing integrated circuits. Then the power producers started generating cleaner power and the transmission of that power to manufactures, businesses, and homes changed to keep clean power as clean as possible to those places. The manufacturing of integrated circuits began to produce chips which were much more reliable and cheaper. Our products became much more reliable and I went from changing integrated circuits on boards to just changing the entire board and not repairing the defective ones (changing a circuit board became more rare with time).
please do a part 2. all of this information I already knew, but some of the listed information you didn't cover, I don't. It would be extremely helpful, and I think, to some, enjoyable to learn more. You are a great teacher!
Thank you for this. My favorite part is when you say: "Late Nineties, Early Nought-ie"... LOL I have never heard that before (being from Canada) it's just not (or should I say 'nought') what we say... Brought a smile to my face that the Millennium was naughty... I mean Nought-ie. Thanks again for this video! Very helpful.
Thank you for calling it RAM Rant below: instead of using the vague term "memory" that people like to use, which is bad. if you're talking about a computer and you mention your RAM there's only one thing it can be if you talk about your computer and you mention a hard drive there's only one thing it can be but if you talk about having a problem with your computer memory then nobody knows what you're talking about because it could be either, it's very annoying when I talk about computers with other people that aren't as educated about the terminology.
Excellent video and easy to understand the explanation of RAM. I'm old enough to remember populating memory chips in memory boards! Glad we don't have to do that anymore! Cheers! 😎
Don't forget that the Z80 had a plug in module to expand the ram to a massive 64K. I think mine is stuffed in a drawer somewhere as an exhibit of our past suffrage. Today's young people fail to appreciate what we went through then so they can have their Androids.....
Yeah...unless some of these "young people" end up coding in Assembly PIC, MPS430 and Atmel microcontrollers or for the heck of it try to code for devices using older known processors (Zilog Z80, MOS 6502, Motorola 68000, ect.) or different architectures (like MIPS).
Nicely explained video. But, you overlooked explaining why there are so many more connections (pins) on the DIMM versus the SIMM. ie. That the original 30 pin SIMM was only an 8 bit memory module (or 9 bit with parity), with 72 pin SIMM moving to 32 bits. The DIMM then being a 64 bit memory module. In addition, each generation having more address lines (the 30 pin SIMM maxing out at 16MB). Memory modules didn’t really came about to solve “chip creep”, as you suggest. It was simply that the 1 bit wide DRAM’s chips of the time (eg. 41256 chips - 256K x 1 DRAM, following on from earlier 4116 / 4164 DRAM etc.) always required identical system PCB layout of 8 parallel wired chips, with each chip delivering 1 bit of the required byte from each address. Therefore, putting 8 chips onto a byte-wide SIP or SIMM was simply a logical "common memory layout" design convenience evolution. :)
I "overlooked" on purpose -- there was already an information overload in this video. :) I checked "chip creep" (like everything else in this video) from several sources, but totally take your point on the layout issue. Ultimately, any video like this is far more an issue of what to leave out as much as what to leave in. Some early drafts of the script her ran over 40 minutes, nd ultimately whatever I included or did not include here I could not please everybody.The purpose of the intro (history) sections was to provide context and engagement with content less dry than the tech/specs that follow. And this is why I did not get into the while 8/16/32/64 bit thing.
@@ExplainingComputers No need to explain, of course. I do take your point about information overload! :) An excellent and nicely explained video in any case. I always look forward to your videos. Keep up the awesome work!
I have only just come across this channel & wow, the accurate information is in abundance, i have so many videos to catch up on, i would also like to say thank you Chris for all this wealth of knowledge that you are providing & now i know we're to go for any future builds & information 👍
I enjoyed every byte of your well done new video about RAM. I won an award programming a Fingerspelling App into a Commodore PET personal computer with 8K RAM. I do wonder if there's a reliability problem with a memory circuitboard having hundreds of pins so close to each other working at very high data rates. Thanks again, Christopher.
Wasn't that the memory that used actual Mercury as it's storage medium? Even my 486 with it's SIMMs was more convenient, by several orders of magnitude
In 1968 I worked in a place with an emergency generator. Each wednesday they tested the emergency generator and the mercury delay lines "forgot" what they knew. Each one had to be reloaded. The same thing happened when they switched the generator off after the test.
I would like to just take a moment to thank you for your professional, detailed, and entertaining videos. I thought my knowledge about the hardware components were average if not slightly above average, but thanks to your beautiful explanation, I learned much more than I thought I knew. I also enjoy the general aesthetics of your videos. I sincerely look forward to learn more from your channel!
Hey Chris, I came here after watching your latest video about SSDs and I wanted to say after nearly two years we are finally ready for part two of your Explaining RAM Video where you explain things you show at 10:01. What is ECC RAM and why should I aim for ECC RAM when I want to build a new PC opting for long term use rather than peak performance?
Very nicely explained, thank you, Chris! I haven't really worked with hardware since the 90's so this was a great refresher! And I loved my Sinclair... even with the wonky keyboard that if I typed too hard, would reset the whole thing, lol...
High end motherboards have supported triple and even quad channel memory for some years now (since i7 LGA 1366), I guess it hasn't become mainstream because you need more memory & memory sockets which costs more. Since memory gets faster anyway the speed advantage is soon eroded. Memory latency is an issue worth mentioning, it gets worse with each generation such that the first modules of each generarion are often slower for random access than the last modules of the previous generation. Q: do DRAM cells fail individually like SSDs? Can memory controllers map out bad RAM?
Generally yes, but between generations there is often a retrograde period where the previous generation outperforms the first available memory of the next generation.
When choosing memory make sure it's the right colour, if you have a window on the side of your case. 👍 In the future with 1PB of memory you might get 120fps at 16K on Call Of Duty 34. 😁
Nobody says it better (or clearer). . . than Christopher Barnatt. We are most fortunate to have Mr. Barnatt's valuable tutelage via the omnipresent Internet.
Great explanation. My first computer had 4K of RAM. I can still remember my dad upgrading it to 16 K. Can’t remember if he had to break out a soldering iron or not.
Wow that was a blast from the past seeing that Sinclair Chris! I had that same one back in the day. I also had a Tandy Coco 16, a 64, and 128. The 64 was actually made by soldering in additional ram chips to the 16 and bank switching. I also had a pair of Commodore 64 and a bunch of other machines over the beginning years. In many ways more fun than these new ones in spite of the limited power by today's standards.
I agree. AI is what we will use all that future RAM for. That and creating enormous, highly realistic virtual worlds/games, and simulations of everything from the climate to our bodies.
Wonderful video Christopher. Most of your videos I can go through once and get everything--but there was so much info in this video that it's going to take another pass (or two) to get everything. I've lived through most of the technology you've reviewed here, and never realized I was so old. Thanks. ;)
Here's my vote.
EC channel has the most satisfying* videos of 2018! 🏆
* In all categories.
Perfectly done.
Refreshed my non volatile memory with facts of volatile memory.
Love that last line! :) Interesting how the human brain can be both volatile and non-volatile storage . . .
ExplainingComputers
Exactly that!
Fascinating!
Agreed, it's both refreshing and accurate to have a non-political fact based explanation.
Non-political i.e. non-corporate biased standards explanation.
i know it i love his videos
I agree!
With a petabyte of ram in the future you might be able to open 6 tabs in chrome.
A whole six!
Actually, 8 or even 10 could be possible, if your terabyte fiber network supports it.
@@LordDragon1965 That is just madness!
And if you use the new Microsoft Chromium based Edge replacement, you'll be able to open 6 tabs to download 6 different browsers to replace it... and never open it again.
That was really funny. I honestly laughed out loud and drew attention. Good on you.
The year is 2023, DDR7 with 2PB of capacity has been introduced.
Deep in a dark room, an unknown being sits at his PC as he inserts the new module he has purchased.
As the PC boots and he logs in, he is filled with emotions, anticipation, fear and happiness.
And finally it happens, tears run out his eyes, and he jumps out of the dark chair as he screams in victory:
*Google Chrome finally works.*
... or "Windows finally has enough swap space!"
And if he ran Linux. He'd break the speed of light!
Hahahaha - he no longer cares about the 2 million instances of Chrome in his task manager. :D
and he uses this computer to look at pictures of cats.
Well here we are ddr5 just launched and scalped already
Dude, this video is golden. It can be used in schools as a part of standard educational program, like an actual piece of academic knowledge or whatever it's called. You should definitely make another video "Explaining More Ram" where you talk about ECC, timings and maybe even sub-timings. Your videos will become sort of a basis for all of the students in the world, not only for computer science students but for other specialities (as a part of Informatics)
Thanks. I hope that many people find this useful.
I hope that in some way, shape or form you sir are receiving awards for all you do to present these videos. I have been blown away by your effectiveness to produce such informative 15 minutes of pure captivating enjoyment. My hat is off to you Chris!
Thanks.
Very clearly explained......as always
Where I worked, we had a computer that used core (non-volatile) memory. I remember the circuit boards - they were maybe 18 x 18 inches. This computer was used to weld truck cabs at a GM truck plant in lots of stages, all running simultaneously. The computer was only 8K but took up a huge area. Two large mobile homes were put together to house it, the I/O being the reason for the size. For keyboards, we had maybe nine radio teletype machines (RTTY) and they were always on the fritz. To start this whole thing, you would pull a 'boot strap' through a reader. It was a ticker tape type of affair about six inches long and one inch wide with holes punched in it and it had to be pulled because the drive motor was shot. The curious thing about this was that it could do more than one thing at a time. This was before the Amiga and Apple ever even thought about time slicing. This is nothing now, but back then, that was a big deal. I know it could do more that one thing at a time because I ran some programs that I had written in basic while it was welding up truck cabs. Oh, and there were no monitors or CRT screens. Any visible output was on paper rolls e.g. my basic program(s). This was in the 70s & 80s.
A great story. Thanks for sharing here. In some ways computers were more amazing years ago.
I think an extended cut video (or part 2) about all those mentioned at 10:00 including GDDR RAM would be great for the sake of completeness.
Thanks Chris, you wouldn't believe how many newspapers i had to deliver to buy my ZX81. Never looked back.
I am a filmmaker in my early 20's, just starting out in my career. I am building two new computers for my studio this week, and I wanted to learn everything I need to know about computer components before I start the process.
I've had so many questions for years that I have tried searching the answers for again and again. And you've cleared up half of them within about 30 minutes! For instance: RAM frequency. Never understood what it was, now I do. Thank you!
At first, I judged your style because it isn't sleek and modern, but I was wrong. Your videos are wonderful. Also, please make a part 2 that goes into ECC memory and latency!
Thanks for this. :) However, I'd argue that my style is "sleek", if certainly traditional. "Non-sleek" I would argue is the jump-cut fest delivered by many RUclipsrs who cannot even be bothered to do re-takes or B-roll so that their final shots will smoothly (sleekly!) cut together. I'm very much in the Walter Murch school of editing, which is based on an understanding of visual perception.
@@ExplainingComputers With that I would agree! Your videos actually are quite sleek, in a more traditional way. Which, in my opinion, is better for portraying the information.
Excellent video on RAM. Once again your presentation reminded me of the lectures I used give at the university for department's computer literacy class. The only key difference is that the lecture started with measuring RAM in kilobytes. The presentation bring back fond memories of building my first PC in 1989 - carefully plugging in those individual RAM ICs, hopefully not bending any of the legs in the process. I also fondly remember attending computer shows where vendors would sell motherboards, RAM and other components so hobbyist could build their PC compatibles and buying SIPs for helping a friend build his first PC compatible computer. Thanks again for a wonderful video, and always keep up the good work!
RUclips viewers need communicative speakers like you to pass the knowledge efficiently. The key of success is to simplify knowledge in order to explain it easily. You have my respect sir!!!!
What a wonderful explanation, if someone ever asks me to explain ram, I’ll send them this video. You did a remarkable job sir.
Very informative and decently explained. There's no other video which explains RAM so efficiently.
RAM, I'd tell you what it's all about. But I've forgotten.
Looks like you need your memory refreshed. 😁
This is as great as ever, all your videos should be a compulsery schools program, you make a briliant teacher, please don't ever stop what you are doing.
Thanks.
Another very informative and well presented video - Brings to mind the perversity of some RAM manufacturers who used to label their modules with a whole string of numbers and letters displaying anything BUT the actual capacity of the module! I used to wonder why on earth they couldn't just state directly HOW BIG the damn thing was!
What I really liked is that I got to see older RAM. It kind of helps see how the advancements have been made. Otherwise, a very good intro to RAM. Thanks!
I've been watching this channel for years. I always find his voice oddly satisfying.
You always upload a video about something I'm wondering about right when I need it! Keep up the good videos!
I've known computers since my 80286 back in 1990 and I'm very impressed with your channel and I still learn something from your streams or find them fun! Keep it going.
Thanks for your kind feedback.
Man this content deserves more view. Thanks as always for the informative videos. 👍
You are definitely the best presenter on the Internet. Thank you and keep producing excellent videos.
Thanks. :)
I knew all this already but I still enjoy watching your videos.
Absolutely concur. Thoroughly enjoy.
Yup me too!
Amazing video! I understand everything now. Thank you for teaching me so much once again. I was researching why Amazon shows MT/s and I have only heard about Mhz and this is the best video I found to answer my question.
Cheers. :)
Another great master class that’s worth viewing, thank you Prof 🙏🏾
Again a very informative video with densely packed information that is supplied easily understandable! I love your work!
I hope you will do a video with a deep-dive into RAM timings because I still wonder if I am able to further overclock my RAM.
Also, there is even Quad-Channel RAM, which is also really interesting and much harder to keep it stable when overclocking, which is important to me.
I am currently running a Threadripper 1950X at 4 GHz overclocked and 32 GByte of 3200MT/s DDR4 Tcl 14 G.Skill RAM in Quad-Channel mode (Module spec).
Very clear and simple explanation of RAM. I hate to admit it but I never knew what all those terms meant despite my technical background.
Thank you for another entertaining video, EC. Just an interesting footnote to add here, core memories (at least as far as I have it) are actually non-volatile. When the power is switched off the core "doughnuts" still remain in their last programmed position and remain so until power is again restored. I believe it was even used on some of the American space shuttles.
This is true -- note that in the intro segment I describe *modern* RAM as volatile (ie not all RAM!). The script for this video had to be very carefully written! :)
Great disciplined way of explaining, without missing and messing up of details
Regards am a fan of all your videos
Thanks. :)
Wow, great job!
Hu hu
I can tell how studiously you make this video especially at 10:20 of the video, your wording perfectly match the animation.
I Remember the days of trying to fit your program in 4k of memory, 16k expansion pack came out, like a whole new world.
I hope you never stop making video's. I love all your video's. I find them informing, interesting, fun, even hilarious at times, and soothing for some reason. Great job. Love you!
Thanks. :)
As always excellent video. And even though I thought I know everything about this particular subject, you sir have yet again prove me wrong. I have heard about magnetic core storage, had a PC with IC RAM (in a 286 powered desktop) but I haven't heard nor have I ever seen a SIP RAM.
This was a really good explanation. I learned a lot of new terms and a bit history today. Great job Chris.
Ur the man man .. Ur the man ..
Really helpful and presented in a way anyone can easily grasp .. appreciate all the efforts and keep up the good work .
Your videos always help me understand fuzzy concepts of computing. Nice job. Greetings from Argentina.
Hello from the UK! :)
Wonderful video - well covered information, concise & very organized. Thank you! (But I miss an appearance of Mr. Sissors!)
Explained in a way anyone can understand. At the end I was able to decipher the naming convention on DDR4 RAM.
Thank you so much
Great video dude, i root for your channel's success.
Thank you Christopher Barnatt, for explaining RAM (and all the other subjects you've touched) so well. I really feel educated. You are a perfect teacher.
Many thanks. :)
I just love your videos. Straight, to the point, on topic, without all the dog and pony show bs. I especially love the history in them. Keep up the outstanding content!
Thanks for your kind feedback. Look out for the video after next on retro storage.
@@ExplainingComputers I'll be looking forward to it. 😊
You explained it very well sir.
Thanks.
Please make a video with the rest of the RAM technicalities, especially CAS latency. Awesome work on this one
Noted!
I recall teaching my "data processing" students how core memory worked. The X and Y address lines, the sense wire, the hysteresis loop, etc. When IC RAM came along how it worked was no longer in the text books. Apparently the authors decided we did not need to know or maybe they did not know how it worked. But old terms do not go away very fast. 50 years later memory dumps as still called "Core" dumps by lots of folks. Linux still has core man page and the memory dump file is named "core".
It's been 3yrs since I started watching your videos :) I just wanna say, Thank you!
Thanks for watching for so long, appreciated. :)
I really enjoy watching your videos they're alway easy to understand and informative. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you, 🖖
Seasons greetings to you too! :) And to everybody here.
Video is well done.
I feel old now, because i upgraded my first MegaST1 to 4 by soldering the ram ages ago. That was 4 Megabyte RAM and it was one of the biggest computer available for money that time. Quite a while later at work i bought whopping 4 Gb of Ram for more then 22000 DM and put it into my RS6000 with AIX.
Now I have several computers at home with 64 Gb and 32 GB for less then 1000 Euro.
Well that was spooky, firstly you talking about the Elliott 803 Core Store (no relation though) :) And secondly I ordered and fitted some extra RAM on Friday. So the video was a bit late for me, luckily I bought the correct RAM type and speed. Some great info as usual Chris.
In my lifetime we have gone from a computer that took an entire floor of a building to one you can hold in your hand. When we went from vacuum tubes to integrated circuits we had two problems. The power supplied by power companies was very unstable and the manufacture of integrated circuits was expensive and not good. The company I worked for once built a computer which used magnetic storage. We then went to the DIP integrated circuit rams in our computers. (We stopped making computers eventually.) As a service engineer I spent a lot of time changing integrated circuits. Then the power producers started generating cleaner power and the transmission of that power to manufactures, businesses, and homes changed to keep clean power as clean as possible to those places. The manufacturing of integrated circuits began to produce chips which were much more reliable and cheaper. Our products became much more reliable and I went from changing integrated circuits on boards to just changing the entire board and not repairing the defective ones (changing a circuit board became more rare with time).
Beautiful video... Well explained
please do a part 2. all of this information I already knew, but some of the listed information you didn't cover, I don't. It would be extremely helpful, and I think, to some, enjoyable to learn more. You are a great teacher!
Thank you for this. My favorite part is when you say: "Late Nineties, Early Nought-ie"... LOL I have never heard that before (being from Canada) it's just not (or should I say 'nought') what we say... Brought a smile to my face that the Millennium was naughty... I mean Nought-ie. Thanks again for this video! Very helpful.
Helpful and clear information, as well as enjoyable to watch.
Thank you for calling it RAM
Rant below:
instead of using the vague term "memory" that people like to use, which is bad. if you're talking about a computer and you mention your RAM there's only one thing it can be if you talk about your computer and you mention a hard drive there's only one thing it can be but if you talk about having a problem with your computer memory then nobody knows what you're talking about because it could be either, it's very annoying when I talk about computers with other people that aren't as educated about the terminology.
Excellent video and easy to understand the explanation of RAM. I'm old enough to remember populating memory chips in memory boards! Glad we don't have to do that anymore! Cheers! 😎
Don't forget that the Z80 had a plug in module to expand the ram to a massive 64K. I think mine is stuffed in a drawer somewhere as an exhibit of our past suffrage. Today's young people fail to appreciate what we went through then so they can have their Androids.....
Ya got that right. Scientist invented the Internet. But, Porn made it a service we now can't live without.
Yeah...unless some of these "young people" end up coding in Assembly PIC, MPS430 and Atmel microcontrollers or for the heck of it try to code for devices using older known processors (Zilog Z80, MOS 6502, Motorola 68000, ect.) or different architectures (like MIPS).
Suffrage? What has politics got to do with computers?
I think you mean "suffering", it has a completely different meaning.
Sufferage: a series of prayers
@@Robb403 but you put "suffrage"... Which is not the same thing. It was just a silly joke on my part, don't worry about it 😉
Dude, you’re a legend. Great info in a well presented format. 🤘🏻Keep up the good work!
Thanks! Will do!
Nicely explained video. But, you overlooked explaining why there are so many more connections (pins) on the DIMM versus the SIMM.
ie. That the original 30 pin SIMM was only an 8 bit memory module (or 9 bit with parity), with 72 pin SIMM moving to 32 bits. The DIMM then being a 64 bit memory module. In addition, each generation having more address lines (the 30 pin SIMM maxing out at 16MB).
Memory modules didn’t really came about to solve “chip creep”, as you suggest. It was simply that the 1 bit wide DRAM’s chips of the time (eg. 41256 chips - 256K x 1 DRAM, following on from earlier 4116 / 4164 DRAM etc.) always required identical system PCB layout of 8 parallel wired chips, with each chip delivering 1 bit of the required byte from each address.
Therefore, putting 8 chips onto a byte-wide SIP or SIMM was simply a logical "common memory layout" design convenience evolution. :)
I "overlooked" on purpose -- there was already an information overload in this video. :) I checked "chip creep" (like everything else in this video) from several sources, but totally take your point on the layout issue. Ultimately, any video like this is far more an issue of what to leave out as much as what to leave in. Some early drafts of the script her ran over 40 minutes, nd ultimately whatever I included or did not include here I could not please everybody.The purpose of the intro (history) sections was to provide context and engagement with content less dry than the tech/specs that follow. And this is why I did not get into the while 8/16/32/64 bit thing.
@@ExplainingComputers No need to explain, of course. I do take your point about information overload! :)
An excellent and nicely explained video in any case. I always look forward to your videos. Keep up the awesome work!
I have only just come across this channel & wow, the accurate information is in abundance, i have so many videos to catch up on, i would also like to say thank you Chris for all this wealth of knowledge that you are providing & now i know we're to go for any future builds & information 👍
I enjoyed every byte of your well done new video about RAM. I won an award programming a Fingerspelling App into a Commodore PET personal computer with 8K RAM. I do wonder if there's a reliability problem with a memory circuitboard having hundreds of pins so close to each other working at very high data rates. Thanks again, Christopher.
Super presentation
A nice in deep in-depth memory video would be great!
😮😮😮😮😮
Like Always Wonderful Work 😄😄😄😄
Very well explained in a direct, clear and easy-to-understand way. Great job!
Before core there was delay memory and Williams tubes.
Wasn't that the memory that used actual Mercury as it's storage medium?
Even my 486 with it's SIMMs was more convenient, by several orders of magnitude
In 1968 I worked in a place with an emergency generator. Each wednesday they tested the emergency generator and the mercury delay lines "forgot" what they knew. Each one had to be reloaded. The same thing happened when they switched the generator off after the test.
+ExplainingComputers / Christopher
Yet again another great video that successfully attempts to explain about computer hardware.
Keep up the good work!
Thanks Mark.
Fantastic refresher!
Please go on!
Brilliant
I would like to just take a moment to thank you for your professional, detailed, and entertaining videos. I thought my knowledge about the hardware components were average if not slightly above average, but thanks to your beautiful explanation, I learned much more than I thought I knew. I also enjoy the general aesthetics of your videos. I sincerely look forward to learn more from your channel!
Easy. Future RAM will be used by Chrome. All of it.
Amazing video ! A complete guide to Ram explaining you explain every small details a best video on ram explaining.
Thanks.
Hey Chris, I came here after watching your latest video about SSDs and I wanted to say after nearly two years we are finally ready for part two of your Explaining RAM Video where you explain things you show at 10:01.
What is ECC RAM and why should I aim for ECC RAM when I want to build a new PC opting for long term use rather than peak performance?
never mind...
ruclips.net/video/pPeCNrNTr3k/видео.html
Very nicely explained, thank you, Chris! I haven't really worked with hardware since the 90's so this was a great refresher! And I loved my Sinclair... even with the wonky keyboard that if I typed too hard, would reset the whole thing, lol...
High end motherboards have supported triple and even quad channel memory for some years now (since i7 LGA 1366), I guess it hasn't become mainstream because you need more memory & memory sockets which costs more. Since memory gets faster anyway the speed advantage is soon eroded.
Memory latency is an issue worth mentioning, it gets worse with each generation such that the first modules of each generarion are often slower for random access than the last modules of the previous generation.
Q: do DRAM cells fail individually like SSDs? Can memory controllers map out bad RAM?
Latency gets not worse.
Generally yes, but between generations there is often a retrograde period where the previous generation outperforms the first available memory of the next generation.
Fantastic explanation. I am looking forward to the next RAM video where you cover the topics you left out to prevent information overload.
When choosing memory make sure it's the right colour, if you have a window on the side of your case. 👍
In the future with 1PB of memory you might get 120fps at 16K on Call Of Duty 34. 😁
Good point on the colour. I will be doing a build series in early 2019 with a clear side panel! :)
Chris, Many thanks for all you do. Wishing you a very MERRY CHRISTMAS and a very HAPPY NEW YEAR too! Keep up the good work, please.
Thanks Paul. And a Merry Xmas & Happy New Year to you too! :)
Nobody says it better (or clearer). . . than Christopher Barnatt.
We are most fortunate to have Mr. Barnatt's valuable tutelage via the omnipresent Internet.
Thanks.
Before I build my PC I am going to upgrade the one I have. This video has been very helpful. Thank you very much.
Good luck with your upgrade. I have a RAM upgrade video here: ruclips.net/video/2o-p5Wq6MoQ/видео.html
@@ExplainingComputers I will watch that one too. Thank you.
9:20 The 'Peak Transfer Rate' of PC4-25600 = 29500 MB/s? I think that's a typo 😁
A typo indeed. I was messaged earlier. I am kicking myself! :)
@@ExplainingComputers No problem though, the video is still great 🏆
Great explanation. My first computer had 4K of RAM. I can still remember my dad upgrading it to 16 K. Can’t remember if he had to break out a soldering iron or not.
In the 90's we used to have HDDs in MBs now we have the RAM in GBs. Technology is amazing.
Thanks Chris for the nice and informative video.
Excellent video, everything explained in simple terms. Thanks....
De 23 dislikes are from people who have instantly forgotten what this video was al about. lol
I didn't know that SIMMs originally had pins. That finally explains why the edge connector looks a bit weird : it's made out of solder pads!
Love it..
Wow that was a blast from the past seeing that Sinclair Chris! I had that same one back in the day. I also had a Tandy Coco 16, a 64, and 128. The 64 was actually made by soldering in additional ram chips to the 16 and bank switching. I also had a pair of Commodore 64 and a bunch of other machines over the beginning years. In many ways more fun than these new ones in spite of the limited power by today's standards.
wow when I finally understood the specification line of the standard RAM module, it blew my mind for a moment :)
Windows OS expands at the same pace as ram does which is why win 10 needs 8 gigs.......
Great video. Now please make a part 2.
I can imagine that AI will require petabytes, and it will give rise to the term "Personal Intelligence' devices.
I agree. AI is what we will use all that future RAM for. That and creating enormous, highly realistic virtual worlds/games, and simulations of everything from the climate to our bodies.
What a fantastic video. Everything from the history of RAM to decoding today's standards all in less than 13 minutes!
Wonderful video Christopher. Most of your videos I can go through once and get everything--but there was so much info in this video that it's going to take another pass (or two) to get everything. I've lived through most of the technology you've reviewed here, and never realized I was so old.
Thanks.
;)
Ram is an animal with long horns
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
I thought it was a truck made by Dodge
I have seen sipp's, but started with simm's.
These 'memories' are warm and fuzzie.
LOL. My first RAM expansion was 8 Mb (yes, megabytes). Now you are taklking about Gb as standard.
Nice video! I always enjoy your uploads. I just think this one missed ECC memory and triple/quad channel configurations.
I love the comparison you make at the end, first computer (1KB RAM) to modern computer RAM in the GBs.