ROM

sasquatchsasquatch
Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
What happens if there is no ROM chip on a motherboard for a powermac for example?Will it still boot up?

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 2
    ibrowseibrowse Posts: 1,749member
    No. The hardware needs to get it's instructions for starting up, off of the ROM. Without those hardware specific details, it will not boot.
  • Reply 2 of 2
    splinemodelsplinemodel Posts: 7,311member
    Memory cannot maintain itself without power. Memory is a feedback circuit with transistors, which require power. No power, no feedback, no memory. DRAM is a bit different, but basically it's the same concept.



    ROM isn't actually memory. It is purely feedforward. Much like the "instinct" of an animal. If you know anything about hardware, ROM is a combinatorial collection of logical gates.
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