Ram-disk

Microcomputers are found in all areas of modern society. They have become the basic tools for word processing and data file management. A floppy disk drive is necessary for both long term file storage and on-line data support. Since the floppy disk drive is mainly a mechanical device, it is inherently slow. To improve the microcomputer's run-time efficiency, an alternate form of on-line data support is proposed. A RAM-disk is a block of solid state memory. When integrated into the microcomputer system, it functions just like a floppy disk. THE RAM-disk is completely transparent to the user. It is accessed in the same manner as a floppy disk, but its response speed is ten to twenty times faster than a floppy disk drive. The RAM-disk has 256K bytes of storage capacity. To simplify the hardware design, it is subdivided into eight tracks with 256 sectors per track and 128 bytes per sector. Several programs were created to integrate the RAM-disk with computer. A format program is to initialize the RAM-disk. Two custom BIOS programs are to integrate the RAM-disk into either drive 'A' or drive 'E' of the computer system. Once the RAM-disk is formated and integrated into the system it is accessed as either drive 'A' or drive 'E' of the system.