RAM Random access memory. Semiconductor-based memory that can be read and written by the microprocessor or other hardware devices.
RAMDAC RAM digital-to-analog converter. A chip built into some VGA and SVGA display adapters that translates the digital representation of a pixel into the analog information needed by the monitor to display it.
rasterization The conversion of vector graphics (images described mathematically as points connected by straight lines) to equivalent images composed of pixel patterns that can be stored and manipulated as sets of bits.
Red Book audio The data format standard for conventional audio CDs used in home stereo systems.
registry In Windows and Windows NT, the tree-structured hierarchical database where general system hardware and software settings are stored. The registry supersedes the use of separate INI files for all system components and applications that know how to store values in the registry.
resource (1) Any sort of set from which a subset can be allocated for use by a client, such as memory or bus bandwidth. This is not the same as resources that are allocated by Plug and Play. (2) A general term that refers to IRQ signals, DMA channels, I/O port addresses, and memory addresses for Plug and Play.
resource conflict In Plug and Play device configuration, the result of more than one device sharing a nonshareable resource. Conflicts can cause the device to be partially functional or nonfunctional, orz can cause the PC to malfunction completely.
RISC Reduced instruction set computing. A type of microprocessor design that focuses on rapid and efficient processing of a relatively small set of instructions. RISC architecture limits the number of instructions that are built into the microprocessor, but optimizes each so it can be carried out very rapidly—usually within a single clock cycle.
RISC-based Refers to computers based on Windows NT-compatible implementations of RISC processors.