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    +1 for being with the 0.1% of people rightly stating ROM is also RAM ! (stating D-RAM is not RAM is a little extreme though ...)
    – jlliagre
    Commented Aug 30, 2013 at 11:04
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    But the original disk drives were referred to as "RAM" (since the other alternative was tape). If history determines precedence, DASD (what you young'ins refer to as HDD) is definitely RAM. Commented Aug 30, 2013 at 11:33
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    @DanielRHicks That's interesting. Maybe "RAMiness" isn't binary: DRAM is less random than SRAM, HDDs are less random than DRAM and so on.
    – gronostaj
    Commented Aug 30, 2013 at 11:44
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    if you call random access any memory where accessing a random spot takes only O(1) time in terms of size regardless of the current state then DRAM is random access, a HDD has access in O(#tracks+rotation_time) which varies for size Commented Aug 30, 2013 at 14:45
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    "RAM" was I believe (I can't find a good reference) derived in opposition to sequential memory (magnetic or paper tape; mercury delay lines) which could only be accessed in order. Meanwhile, I found a digression on terms for "RAM" in other languages: smo.uhi.ac.uk/~oduibhin/tearmai/etymology.htm which emphasise different aspects of the RAM/ROM difference.
    – pjc50
    Commented Aug 30, 2013 at 15:35