____________
                            |            |=
                            | CREDIT     |=
                            |    CARDS   |=
                            |____________|=

       ›33m            PCMCIA/JEIDA Cards for computers.›m
                  --------------------------------------
                                                      ›32m by Peter Furey.›m


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›33m     O›mn the left side of the Amiga 600 is a PCMCIA/JEIDA slot and into
    this hole plugs a tiny but powerful memory device which is not much
    bigger than a credit card and commonly known as a Smart Card.

    The computer is ready and waiting but the Smart card is nowhere to be
    seen, a situation that readily lends itself to wild speculation.

    The PCMCIA/JEIDA cards, or Smart cards›m are a much talked about mystery.
    Everyone postulates about their performance but no-one seems to know the
    real facts.
    The following information may provide some of the answers.





        ›33m Personal Computer Memory Card International Association. ›m
        --------------------------------------------------------

                               (›33m PCMCIA›m )

    The PCMCIA was founded in 1989 to set standards for the use of IC. Cards.
    Currently, there are 150 members including all the major PC and hard
    disk manufacturers.


                          ›33m  IC Memory Cards.›m
                            ---------------

    The slot on the A600 is compatible with the PCMCIA/JEIDA industry
    standards for memory cards.
    The standard is called Exchangeable Card Architecture›m or ExCA›m.

    The Personal Computer Memory Card Industry Association, (PCMCIA) and
    the Japanese Electronics Industry Development Association (JEIDA) specify
    the  mechanical and electrical characteristics of IC memory cards and
    card slots. All major manufacturers and vendors have agreed to comply
    to these standards with their card slots and card products.
    Commodore is adhering to these standards.

    IC memory cards are credit size cards which contain memory in a number
    of formats: SRAM, DRAM, Mask ROM, OTP (One Time Programmable) ROM and
    FLASH memory.  Currently they are available with capacity from 256Kb to
    4Mb. cards of up to 64Mb capacity are scheduled to be available by mid
    1993.

    IC memory cards will eventually supercede hard disks (and maybe floppy
    drives) in portable computers.



   ›33m                               CARD TYPES.›m
                                  ----------

   ›33m SRAM/DRAM ›m

    Static RAM cards function in a similar manner to a floppy disk. They may
    be read and written to directly in the card slot.
    Dynamic Ram cards enable a higher density of data to be stored, but
    their  greater power consumption make them impracticable for use.
    The memory is volatile.  The cards use a battery to maintain memory.
    SRAM card battery life is approximately one year; all data stored on them
    will be lost when the battery expires.
    Before changing the card, the data should be transferred to another
    device for storage.
    The card battery may be changed with the card in the card slot, whilst
    the host ( Computer ) battery maintains the card memory while the card
    battery is removed and replaced.


   ›33m MASKED ROM›m

    Masked Rom cards are supplied with software already on them. They are
    non-volatile and of course, can only be read by the computer.
    The cards have software installed on them at the factory and would be
    used for the large scale distribution of many copies of a program.
    ( Games? )


 ›33m   ONE TIME PROGRAMMABLE ( OTP ) ›m

    Similar to Masked Rom cards, OTP cards can be programmed once and then
    only read. They might be programmed by the software developer or
    distributed and would be used for smaller scale distribution of software
    than Masked Rom cards.


  ›33m  FLASH MEMORY CARDS ›m

    Said to be the best of all memory cards. Flash memory is non-volatile
    ( no battery required to maintain data ) and may be read and written to
    many  times.
    In Sharp computers ( with card slots ) Flash cards may only be read.
    The card is treated as a ROM card.  Data programmed onto the card is
    secure, it cannot be written to or changed.
    Flash cards may be written to, using devices such as The DataBook Thin
    Card Reader ( from Unitronics 02 858 5733 ).

    Software on a Flash card is run directly from the card.
    Access time of the Flash card is 200 - 250 nanoseconds, ( compared to 11
    to 19 milliseconds access time of a hard drive. )
    Data files can be written to computer memory, hard disk or floppy.

   ›33m What next? ›m

    Future products based on the ExCA memory card format include a 9600 baud
    modem ( expected soon, ) networking cards, terminal emulations and a bar
    code reader.

    Sharp Corporation and Intel have recently entered into a long term
    contract for the research, development, manufacturing and distribution
    of Flash memory and related products.

    INTEL have released ( July 1992 ) two more FLASH FILE memory cards for
    Sharp PC machines.
    The access time of these new cards is 60 nanoseconds !  This means the
    computers fitted with these cards now enjoy a Zero wait state.

  ›33m  Flash memory storage - The Future of data storage›m.


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