what is RAM and what does it do?

okay so im a bit new to some terms refering to the guts of computers... i was wondering if anyone could tell me what exactly RAM is and what more or less of it equates to as far as computer performance and stuff like that. thanks in advance everyone!!

RAM - Random Access Memory

Basically it allows your computer to load certain data to the RAM and access it faster than if it was trying to find the data on the hard drive. More RAM will allow your machine to operate faster during heavy application usage where it is constantly accessing your HDD for data (Photoshop, Games, Etc...)

I could get a lot more technical than that, but that seems to answer the question pretty well.

Another thing to remember...RAM is volatile, which means that when you turn your computer off, it's erased. That's as opposed to hard drives, floppy disks, magnetic tape, optical media, etc., which are non-volatile: stuff on those things won't be erased upon power-down.

If a tech ever tells you that you need more memory, that means you need more RAM. If you're ever told you need more storage space, that means you need a bigger hard drive.

Ram is like your kitchen table at christmas, the larger it is the more food you can put on it at one time.