Re: A89: Virus Scanner for the 89


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Re: A89: Virus Scanner for the 89




Sorry, I think you are wrong.  I'm sure it's slow in comparison to normal
memory, but it's nowhere near THAT slow.  That would mean that it would
take hours to write to the flash rom, which is not the case.  It maybe at
least an order of magnitude or two slower than the other ram in calc
(again, I don't know, but I'm sure you could find it somewhere, at maybe an
electronic supplier page).  But a program should be able to burn out the
flash rom in just a few minutes.

At 03:47 PM 9/27/98 +0200, you wrote:
>
>The thing with eeprom flash and eprom is also that it is very slow to
>write to..
>so I'm quite sure it is impossible to burn it out in any short period of
>time.. 
>You will need a program that is ran for about a month without stop, only
>writing
>if it is a very fast eeprom..  If it is a normal speeded It would take
>about a year
>
>although..  I can ofcourse be wrong on this... ;)
>
>//Olle
>
>David Phillips wrote:
>> 
>> The user archive memory is not actual powered ram, as is the normal memory
>> (the same type as is in your computer).  It is the same kind that is in the
>> FLASH-ROM, which would be an EPROM, I assume.  It's also known as
>> non-volatile ram, the same kind that stores your bios settings.
>> 
>> The problem with this memory is that it can only be written to a finite
>> number of times before it "burns out".  I have heard this number range from
>> ten thousand to a million times.  This may seem like alot, but it is really
>> not.  A normal program (ex. game) might write to a memory location at least
>> this many times, hence it cannot be used as normal ram.  A program that did
>> this (either intentionally or unintentionally) would burn out or destroy
>> the eprom.
>> 
>> I'm no expert in hardware, so I'm not exactly sure what would happen, but
>> I'm sure it's not good.  I guess that it would render the entire memory
>> chip unstable and useless.  On the 89, this is probably the entire archive,
>> and possible the entire flash rom as well.  Thus a program that
>> "Archive("ed a variable a million times would damage the calc.
>> 
>> As a semi-off-topic side note, I was wondering a few months ago if it would
>> be possible to destroy a computer's bios by writting to the memory
>> continuously.  This would keep the bios from recording the correct states
>> for memory, disk drives, the motherboard, etc., rendering the computer
>> useless.  It's a scary thought that software could actually destroy
>> hardware...
>> 
>> At 10:05 PM 9/26/98 +0000, you wrote:
>> >>>>
>> At 10:44 PM 9/26/98, TurboSoft@aol.com said:
>> >makes having a sort of program that will scan for this type of virus is
kinda
>> >important.  Perhaps if the program would scan for the  Archive(  commmand
>> then
>> >that may be sufficient.
>> >
>> 
>> question.  what does the archive( command have to do with screwing over the
>> calc?
>> {-kimo-}
>> Dogs love BOB cause he's crazy sniffable!
>> __________________________________________
>> 
>> --
>> David Phillips
>> mailto:electrum@tfs.net
>> ICQ: 13811951
>> AOL/AIM: Electrum32
>

--
David Phillips
mailto:electrum@tfs.net
ICQ: 13811951
AOL/AIM: Electrum32