What is the "purpose" you mean?
You can search the net and read all kinds of technical jargon describing it to you. But, I would think of it this way...
The BIOS is one layer between the hardware and your operating system (Windows for example). Communication between both hardware and software is made possible as a result. The BIOS doesn't care about the commands themselves necessarily. Its main responsibility is to provide an open channel of communication and some hardware settings like the speed of traffic that flows to memory or the CPU.
2006-06-20 19:59:04
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answer #1
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answered by SirCharles 6
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(bī´Ås) Acronym for basic input/output system, the built-in software that determines what a computer can do without accessing programs from a disk. On PCs, the BIOS contains all the code required to control the keyboard, display screen, disk drives, serial communications, and a number of miscellaneous functions.
The BIOS is typically placed in a ROM chip that comes with the computer (it is often called a ROM BIOS). This ensures that the BIOS will always be available and will not be damaged by disk failures. It also makes it possible for a computer to boot itself. Because RAM is faster than ROM, though, many computer manufacturers design systems so that the BIOS is copied from ROM to RAM each time the computer is booted. This is known as shadowing.
Many modern PCs have a flash BIOS, which means that the BIOS has been recorded on a flash memory chip, which can be updated if necessary.
The PC BIOS is fairly standardized, so all PCs are similar at this level (although there are different BIOS versions). Additional DOS functions are usually added through software modules. This means you can upgrade to a newer version of DOS without changing the BIOS.
PC BIOSes that can handle Plug-and-Play (PnP) devices are known as PnP BIOSes, or PnP-aware BIOSes. These BIOSes are always implemented with flash memory rather than ROM.
2006-06-21 12:41:22
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answer #2
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answered by cowsformeatandmilk 4
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The BIOS is typically placed in a ROM chip that comes with the computer (it is often called a ROM BIOS). This ensures that the BIOS will always be available and will not be damaged by disk failures. It also makes it possible for a computer to boot itself. Because RAM is faster than ROM, though, many computer manufacturers design systems so that the BIOS is copied from ROM to RAM each time the computer is booted. This is known as shadowing.
Many modern PCs have a flash BIOS, which means that the BIOS has been recorded on a flash memory chip, which can be updated if necessary.
The PC BIOS is fairly standardized, so all PCs are similar at this level (although there are different BIOS versions). Additional DOS functions are usually added through software modules. This means you can upgrade to a newer version of DOS without changing the BIOS.
PC BIOSes that can handle Plug-and-Play (PnP) devices are known as PnP BIOSes, or PnP-aware BIOSes. These BIOSes are always implemented with flash memory rather than ROM.
2006-06-21 03:06:55
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answer #3
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answered by mallimalar_2000 7
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BIOS, in computing, stands for Basic Input/Output System or Basic Integrated Operating System. BIOS refers to the software code run by a computer when first powered on. The primary function of BIOS is to prepare the machine so other software programs stored on various media (such as hard drives, floppies, and CDs) can load, execute, and assume control of the computer. This process is known as booting up.
BIOS can also be said to be a coded program embedded on a chip that recognises and controls various devices that make up the computer.
2006-06-21 03:00:31
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answer #4
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answered by bucminhwa 3
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basic input-output system... The BIOS runs at the startup sequence where it configures devices and then boots the operating system. The function of the BIOS is so vital that the information on the BIOS is stored on a ROM chip separate from the hard drive to protect it from potential crashes.
2006-06-21 02:58:30
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answer #5
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answered by this old loser 3
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Basic input output system
2006-06-21 03:20:06
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answer #6
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answered by Prince the PACKER 3
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it gives your computer the information to start
2006-06-21 02:58:45
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answer #7
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answered by Nemesis 7
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