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please bear with me, I always get confused with the terminologies used in my computer architecture class.

What are read and write operations exactly? What are their relationship with processor, main memory, and cache?

I always thought that load/store are interchangeable with read/write...

What about the modify operation?

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Read is the same as load, and write is the same as store. Modify is a combination of both.

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  • $\begingroup$ thank you, but what do you mean by "combination of both"? So, when you modify, you are reading and writing at the same time? $\endgroup$
    – David
    Feb 25, 2016 at 22:42
  • $\begingroup$ Not necessarily at the same time, but possibly as an atomic operation. You first read and then write. $\endgroup$ Feb 25, 2016 at 22:44
  • $\begingroup$ Instruction fetch may be categorized as a read (since fundamentally it is) or use a separate "fetch" category. $\endgroup$
    – user4577
    Feb 26, 2016 at 12:54

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