Games are loaded via DMA mode by default, which enhances performance in many games. AKAIO on the R.P.G. uses DMA on the microSD at all times with currently is no way to turn it off. On the AK2 DMA is active when the "Loading" text turns red or green.
In v1.4.1 the new DMA-QuickSave mode has been made default. You can see that this mode is working when the "Loading" text turns green. This new mode fixes video and sound glitches which occur in older patching modes, and offers faster save writing/reading support.
The original DMA mode can be accessed in v1.4.1 by holding "X". You can see that this mode is working when the "Loading" text turns red.
If you encounter a problem with a particular game, you can disable DMA mode by holding the A button while loading. In this case the "Loading" text will stay blue.
DMA means Direct Memory Access. All you really need to know is that it speeds up things in regards to microSD cards and Flash Linkers, as the combination is not as fast as a retail card with its internal Read Only Memory.
Rippon from Dec 4th 2006DMA is a method to copy data from one section of memory to another, without involving the processor.
When a processor does a memory copy, it must execute a series of instructions to read data from a memory address into a register, then write the data in that register to another address, and repeat. This involves several instructions, and each read/write cycle is generally limited to the bandwidth of the processor (i.e. a 32 bit machine copies 32 bits at a time).
DMA, on the other hand, is a hardware solution that does all of the work automatically and doesn't involve the processor (and thus no loop operations or anything like that). Not only is it often twice as fast, but it leaves the processor free to do other work.
