DMA OR ATA?

They are the same thing. They have different modes, so you will need to know what your motherboard supports. The drives are all backwards compatible to the older speeds.

ATA/DMA 33 - UDMA Mode 2, ATA/DMA 66 - UDMA Mode 4, ATA/DMA 100 - UDMA Mode 5, ATA/DMA 133 - UDMA Mode 6

<font color=red>People and hard drives are like bandwagon fans and sports!</font color=red>

ATA is the interface, the way the hard drive communicates with the motherboard/controller.

IDE is the connection type.

DMA is Direct Memory Access, it allows your hard drives to access RAM without having to go through the CPU on the way by. This will improve system performance as well as drive performance. Ever wonder why your system grinds to a halt when you burn a CD? Check to see if DMA is on, it will help.

PIO is the opposite of DMA, it makes all drive transfers go through the CPU.

<font color=orange>Quarter</font color=orange> <font color=blue>Pounder</font color=blue> <font color=orange>Inside</font color=orange>
Don't step in the sarcasm!

All newer drives for a few years have had DMA capability. ATA is the protocal IDE drives use. So your motherboard and drive both use both.

What's the frequency, Kenneth?