scratchpad

Scratchpad refers to a temporary working area or storage used to hold information for short-term use. The term is applied in several contexts, all sharing the idea of a space intended for quick entry, experimentation, or drafting, rather than long-term storage. In everyday computer use, a scratchpad can be a temporary document or note area used to capture ideas, calculations, or code fragments before they are summarized or moved to a permanent file.

In computing hardware, scratchpad memory is a high-speed, software-managed area of memory separate from the main memory hierarchy. Unlike caches, access to scratchpad memory is explicit in software; the program decides what data to place there and when to read or write it. This can improve performance for certain algorithms by avoiding cache misses or by providing predictable latency, but it requires careful programming. Scratchpad memories are common in embedded systems and some CPU architectures, where tight performance guarantees are required.

In software interfaces, a scratchpad or scratchpad buffer is a transient workspace used for temporary notes or code snippets. Many text editors and integrated development environments offer a scratchpad pane or buffer for quick experimentation. In graphical user interfaces of tiling window managers, a scratchpad is a hidden or temporary workspace where selected windows can be stored and recalled with a keystroke.