Editing Multiface (section)

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[[File:ZX Spectrum 48 K (ubt).JPG|thumb|ZX Spectrum with a Multiface One]]
{{Use British English|date=December 2024}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2024}}
The '''Multiface''' is a hardware [[peripheral]] released by [[Romantic Robot]] for several 1980s [[home computer]]s. The primary function of the device was to [[core dump|dump]] the computer's [[memory (computers)|memory]] to [[external storage]]. Pressing a red button on the Multiface activated it. As most games of the era did not have a [[save game]] feature, the Multiface allowed players to save their position by saving a loadable snapshot of the game.<ref name="su1">[https://archive.org/stream/sinclair-user-magazine-134/SinclairUser_134_Apr_1993#page/n16/mode/1up Advertisement, "Sinclair User"], Issue 134, page 16, April 1993</ref> Home computer software of the early 1980s was typically loaded into RAM in one go, with copy protection measures concentrating the loading phase or just after it. The snapshot feature could be used after copy protection routines had been executed, to create a [[backup]] that was effectively unprotected against unauthorised distribution.<ref name="mf1man">{{Cite book |url=https://k1.spdns.de/Vintage/Sinclair/82/Peripherals/Multiface%20I%2C%20128%2C%20and%20%2B3%20(Romantic%20Robot)/MF1/Manual.pdf |title=Multiface One Manual |date=1985 |publisher=Romantic Robot UK Ltd}}</ref> Later models of the Multiface mitigated this by requiring the device to be present when re-loading the dumps into memory, making the dumps useless to people without a Multiface.<ref name="mf3man">{{Cite book |url=https://speccy4ever.speccy.org/doc/Manuale%20Multiface%203.pdf |title=Multiface 3 Manual |pages=5 |chapter=RELOADING PROGRAMS (3.1)}}</ref> Software producers also reacted to the threat by using routines that would prevent execution of the product if it detected that a Multiface was present and by loading the software in multiple parts, thus requiring the presence of the original, copy-protected media.