December 30, 2010
When you type in a website URL in your web browser, such as www.makeuseof.com, a number of technologies are at work behind the scenes to bring the webpage up on your screen. For a general overview of what happens when you visit a website, check out this infographic on how the Internet works. But today, [...]
December 29, 2010
Part of the appeal of Ubuntu is its six-month release cycle. Every six months a new version of the free operating system is released into the wild, complete with updates for all of your favorite software. This is great, but can be a trifle disappointing from time to time. For example, if a new version of [...]
November 19, 2010
If you’ve thought about buying an Intel processor lately – or a computer with an Intel processor installed – you may have heard the term “Hyper-Threading” launched at your eardrums. You probably aren’t familiar with this term unless you stay up-to-date with the nitty-gritty of computer hardware. Understanding Hyper-Threading is important, however, because it’s a major [...]
November 17, 2010
Since cameras went digital we’ve had a few more perks to enjoy alongside our usual photography habits. No longer do we need to pause and think “shall I take that shot?” with expensive film and processing costs giving way to re-usable memory cards. Pretty much every digital camera available today (give or take the dodgy [...]
November 16, 2010
FTP and SSH are both network protocols that run on top of the TCP/IP layer, just like HTTP. In plain English, it’s a certain way for devices to communicate with each other over a network. Different ways of communication are used in different circumstances. There are different uses and different strengths. But exactly how SSH [...]
October 29, 2010
Today’s market for monitors is, at a glance, simple. Everyone has settled on LCD displays as the technology of choice, and most displays have roughly the same appearance. As Tina recently explained, however, things become more complex once you start looking at the details. In fact, even after you’ve considered contrast, connections, display resolutions and [...]
October 26, 2010
Microsoft is a big frickin company. Although born from the Windows operating system and the success of software such as Microsoft Office, the giant now has its hands in everything from cell phones to game consoles to in-car infotainment systems. Microsoft’s execution of its various goals also varies greatly – Internet Explorer has been bleeding [...]
September 10, 2010
RAM, or Random Access Memory, is your computer’s short term memory. If your computer needs information and does not find the RAM, it then needs to journey to the hard drive to try and retrieve the data, which is far more time consuming. Many older computers that feel sluggish can be given new life if upgraded with [...]
September 3, 2010
If you have ever searched for a WordPress theme before, you will have probably noticed that some theme designers use some weird text when showing off their themes which looks like Latin. I have always wondered what it was, why designers choose to use it and where it came from. After a bit of research [...]
August 23, 2010
What does the acronym API stand for? API means Application Programming Interface and they say that APIs are the underlying aspect of Web 2.0. But what does it really mean – what is an api? Let’s try to demystify the term a little. The word to really pay attention to is “Interface”. If you have [...]
