Technology
Exploring "Why" questions about Technology
489 articles
Why is computer emulation so difficult?
The creator of the bsnes Super Nintendo emulator wrote a [pretty interesting article](_URL_0_) about this a few months ago.
Why do those cheesy pictures that get shared on Facebook always looks so grainy and pixelated?
They tend to pick up artifacts because the original image has gone through a chain of hundreds of computing devices which used different file formats and resolutions and so on. People do stupid shit w
Why do TV series’ from cable/streaming services like HBO, Netflix or Hulu seem to be so much higher quality than network TV?
Because of advertisers. Since on subscription services most of their revenue comes straight from the consumer they are willing to create more diverse content. So they might not have as many viewers bu
Why some movies and tv shows have real operating systems and software on computers and smartphones (like Mr. Robot) while others have fake ones?
It really depends what the show wants to focus on. In the case of Mr. Robot, the show is all about hacking, and appeals to a growing demographic of viewers who know enough about computers to detect fa
Why are mobile websites much faster and more responsive than the dedicated App they beg you to install?
Follow-up question: does it have something to do with revenue? Are there more ads on the horrible apps? Good question, OP!
Why are the effects and graphics in animations (Avengers, Matrix, Tangled etc) are expensive? Is it the software, effort, materials or talent fees of the graphic artists?
It's all of those things, and more. Professional rendering software is expensive, and they need licences for everyone working on the project. There will be a team of graphic artists working on it.
Why does copying and pasting large amounts of text lag computers when the actual transfer of files is so low?
Displaying the file (on your text editor) is different from just simply copying the file directly. The resource intensive operation is drawing each letter, formatting etc.
why cant we spell out words phonetically?
As I understand it: The main reason is because of the different languages English arose from. We borrowed some words from Latin, some from Greek, some from German, etc., and as a result, our spellings
Why Internet Explorer is bad.
This has been asked loads of times before, so have a search to get more answers but the some of the reasons are: Slow and sluggish when compared to other browsers, the worst web standard compliant bro
Why isn’t a zip code enough when entering an address, why must I give my State, City AND zip code?
I'd assume it's a 2nd check for incorrect zip codes... IE: If you're sending a letter to Scruff McGruff in Chicago, IL 60652, and accidentally mix up your 5's and 6's and send it to Scruff McGruff Chi