Linux
TOP It Here: A Guide to Nearly All Linux *top Utilities
A comprehensive overview of practically all *top utilities for Linux — atop, iotop, htop, powertop, iftop, and many more — explaining what each one does and when to use it.
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Hardware
A Brief Introduction to SIM Cards
SIM cards are far more than simple flash drives — they are well-protected microcomputers with CPUs, RAM, and cryptographic hardware. This article explains their architecture, manufacturing, software, file systems, and the GSM authentication process.
Hardware
Why Hard Drives "Lose" Data
An in-depth look at the physical and technical reasons why hard disk drives lose data over time, including magnetic domain degradation, head crashes, firmware bugs, and environmental factors.
Unconventional Programming
How I Punished Firaxis
A programmer investigates why Civilization IV consumed 900MB of RAM and creates a memory-saving patch that was downloaded 150,000 times, fixing what Firaxis couldn't fix for months despite having source code access.
IT Predictions
My Journey to the Future
After accidentally setting the system clock to the year 14201, a developer tests how dozens of popular applications handle dates 12,000 years in the future, with entertaining and revealing results.
Copyright
30 Kopecks for Mikhalkov
In response to a controversial copyright levy on blank media, internet users organized a grassroots protest by mailing blank discs and 30 kopecks in coins to the Russian Union of Rights Holders headed by filmmaker Nikita Mikhalkov.
Windows
Speeding Up Windows Boot for Fun and Profit
A methodical guide to optimizing Windows boot time using profiling tools (xbootmgr/WPA), NTFS compression, and service delay — cutting boot from 2+ minutes to under 20 seconds on a spinning hard drive.
Algorithms
JPEG Decoding for Beginners
A step-by-step walkthrough of the JPEG decoding process using a real 16x16 pixel image, covering everything from reading file markers and Huffman tables to performing inverse DCT and color space conversion.
IT Company Offices
Office on a Deserted Island — A Reality
A group of freelance translators set up a month-long coworking office on an island in the Ladoga Skerries, solving connectivity and power supply challenges in the wild.
Productivity
Pros and Cons of Working from Home
A humorous illustrated look at the advantages and disadvantages of working from home, featuring comic panels about the daily realities of remote work.
IT Career
Success Story of a Young Developer: By 20 He Was Married, Divorced, Jailed, and Owned 3 Companies
At 16 he decided to start a business. By 20 he was married, divorced, had been to prison, and owned three companies. A cautionary tale of shortcuts, kickbacks, and doing business the Russian way.
Web Development
Dropping Support for Outdated Browsers
VKontakte begins displaying upgrade notifications to users of outdated browsers like Internet Explorer 6, with plans to extend warnings to other legacy browser versions.