Hardware & Computing
Physical hardware, devices, and computing
119 episodes · Page 3 of 5
#3081: Laser Tape Measures: What Actually Matters
Time-of-flight vs phase-shift, combined inclinometers, and what your budget actually buys you in accuracy.
#3079: NFC vs UHF RFID: What Actually Works on Fabric
Why NFC tags peel off fabric and how UHF RFID solves it — plus what hardware you actually need.
#3073: What 40,000-Year-Old Paint Teaches Us About Digital Storage
Cave paintings outlasted carved stone. Now engineers are using that chemistry to build千年-proof discs.
#3066: Paint Markers That Actually Stick to Oily Steel
Markal, Dykem, Uni Paint — which survives on oily steel vs wet concrete? The chemistry is completely different.
#3065: Why Orange Markers Outlast Yellow and White
Orange markers last 5-7x longer outdoors than yellow. The secret is in the crystal structure of the pigment.
#3057: Decoding the Multimeter: What That Dial Actually Does
Learn what a multimeter actually does beyond voltage—continuity, resistance, current, and how to avoid blowing it up.
#3050: Monitor Mounting: Consumer vs. Pro Rail Systems
From IKEA arms to 80/20 aluminum rails — the real tradeoffs in custom monitor layouts.
#3049: Why Your Screwdriver Strips Screws (It's Not You)
The real difference between a $3 screwdriver and a $12 one isn't marketing — it's metallurgy and tip tolerance.
#3048: How to Read Sandpaper Like a Pro
Grit numbers, mineral types, and why your pine sandpaper clogs instantly.
#3041: The Desk That Won't Sag: Wood Species & Finishes Compared
White Oak vs Ipe vs plywood? Polyurethane vs hard wax oil? The gold standard desk surface for multi-monitor setups.
#2974: How Safety Vests Actually Reflect Light
Glass beads vs. microprisms, ANSI classes, and the physics of staying visible at night.
#2970: The $300,000 Paint Job: Inside Airliner Coating Science
Why painting a 737 costs more than a house and involves self-healing chemicals, thermal stress math, and 1,100 square meters of precision.
#2964: The Physics of Tiny Speakers: How 46mm Fools Your Ears
How a 46mm driver uses psychoacoustic tricks to fake bass — and why it’s accidentally perfect for podcasts.
#2948: Toolbox Survival in Extreme Sunlight
UV radiation destroys plastic toolboxes from the inside out. Here's what actually survives Israeli sun.
#2947: Monocles, Pocket Watches & the Science of Obsolete Tech
Why people still train their facial muscles to wear monocles in 2026 — and the precision engineering inside modern pocket watches.
#2941: Distrobox: Linux Containers That Feel Like Native Apps
How Distrobox merges container isolation with native desktop integration for immutable distros, GPU work, and messy builds.
#2940: Distrobox: Linux Containers for Humans, Not Servers
Run any distro's apps on any Linux host—no VM, no dual-boot, no dependency hell.
#2938: How to Prevent Linux Desktop Crashes Under Heavy Load
Stop losing work to memory exhaustion, CPU lockups, and GPU hangs on Linux workstations.
#2937: Why Your Phone-to-Computer Transfer Takes Forever
The cable, hub, or port you're using is probably the bottleneck. Here's how to fix it.
#2920: What Actually Kills an Older Manual Car
Brake fluid, timing belts, and coolant — the cheap things people skip that cost them an engine.
#2917: Decoding the Spec Sheet: MPN vs Model Number
MPN, model number, SKU, GTIN — which identifier actually gets you the right part?
#2885: How to Choose Your First Real Drill
Voltage numbers are misleading. Here’s what actually matters when buying a drill that will last.
#2851: How a Wax Stick Beats Sharpies on Steel
The industrial marking tool that outlasts Sharpies, survives 2000°F, and sticks to oily steel.
#2839: Full Disk Encryption: What It Actually Does and Why It Matters
Full disk encryption demystified — how LUKS works, performance reality, and when you actually need it.