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computer-science/what-is-an-algorithm-watch-two-recipes-race-to-sort-six-bars.md What Is an Algorithm? Watch Two Recipes Race to Sort Six Bars An algorithm is a recipe so precise that someone who doesn't understand the goal could still follow it and get the right answer. Computers… 10 min read · 1 Oct infrastructure/what-is-a-server-really-a-computer-that-waits-for-questions.md What is a server, really? A computer that waits for questions A server isn't a special kind of machine. It's an ordinary computer running a program that waits for someone to ask for something, then… 10 min read · 1 Oct tools/your-first-terminal-commands-pwd-ls-cd-and-friends-with-no-fear.md Your first terminal commands: pwd, ls, cd and friends, with no fear The terminal is a window where you type commands instead of clicking, and about a dozen of them cover most of what you'll do every day… 9 min read · 1 Oct software-design/how-to-read-a-python-error-message-without-panicking.md How to read a Python error message without panicking When Python crashes it prints a traceback: a report of what went wrong and where. It looks scary, but it has a fixed shape, and the most… 11 min read · 1 Oct computers/why-your-computer-forgets-unsaved-work-when-the-power-dies.md Why your computer forgets unsaved work when the power dies Your computer has two kinds of memory. Storage (the SSD or hard drive) is a big filing cabinet that keeps files with the power off. RAM is… 10 min read · 1 Oct security/how-websites-check-your-password-without-ever-storing-it.md How websites check your password without ever storing it A well-built website never saves your password. It saves a hash: a fixed-size fingerprint that's quick to compute and impossible to run… 9 min read · 1 Oct mobile/native-web-or-cross-platform-how-apps-get-from-your-code-to-a-phone.md Native, web or cross-platform? How apps get from your code to a phone Every app idea hits the same fork in the road. Build it native in Swift for iPhone and Kotlin for Android, build it for the web with HTML… 9 min read · 1 Oct ai/machine-learning-by-example-how-a-computer-learns-apples-from-oranges.md Machine learning by example: how a computer learns apples from oranges Normal programs follow rules a person wrote. Machine learning turns that around: you give the computer examples with the right answers, and… 11 min read · 1 Oct security/why-a-long-password-beats-a-complicated-one.md Why a long password beats a complicated one Websites tell you to add a capital, a number and a symbol. But length does far more for a password than funny characters ever can. Count… 9 min read · 1 Oct infrastructure/from-localhost-to-production-what-deploying-your-code-really-means.md From localhost to production: what “deploying” your code really means Your app runs perfectly at localhost:3000, but the link does nothing on a friend's phone. That's because localhost means "this computer"… 10 min read · 1 Oct computer-science/linear-vs-binary-search-why-30-guesses-can-beat-a-billion.md Linear vs binary search: why 30 guesses can beat a billion Need to find one item in a list? You can check every item in turn (linear search), or, if the list is sorted, look at the middle and throw… 10 min read · 1 Oct languages/why-does-my-javascript-loop-run-one-time-too-many.md Why does my JavaScript loop run one time too many? A loop tells JavaScript to repeat some code until a condition says stop. A for loop packs three pieces onto one line: a setup that runs… 8 min read · 1 Oct