Kopec Explains Software
Activity Overview
Episode publication activity over the past year
Episodes
#39 All About Bugs
08 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Bugs in computing systems cost billions of dollars and millions of hours of lost productivity each year. In this episode we break down bugs. What are ...
#38 The History of macOS
01 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
The Macintosh is one of the oldest mainstream computing platforms still in use. Its operating system has had to evolve through multiple difficult tran...
#37 How do Podcasts Work?
22 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
We discuss the history and software infrastructure behind podcasts. Podcasts are distributed using RSS feeds and MP3 files. They are hosted on web ser...
#36 What is XML?
15 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Extensible Markup Language (XML) is a data-interchange format that can be used as a meta file format: A format for defining other file formats. Common...
#35 The C Programming Language
08 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Today, by some measures, C is the most popular programming language in the world. The early history of C is deeply intertwined with Unix. But C, a rel...
#34 Video Game Distribution and GameStop
01 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Video game distribution has always been split between two different value chains: console games and PC games. In this episode we discuss why console g...
#33 What is the Difference Between Information Technology and Computer Science?
25 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
"Information Technology" and "Computer Science" are often confused. But they are really two different disciplines that both involve working with compu...
#32 What is Unix?
18 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Unix is the most influential operating system of all time. In this episode we discuss its history, its evolution, and its philosophy. We trace Unix fr...
#31 PowerPoint
11 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
PowerPoint has completely changed the way that we communicate. But where did it come from? In this episode we discuss the origins and impact of PowerP...
#30 Cybersecurity with Duane Dunston
04 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
What is cybersecurity? This week we are joined by Professor Duane Dunston of Champlain College, an expert in cybersecurity. Duane explains the field f...
#29 Why was the Original Macintosh Significant?
28 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
The original Apple Macintosh, often referred to as the Macintosh 128K, was a revolutionary device because it brought the Graphical User Interface (GUI...
Trailer
25 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Each week we make a software-related technical topic intelligible. We aim to help you develop an intuitive understanding of each subject, instead of e...
#28 Learning to Code
21 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Are you thinking about learning computer programming? In this episode we provide some tips for aspiring programmers. What programming language should ...
#27 Databases
14 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
When software gets sufficiently complex it needs a database management system to store, structure, and query its records. In this episode we talk abou...
#26 Napster
07 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Napster was the first popular peer-to-peer file sharing service. It introduced a generation to MP3 files and digitally swapping music. Created in 1999...
#25 Spreadsheets
30 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
We take spreadsheets for granted, but they were actually an incredible innovation that transformed small business. In this episode we talk about the h...
#24 The Browser Wars
23 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Throughout the three decade history of the Web various browsers have battled for supremacy. In the 1990s it was Netscape Navigator versus Microsoft In...
#23 The Mac's Instruction Set Architecture Transitions
16 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Apple is transitioning the Mac from Intel's X86-64 based microprocessors to its own Apple Silicon built on the ARM64 instruction set. But the Mac has ...
#22 Why was the IBM PC a Big Deal?
09 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
The IBM PC, released in 1981, set the standard for personal computing for decades. In this episode we discuss why it was so influential. We talk about...
#21 How have UIs Evolved?
02 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Through the history of computing, user interfaces (UIs) have evolved from punch cards to voice interaction. In this episode we track that evolution, d...
#20 How do Digital Images Work?
26 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Digital images can be broadly categorized into two kinds: bitmap and vector. In this episode we provide the listener a general understanding of how bo...
#19 What is Linux?
19 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Linux is the foundational piece of software in the majority of computing systems in use today, including most Internet servers, Internet-of-Things dev...
#18 How does Email Work?
12 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Email is the most important communications technology of our time. In this episode we explain how it works behind the scenes. We talk about how email ...
#17 What Is Encryption?
05 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Encryption enables online payment, secure communication, identity verification, and so much more. In this episode we discuss what encryption is, what ...
#16 The Personal Computer Revolution
28 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In 1975, the Altair 8800 powered by the Intel 8080 ignited the personal computer revolution. In this episode, we discuss the pivotal forces that made ...
#15 Product Managers with David Short
21 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Product managers manage the teams that build software. In this episode we interview David Short, whose been a product manager for software teams at mu...
#14 Computer Chess
14 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Since the invention of the modern computer, humans have been trying to write chess playing programs. In this episode, we trace the history of computer...
#13 Artificial Intelligence
07 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Artificial Intelligence is enabling exciting new computing applications, but many people don’t really understand what it is. In this episode we give...
#12 Open Source Software
31 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
The open source movement has completely changed the software industry. In this episode we explain what it means for software to be open source. We div...
#11 What is a Programming Language?
24 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Programming languages are what we use to communicate ideas in computing. Software is written in a programming language and most people have a vague se...
#10 What is an Emulator?
17 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Emulators allow software designed for one computing system to run on another. They act as a kind of translation layer, simulating the hardware of the ...
#9 What Does it Take to Make an App?
10 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
We discuss what it takes to make a mobile app. What are the primary different kinds of jobs that people who work on apps have? What are the phases of ...
#8 How do Web Search Engines Work?
03 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Information on the Web is always at our fingertips thanks to search engines. But, what makes them tick? In this episode we go over crawling, indexing,...
#7 What is a Character Encoding?
27 Jul 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Computers are not just great for calculating, they’re also great for storing, manipulating, and viewing text. In fact, the majority of the work we d...
#6 How does the Web work?
20 Jul 2020
Contributed by Lukas
What are the technologies that underly the Web? We discuss Web Browsers and Web Servers. We touch on: the protocols they use to communicate (HTTP and ...
#5 How does the Internet work?
13 Jul 2020
Contributed by Lukas
The Internet is not a single technology—it’s a combination of networking technologies including protocols, physical devices, and software. In this...
#4 iOS vs. Android
06 Jul 2020
Contributed by Lukas
iOS vs. Android In this episode we discuss the similarities and differences between iOS and Android. We delve into their history, business models, dev...
#3 What is a Byte?
29 Jun 2020
Contributed by Lukas
What is a Byte? What is a Byte? In this episode we go down to the fundamentals and explain how data is represented in a computer. We discuss what a bi...
#2 What is an Operating System?
22 Jun 2020
Contributed by Lukas
What is an Operating System? This week we discuss the most essential layer of a computer’s software, the operating system. We describe what an opera...
#1 What is Software?
15 Jun 2020
Contributed by Lukas
What is Software? We define software. What is software? How is it different than hardware? What is the language of software? What are the different ki...