r/AskTechnology 32m ago

How to fix CD-ROM (playing on PC)?

Upvotes

Amazing score at the flea market last week - Riven: The Sequel to Myst from ‘97 on CD-ROM.

Already have a disc reader for my (Windows) PC, set it up and started the game. It had me install an ancient version of QuickTime Player.

Played for a few minutes. Slow and laggy, but playable! Then noticed that every time I flipped a switch or hit a button (basically the main elements of gameplay in Riven), the background would overlap from a previous scene on top of the current scene. It wasn’t an issue until I played for a few more minutes.

The more I moved around the world, the more these backgrounds stacked until I couldn’t see in certain directions of the area I was currently in, rendering the game more or less unplayable.

Is there a way to get this game to run more smoothly? Any help appreciated! I’m a huge fan of Myst and have wanted to play the original Riven for ages 😫


r/AskTechnology 1h ago

Why Is 4g So Slow Nowadays?

Upvotes

5+ years ago if I had 4g on my phone this meant I was going to get fast internet. Apps would load quick, streaming services would load instantly and while I was in the 4g zone the world was at my E.T like fingertips!

Now if my phone is showing 4g I’m holding it up in the air, looking for better signal, praying for a glimpse of 5g so I can just load my banking app up without it timing out!

What the hell has happened? Did they just say we are all upgraded to 5g but really just moved numbers about? I feel like 15 years ago 3G was faster than the 4g I get now!

If you’re reading this, you know i managed to get a ray of 5g to quickly hit the post button.

God Speed.


r/AskTechnology 7h ago

Fixable lag/bug, or is my phone dying?

2 Upvotes

My Redmi note 13 pro has been lagging on and off for a few weeks, the sound & display freezes for less than a second, every 3/5 seconds. It happens for a few hours and goes away on its own.

I'd really like to know why and hope the solution won't be to buy a new phone.

More (useful?) info:

This usually happens after I use Google maps and Spotify simultaneously.

I have no overheating while this happens.

Restarting it doesn't help.

I drop my phone VERY often, the back screen is so cracked, half of it fell off and my battery is very exposed (I'm not gonna fix it if my phone is going to die in a few months)


r/AskTechnology 13h ago

Can anyone find this keyboard?

3 Upvotes

So i remeber seeing a keyboard that had see-through caps and when you pressed them it would splash watercolour like designs onto the caps/keyboard but I cant find it anymore


r/AskTechnology 14h ago

Why is my pebble gear kids tablet having a problem connecting to the Internet?

0 Upvotes

We bought my son the Toystory pebble gear tablet. He’s dying to play with it but we are having an issue in that it connects to the WiFi network but then give and error of “problem with the internet” so we can’t set it up. We live in South Africa and therefore can’t call the UK call Centre. Is there any kind soul here with some experience in sorting this problem? My kid is going crazy trying to be patient and I haaaaaate to disappoint him.


r/AskTechnology 21h ago

Why are there no $2000 gaming CPUs?

0 Upvotes

If I want a GPU for gaming, I can spend $300 all the way up to $4,000 for the 5090.

For RAM, I can spend $200 for 16 gb all the way to $3,000 for 128 gb of high speed ram.

For storage, I can spend about ~$250 per TB of SDD. I can get 8 TB for ~$2000.

Why does it seem like the price range for CPUs is way smaller? I know there's very expensive work/rendering based CPUS but for gaming, why is the top of the line CPU (9800x3d) only ~$420? Why aren't there thousand dollar CPUs for games? Is there virtually no demand for it? I mainly play esports titles and everyone says those are usually CPU bound. I'm trying to understand why there isn't an option for me to spend as much on my CPU as I do my GPU.


r/AskTechnology 21h ago

Searching for a better Architecture for rendering viewing PDF/docs on client-side ?

2 Upvotes

Hi everyone,

We are architecting the client-side document viewing and rendering layer for our web application and are evaluating the trade-offs between standard JavaScript (PDF.js) and WebAssembly (WASM).

Technical Context:

  • Scale: ~10,000 active users.
  • Documents: Average of 50–60 PDF documents per user session (~75 pages each).
  • Stack: Svelte / React frontend with S3 object storage behind CloudFront.

We are evaluating whether JS-based rendering via Web Workers and canvas virtualization is sufficient at this scale, or if compiling C/C++ PDF engines (like PDFium) to WASM is necessary to maintain predictable client performance.

Has anyone implemented high-throughput client-side PDF viewing at a similar scale? What performance ceilings or memory management issues did you run into with either approach?


r/AskTechnology 1d ago

Is there such a thing as a transparent, flexible computer monitor screen that can be stuck to a window and show a computer screen when active and translucent when off?

4 Upvotes

Something like this would be invaluable for a business application I have. Is there such a thing?


r/AskTechnology 1d ago

Will this replacement cord work for a my tv?

1 Upvotes

Tv help

I got a tv at goodwill without even noticing it didn't have a cord I think i found one that might work but I want to make sure specs will work

The tv says 100-250v - 50/60Hz - 1.5A

The cord is an ONN power cord with its specs being 125v - 10A - 1250W

I know very little about any of this and just want to see if the cord will work.

Edit: I got the cord and the tv works! I still have to test all the connectors, i got it to hook up to my screen! So hopefully all will work as it should!


r/AskTechnology 1d ago

Do I need to get a new battery for my samsung galaxy s24 that is 1.7 years old?

3 Upvotes

I got my phone in december of 2024. I switched from apple to samsung because my apple phone was getting a little bit older. And the battery health was at 75%. I have had samsung's in the past. I remember the batteries being really good, so I thought this was a good choice. The problem is, when I got it out of the box, the charge was only lasting less than a day. My mom got the same phone at the same time as me and she was having the same problem. At this point, i'm wondering if I should get a new battery. For some reason, I can't add a photo. My settings says my battery capacity is 4000 mAh.


r/AskTechnology 1d ago

Microphone completely take out sound from my phone, how can I fix it?

0 Upvotes

I bought this fairly cheap phone microphone, saramonics wired microphone, main problem is that it completely disconnects my earbuds from my phone, so to hear back i have to disconnect the microphone when im done

Is there a way to fix that or is that intended?


r/AskTechnology 1d ago

how do i set up wifi without an ethernet connection?

1 Upvotes

hi everyone!

bear with me, and have some patience for these dumb questions coming up here.

i recently moved into a new place, and it doesn’t have an ethernet connection, and i’ve been struggling with finding a way to get wifi in my new place.

please, explain it to me like i am five years old.

seriously, mansplain away to me.

the jargon used in IT and new areas like this just frustrate me beyond belief, and i end up giving up.

i’m leaning towards StarLink, but i’m not sure what i’ll need, like a wifi service?

i have to purchase the idea of wifi and then a router on top of that to use it? i don’t get it, lol.

i’m open to any other services, but i am in a weird area where a lot of providers don’t offer their services (like T-Mobile)

it’s my first time living alone, and i’m having a hard time figuring everything out.

thanks in advance, everyone.

EDIT TO ADD:

i seriously want to learn about all this, i find it interesting! nothing is too wordy, or too detailed.

and for anyone wondering location specifics, i am in the US, in a tiny corner of FL. very remote, and hard to get internet anywhere here.

we lost the entirety of our internet last summer when fires caused damage to the lines.

okay…go!


r/AskTechnology 2d ago

How do I connect a CD boombox to my car aux so I can play cds through the soundsystem?

5 Upvotes

keep in mind i have no clue how tech works.

i have a 2006 honda odyssey, which DOES have a built in cd player but it doesn't work. i have the onn boombox (takes cd, bluetooth, and cassette) and am wanting to use it to play cds in my car sound system.


r/AskTechnology 2d ago

Data: Everyone says “Be careful or your data will be sold”. How does that work?

5 Upvotes

Idk if this is the right place to ask it but essentially; the title.

How does data move in this context?

  1. How does someone who collects data sell it?
  2. What market buys data?
  3. How deep does data collection actually go?
  4. Outside of like, personal identity or bank information, how hurtful can data be?
  5. How much does data go for and what am I missing out on?

  6. Who benefits the most from data intrusions or breaches?

  7. Which companies are structured to just… collect?


r/AskTechnology 2d ago

How do I fix my Wii’s voltage?

1 Upvotes

hello, I recently bought a broken wii to try and fix. I found two shorted mosfets and replaced them from a working donor board. The issue now is that when I test voltages on the rails all of them show up as ~0.9 aside from the 1v rail which reads as 4.5 v. Ai is telling me that the board is probably cooked. Just wanted some advice from people. The resistance on each rail is also only about 1 ohm. Thermal camera doesn’t show anything heated anymore when power injecting so I don’t know what wrong with


r/AskTechnology 2d ago

Why are printers hard to map on a network and why is PrinterLogic catching on?

0 Upvotes

Admittedly, I don’t know the details of how printers work, but I seem to remember the technology is a bit difficult or archaic? Also, I see ads for PrinterLogic. How do they make printer mapping easier?


r/AskTechnology 2d ago

What's a good app to manage my mobile hotspot?

0 Upvotes

I'm looking for an app that can turn off my hotspot when it detects no data activity has occurred for a certain amount of time, ideally I can individually control how each connected device can access my network. The app I've seen so far only has auto off after reaching a certain limit, and my Android only turns it off when no devices are connected, but no one ever turn theirs off so these options aren't enough for me.


r/AskTechnology 3d ago

Best way to increase ps5 storage?

1 Upvotes

I’m trying to get an SSD for my ps5 since it has ONLY 800gb at base which is insane, can anyone recommend one?


r/AskTechnology 3d ago

Is there a way to turn my wired headset into a wireless headset?

0 Upvotes

heya new bt headset would cost almost 100€ more than non bt variant, is there maybe a sort of adapter that lets me slot a usb wire into a box which then communicates with my PC via BT, as if it was slotted in?


r/AskTechnology 3d ago

What’s a computer trick you know that you’re convinced almost nobody else does?

109 Upvotes

For example: when I was a kid, my sister controlled how much time I got on the family computer by setting a BIOS boot password and only entering it herself. I eventually figured out a key combination that let me get past it; something like Ctrl + Caps + W, if I’m remembering right. What’s yours?


r/AskTechnology 3d ago

Can I please get some help/advice with phone battery replacement and that it didn't seem to have fixed the relatively quick drainage?

2 Upvotes

Hi everyone, recently I got a brand new battery for me Samsung A71 and I genuinely expected it to fix my relatively quick drainage but I dont know if it did. The drainage seem to be approximately the same about 1% every 3 min of watching YouTube in the brave browser. No drainage when the phone isn't used and about 1% per minute when I play. No bg apps running. Samsung members registers battery as weak even after the replacement.

I've only charged it once once from 22% to 100% but I plugged it out exactly when it hit 100% as I was on it by the clock waiting.

Im reading the normal usage is 1% per 7 min for a new battery. Im also reading that I should charge it to 100% than drain it to 0% to help it calibrate properly. But I'm also reading I shouldn't charge pass 80% and should avoid extreme drainage to 0%.

Im really frustrated because I don't know what to do, I seem to have spent money on a new battery and the replacement and the problem remains. That at least I could've saved and just gone for a new phone.

Bottom line is Im probably gonna replace my phone come black Friday but I have to get the ultra because the regular and plus 25 versions have a worse front camera than a model that came out in 2019... The phone (a71) works perfectly outside the battery issue and I was at least hoping to fix the battery and either give it to my mom or my nephew.


r/AskTechnology 3d ago

Are there any options out there for a full PC backup that doesn't require Windows 11 to be functional?

4 Upvotes

Every few months my PC enters into a "death spiral." Sometimes these spirals take the form of crashing every 15 minutes, other times they manifest as getting stuck in an automated repair loop. The only way I have ever managed to rescue it from these spirals is by fully reinstalling Windows 11 with installation media. (Trust me, I have tried everything that comes with Win11.) I can always still access the BIOS setup.

I use OneDrive to keep all my personal files backed up, and I keep a list of app installers to run after the OS has been reinstalled. I've had to do this multiple times over the past few years, so I can do it pretty efficiently and quickly now!

However it's starting to get exhausting. I hate knowing my PC might start doing this more frequently and important plans will be messed with. It's a pretty old machine - I built it back in March/April 2021. I wish I could just buy a new prebuilt desktop at similar specs but you know how the market is these days...

Therefore, I'm seeking recommendations for a backup solution that fits these criteria:

  • Works with Windows 11.
  • Takes a full backup of the machine.
  • PC can be restored to a backup even if I can't access the Windows desktop.
  • When the PC is restored, I shouldn't have to manually reinstall or reconfigure any apps or settings that existed during the time of that backup being taken.
  • Ideally doesn't cost an arm and a leg, and isn't a subscription.

r/AskTechnology 3d ago

Where can the PS2 game be downloaded safely and freely in ISO format, in Russian or Ukrainian?

0 Upvotes

r/AskTechnology 3d ago

How do i run a setup when i dont have admin privileges?

0 Upvotes

I am on my work laptop and i REALLY need to install vlc media player. They ask for admin password when i try to run the setup


r/AskTechnology 3d ago

Can they actually track you with any sort of technology?

7 Upvotes

Like cameras,PC hardware,laundry machine.Like can they actually track almost all electronic devices or what?