explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

2324: Old Days 2

2020-06-25T22:04:37Z

108.162.215.184: /* Explanation */ ce

{{comic
| number = 2324
| date = June 24, 2020
| title = Old Days 2
| image = old_days_2.png
| titletext = The git vehicle fleet eventually pivoted to selling ice cream, but some holdovers remain. If you flag down an ice cream truck and hand the driver a floppy disk, a few hours later you'll get an invite to a git repo.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a GIT ICE-CREAM VAN. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
In this sequel to [[1755: Old Days]], which was released more than 3.5 years ago, the conversation continues, as if no time has passed, between (young) [[Cueball]] and (old) [[Hairbun]] about computer programming in the past. As in the first comic in [[:Category:Old Days|this series]], Cueball, having only a faint idea of just how difficult and byzantine programming was "in the old days", asks Hairbun to enlighten him on the specifics. Hairbun promptly seizes the opportunity to screw with his head.

The claims:
* The cloud was smaller and called a "Mainframe" and was near Sacramento.
** This is a joke on many {{w|Cloud computing|cloud services}} replacing {{w|mainframe}}s. In those early days, it is true that large mainframes would handle multiple people's jobs at once, using techniques like {{w|time-sharing}} (although they were not necessarily located near {{w|Sacramento}}). What's more, the basic ideas behind how cloud computing are used go way back. {{w|Multics}} was an early time-sharing system designed to "support a computing utility similar to the telephone and electricity utilities". The idea was similar to the cloud, where anybody could just hook up and get computing service, as well as other services built into the mainframe. For this reason, many of the computer security concepts we have today - such as {{w|Kernel_(operating_system)|kernelized operating systems}} - come from early systems like Multics.
* It was on the state landline.
** This is probably meant to astonish Cueball, who in this context may associate {{w|landline}}s (i.e. hard wired telephone connections) with an imagined stone age technology, and which nobody today uses for anything at all. And of course even in the age of all landlines, there was never such a thing as "the state landline", imagined as an immense shared {{w|Party line (telephony)|party line}} to which the governor would have priority access for making calls. This could be a reference to {{w|dial-up modem}}s, which ''do'' use landlines, and so users would have to disconnect for making phone calls.
* No memory protection; instead, people would call around to ask whether anyone else using an address, and Microsoft's early foothold in computing was because of {{w|Bill Gates}} lying about his usage of addresses.
** {{w|Memory protection}} is coded preventative measures designed to stop an outsider (or another thread running in the code) from accessing and editing the memory on a device unauthorized, to avoid tampering with or corrupting it. Hairbun is correct in that this sort of code was not well-developed early on, but she claims that there wasn't any centralized management of the memory at all, and the only way to check if editing a particular address in the Mainframe was safe was physically asking all the other developers if they were already making changes to it. Her implication is that Bill Gates took advantage of this honor system to restrict people not working for {{w|Microsoft}} from making changes, allowing the company to take ownership of a lot of code.
* "Git" was a van that drove around gathering tapes to copy, and the term "pull request" came from the van physically pulling over when signaled with an air horn.
** {{w|Git}} is a {{w|version control system}}, which employs and manages a centralized copy of a coding project to prevent and resolve conflicts from multiple people editing the project at once. It works by having individual contributors {{w|Pull request|pull}} the project onto their device, make their changes, and then push those changes back to the master copy to be integrated into it. Bulk data used to be stored on {{w|magnetic tape}}; in order for version control to exist at this time, there would have to be a master tape that was copied and physically distributed to each contributor, and then the edited tapes would be gathered afterward and conflicts resolved. Hairbun claims that Git provided this service back then using vans. In reality, Git did not exist until 2005, long after digital computers and networked servers became widely accessible and the "early internet" was history.
* Before terminals we all used punch cards, which were originally developed to control looms, and so the looms would produce sweaters when code was run.
** Another initial truth going into complete nonsense. It is true that looms were driven by {{w|punch card}}s (dating back to 1745), and so were early computers and at the same time ({{w|Charles Babbage}} used them around 1830 to control his {{w|Analytical Engine}}). However, Hairbun's statement is that because of this, the ''same'' punch card machines would run both ''simultaneously'', such that feeding a set of cards to compile code would necessarily cause a sweater to be produced by the connected loom, which was then sent to the developer. For one: a loom doesn't produce sweaters, but a piece of fabric (which is often patterned if punch cards are involved). And it's not likely that any punch patterns used in computer coding would be interpretable as a suitable pattern for a sweater.
* (From the title text) You can still hand in a floppy disk to an ice cream truck and get an invite to a git repo a few hours later.
** Git repo is short for Git {{w|Repository (version control)|repository}}, the place where all the files associated with a project are stored. Hairbun tries to convince Cueball that modern ice cream truck drivers service Git in the same way she says the vans did before and that it's still possible to give them a {{w|floppy disk}} (a magnetic storage device) in order to gain access to a repo. The ice cream industry has no connection to computing.{{Citation needed}} Also it is unknown how it should know in which repo to create a pull request and whom to contact about it.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:[In a slim panel, Cueball and Hairbun are walking together to the right. Hairbun has her palm raised.]
:Cueball: What was the Internet like in the olden days, for a developer?
:Hairbun: Oh, things were very different.

:[Cueball and Hairbun have stopped walking. Zoomed in on Hairbun.]
:Hairbun: The cloud was a lot smaller. It was called a "mainframe" and it was near Sacramento.
:Hairbun: It was on the state landline, so the whole industry paused when the governor had to make a phone call.

:[Zoomed back out. Hairbun has her palm raised.]
:Hairbun: There was no memory protection. If you wanted to write to an address, you would call around to ask whether anyone else was using it.
:Hairbun: Often Bill Gates would say he was, even when he wasn't. That's how Microsoft got its early foothold.
:Cueball: Wow.

:[Zoomed back in Hairbun. Cueball responds off-screen.]
:Hairbun: "Git" was originally a van that circled around gathering data tapes to copy and distribute. We all took turns driving it.
:Hairbun: When you saw it coming you'd blow an air horn to request that it pull over.
:Hairbun: That's where "pull request" came from.
:Cueball (off-screen): Oh, neat!

:[Cueball and Hairbun continue walking to the right. Hairbun has her palm raised.]
:Hairbun: Before terminals, we all used punch cards, which were originally developed to control looms.
:Hairbun: Early mainframes would produce a sweater each time you ran your code.
:Hairbun: Eventually we got them to stop. We had enough sweaters.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairbun]]
[[Category:Old Days]]
[[Category:Comics sharing name|Old Days]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]
[[Category:Programming]]
[[Category:Computers]]
[[Category:Version Control]]

1755: Old Days

2020-06-25T22:03:30Z

108.162.215.184: /* Table of statements */ ce

{{comic
| number = 1755
| date = November 4, 2016
| title = Old Days
| image = old_days.png
| titletext = Lot of drama in those days, including constant efforts to force the "Reflections on Trusting Trust" guy into retirement so we could stop being so paranoid about compilers.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic is showing a conversation between (young) [[Cueball]] and (old) [[Hairbun]] about computer programming in the past, specifically the {{w|compilers}}. Cueball, having a faint idea of just how difficult and byzantine programming was "in the old days", asks Hairbun to enlighten him on the specifics. Hairbun promptly seizes the opportunity to screw with his head. This later became a [[:Category:Old Days|series]] when [[2324: Old Days 2]] was released more than 3.5 years later. While her initial agreement that code needed to be compiled for multiple architectures is correct, Hairbun's claims rapidly grow ridiculous.

Hairbun tells Cueball a tall tale about how hard it was back in the '''old days''', making it sound like some of the programming languages used today (C, C++) were written on punch cards and that you had to ship your code in the mail to a computer company ({{w|IBM}} in this case) to compile your code, which would take from four to six weeks. If there was a simple error, you would have to ship it again for another compilation.

This is factually incorrect{{Citation needed}}, but is plausible to those who do not have the knowledge or context to challenge it, similar to a {{w|Snipe hunt}}, or several other cultural myths told about things like the {{w|Tooth Fairy}}. It is clear from Cueball's final ''Wow'' that he falls for it. She then continues to explain more and more implausible so-called facts from the the olden days.

What she says is true in that it was tough and slow to program on punch cards, which were actually used for an extended period of time. However, there is very little in the rest of Hairbun's story that accurate, except that it was a big deal when the floppy disk was invented. The comment about punching holes in floppy disks is true. However, the nature and purpose of the holes punched this way was dramatically different than in punch cards. 5.25" and 3.5" floppy disks had holes or notches in them to indicate the data capacity and it was common to punch additional holes into cheaper, lower capacity floppy disks to trick the computer into writing more data on them than specified by the manufacturer. With punchcards on the other hand, the holes themselves encoded the data so punching them was itself the act of programming. It is unclear if this was a coincidence, or intentionally included as a humorous aside to the readers who know the history as a misinterpreted truth in a sea of falsehoods.

In the title text, Hairbun continues her musings on the old compiler days, stating that there was ''a lot of drama in those days''. Specifically she references ''[http://www.win.tue.nl/~aeb/linux/hh/thompson/trust.html Reflections on Trusting Trust]'' a famous 1984 paper by {{w|UNIX}} co-creator {{w|Ken Thompson}} in which he described a way to hide a virtually undetectable backdoor in the UNIX login code via a second backdoor in the C compiler. Using the technique in his paper, it would be impossible to discover the hacked login by examining the official source code for either the login or the compiler itself. Ken Thompson may have actually included this backdoor in early versions of UNIX, undiscovered. Ken Thompson's paper demonstrated that it was functionally impossible to prove that any piece of software was fully trustworthy.

Hairbun claims that one of the dramas she refers to was that people tried to force Ken Thompson to retire, so everyone could stop being so paranoid about compilers. In reality, any coder who created the first version of a compiler (or a similar critical component) could inject a similar backdoor into software, so it would be false safety. Even if no one else had thought of this, then Thompson's paper was there for any future hacker to see. Though the problem was (claimed to be) solved in {{w|David A. Wheeler}} Ph.D dissertation "[http://www.dwheeler.com/trusting-trust/ Fully Countering Trusting Trust through Diverse Double-Compiling (DDC)]".

==Table of statements==
{|class="wikitable"
!Statements
!Concepts used
!Explanation
|-
|Compile things for different processors
|{{w|Compiler}}s convert code from a human-readable programming language into a binary code that can be directly executed by computer processors.
|Many popular modern programming languages are either interpreted - meaning that they run directly from source code - or compile to an intermediate bytecode, like Java or common Python implementations. Programs written in such languages are portable across processor architectures - x86 to ARM, for example. {{w|Low-level programming language|Lower-level languages}} must take into account the features available on a given processor architecture and operating system. Before that, programs needed to compile directly into the native machine language for each processor they were intended to run on.
Native {{w|Machine code|machine language}} is dependent on processor architecture. Therefore different processors designed around different architectures will not run the same compiled code (unless the architectures are compatible; AMD64 processors will run i386 code natively, for example.) If the same code needs to be run on multiple architectures, it must be compiled separately for each supported architecture.
|-
|To compile your code, you had to mail it to IBM. It took 4-6 weeks.
|Similar to sending Kodachrome slide film to Kodak to be developed.
|While IBM has released multiple compilers, they sent the compiler to you, you did not send the code to them. There is some kind of truth in the statement, though: when programming on mainframes, programmers submitted their source code in the evening for compilation overnight. When there was an error in the code, they did not get a compiled version of it back, and had to resubmit their code. Sometimes there were time slots available for compilation, and in universities, students would have to wait for their next time slot for another try.
|-
|Before garbage collection, data would pile up until the computer got full and you had to throw it away.
|A {{w|Garbage collection (computer science)|garbage collector}} is a piece of the software that cleans the memory of data that is no longer being used in the execution of a program.
|Garbage collection is a form of memory management that generally destroys objects or frees up memory once a program no longer needs it. In languages without automatic memory management, like C, the program itself must keep track of what memory has been allocated, and free it once it is no longer needed. If the program does not, it can end up trying to use more memory than the computer has, and may crash. This was, however, a ''temporary'' condition. In the worst case, a simple reboot will clear the computer's memory.
|-
|Early compilers could handle code fine, but comments had to be written in assembly.
|A {{w|Comment (computer programming)|comment}} in programming is a text written in natural language that is meant to explain some feature of the source code; it is tagged such that the compiler will discard it to save space. {{w|Assembly language|Assembly}} is a low-level programming language.
|Comments, in code, are portions of one or more lines that are ignored by the compiler. They are commonly used to explain or comment on the code itself. But sometimes the comments are written in a certain way to compile documentation automatically from it. Also, when examining the output of compilers it's a common practice to use assembly code annotated with comments containing the source code of the program from which the assembly code was generated.

Hairbun's comment is thus very strange, implying the compilers of the day could only distinguish between comments and code if assembly was used to insert the separating tags.
|-
|C could only be written on punch cards. You had to pick a compact font, or you'd only fit a few characters per card.
|{{w|C (programming language)|C}} is a programming language. A {{w|punch card}} is a primitive form of storing data; it stored data in {{w|binary language}} with holes in a paper or cardboard card where a hole meant a 1 and the absence of a hole meant a 0.
|While punch cards were used through the late 1970s and early 1980s to enter programs and data in COBOL, FORTRAN and other early languages, the use of punch cards and punch card machines had been replaced by a {{w|text editor}} long before C (or C++) was developed as a language. This site demonstrates a card punch and cards: [http://www.masswerk.at/keypunch/ Keypunch]].

Hairbun claims that code was not written using keyboards, but by punching out letter and character shapes in the punch cards, and the computer would read keystrokes that way. Simply put, this was never true. Punch cards store characters in binary; there is no font involved and they store up to fixed limit of characters per card (80 characters in the most common format.)
|-
|C++ was big because it supported floppy disks. It still punched holes in them, but it was a start.
|{{w|C++ (programming language)|C++}} is a programming language. A {{w|floppy disk}} is a form of storing data magnetically. It's way more advanced than punch cards (by several orders of magnitude; a card can store about 80 bytes, vs 1,474,560 bytes of a floppy disk), but it's still obsolete compared to modern storage.
|Hairbun says that the improvement from C to C++ was that C++ finally "supported floppy disks", but then it turns out that in C++ the floppy disks were just used instead of punch cards. So the programming was to make holes in floppy disks rather than punch cards. This would of course not be an improvement as floppy disks store information magnetically, as opposed to physically, as punch cards do. This is likely a play on the concept of punching holes in 5.25" floppy disks to double their storage (see {{w|Double-sided disk}}), or it can also be a reference to the "index hole" of 5.25" floppy disks (see {{w|Floppy_disk#Design|Floppy disk Design}} and the tiny hole at the right of the big central hole in this [https://www.staff.ncl.ac.uk/roger.broughton/museum/floppys/images/201041b.jpg image]). A notch in the side of 5.25" floppy disks indicates when the disk could be written. Though many floppy disks were intended to have only a single side with data, many people used a hole punch to notch the opposite side of the disk, allowing a drive to write data to the other side of the disk in a single sided drive. 5.25" floppies also featured a tiny "index hole" near the central hole of the disk.
|}

==Transcript==
:[Cueball and Hairbun are standing together and Cueball is talking to her.]
:Cueball: What were things like in the old days?
:Cueball: I hear that you had to ... compile things for different processors?
:Hairbun: Yeah

:[Same setting in a slimmer panel, now Hairbun is replying.]
:Hairbun: To compile your code, you had to mail it to IBM.
:Hairbun: It took 4-6 weeks.

:[Close-up of Hairbun from the waist up.]
:Hairbun: Before garbage collection, data would pile up until the computer got full and you had to throw it away.

:[Same setting as in the first panel with Hairbun gesturing toward Cueball raising one hand palm up.]
:Hairbun: Early compilers could handle code fine, but comments had to be written in assembly.

:[In a frame-less panel Hairbun is seen from the front, with both arms out to the side with both hands held palm up.]
:Hairbun: '''C''' could only be written on punch cards.You had to pick a compact font, or you'd only fit a few characters per card.

:[Exactly the same setting as the first panel, but with Hairbun doing the talking.]
:Hairbun: '''C++''' was big because it supported floppy disks.
:Hairbun: It still punched holes in them, but it was a start.
:Cueball: Wow.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairbun]]
[[Category:Old Days]]
[[Category:Comics sharing name|Old Days]]
[[Category:Programming]]

1755: Old Days

2020-06-25T22:00:53Z

108.162.215.184: /* Explanation */ ce

{{comic
| number = 1755
| date = November 4, 2016
| title = Old Days
| image = old_days.png
| titletext = Lot of drama in those days, including constant efforts to force the "Reflections on Trusting Trust" guy into retirement so we could stop being so paranoid about compilers.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic is showing a conversation between (young) [[Cueball]] and (old) [[Hairbun]] about computer programming in the past, specifically the {{w|compilers}}. Cueball, having a faint idea of just how difficult and byzantine programming was "in the old days", asks Hairbun to enlighten him on the specifics. Hairbun promptly seizes the opportunity to screw with his head. This later became a [[:Category:Old Days|series]] when [[2324: Old Days 2]] was released more than 3.5 years later. While her initial agreement that code needed to be compiled for multiple architectures is correct, Hairbun's claims rapidly grow ridiculous.

Hairbun tells Cueball a tall tale about how hard it was back in the '''old days''', making it sound like some of the programming languages used today (C, C++) were written on punch cards and that you had to ship your code in the mail to a computer company ({{w|IBM}} in this case) to compile your code, which would take from four to six weeks. If there was a simple error, you would have to ship it again for another compilation.

This is factually incorrect{{Citation needed}}, but is plausible to those who do not have the knowledge or context to challenge it, similar to a {{w|Snipe hunt}}, or several other cultural myths told about things like the {{w|Tooth Fairy}}. It is clear from Cueball's final ''Wow'' that he falls for it. She then continues to explain more and more implausible so-called facts from the the olden days.

What she says is true in that it was tough and slow to program on punch cards, which were actually used for an extended period of time. However, there is very little in the rest of Hairbun's story that accurate, except that it was a big deal when the floppy disk was invented. The comment about punching holes in floppy disks is true. However, the nature and purpose of the holes punched this way was dramatically different than in punch cards. 5.25" and 3.5" floppy disks had holes or notches in them to indicate the data capacity and it was common to punch additional holes into cheaper, lower capacity floppy disks to trick the computer into writing more data on them than specified by the manufacturer. With punchcards on the other hand, the holes themselves encoded the data so punching them was itself the act of programming. It is unclear if this was a coincidence, or intentionally included as a humorous aside to the readers who know the history as a misinterpreted truth in a sea of falsehoods.

In the title text, Hairbun continues her musings on the old compiler days, stating that there was ''a lot of drama in those days''. Specifically she references ''[http://www.win.tue.nl/~aeb/linux/hh/thompson/trust.html Reflections on Trusting Trust]'' a famous 1984 paper by {{w|UNIX}} co-creator {{w|Ken Thompson}} in which he described a way to hide a virtually undetectable backdoor in the UNIX login code via a second backdoor in the C compiler. Using the technique in his paper, it would be impossible to discover the hacked login by examining the official source code for either the login or the compiler itself. Ken Thompson may have actually included this backdoor in early versions of UNIX, undiscovered. Ken Thompson's paper demonstrated that it was functionally impossible to prove that any piece of software was fully trustworthy.

Hairbun claims that one of the dramas she refers to was that people tried to force Ken Thompson to retire, so everyone could stop being so paranoid about compilers. In reality, any coder who created the first version of a compiler (or a similar critical component) could inject a similar backdoor into software, so it would be false safety. Even if no one else had thought of this, then Thompson's paper was there for any future hacker to see. Though the problem was (claimed to be) solved in {{w|David A. Wheeler}} Ph.D dissertation "[http://www.dwheeler.com/trusting-trust/ Fully Countering Trusting Trust through Diverse Double-Compiling (DDC)]".

==Table of statements==
{|class="wikitable"
!Statements
!Concepts used
!Explanation
|-
|Compile things for different processors
|Compilers convert code from a human-readable programming language into a binary code that can be directly executed by computer processors.
|Many popular modern programming languages are either interpreted - meaning that they run directly from source code - or compile to an intermediate bytecode, like Java or common Python implementations. Programs written in such languages are portable across processor architectures - x86 to ARM, for example. Lower-level languages must take into account the features available on a given processor architecture and operating system. Before that, programs needed to compile directly into the native machine language for each processor they were intended to run on.
Native machine language is dependent on processor architecture. Therefore different processors designed around different architectures will not run the same compiled code (unless the architectures are compatible; AMD64 processors will run i386 code natively, for example.) If the same code needs to be run on multiple architectures, it must be compiled separately for each supported architecture.
|-
|To compile your code, you had to mail it to IBM. It took 4-6 weeks.
|Similar to sending Kodachrome slide film to Kodak to be developed.
|While IBM has released multiple compilers, they sent the compiler to you, you did not send the code to them. There is some kind of truth in the statement, though: When programming on mainframes, programmers submitted their source code in the evening for compilation overnight. When there was an error in the code, they did not get a compiled version of it back, and had to resubmit their code. Sometimes there were time slots available for compilation, and in universities, students will have to wait for their next time slot for another try.
|-
|Before garbage collection, data would pile up until the computer got full and you had to throw it away.
|A {{w|Garbage collection (computer science)|garbage collector}} is a piece of the software that cleans the {{w|RAM}} of data that is no longer being used in the execution of a program.
|Garbage collection is a form of memory management that generally destroys objects or frees up memory once a program no longer needs it. In languages without automatic memory management, like C, the program itself must keep track of what memory has been allocated, and free it once it is no longer needed. If the program does not, it can end up trying to use more memory than the computer has, and may crash. This was, however, a ''temporary'' condition. In the worst case, a simple reboot will clear the computer's memory.
|-
|Early compilers could handle code fine, but comments had to be written in assembly.
|A {{w|Comment (computer programming)|comment}} in programming is a text written in natural language that is meant to explain some feature of the source code; it is tagged such that the compiler will discard it to save space. {{w|Assembly language|Assembly}} is a low-level programming language.
|Comments, in code, are portions of one or more lines that are ignored by the compiler. They are commonly used to explain or comment on the code itself. But sometimes the comments are written in a certain way to compile documentation automatically from it. Also, when examining the output of compilers it's a common practice to use assembly code annotated with comments containing the source code of the program from which the assembly code was generated.

Hairbun's comment is thus very strange, implying the compilers of the day could only distinguish between comments and code if assembly was used to insert the separating tags.
|-
|C could only be written on punch cards. You had to pick a compact font, or you'd only fit a few characters per card.
|{{w|C (programming language)|C}} is a programming language. A {{w|punch card}} is a primitive form of storing data; it stored data in {{w|binary language}} with holes in a paper or cardboard card where a hole meant a 1 and the absence of a hole meant a 0.
|While punch cards were used through the late 1970s and early 1980s to enter programs and data in COBOL, FORTRAN and other early languages, the use of punch cards and punch card machines had been replaced by a {{w|text editor}} long before C (or C++) was developed as a language. This site demonstrates a card punch and cards: [http://www.masswerk.at/keypunch/ Keypunch]].

Hairbun claims that code was not written using keyboards, but by punching out letter and character shapes in the punch cards, and the computer would read keystrokes that way. Simply put, this was never true. Punch cards store characters in binary; there is no font involved and they store up to fixed limit of characters per card (80 characters in the most common format.)
|-
|C++ was big because it supported floppy disks. It still punched holes in them, but it was a start.
|{{w|C++ (programming language)|C++}} is a programming language. A {{w|floppy disk}} is a form of storing data magnetically. It's way more advanced than punch cards (by several orders of magnitude; a card can store about 80 bytes, vs 1,474,560 bytes of a floppy disk), but it's still obsolete compared to modern storage.
|Hairbun says that the improvement from C to C++ was that C++ finally "supported floppy disks", but then it turns out that in C++ the floppy disks were just used instead of punch cards. So the programming was to make holes in floppy disks rather than punch cards. This would of course not be an improvement as floppy disks store information magnetically, as opposed to physically, as punch cards do. This is likely a play on the concept of punching holes in 5.25" floppy disks to double their storage (see {{w|Double-sided disk}}), or it can also be a reference to the "index hole" of 5.25" floppy disks (see {{w|Floppy_disk#Design|Floppy disk Design}} and the tiny hole at the right of the big central hole in this [https://www.staff.ncl.ac.uk/roger.broughton/museum/floppys/images/201041b.jpg image]). A notch in the side of 5.25" floppy disks indicates when the disk could be written. Though many floppy disks were intended to have only a single side with data, many people used a hole punch to notch the opposite side of the disk, allowing a drive to write data to the other side of the disk in a single sided drive. 5.25" floppies also featured a tiny "index hole" near the central hole of the disk.
|}

==Transcript==
:[Cueball and Hairbun are standing together and Cueball is talking to her.]
:Cueball: What were things like in the old days?
:Cueball: I hear that you had to ... compile things for different processors?
:Hairbun: Yeah

:[Same setting in a slimmer panel, now Hairbun is replying.]
:Hairbun: To compile your code, you had to mail it to IBM.
:Hairbun: It took 4-6 weeks.

:[Close-up of Hairbun from the waist up.]
:Hairbun: Before garbage collection, data would pile up until the computer got full and you had to throw it away.

:[Same setting as in the first panel with Hairbun gesturing toward Cueball raising one hand palm up.]
:Hairbun: Early compilers could handle code fine, but comments had to be written in assembly.

:[In a frame-less panel Hairbun is seen from the front, with both arms out to the side with both hands held palm up.]
:Hairbun: '''C''' could only be written on punch cards.You had to pick a compact font, or you'd only fit a few characters per card.

:[Exactly the same setting as the first panel, but with Hairbun doing the talking.]
:Hairbun: '''C++''' was big because it supported floppy disks.
:Hairbun: It still punched holes in them, but it was a start.
:Cueball: Wow.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairbun]]
[[Category:Old Days]]
[[Category:Comics sharing name|Old Days]]
[[Category:Programming]]

2324: Old Days 2

2020-06-25T21:58:23Z

108.162.215.184: /* Explanation */ wlinks

{{comic
| number = 2324
| date = June 24, 2020
| title = Old Days 2
| image = old_days_2.png
| titletext = The git vehicle fleet eventually pivoted to selling ice cream, but some holdovers remain. If you flag down an ice cream truck and hand the driver a floppy disk, a few hours later you'll get an invite to a git repo.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a GIT ICE-CREAM VAN. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
In this sequel to [[1755: Old Days]], which was released more than 3.5 years ago, the conversation continues, as if no time has passed, between (young) [[Cueball]] and (old) [[Hairbun]] about computer programming in the past. As in the first comic in this [[:Category:Old Days|series]], Cueball, having only a faint idea of just how difficult and byzantine programming was "in the old days", asks Hairbun to enlighten him on the specifics. Hairbun promptly seizes the opportunity to screw with his head.

The claims:
* The cloud was smaller and called a "Mainframe" and was near Sacramento.
** This is a joke on many {{w|Cloud computing|cloud services}} replacing {{w|mainframe}}s. In those early days, it is true that large mainframes would handle multiple people's jobs at once, using techniques like {{w|time-sharing}} (although they were not necessarily located near {{w|Sacramento}}). What's more, the basic ideas behind how cloud computing are used go way back. {{w|Multics}} was an early time-sharing system designed to "support a computing utility similar to the telephone and electricity utilities". The idea was similar to the cloud, where anybody could just hook up and get computing service, as well as other services built into the mainframe. For this reason, many of the computer security concepts we have today - such as {{w|Kernel_(operating_system)|kernelized operating systems}} - come from early systems like Multics.
* It was on the state landline.
** This is probably meant to astonish Cueball, who in this context may associate {{w|landline}}s (i.e. hard wired telephone connections) with an imagined stone age technology, and which nobody today uses for anything at all. And of course even in the age of all landlines, there was never such a thing as "the state landline", imagined as an immense shared {{w|Party line (telephony)|party line}} to which the governor would have priority access for making calls. This could be a reference to {{w|dial-up modem}}s, which ''do'' use landlines, and so users would have to disconnect for making phone calls.
* No memory protection; instead, people would call around to ask whether anyone else using an address, and Microsoft's early foothold in computing was because of {{w|Bill Gates}} lying about his usage of addresses.
** {{w|Memory protection}} is coded preventative measures designed to stop an outsider (or another thread running in the code) from accessing and editing the memory on a device unauthorized, to avoid tampering with or corrupting it. Hairbun is correct in that this sort of code was not well-developed early on, but she claims that there wasn't any centralized management of the memory at all, and the only way to check if editing a particular address in the Mainframe was safe was physically asking all the other developers if they were already making changes to it. Her implication is that Bill Gates took advantage of this honor system to restrict people not working for {{w|Microsoft}} from making changes, allowing the company to take ownership of a lot of code.
* "Git" was a van that drove around gathering tapes to copy, and the term "pull request" came from the van physically pulling over when signaled with an air horn.
** {{w|Git}} is a {{w|version control system}}, which employs and manages a centralized copy of a coding project to prevent and resolve conflicts from multiple people editing the project at once. It works by having individual contributors {{w|Pull request|pull}} the project onto their device, make their changes, and then push those changes back to the master copy to be integrated into it. Bulk data used to be stored on {{w|magnetic tape}}; in order for version control to exist at this time, there would have to be a master tape that was copied and physically distributed to each contributor, and then the edited tapes would be gathered afterward and conflicts resolved. Hairbun claims that Git provided this service back then using vans. In reality, Git did not exist until 2005, long after digital computers and networked servers became widely accessible and the "early internet" was history.
* Before terminals we all used punch cards, which were originally developed to control looms, and so the looms would produce sweaters when code was run.
** Another initial truth going into complete nonsense. It is true that looms were driven by {{w|punch card}}s (dating back to 1745), and so were early computers and at the same time ({{w|Charles Babbage}} used them around 1830 to control his {{w|Analytical Engine}}). However, Hairbun's statement is that because of this, the ''same'' punch card machines would run both ''simultaneously'', such that feeding a set of cards to compile code would necessarily cause a sweater to be produced by the connected loom, which was then sent to the developer. For one: a loom doesn't produce sweaters, but a piece of fabric (which is often patterned if punch cards are involved). And it's not likely that any punch patterns used in computer coding would be interpretable as a suitable pattern for a sweater.
* (From the title text) You can still hand in a floppy disk to an ice cream truck and get an invite to a git repo a few hours later.
** Git repo is short for Git {{w|Repository (version control)|repository}}, the place where all the files associated with a project are stored. Hairbun tries to convince Cueball that modern ice cream truck drivers service Git in the same way she says the vans did before and that it's still possible to give them a {{w|floppy disk}} (a magnetic storage device) in order to gain access to a repo. The ice cream industry has no connection to computing.{{Citation needed}} Also it is unknown how it should know in which repo to create a pull request and whom to contact about it.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:[In a slim panel, Cueball and Hairbun are walking together to the right. Hairbun has her palm raised.]
:Cueball: What was the Internet like in the olden days, for a developer?
:Hairbun: Oh, things were very different.

:[Cueball and Hairbun have stopped walking. Zoomed in on Hairbun.]
:Hairbun: The cloud was a lot smaller. It was called a "mainframe" and it was near Sacramento.
:Hairbun: It was on the state landline, so the whole industry paused when the governor had to make a phone call.

:[Zoomed back out. Hairbun has her palm raised.]
:Hairbun: There was no memory protection. If you wanted to write to an address, you would call around to ask whether anyone else was using it.
:Hairbun: Often Bill Gates would say he was, even when he wasn't. That's how Microsoft got its early foothold.
:Cueball: Wow.

:[Zoomed back in Hairbun. Cueball responds off-screen.]
:Hairbun: "Git" was originally a van that circled around gathering data tapes to copy and distribute. We all took turns driving it.
:Hairbun: When you saw it coming you'd blow an air horn to request that it pull over.
:Hairbun: That's where "pull request" came from.
:Cueball (off-screen): Oh, neat!

:[Cueball and Hairbun continue walking to the right. Hairbun has her palm raised.]
:Hairbun: Before terminals, we all used punch cards, which were originally developed to control looms.
:Hairbun: Early mainframes would produce a sweater each time you ran your code.
:Hairbun: Eventually we got them to stop. We had enough sweaters.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairbun]]
[[Category:Old Days]]
[[Category:Comics sharing name|Old Days]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]
[[Category:Programming]]
[[Category:Computers]]
[[Category:Version Control]]

1948: Campaign Fundraising Emails

2018-01-29T22:23:41Z

108.162.215.184: /* Explanation */ Grammar in warmest greetings paragraph

{{comic
| number = 1948
| date = January 29, 2018
| title = Campaign Fundraising Emails
| image = campaign_fundraising_emails.png
| titletext = The establishment doesn't take us seriously. You know who else they didn't take seriously? Hitler. I'll be like him, but a GOOD guy instead of...
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

Many politicians and organizations in the United States have taken to using aggressive fundraising campaigns by email to seek campaign contributions.

This comic shows a caricature of many people's email inboxes right now. Signing a petition or expressing interest in a cause can lead to being added to a myriad of mailing lists for similar groups, all looking for support. However, the emails get more and more absurd as the list goes on. For example, the last one combines a request for campaign contributions with the infamous Nigerian Prince phishing scheme.

'''DONATE $35.57 NOW!''' has the email begin to explain how they've tried to get as much money from supporters as possible - while fundraisers will try and work out how to gain money as possible, they would never explain this to their supporters. Such a precise number is also unlikely.

'''HOPELESS''' may refer to the videogame Fable 3 where the player needed to generate funds to protect the land from the Darkness.

'''ARE YOU FAMILIAR''' compares a political opponent's plan to the works of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hieronymus_Bosch Hieronymus Bosch], which are famous for depictions of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hell Hell] and [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Limbo Limbo] as brutal places of highly imaginative torments.

'''OUTRAGEOUS'''. When a politician makes an offensive comment, it's common for the politician's opponents to send out fundraising emails pointing out the politician's offensiveness as a reason to give money to an opponent. Here, the sender's reaction and e-mail fundraising effort appears to be unusually delayed, as it refers to an alleged comment by {{w|Gerald Ford}}, whose term as President of the United States ended in 1977 and who died in 2006.

'''OUR CAMPAIGN'S ONLY CHANCE'''. This e-mail alludes to [https://secure.actblue.com/ ActBlue], a political action committee that collects donations online for Democratic candidates. In reality, there is no Actblue family nor any "Jennifer Actblue" who is the heir to its fortune; the name ActBlue comes from the words "act" and "blue", referring to the {{w|Red states and blue states|color currently associated with the Democratic Party}}.

'''DOOM''' This is an excerpt from Tolkien's poem ''Lament of the Rohirrim,'' appearing in The Two Towers. 
Where now the horse and the rider? Where is the horn that was blowing? 
Where is the helm and the hauberk, and the bright hair flowing? 
Where is the hand on the harpstring, and the red fire glowing? 
Where is the spring and the harvest and the tall corn growing? 
They have passed like rain on the mountain, like a wind in the meadow; 
The days have gone down in the West behind the hills into shadow. 
Who shall gather the smoke of the dead wood burning, 
Or behold the flowing years from the Sea returning? 

'''WARMEST GREETINGS''' The opening line is designed to sound like spam for an {{W | Advance-fee scam}}. These scams typically involve impersonating someone rich, often a Nigerian prince, who claims to be in trouble and promises to share a large sum of money if the victim helps him by sending a small fee in advance electronically. However, the second sentence of this email switches to sounding like a political fundraising email instead of an outright scam. This is either to establish a degrading comparison between flagrant scams and fundraising emails, or just to create a bait-and-switch joke.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
'''Donate now.''' It's crunch time, and we're low on cash. If you chip in just $5 by midnight, we... 
'''Donate $35.57 now!''' Our data team has determined that we should ask you for $35.57 to optimize the... 
'''Help.''' Our campaign made some mistakes and we need a lot of money ASAP. Any kind, but cash is... 
'''Washington is broken.''' When I win, I'll look those other senators in the eye and tell them: "Jobs." Then I... 
'''Hopeless.''' It's bad. Really bad. If you don't chip in now, the darkness spreading across the land will... 
As the first woman to fly a fighter jet through our state's formerly all-male university, I learned... 
'''We're broke.''' No paid staff. No ads. And the cafe has told us to stop using their wifi to send fundraising... 
When Amy decided to run for Congress, I was like "Huh?" but I checked Wikipedia, and apparently it's a branch of... 
'''Are you familiar''' with the dutch painter Hieronymous Bosch? His work illustrates my opponent's plan for... 
Being a single mom running a small business while going to law school while being deployed to Iraq taught me... 
'''I will lead the fight''' against the big banks, special interests, the Earth's climate, and our children. I... 
'''Wow.''' Have you seen this video of the squirrel obstacle course? Incredible! Anyway, I'm running because I... 
'''Outrageous.''' Granted, this was a few years ago, but did you hear what President Ford said about... 
'''Whoops.''' Due to a typo, we spent months running attack ads against Tom Hanks. Now, we need to make up for... 
'''They say we can't win-''' that we're "underdogs" with "no money" who "lost the election last week." But they don't... 
'''Our campaign's only chance''' is to seduce Jennifer Actblue, heir to the Actblue fortune. For that, we need a fancy... 
'''Doom.''' Where is the horse and the rider? Where is the horn that was blowing? They have passed, like rain on... 
'''Warmest greetings.''' I am the crown prince of Nigeria. I am running for Congress because I believe that...

{{comic discussion}}

1948: Campaign Fundraising Emails

2018-01-29T22:18:45Z

108.162.215.184: Added Nigerian prince explanation

{{comic
| number = 1948
| date = January 29, 2018
| title = Campaign Fundraising Emails
| image = campaign_fundraising_emails.png
| titletext = The establishment doesn't take us seriously. You know who else they didn't take seriously? Hitler. I'll be like him, but a GOOD guy instead of...
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

Many politicians and organizations in the United States have taken to using aggressive fundraising campaigns by email to seek campaign contributions.

This comic shows a caricature of many people's email inboxes right now. Signing a petition or expressing interest in a cause can lead to being added to a myriad of mailing lists for similar groups, all looking for support. However, the emails get more and more absurd as the list goes on. For example, the last one combines a request for campaign contributions with the infamous Nigerian Prince phishing scheme.

'''DONATE $35.57 NOW!''' has the email begin to explain how they've tried to get as much money from supporters as possible - while fundraisers will try and work out how to gain money as possible, they would never explain this to their supporters. Such a precise number is also unlikely.

'''HOPELESS''' may refer to the videogame Fable 3 where the player needed to generate funds to protect the land from the Darkness.

'''ARE YOU FAMILIAR''' compares a political opponent's plan to the works of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hieronymus_Bosch Hieronymus Bosch], which are famous for depictions of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hell Hell] and [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Limbo Limbo] as brutal places of highly imaginative torments.

'''OUTRAGEOUS'''. When a politician makes an offensive comment, it's common for the politician's opponents to send out fundraising emails pointing out the politician's offensiveness as a reason to give money to an opponent. Here, the sender's reaction and e-mail fundraising effort appears to be unusually delayed, as it refers to an alleged comment by {{w|Gerald Ford}}, whose term as President of the United States ended in 1977 and who died in 2006.

'''OUR CAMPAIGN'S ONLY CHANCE'''. This e-mail alludes to [https://secure.actblue.com/ ActBlue], a political action committee that collects donations online for Democratic candidates. In reality, there is no Actblue family nor any "Jennifer Actblue" who is the heir to its fortune; the name ActBlue comes from the words "act" and "blue", referring to the {{w|Red states and blue states|color currently associated with the Democratic Party}}.

'''DOOM''' This is an excerpt from Tolkien's poem ''Lament of the Rohirrim,'' appearing in The Two Towers. 
Where now the horse and the rider? Where is the horn that was blowing? 
Where is the helm and the hauberk, and the bright hair flowing? 
Where is the hand on the harpstring, and the red fire glowing? 
Where is the spring and the harvest and the tall corn growing? 
They have passed like rain on the mountain, like a wind in the meadow; 
The days have gone down in the West behind the hills into shadow. 
Who shall gather the smoke of the dead wood burning, 
Or behold the flowing years from the Sea returning? 

'''WARMEST GREETINGS''' The opening line is designed to sound like spam for an {{W | Advance-fee scam}}. These scams typically involve impersonating someone with a lot of money, often a Nigerian prince, who claims to need the victim's help and who promises to share a large share of money if the victim helps by send a small fee in advance electronically. However, the second sentence of this email switches to sounding like a political fundraising email instead of an outright scam. This is either to establish a degrading comparison between flagrant scams and fundraising emails, or just to create a bait-and-switch joke.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
'''Donate now.''' It's crunch time, and we're low on cash. If you chip in just $5 by midnight, we... 
'''Donate $35.57 now!''' Our data team has determined that we should ask you for $35.57 to optimize the... 
'''Help.''' Our campaign made some mistakes and we need a lot of money ASAP. Any kind, but cash is... 
'''Washington is broken.''' When I win, I'll look those other senators in the eye and tell them: "Jobs." Then I... 
'''Hopeless.''' It's bad. Really bad. If you don't chip in now, the darkness spreading across the land will... 
As the first woman to fly a fighter jet through our state's formerly all-male university, I learned... 
'''We're broke.''' No paid staff. No ads. And the cafe has told us to stop using their wifi to send fundraising... 
When Amy decided to run for Congress, I was like "Huh?" but I checked Wikipedia, and apparently it's a branch of... 
'''Are you familiar''' with the dutch painter Hieronymous Bosch? His work illustrates my opponent's plan for... 
Being a single mom running a small business while going to law school while being deployed to Iraq taught me... 
'''I will lead the fight''' against the big banks, special interests, the Earth's climate, and our children. I... 
'''Wow.''' Have you seen this video of the squirrel obstacle course? Incredible! Anyway, I'm running because I... 
'''Outrageous.''' Granted, this was a few years ago, but did you hear what President Ford said about... 
'''Whoops.''' Due to a typo, we spent months running attack ads against Tom Hanks. Now, we need to make up for... 
'''They say we can't win-''' that we're "underdogs" with "no money" who "lost the election last week." But they don't... 
'''Our campaign's only chance''' is to seduce Jennifer Actblue, heir to the Actblue fortune. For that, we need a fancy... 
'''Doom.''' Where is the horse and the rider? Where is the horn that was blowing? They have passed, like rain on... 
'''Warmest greetings.''' I am the crown prince of Nigeria. I am running for Congress because I believe that...

{{comic discussion}}

1938: Meltdown and Spectre

2018-01-05T23:33:21Z

108.162.215.184: /* Explanation */ Switched two paragraphs to correct order as in the comic

{{comic
| number = 1938
| date = January 5, 2018
| title = Meltdown and Spectre
| image = meltdown_and_spectre.png
| titletext = New zero-day vulnerability: In addition to rowhammer, it turns out lots of servers are vulnerable to regular hammers, too.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by an unpatched computer - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This comic was inspired by the {{w|Meltdown (security vulnerability)|Meltdown}} and {{w|Spectre (security vulnerability)|Spectre}} bugs in certain processors. These vulnerabilites were disclosed to the public the week of this comic. The bugs made big news because they broke the "walls" between programs, in some circumstances allowing malware to steal secrets from normal, bug-free programs.

The {{w|Trolley Problem}} is a thought experiment where an out-of-control trolley is heading to a junction which you have control over. Leaving the trolley as-is will cause it to kill multiple people stuck on the tracks, but switching the track will cause it to kill another person. It creates the ethical dilemma of passively causing multiple deaths versus actively causing one, and it has become widely known. Speculative execution in most CPU chips is where the processor, not knowing what the results of an operation will be, begins processing an instruction or instructions before the logic on whether or not it should execute is finished. Once a decision is made, it proceeds and discards unnecessary processing. This allows it to keep doing useful work while some slower decision is made. The "quantum" aspect of this is that in some versions of quantum theory, quantum-level particles take every possible path at once and the result is the sum of all of them.

[[Ponytail]] describes the two vulnerabilities as abusing the computer's solution to its trolley problem. The computer creates "phantom trolleys" down each of the tracks, and malware can take advantage of the quantum-esque prediction method to figure out the data the phantom trolleys are using by testing the speed in which results are produced.

Contrary to what the comic implies, in many cases both paths are not simultaneously taken during speculative execution. A {{w|Branch predictor}} may be used to select the most likely path, and the effects should be completely erased if the predicted path is incorrect. Both branch prediction and taking both paths, also known as eager evaluation, are considered speculative execution and are affected by these bugs.

The {{w|Row Hammer}} problem is something entirely different. Computer memories are organized as a two-dimensional grid of rows and columns—and are physically constructed from tiny capacitors. By applying a pattern of memory access that rapidly changes a row of capacitors, you can cause charge to overflow to nearby rows and incorrectly change their states.

Ponytail mentions that we suck at building "shared computers" because Rowhammer, Spectre, and Meltdown all break down the security divisions built between programs and between users. A hacker running a separate program in a separate account shouldn't be able to access your secrets, but these bugs allow them to. This is particularly dangerous for servers and the cloud, where different programs, websites, or even companies can be sharing the same hardware.

Cueball misunderstood her explanation, and came to the conclusion that the cloud "is full of phantom trolleys armed with hammers". Instead of correcting him, Ponytail decides to accept his interpretation.
(perhaps because she found this idea to be kinda cool)

The title text humorously states that as well as row hammer, computer servers also can be "hacked" by regular hammers, which would destroy them. A zero-day vulnerability is an attack that takes advantage of a vulnerability that was discovered that day, and hasn't been patched. This would imply that the Rowhammer vulnerability is what inspired someone to try taking a hammer to a server. One might "patch" a server against this attack by plating it with stronger metal.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball and Ponytail are walking.]
:Cueball: The Meltdown and Spectre exploits use "speculative execution?" What's that?
:Ponytail: You know the trolley problem? Well, for a while now, CPUs have basically been sending trolleys down '''''both''''' paths, quantum-style, while awaiting your choice. Then the unneeded "phantom" trolley disappears.

:[Ponytail framed alone, facing left. They have stopped walking.]
:Ponytail: The phantom trolley isn't supposed to touch anyone. But it turns out you can still use it to do stuff.
:Ponytail: And it can drive through walls.

:[Cueball and Ponytail are standing, facing each other.]
:Cueball: That sounds bad.
:Ponytail: Honestly, I've been assuming we were doomed ever since I learned about Rowhammer.

:Cueball: What's ''that''?
:Ponytail: If you toggle a row of memory cells on and off really fast, you can use electrical interference to flip nearby bits and—
:Cueball: Do we just suck at ... computers?
:Ponytail: Yup. Especially shared ones.

:[They resume walking to the right.]
:Cueball: So you're saying the cloud is full of phantom trolleys armed with hammers.
:Ponytail: ...Yes, that is exactly right.
:Cueball: Okay. I'll, uh... install updates?
:Ponytail: Good idea.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Computers]]

1938: Meltdown and Spectre

2018-01-05T20:34:09Z

108.162.215.184: Clarified by adding a 'between'

{{comic
| number = 1938
| date = January 5, 2018
| title = Meltdown and Spectre
| image = meltdown_and_spectre.png
| titletext = New zero-day vulnerability: In addition to rowhammer, it turns out lots of servers are vulnerable to regular hammers, too.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by an unpatched computer - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This comic was inspired by the {{w|Meltdown (security vulnerability)|Meltdown}} and {{w|Spectre (security vulnerability)|Spectre}} bugs in certain processors. These vulnerabilites were disclosed to the public the week of this comic. The bugs made big news because they broke the "walls" between programs, in some circumstances allowing malware to steal secrets from normal, bug-free programs.

The {{w|Trolley Problem}} is the ethical dilemma thought experiment where an out-of-control trolley is heading to a junction (which you have control over)—to one side it'll kill one group of people—to the other, some others. Your moral dilemma is deciding which is the "best" outcome (eg, hitting a dozen five year old children or three Nobel laureats). This is like a software "if" statement. Speculative execution in most CPU chips is where the computer always takes both sides of a decision like this—explores what will happen down each path—and only causes the effects of the decision to happen when the decision as to which way to proceed is decided. This allows it to keep on doing useful work while some slower decision is made. The "quantum" aspect of this is that in some versions of quantum theory, quantum-level particles take every possible path at once and the result is the sum of all of them.

In a sense, the computer is exploring the consequences of the trolley problem in a quantum-like manner.

Contrary to what the comic implies, in many cases both paths are not simultaneously taken during speculative execution. A {{w|Branch predictor}} may be used to select the most likely path, and the effects should be completely erased if the predicted path is incorrect. Both branch prediction and taking both paths, also known as eager evaluation, are considered speculative execution and are affected by these bugs.

This would all be OK if it were not for the fact that devious black-hat hackers can come up with devious ways to see the information that should have been discarded in the "path-not-taken". So even though the computer will eventually decide that some piece of information should not be accessible—you can find out the value it would hypothetically read—even though it will soon decide that it should not access the information.

The {{w|Row Hammer}} problem is something entirely different. Computer memories are organized as a two-dimensional grid of rows and columns—and are physically constructed from tiny capacitors. If you apply just the RIGHT pattern of rapid changes to one row of the grid, you can cause one of the capacitors on the next row to incorrectly change state. This is a design flaw in the memory chip—and it allows (in some circumstances) programs to change data in memory locations that they have no right to change.

Ponytail mentions that we suck at building "shared computers" because Rowhammer, Spectre, and Meltdown all break down the security divisions built between programs and between users. A hacker running a separate program in a separate account shouldn't be able to access your secrets, but these bugs allow them to. This is particularly dangerous for servers and the cloud, where different programs, websites, or even companies can be sharing the same hardware.

The title text humorously states that as well as row hammer, computer servers also can be "hacked" by regular hammers. A zero-day vulnerability is an attack that takes advantage of a vulnerability that was discovered that day, and hasn't been patched. One might "patch" a server against this attack by plating it with stronger metal.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball and Ponytail are walking.]
:Cueball: The Meltdown and Spectre exploits use "speculative execution?" What's that?
:Ponytail: You know the trolley problem? Well, for a while now, CPUs have basically been sending trolleys down '''''both''''' paths, quantum-style, while awaiting your choice. Then the unneeded "phantom" trolley disappears.

:[Ponytail framed alone, facing left. They have stopped walking.]
:Ponytail: The phantom trolley isn't supposed to touch anyone, but it turns out you can still use it to do stuff.
:Ponytail: And it can drive through walls.

:[Cueball and Ponytail are standing, facing each other.]
:Cueball: That sounds bad.
:Ponytail: Honestly, I've been assuming we were doomed ever since I learned about Rowhammer.

:Cueball: What's ''that''?
:Ponytail: If you toggle a row of memory cells on and off really fast, you can use electrical interference to flip nearby bits and—
:Cueball: Do we just suck at ... computers?
:Ponytail: Yup. Especially shared ones.

:[They resume walking to the right.]
:Cueball: So you're saying the cloud is full of phantom trolleys armed with hammers.
:Ponytail: ...Yes, that's exactly right.
:Cueball: Okay. I'll, uh... install updates?
:Ponytail: Good idea.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Computers]]

1938: Meltdown and Spectre

2018-01-05T20:15:39Z

108.162.215.184: /* Explanation */ Fixed grammar in branch prediction paragraph

{{comic
| number = 1938
| date = January 5, 2018
| title = Meltdown and Spectre
| image = meltdown_and_spectre.png
| titletext = New zero-day vulnerability: In addition to rowhammer, it turns out lots of servers are vulnerable to regular hammers, too.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by an unpatched computer - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This comic was inspired by the {{w|Meltdown (security vulnerability)|Meltdown}} and {{w|Spectre (security vulnerability)|Spectre}} bugs in certain processors. These vulnerabilites were disclosed to the public the week of this comic. The bugs made big news because they broke the "walls" between programs, in some circumstances allowing malware to steal secrets from normal, bug-free programs.

The {{w|Trolley Problem}} is the ethical dilemma thought experiment where an out-of-control trolley is heading to a junction (which you have control over)—to one side it'll kill one group of people—to the other, some others. Your moral dilemma is deciding which is the "best" outcome (eg, hitting a dozen five year old children or three Nobel laureats). This is like a software "if" statement. Speculative execution in most CPU chips is where the computer always takes both sides of a decision like this—explores what will happen down each path—and only causes the effects of the decision to happen when the decision as to which way to proceed is decided. This allows it to keep on doing useful work while some slower decision is made. The "quantum" aspect of this is that in some versions of quantum theory, quantum-level particles take every possible path at once and the result is the sum of all of them.

In a sense, the computer is exploring the consequences of the trolley problem in a quantum-like manner.

Contrary to what the comic implies, in many cases both paths are not simultaneously taken during speculative execution. A {{w|Branch predictor}} may be used to select the most likely path, and the effects should be completely erased if the predicted path is incorrect. Both branch prediction and taking both paths, also known as eager evaluation, are considered speculative execution and are affected by these bugs.

This would all be OK if it were not for the fact that devious black-hat hackers can come up with devious ways to see the information that should have been discarded in the "path-not-taken". So even though the computer will eventually decide that some piece of information should not be accessible—you can find out the value it would hypothetically read—even though it will soon decide that it should not access the information.

The {{w|Row Hammer}} problem is something entirely different. Computer memories are organized as a two-dimensional grid of rows and columns—and are physically constructed from tiny capacitors. If you apply just the RIGHT pattern of rapid changes to one row of the grid, you can cause one of the capacitors on the next row to incorrectly change state. This is a design flaw in the memory chip—and it allows (in some circumstances) programs to change data in memory locations that they have no right to change.

Ponytail mentions that we suck at building "shared computers" because Rowhammer, Spectre, and Meltdown all break down the security divisions built between programs and users. A hacker running a separate program in a separate account shouldn't be able to access your secrets, but these bugs allow them to. This is particularly dangerous for servers and the cloud, where different programs, websites, or even companies can be sharing the same hardware.

The title text humorously states that as well as row hammer, computer servers also can be "hacked" by regular hammers. A zero-day vulnerability is an attack that takes advantage of a vulnerability that was discovered that day, and hasn't been patched. One might "patch" a server against this attack by plating it with stronger metal.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball and Ponytail are walking.]
:Cueball: The Meltdown and Spectre exploits use "speculative execution." What's that?
:Ponytail: You know the trolley problem? Well, for a while now, CPUs have basically been sending trolleys down '''both''' paths, quantum-style, while awaiting your choice. Then the unneeded "phantom" trolley disappears.

:[Ponytail framed alone, facing left. They have stopped walking.]
:Ponytail: The phantom trolley isn't supposed to touch anyone, but it turns out you can still use it to do stuff. And it can drive through walls.

:[Cueball and Ponytail are standing, facing each other.]
:Cueball: That sounds bad.
:Ponytail: Honestly, I've been assuming we were doomed ever since I learned about Rowhammer.

:Cueball: What's ''that''?
:Ponytail: If you toggle a row of memory cells on and off really fast, you can use electrical interference to flip nearby bits and—
:Cueball: Do we just suck at ... computers?
:Ponytail: Yup. Especially shared ones.

:[They resume walking to the right.]
:Cueball: So you're saying the cloud is full of phantom trolleys armed with hammers.
:Ponytail: ... Yes, that's exactly right.
:Cueball: Okay, I'll ... install updates.
:Ponytail: Good idea.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]

[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]

1938: Meltdown and Spectre

2018-01-05T20:13:10Z

108.162.215.184: /* Explanation */ Added explanation about branch prediciton

{{comic
| number = 1938
| date = January 5, 2018
| title = Meltdown and Spectre
| image = meltdown_and_spectre.png
| titletext = New zero-day vulnerability: In addition to rowhammer, it turns out lots of servers are vulnerable to regular hammers, too.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by an unpatched computer - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This comic was inspired by the {{w|Meltdown (security vulnerability)|Meltdown}} and {{w|Spectre (security vulnerability)|Spectre}} bugs in certain processors. These vulnerabilites were disclosed to the public the week of this comic. The bugs made big news because they broke the "walls" between programs, in some circumstances allowing malware to steal secrets from normal, bug-free programs.

The {{w|Trolley Problem}} is the ethical dilemma thought experiment where an out-of-control trolley is heading to a junction (which you have control over)—to one side it'll kill one group of people—to the other, some others. Your moral dilemma is deciding which is the "best" outcome (eg, hitting a dozen five year old children or three Nobel laureats). This is like a software "if" statement. Speculative execution in most CPU chips is where the computer always takes both sides of a decision like this—explores what will happen down each path—and only causes the effects of the decision to happen when the decision as to which way to proceed is decided. This allows it to keep on doing useful work while some slower decision is made. The "quantum" aspect of this is that in some versions of quantum theory, quantum-level particles take every possible path at once and the result is the sum of all of them.

In a sense, the computer is exploring the consequences of the trolley problem in a quantum-like manner.

Contrary to what the comic implies, in many cases both paths are not simultaneously taken during speculative execution. A {{w|Branch predictor}} may be used to select and select the most likely path, and the effects should be completely erased if the decision is incorrect. Both branch prediction and taking both paths, also known as eager evaluation, are considered speculative execution and are affected by these bugs.

This would all be OK if it were not for the fact that devious black-hat hackers can come up with devious ways to see the information that should have been discarded in the "path-not-taken". So even though the computer will eventually decide that some piece of information should not be accessible—you can find out the value it would hypothetically read—even though it will soon decide that it should not access the information.

The {{w|Row Hammer}} problem is something entirely different. Computer memories are organized as a two-dimensional grid of rows and columns—and are physically constructed from tiny capacitors. If you apply just the RIGHT pattern of rapid changes to one row of the grid, you can cause one of the capacitors on the next row to incorrectly change state. This is a design flaw in the memory chip—and it allows (in some circumstances) programs to change data in memory locations that they have no right to change.

Ponytail mentions that we suck at building "shared computers" because Rowhammer, Spectre, and Meltdown all break down the security divisions built between programs and users. A hacker running a separate program in a separate account shouldn't be able to access your secrets, but these bugs allow them to. This is particularly dangerous for servers and the cloud, where different programs, websites, or even companies can be sharing the same hardware.

The title text humorously states that as well as row hammer, computer servers also can be "hacked" by regular hammers. A zero-day vulnerability is an attack that takes advantage of a vulnerability that was discovered that day, and hasn't been patched. One might "patch" a server against this attack by plating it with stronger metal.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball and Ponytail are walking.]
:Cueball: The Meltdown and Spectre exploits use "speculative execution." What's that?
:Ponytail: You know the trolley problem? Well, for a while now, CPUs have basically been sending trolleys down '''both''' paths, quantum-style, while awaiting your choice. Then the unneeded "phantom" trolley disappears.

:[Ponytail framed alone, facing left. They have stopped walking.]
:Ponytail: The phantom trolley isn't supposed to touch anyone, but it turns out you can still use it to do stuff. And it can drive through walls.

:[Cueball and Ponytail are standing, facing each other.]
:Cueball: That sounds bad.
:Ponytail: Honestly, I've been assuming we were doomed ever since I learned about Rowhammer.

:Cueball: What's ''that''?
:Ponytail: If you toggle a row of memory cells on and off really fast, you can use electrical interference to flip nearby bits and—
:Cueball: Do we just suck at ... computers?
:Ponytail: Yup. Especially shared ones.

:[They resume walking to the right.]
:Cueball: So you're saying the cloud is full of phantom trolleys armed with hammers.
:Ponytail: ... Yes, that's exactly right.
:Cueball: Okay, I'll ... install updates.
:Ponytail: Good idea.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]

[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]

1938: Meltdown and Spectre

2018-01-05T19:56:47Z

108.162.215.184: /* Explanation */ added explanation of connection between speculative execution and trolley problem

{{comic
| number = 1938
| date = January 5, 2018
| title = Meltdown and Spectre
| image = meltdown_and_spectre.png
| titletext = New zero-day vulnerability: In addition to rowhammer, it turns out lots of servers are vulnerable to regular hammers, too.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by an unpatched computer - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This comic was inspired by the {{w|Meltdown (security vulnerability)}} and {{w|Spectre (security vulnerability)}} bugs in certain processors. These vulnerabilites were disclosed to the public the week of this comic. The bugs made big news because they broke the "walls" between programs, in some circumstances allowing malware to steal secrets from normal, bug-free programs.

The {{w|Trolley Problem}} is the ethical dilemma thought experiment where an out-of-control trolley is heading to a junction (which you have control over) - to one side it'll kill one group of people - to the other, some others. Your moral dilemma is deciding which is the "best" outcome (eg, hitting a dozen five year old children or three Nobel laureats). There does not seem to be any special connection between the details of this ethical dilemma and speculative execution. Randall probably chose the trolley problem simply because it was an interesting and well-known decision involving routing trolleys.

The trolley problem is like a software "if" statement. Speculative execution in most CPU chips is where the computer always takes both sides of a decision like this - explores what will happen down each path - and only causes the effects of the decision to happen when the decision as to which way to proceed is decided. This allows it to keep on doing useful work while some slower decision is made. The "quantum" aspect of this is that in some versions of quantum theory, quantum-level particles take every possible path at once and the result is the sum of all of them.

In a sense, the computer is exploring the consequences of the trolley problem in a quantum-like manner.

This would all be OK if it were not for the fact that devious black-hat hackers can come up with devious ways to see the information that should have been discarded in the "path-not-taken". So even though the computer will eventually decide that some piece of information should not be accessible - you can find out the value it would hypothetically read - even though it will soon decide that it should not access the information.

The {{w|Row Hammer}} problem is something entirely different. Computer memories are organized as a two-dimensional grid of rows and columns - and are physically constructed from tiny capacitors. If you apply just the RIGHT pattern of rapid changes to one row of the grid, you can cause one of the capacitors on the next row to incorrectly change state. This is a design flaw in the memory chip - and it allows (in some circumstances) programs to change data in memory locations that they have no right to change.

Ponytail mentions that we suck at building "shared computers" because Rowhammer, Spectre, and Meltdown all break down the security divisions built between programs and users. A hacker running a separate program in a separate account shouldn't be able to access your secrets, but these bugs allow them to. This is particularly dangerous for servers and the cloud, where different programs, websites, or even companies can be sharing the same hardware.

The title text humorously states that as well as row hammer, computer servers also can be "hacked" by regular hammers. A zero-day vulnerability is an attack that takes advantage of a vulnerability that was discovered that day, and hasn't been patched. One might "patch" a server against this attack by plating it with stronger metal.

==Transcript==
[ Cueball and Ponytail are walking ] 
Cueball: The Meltdown and Spectre exploits use "speculative execution." What's that? 
Ponytail: You know the trolley problem? Well, for a while now, CPUs have basically been sending trolleys down '''both''' paths, quantum-style, while awaiting your choice. Then the unneeded "phantom" trolley disappears.

[ Ponytail framed alone, facing left. It appears they have stopped walking ] 
Ponytail: The phantom trolley isn't supposed to touch anyone, but it turns out you can still use it to do stuff. And it can drive through walls.

[ Cueball and Ponytail are standing, facing each other ] 
Cueball: That sounds bad. 
Ponytail: Honestly, I've been assuming we were doomed ever since I learned about Rowhammer.

[ They are still standing there. ] 
Cueball: What's ''that''? 
Ponytail: If you toggle a row of memory cells on and off really fast, you can use electrical interference to flip nearby bits and - 
Cueball: Do we just suck at ... computers? 
Ponytail: Yup. Especially shared ones.

[ They resume walking to the right. ] 
Cueball: So you're saying the cloud is full of phantom trolleys armed with hammers. 
Ponytail: ... Yes, that's exactly right. 
Cueball: Okay, I'll ... install updates. 
Ponytail: Good idea.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]

[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]

1938: Meltdown and Spectre

2018-01-05T19:52:35Z

108.162.215.184: /* Explanation */ Explained the shared computers concept

{{comic
| number = 1938
| date = January 5, 2018
| title = Meltdown and Spectre
| image = meltdown_and_spectre.png
| titletext = New zero-day vulnerability: In addition to rowhammer, it turns out lots of servers are vulnerable to regular hammers, too.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by an unpatched computer - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This comic was inspired by the {{w|Meltdown (security vulnerability)}} and {{w|Spectre (security vulnerability)}} bugs in certain processors. These vulnerabilites were disclosed to the public the week of this comic. The bugs made big news because they broke the "walls" between programs, in some circumstances allowing malware to steal secrets from normal, bug-free programs.

The {{w|Trolley Problem}} is the ethical dilemma thought experiment where an out-of-control trolley is heading to a junction (which you have control over) - to one side it'll kill one group of people - to the other, some others. Your moral dilemma is deciding which is the "best" outcome (eg, hitting a dozen five year old children or three Nobel laureats). This is like a software "if" statement. Speculative execution in most CPU chips is where the computer always takes both sides of a decision like this - explores what will happen down each path - and only causes the effects of the decision to happen when the decision as to which way to proceed is decided. This allows it to keep on doing useful work while some slower decision is made. The "quantum" aspect of this is that in some versions of quantum theory, quantum-level particles take every possible path at once and the result is the sum of all of them.

In a sense, the computer is exploring the consequences of the trolley problem in a quantum-like manner.

This would all be OK if it were not for the fact that devious black-hat hackers can come up with devious ways to see the information that should have been discarded in the "path-not-taken". So even though the computer will eventually decide that some piece of information should not be accessible - you can find out the value it would hypothetically read - even though it will soon decide that it should not access the information.

The {{w|Row Hammer}} problem is something entirely different. Computer memories are organized as a two-dimensional grid of rows and columns - and are physically constructed from tiny capacitors. If you apply just the RIGHT pattern of rapid changes to one row of the grid, you can cause one of the capacitors on the next row to incorrectly change state. This is a design flaw in the memory chip - and it allows (in some circumstances) programs to change data in memory locations that they have no right to change.

Ponytail mentions that we suck at building "shared computers" because Rowhammer, Spectre, and Meltdown all break down the security divisions built between programs and users. A hacker running a separate program in a separate account shouldn't be able to access your secrets, but these bugs allow them to. This is particularly dangerous for servers and the cloud, where different programs, websites, or even companies can be sharing the same hardware.

The title text humorously states that as well as row hammer, computer servers also can be "hacked" by regular hammers. A zero-day vulnerability is an attack that takes advantage of a vulnerability that was discovered that day, and hasn't been patched. One might "patch" a server against this attack by plating it with stronger metal.

==Transcript==
[ Cueball and Blonde are walking ] 
Cueball: The Meltdown and Spectre exploits use "speculative execution." What's that? 
Blonde: You know the trolley problem? Well, for a while now, CPUs have basically been sending trolleys down '''both''' paths, quantum-style, while awaiting your choice. Then the unneeded "phantom" trolley disappears.

[ Blonde framed alone, facing left. It appears they have stopped walking ] 
Blonde: The phantom trolley isn't supposed to touch anyone, but it turns out you can still use it to do stuff. And it can drive through walls.

[ Cueball and Blonde are standing, facing each other ] 
Cueball: That sounds bad. 
Blonde: Honestly, I've been assuming we were doomed ever since I learned about Rowhammer.

[ They are still standing there. ] 
Cueball: What's ''that''? 
Blonde: If you toggle a row of memory cells on and off really fast, you can use electrical interference to flip nearby bits and - 
Cueball: Do we just suck at ... computers? 
Blonde: Yup. Especially shared ones.

[ They resume walking to the right. ] 
Cueball: So you're saying the cloud is full of phantom trolleys armed with hammers. 
Blonde: ... Yes, that's exactly right. 
Cueball: Okay, I'll ... install updates. 
Blonde: Good idea.

{{comic discussion}}

1938: Meltdown and Spectre

2018-01-05T19:32:26Z

108.162.215.184: Added paragraph explaiing trolley problem

1938: Meltdown and Spectre

2018-01-05T19:24:03Z

108.162.215.184: Started with explanation of why Spectre and Meltdown occur

1787: Voice Commands

2017-01-18T17:09:10Z

108.162.215.184: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 1787
| date = January 18, 2017
| title = Voice Commands
| image = voice_commands.png
| titletext = Dvorak words may sound hard to pronounce, but studies show they actually put less stress on the vocal chords.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BOT - Please change this comment when editing this page.}}
The {{w|Dvorak_Simplified_Keyboard|Dvorak keyboard layout}} was designed to replace the {{w|QWERTY}} keyboard layout (the de facto standard keyboard layout, so named for the starting letters in the top row). The Dvorak layout was designed in the belief that it would significantly increase typing speeds over the QWERTY layout, and in fact some of the placement of letters in the QWERTY standard were deliberate to accommodate limitations of the original mechanical typewriters which could jam if two adjacent keys were pressed in quick succession. Even as those limitations went away and other arguably better layouts were proposed, QWERTY remained the standard due to widespread use.

Using Dvorak for speech to text, however, makes no sense whatsoever as there is no keyboard, real, virtual, or otherwise, involved in speaking. Even the virtual keyboard (usually QWERTY layout but often changeable) included in most phones and tablet devices is not used when speaking to the phone.

The sentence he tells his phone translates to "Okay Google send a text" - he says it as if it was typed on a QWERTY keyboard set to Dvorak layout.

The title text is a reference to the fact that many users of DVORAK keyboards claim they may be hard to learn, but they are more productive after you get used to them. This makes little sense in the scenario set up by the comic, because no typing is involved in giving voice commands to Google and mentally translating real words into gibberish would never be more productive than simply saying real words.

==Transcript==
[Ponytail and Cueball are standing looking at each other. Cueball is holding a phone.]

Ponytail: Can you text it to me?

Cueball: Sure!

Cueball: ''SVAT USSUPD ;DLH A KDBK''

Ponytail: ...What?

Phone: *BEEP*

[Caption under the panel:]

Setting my phone's speech recognition to Dvorak was a pain at first, but it's more efficient in the long run.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]

1787: Voice Commands

2017-01-18T17:07:59Z

108.162.215.184: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 1787
| date = January 18, 2017
| title = Voice Commands
| image = voice_commands.png
| titletext = Dvorak words may sound hard to pronounce, but studies show they actually put less stress on the vocal chords.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BOT - Please change this comment when editing this page.}}
The {{w|Dvorak_Simplified_Keyboard|Dvorak keyboard layout}} was designed to replace the {{w|QWERTY}} keyboard layout (the de facto standard keyboard layout, so named for the starting letters in the top row). The Dvorak layout was designed in the belief that it would significantly increase typing speeds over the QWERTY layout, and in fact some of the placement of letters in the QWERTY standard were deliberate to accommodate limitations of the original mechanical typewriters which could jam if two adjacent keys were pressed in quick succession. Even as those limitations went away and other arguably better layouts were proposed, QWERTY remained the standard due to widespread use.

Using Dvorak for speech to text, however, makes no sense whatsoever as there is no keyboard, real, virtual, or otherwise, involved in speaking. Even the virtual keyboard (usually QWERTY layout but often changeable) included in most phones and tablet devices is not used when speaking to the phone.

The sentence he tells his phone translates to "Okay Google send a text" - he says it as if it was typed on a QWERTY keyboard set to Dvorak layout.

The title text is a reference to the fact that many users of DVORAK keyboards claim they may be hard to learn, but they are more productive after you get used to them. This makes little sense in the scenario set up by the comic, because no typing is involved in giving voice commands to Google and mentally translating real words into gibberish would never be more productive than simply saying real words.

==Transcript==
[Ponytail and Cueball are standing looking at each other. Cueball is holding a phone.]

Ponytail: Can you text it to me?

Cueball: Sure! ''SVAT USSUPD ;DLH A KDBK''

Ponytail: ...What?

Phone: *BEEP*

[Caption under the panel:]

Setting my phone's speech recognition to Dvorak was a pain at first, but it's more efficient in the long run.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]

1762: Moving Boxes

2016-11-22T02:56:11Z

108.162.215.184:

{{comic
| number = 1762
| date = November 21, 2016
| title = Moving Boxes
| image = moving_boxes.png
| titletext = Later, when I remember that I'm calling movers, I frantically scribble over the labels and write 'NORMAL HOUSE STUFF' on all of them, which actually makes things worse.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Fill table}}
[[Randall]] talks about moving boxes and not labeling them until he forgets what's in them. Since he doesn't know what's in them, he writes silly things on the boxes as a joke. Some things are unusual/unlikely (e.g. sand, hydrants, peat) and some are abstract/impossible (e.g. elves, taupe, dark matter). Several of the categories overlap confusingly; for instance, "sand" and "silt" and "dark matter" are all generally considered as "particles"; "membranes", "edges", and "shawls" are all kinds of "manifolds"; "hooves" are part of "bison"; "fog" contains "water"; and "triangles" consist of three "edges". Another way to interpret this comic is that Randall actually has these items (or at least some of them) in the boxes and has simply forgotten which boxes contain what.

===Explanation of boxes===
{| class="wikitable" width="100%"
!Label
!Explanation
|-
!Box 1
|-
|Grids|| [https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/grid Grids] are mathematical drawings; they would be constructed by drawing them, not stored in a box (though {{w|graph paper}} might be). May refer to a classic {{w|snipe hunt}} where a hazing victim is tasked with finding "a box of grid squares".
|-
|Bison||{{w|Bison}}, sometimes mistakenly called buffalo, are large animals{{Citation needed}} that would probably not fit in the box{{Citation needed}}.
|-
|Checkerboards||The tabletop gaming boards on which one plays {{w|English draughts|Checkers}}.
|-
|Fog||{{w|Fog}} is essentially low-lying clouds which, being gaseous, are hard to box using only cardboard.
|-
!Box 2
|-
|Beacons||A device designed to draw attention to itself, for various reasons. From the generic term "beacon" this could mean anything from electronic GPS locator beacons to miniature replicas of naval lighthouses.
|-
|Elves||A fictional race (or rather, [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/OurElvesAreBetter many, many fictional races]) of human-like magical creatures.
|-
|Sand||Fine particles of rock. While it's not unheard of for people to need to store sand, it's usually not stored along with your personal belongings on moving day.
|-
!Box 3
|-
|Hemoglobin||{{w|Hemoglobin}} is the protein found in red blood cells that carries oxygen around the body. This may be a solution of hemoglobin protein, but one human generally would not need a full box of it{{Citation needed}}.
|-
!Box 4
|-
|Water||As with sand, it's not unheard of for, say, a laboratory to store water samples for testing. But again, these wouldn't be stored along with your personal belongings on moving day. And if this is meant to be drinking water, it would be a waste of effort; it's taken as read that any house you're moving into has its own plumbing.
|-
|Hooves||{{w|Hooves}} are possibly best-known as horse and cow 'feet'. This could also be read as a compound word, Water-Hooves akin to water-wings.
|-
!Box 5
|-
|Shorebirds|| Also known as {{w|Wader|Waders}}, an order of birds that wade in littoral waters.
|-
!Box 6
|-
|Oil|| This could mean anything from cooking oil to petroleum; either way, having a third of a box full of oil bottles is unusual, but for different reasons.
|-
|Vectors||{{w|Vector}}s are points on geometric shapes, not physical objects, so they cannot be put in boxes.
|-
|Silt|| Material between sand and clay size-wise. A sediment. See sand and water above for why this is unusual. Randall has a special place in his heart for rock particles of various sizes; see https://what-if.xkcd.com/83/.
|-
!Box 7
|-
|Membranes||Delicate thin pliable sheet or skin of various kinds. Usually fragile or cut easily. Not something you would expect to be packed with something sharp, which shards are likely to be, although these labels are incorrect.
|-
|Shards||Broken pieces of smooth and hard objects, e.g. ceramic, glass, crystal. Something you would normally expect to be thrown out, rather than packed up for moving house.
|-
!Box 8
|-
|Shawls||{{w|Shawls}} are a simple item of clothing, worn loosely over one's shoulders. Also being of rectangular shape, they are supposed to be worn in colder weather.
|-
|Glucose||{{w|Glucose}} is possibly best-known as the sugar plants produce for energy, but can be manufactured.
|-
|Kits||A {{w|kit}} is any set of tools, supplies, and/or instructions for a specific purpose. These could be first aid kits, software development kits, bomb-making kits, sewing kits... Alternatively, this may be a compound word "Glucose Kits", diabetic assay tools to help the patient regulate their blood sugar.
|-
!Box 9
|-
|Hydrants||{{w|Fire hydrant}}s are likely too big to fit in boxes, and are also simply odd objects to be packing into a box.
|-
|Particles||As almost all matter is composed of {{w|particles}}, it is hard to find exceptions. Thus, this is very vague.
|-
|Knots||{{w|Knot}}s are things tied in ropes; they can hold things or just be there. This would be hard to put in a box without rope{{Citation needed}}.
|-
!Box 10
|-
|Graphite||{{w|Graphite}} is a material made of carbon that is found in sheets.
|-
|Taupe|| {{w|Taupe}} is a dark tan color in between brown and gray, again, not an object.
|-
!Box 11
|-
|Field Lines||This could refer to {{w|field line}}s as used to depict electromagnetic fields, or possibly to the lines painted on an athletic field to mark the boundaries of play. The former are a visualization tool rather than physical objects; the latter consist of streaks of paint on grass or artificial turf, and thus neither kind of field line is the kind of physical object that could be packed into a box.
|-
!Box 12
|-
|Traps||May be a reference to 'My house is full of traps' from [https://what-if.xkcd.com/34// What-If #34]
|-
!Box 13
|-
|Edges||{{w|Edge_(geometry)|Edge}} is a line segment joining two vertices. Even though physical objects do have edges, you cannot store edges themselves as they are just mathematical constructs.
|-
|Tribes||{{w|Tribe}} is a social group of people, tribes existed before states were formed. It is impossible to store a group of people in the box{{Citation needed}}.
|-
|Dough||{{w|Dough}} is a thick, malleable, sometimes elastic, paste made out of any grains, leguminous or chestnut crops. It is used in the process of cooking, but it doesn't make sense to pack it while moving.
|-
!Box 14
|-
|Dark Matter||{{w|Dark matter}} is what scientist believe to be a big part of the mass of galaxies, but we have never observed it, so it is not possible to pack it.
|-
!Box 15
|-
|Manifolds||Manifolds are akin to {{w|topological}} {{w|universe}}s. Yet another mathematical construct which is impossible to pack into a box.
|-
!Box 16
|-
|Triangles||Within the context of this comic, the reference is likely to the shape. On the other hand, it would not be unusual to pack one or more {{w|Triangle (musical instrument)}}s into a box.
|-
|Peat|| {{w|Peat}}is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation that forms in wetland bogs, moors, mires, and swamps.
|-
|Crowns|| May be royal crowns, or may be the coin worth five shillings in UK pre-decimal currency.
|-
!Box 17
|-
|Scrolls||A {{w|scroll}} is a roll of papyrus, paper, or parchment that contains writing.
|}

According to the title text, when Randall remembers that he is calling movers, he frantically scribbles "Normal House Stuff" on all the boxes. He says this makes the situation worse, possibly because the movers see the scribble and become suspicious. Alternatively, labeling every box with the exact same phrase will make it even harder to figure out what they contain and where they should go in the new dwelling.

==Transcript==
[A bunch of cardboard boxes stacked up, each labeled]
{| class="wikitable"
| style="visibility:hidden" |
| colspan="2" height="80px" width="80px" |
Grids 
Bison 
Checkerboards 
Fog
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px"|
Beacons 
Elves 
Sand
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Hemoglobin
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Water 
Hooves
| style="visibility:hidden" |
|-|
| style="visibility:hidden" |
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Shorebirds
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Oil 
Vectors 
Silt
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Membranes 
Shards
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Shawls 
Glucose 
Kits
| style="visibility:hidden" |
|-|
| style="visibility:hidden" |
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Hydrants 
Particles 
Knots
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Graphite 
Taupe
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Field Lines
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Traps
| style="visibility:hidden" |
|-|
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Edges 
Tribes 
Dough
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Dark Matter
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Manifolds
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Triangles 
Peat 
Crowns
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Scrolls
|}
[A caption:]
I always forget to label my moving boxes until they're sealed up and I've forgotten what's in them.
{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics with color]]

1761: Blame

2016-11-22T02:55:10Z

108.162.215.184:

{{comic
| number = 1761
| date = November 18, 2016
| title = Blame
| image = blame.png
| titletext = I bet if I yell at my scared friends I will feel better.
}}

==Explanation==

[[Cueball]] states that he feels sad and links it with his observation that bad things are happening. Sadness is a normal human reaction to perceived bad events<ref>http://www.clinical-depression.co.uk/dlp/depression-information/causes-of-depression/</ref>. (Other emotions that might be felt at such times include anger and guilt.)

He then reasons that it must be someone's fault. If the "bad things" in question are not natural calamities or accidents, it is usually logical to surmise that someone is responsible for them taking place.

After some thinking, he has an idea. Ideas are usually the result of thinking (unless they are a result of {{w|computers}}{{Citation needed}}), although it might not always be conscious thinking like Cueball is doing.

He then blames his "friends on {{w|Facebook}}", a social media website and app, for connecting with and talking to friends and family. While there could be possible reasons for bad events (for example if the bad event was nobody wishing him a happy birthday or someone posting compromising pictures,) his friends would not be a likely source for bad events extending beyond a personal or local scope. Most people have a few hundred (or thousand) "friends" on Facebook, most of whom do not have enough influence to cause bad events on a national or global level.{{Citation needed}}

This is a reference to people ranting on {{w|social media}} sites (like Facebook) about various things which are blamed on certain people (or sometimes everyone), but the person doing the ranting never thinks that the problem might be with themselves.

It could possibly also be a reference to how an individual's Facebook news feed has probably been inundated by political posts due to the results of the recent 2016 {{w|United States presidential election}}, and possibly due to state and local elections. One read on this is that, many people, including [http://www.npr.org/sections/alltechconsidered/2016/07/24/486941582/the-reason-your-feed-became-an-echo-chamber-and-what-to-do-about-it| some news sources], have pointed out that social media forms an "echo chamber", and some sources have claimed that this is responsible both for political polarization (see [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rE3j_RHkqJc&t=2s| this video]) and even for [http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/donald-trump-president-social-media-echo-chamber-hypernormalisation-adam-curtis-protests-blame-a7409481.html| the recent victory] of {{w|Donald Trump}}. Notably, [[Randall]] supported {{w|Hillary Clinton}}, the {{w|Democratic}} nominee in [[1756|a recent comic]]. Therefore, blaming social media for the election can be read as blaming his friends echoing his ideas back to him as causing (partially) Clinton's loss; thus they are (partially) at fault for his presumed sadness over her loss in the election. A second read on this would be that constant reminders of Clinton's loss only serve to make Randall sadder: again the proximal cause being his friends' posts. A third read would be that friends with whom Cueball/Randall disagrees are posting things that he finds unpleasant to read, either ideas that he finds offensive or inconvenient, or posts "rubbing in" the victory of the candidate Randall opposed.

The title text refers to people venting. The (humorous) assumption here is that one will feel better after doing so. While some amount of venting might help to relieve stress caused by bad events, alienating people you know by blaming them for bad events usually causes more stress in the long run.{{Citation needed}} The fact that he recognizes his friends are scared, like him, but still thinks yelling at them is a good idea shows he's more interested in making himself feel better rather than caring about the well being on his friends. Additionally, "yelling" on social media would likely only increase the influx of:
* Political posts reminding Cueball of his sadness
* Angry messages back at him
* Reminders of the reason he's sad, including possibly "rubbing in" the sad feelings
* Posts designed to offend Cueball, including posts designed to offend his political sensibilities; all of these would make him feel worse, potentially in relatively short order.

==Transcript==
:Cueball (thinking): I feel sad.
:Bad things are happening.

:Cueball (thinking): They must be someone's fault.
:But whose?

:[Cueball makes several thinking poses before a light bulb appears, indicating he has an idea]

:Cueball (thinking): ''My friends on Facebook.''

==Citations==
<references/>

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]

1603: Flashlights

2016-11-14T06:38:29Z

108.162.215.184: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1603
| date = November 13, 2015
| title = Flashlights
| image = flashlights.png
| titletext = Due to a typo, I initially found a forum for serious Fleshlight enthusiasts, and it turns out their highest-end models are ALSO capable of setting trees on fire. They're impossible to use without severe burns, but some of them swear it's worth it.
}}

==Explanation==
In this comic, [[Cueball]] has acquired or built a new high powered {{w|flashlight}} ("torch" in British English), which he wants to demonstrate to [[Megan]]. When Cueball refers to older flashlights as dim and finnicky, this gives reason to assume that the flashlight he is holding is going to be ridiculously overengineered.

Indeed, when he switches it on outside the house, the intense light beam completely drowns out the scene. Only the reflected light from the forest lights up the part of Cueball and Megan's faces that are turned towards it. Megan is holding up a hand, apparently to shield her eyes.

Cueball comments that the flashlight lights up the entire forest, but Megan observes that it is the trees that are on fire, indicating that Cueball's flashlight is so overpowered that the energy of its beam is sufficient to cause the organic matter of trees to combust.

Of course, a flashlight that cannot safely be pointed at things is fairly useless for the traditional purpose of a flashlight, which would be to find things in the dark by directing light over them. This mundane and practical reasoning does not seem to matter to Cueball of course, who appears only interested in the intensity and brightness the device is capable of achieving. The comic may refer to the flashlight forums [http://budgetlightforum.com/ Budget Light Forum] or [http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/content.php candlepowerforums], devoted to people discussing new LED emitters and who can build the brightest flashlight using them.

Cueball might allude to a number of technical improvements, notably xenon-based incandescent bulbs, multiple-LED assemblies, Lithium batteries (usually used for photography flashes) or rechargeable batteries. A number of companies market "tactical" flashlights that are supposedly powerful enough to incapacitate an opponent, using terms such as "scorching" to advertise their products. See for instance this video about a [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NiKzrnKR3Ts Wicked Lasers Torch] of the brand [http://www.wickedlasers.com/torch Torch] that ignites paper and melts stuff. Not strong enough to put a forest on fire but it is not safe to point at anything close by!

[[Randall]] has also looked at what lasers could do of damage in two [[what if?]]: [https://what-if.xkcd.com/13/ Laser Pointer] and [http://what-if.xkcd.com/119/ Laser Umbrella].

The title text refers to {{w|Fleshlight}}, a brand of male masturbation toys modeled after various human orifices (typically female). Cueball (or Randall) claims that he only arrived on a forum for Fleshlight enthusiasts due to a typo. Apart from the "e" vs. "a" in Fleshlight, they are also fashioned to look like oversized flashlights. On that forum he found out that the highest-end models of their product lines was also capable of setting trees on fire. This would probably happen due to violent vibrations inside the orifice, or excessively powerful internal heating. Anything powerful enough to burn trees would indeed cause the user severe burns in a very unpleasant area. But some of the enthusiasts swear that it is still worth it, in the same manner that Cueball only cares about the intensity of the flashlight, regardless of the consequences. Maybe they are just trying to trick you into doing something stupid! Or maybe they're just into that kind of thing.

References to Fleshlight is a [[:Category:Fleshlights|recurring theme]] in xkcd and using powerful "sex toys" that cause severe burns (on a woman though) have previously been alluded to in [[596: Latitude]].

==Transcript==
:[Cueball carries a flashlight walking towards Megan who is sitting on a couch.]
:Cueball: Remember how flashlights sucked when we were kids? Always dim and finnicky?
:Megan: I guess?

:[Cueball and Megan walking to the left.]
:Cueball: Well, I discovered there are now internet flashlight enthusiasts.
:Cueball: And the technology has... improved.
:Megan: OK, Let's see.

:[It is dark outside where Cueball turns on the flashlight. The beam is very bright and very visible even seen from the side. Backscattered light reflects off Cueball and Megan's faces, turning them into bright white beings in the dark. The facade of the house and the stairs are also visible in the same manner, with deep dark shadows where anything is in the shadow. Megan averts her face from the light holds up a hand to cover her eyes. When the flashlight turns on it even makes a sound, written in white above the beam:]
:Flashlight: '''''Fwoosh'''''

:[Cueball and Megan look at what the beam falls on (outside the frame). Megan has taken her hand down. Both their faces are only lit up like a crescent moon. Cueball is holding the flashlight with both hands as if it is pushing back on him. The text is written in white on the dark sky above them.]
:Cueball: See how it lights up the whole forest?
:Megan: ...The trees are on fire.
:Cueball: Real bright, though.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics with inverted brightness]]
[[Category:Fleshlights]]

154: Beliefs

2016-10-24T04:29:19Z

108.162.215.184: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 154
| date = September 8, 2006
| title = Beliefs
| image = beliefs.jpg
| titletext = Scientists are also sexy, let's not forget that.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic is a reference to {{w|Young Earth creationism}}, which includes the belief that the Earth has only existed for about 6,000 years. Young Earth creationism is mainly based on {{w|Biblical literalism|literal interpretations of the Bible}}. The professor is originally not bothered by the fact that someone believes in Young Earth creationism and simply tells the child to look at the scientific evidence. However, she then hears that the person is actually a {{w|United States Senate|United States senator}}, who would presumably influence national policy according to his creationist beliefs. This, she acknowledges, is an actual problem.

The comment on the fossils refers to an argument by Young Earth creationists about the discovery of fossilized sea creatures at high altitudes. While mainstream science sees this as evidence of geological processes taking far longer than six thousand years, these creationists say that sea life reached these locations during a worldwide flood that covered even the tops of mountains.

The story of this flood, colloquially called ''{{w|Noah's Ark}}'', is found in the Biblical {{w|Book of Genesis}}; [http://biblehub.com/genesis/6.htm chapters six through nine]. Though it is not stated in {{w|the Bible}} story, many sea creatures are presumed to have died at high altitudes when the waters lowered. This is the Young Earth creationist explanation for the fossils.

The last panel is a reference to the fact that a number of people vote based on their perception that the person they're voting for shares their religious views. and then that person goes on to make legislative or educational (if they were voted to a board of education) decisions based on said beliefs. There have been several instances in the U.S. of state boards of educations trying to or succeeding at including young-earth or other creationist theories in the state's science curriculum, see for instance {{w|Theistic evolution}}.

The title text makes a further, more playful jab, claiming that {{w|scientist}}s not only have the upper hand in reasoning, but also in sexiness. This subverts the once-commonly held idea that smarts and attractiveness are not always contained in the same "package", the stereotypical scientist being boring and dull. It also adds a tinge of irony, as no competent reasoner would make an {{w|Argument from authority|argument from sexiness}}.

==Transcript==
:[A girl with long black hair and a professor that looks like Megan stand together. The girl points to Cueball in the distance.]
:Girl: Professor, that man claims the earth is 6,000 years old!
:Professor: So? Just use your head and don't concern yourself overmuch with what other people think.

:[Cueball is gone and the girl is no longer pointing but just talking to the professor.]
:Girl: But he says the fossils in the mountains were put there in a flood!
:Professor: Well, evidence suggests that they were not.
:Girl: But he--

:[A mountain landscape with blue sky to the left with white clouds, gray clod cover to the right and gray mountains below. The most prominent peak is just right of the middle, but there are 14 small and large peaks all in all.]
:Professor (off-panel): A million people can call the mountains a fiction, yet it need not trouble you as you stand atop them.

:[The girl throws her hands in the air while the professor just looks at her.]
:Girl: But he believes the silliest things!
:Professor: So?

:[The girl has her arms down again and looks on the talking professor.]
:Professor: The universe doesn't care what you believe.
:Professor: The wonderful thing about science is that it doesn't ask for your faith, it just asks for your eyes.

:[The girl and professor talks.]
:Girl: But he's a US senator!
:Professor: Ah, then yes, we do have a bit of a situation.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Science]]
[[Category:Physics]]
[[Category:Religion]]
[[Category:Politics]]

607: 2038

2016-10-18T02:24:20Z

108.162.215.184: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 607
| date = July 8, 2009
| title = 2038
| image = 2038.png
| titletext = If only we'd chosen 1944-12-02 08:45:52 as the Unix epoch, we could've combined two doomsday scenarios into one and added a really boring scene to that Roland Emmerich movie.
}}

==Explanation==
The {{w|2038 problem}} is a well-known problem with 32-bit Unix-based operating systems. {{w|Unix time}} is stored as a 32-bit signed integer on these systems, counting the number of seconds since 1970. In 2038, we overflow the highest number we can store in 32-bit integers, leading to unexpected behavior. The switch to 64-bit operating systems will most likely be complete by the year 2038, which is why the speaker is relieved. The reference to {{w|Y2K}} is a throwback to the year 2000 problem, in which people were concerned that computers storing digits as two numbers (e.g.: 99 to represent 1999) would cause problems when the year 2000 began because 00 could have been interpreted as 1900 by error. That Y2K issue was covered widely — with only some small mishaps — but calculating dates beyond 2038 is still not solved on many 32-bit UNIX based systems today. The "even WORSE" is a play on the fact that even being "even worse" than the actual results of Y2K doesn't necessarily mean it will be particularly bad, Y2K resulting in very few serious problems, especially in light of the hype that preceded it.

The title text is a reference to the film "2012" which is about the world ending in December of 2012, at the end of the {{w|Mayan calendar}}. If the designers of the UNIX operating system had used 1944 as their epoch instead of 1970, then the UNIX crash due to a variable overflow would coincide with the end of the Mayan calendar. Thus, the implication is that there could have been a boring scene in the movie where the UNIX time rolls over and nothing happens and no one cares — because the world doesn't exist any more.

==Transcript==
:I'm glad we're switching to 64-bit, because I wasn't looking forward to convincing people to care about the Unix 2038 problem.
:Friend: What's that?
:Cueball (arms raised high): Remember Y2K? This could be even ''worse!''

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Computers]]

991: Phantom Menace

2016-10-05T17:17:10Z

108.162.215.184: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 991
| date = December 16, 2011
| title = Phantom Menace
| image = phantom_menace.png
| titletext = We could go to the theater across town and see if it's opened THERE yet, but we don't want to lose our place in line.
}}

==Explanation==
Here we have [[Cueball]] and one other unidentified character, who is dressed as [http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Darth_Maul Darth Maul]. Darth Maul is a [http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Sith_apprentice Sith apprentice] in ''{{w|Star Wars: The Phantom Menace}}''. [http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Sith The Sith] are the group of characters in the ''{{w|Star Wars}}'' universe who embrace [http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Dark_side_of_the_Force the dark side] of [http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/The_Force the Force] and are the enemies throughout the series. Cueball is holding a cheap replica of a [http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Lightsaber lightsaber], which is the weapon used by the [http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Jedi Jedi] and the Sith. Cueball and Darth Maul are standing outside what they think is a {{w|Movie theater|theater}} waiting for the {{w|3d movie|3D}} {{w|The phantom menace#3D re-release|edition}} of ''The Phantom Menace'', which was [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120915/releaseinfo released] in most countries in February 2012. They both appear to be holding tickets or passes, presumably for entrance to the movie.

Cueball and his friend are die-hard ''Star Wars'' fans and thus are willing to line up in front of a seemingly abandoned, run-down building. When Cueball says "Let's give it another month", it's likely that they've been waiting at least a month already. It's quite possible that the characters are not aware of the movie release date and they don't even seem to know if they're at a theater. The movie wasn't re-released until two months after the comic was published.

This comic seems to be poking fun at those people who are willing to wait long in advance for the release of some product or the first theatrical release of a movie (with the original release of ''The Phantom Menace'' providing one of the most famous examples; some people camped in lines outside of movie theaters a full month in advance of ticket sales). The title text expands upon this when one of the characters states that going to a theater across town may be better, but he is worried about taking the chance due to the possibility of losing their place in this line, a misplaced sense of priorities if the line goes nowhere, and they are presently the only two in it.

It could be that no one else is waiting with them because ''The Phantom Menace'' is often considered to be {{w|The phantom menace#Reception|the worst movie}} in the ''Star Wars'' series because of the inclusion of a new race, [http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Gungan the Gungans] (specifically [http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Jar_Jar_Binks Jar Jar Binks]), the stilted dialog and wooden performances from the actors, the general abandonment of practical effects in favor of CGI, the lack of a gripping or coherent story, eliminating the mysticism of the Force and the Jedi through the introduction of [http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Midi-chlorian midi-chlorians], and many other factors. Thus, the comic may be insinuating that few people will be seeing the 3D release of ''The Phantom Menace'' by depicting Cueball and his friend as the only two in line.

Alternatively, the comic may be set during the period preceding the movie's original, 2D release, and the joke, merely inspired by the then-upcoming rerelease, is directed at the aforementioned circumstances taking place at that time; those dedicated enough to wait more than a month in line to see a new ''Star Wars'' film purely on trust could also conceivably wait that long to see the film despite not knowing for sure if the movie has come out yet or whether they're even standing outside a theater.

==Transcript==
:[Two people - one in a Darth Maul mask, the other holding a lightsaber, and each holding money in his or her hand - stand outside a building.]
:[They continue to stand there.]
:[They continue to stand there.]
:[Darth Maul turns to lightsaber guy.]
:Darth Maul: Are you sure this place is a theater?
:Lightsaber guy: Let's give it one more month.
{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Star Wars]]

1741: Work

2016-10-04T18:21:46Z

108.162.215.184: that's a guy with free time

{{comic
| number = 1741
| date = October 3, 2016
| title = Work
| image = work.png
| titletext = Despite it being imaginary, I already have SUCH a strong opinion on the cord-switch firing incident.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Table still needs Wiki links.}}
This comic details a set of theoretical examples of how much work went into the design and manufacture of everyday objects. The joke centers around the fact that most people in modern times are constantly surrounded with human-built objects, which we generally use without giving them much thought. [[Randall]] implies that he occasionally imagines what went into seemingly simple objects around him (like water glasses and desk lamps), and finds it overwhelming. This is because there are so many built items around us, many of which are inexpensive and mass-produced, which nonetheless resulted from a great deal of human effort. (This is similar to the thesis of the classic essay ''[http://www.econlib.org/library/Essays/rdPncl1.html I, Pencil]'', except that while I, Pencil idealizes manufacture and commerce to argue for the free market and against regulation, the nigger focuses on details that are far more human or based in bureaucratic or government red tape). Presumably, this kina of realization is more likely for people who've worked in design and engineering, like Randall, because they have some insight into what's involved in bringing a product to market. Also people who sit around all day wondering what could be funny, like Randall, could also end up in such a thought spiral. The comment about California recalls is based on the tags on products that often state "This item has been known by the state of California to cause..."

There's a double joke in the title as the first thing most people will think of, when seeing such a table with a {{w|Balanced-arm lamp}}, is that this is a ''work desk'' rather than about all the '''work''' put into making the desk and lamp. The potential implication is that Randall is so distracted imagining the work that went into creating his workspace that he can't get his own work done, hence the title.

The argument over putting the switch on the cord getting someone fired hits on another aspect of the design issue. Companies that design and manufacture goods will inevitably have human conflicts, where decisions will be argued over, and human personalities and office politics will impact the final design.

In the title text Randall states that this incidence is imaginary (his imagination) but he has apparently come up with an entire fictional narrative about the conflict over whether to put the lamp's switch on the lamp body itself, or to attach it to the lamp's power cord. And now he has SUCH a strong opinion about the firing incident.

This may because he also has a strong opinion about who was right, which could make him angry if that person was the one getting fired. As the lamp on his desk is with the switch on the cord, and as it seems Randall really dislikes such lamps, this would make sense, as it would probably be the one wishing to put the switch on the body who were fired. Alternatively it could have been the one who put the switch on the wire that was fired later, when they got poor on-line reviews... Randall's distaste for lamps where the switch is on the cord is also mentioned in the title text of [[1036: Reviews]]. Using the lamp as shown on this desk would make it annoying with the switch on the cord, as it will be hard to reach under the table, when sitting at the desk. Often such lamps have the switch either at the main body or on the head of the lamp. That would make it easy to reach it while sitting at the desk.

A similar theme of the unseen contributions of engineers is found in [[277: Long Light]], including the title text: "You can look at practically any part of anything manmade around you and think 'some engineer was frustrated while designing this.' It's a little human connection." This fits in well with Randall's annoyance with a switch on the cord.

==Individual Design Elements==
{| class="wikitable"
|+Individual Design Elements
!Description
!Explanation
|-
|An engineer worked late drawing this curve in AutoCAD || AutoCAD is a popular software package for doing computer-aided design. Curves in three dimensions are notable for being much more difficult than straight lines.
|-
|Extra vents added to avoid California safety recall || Lamps can get very hot, especially if an incandescent bulb is installed, possibly causing injury. Additional vents can improve air circulation, allowing the lamp to run cooler. The US state of California is known for its many safety regulations. California is notable for having strict safety requirements for every product, to the point that Disneyland's front entrance is recently required to have a cancer warning.
|-
|9 hours of meetings || Any product development requires several meetings about coordination for any aspect of the design, especially critical ones that can affect other subsystems in the device, such as the flexible stem in this lamp. Its size is affected by the wiring requirements, strength requirements, intersections with both the base and the lamp head. The material, properties, color, manufacturing process, and so on also have to be determined for something as simple as this.
|-
|Ongoing debate || Designers frequently disagree about what is important enough to be put on the label, where the label needs to be put, which laws apply, and so on.
|-
|Years-long negotiation with glass supplier || Many products have to go through many stages of negotiations before the company can have the required supplies to build the product. The joke here is that glass is a common material{{Citation needed}} and thus, no company should have had to spend years on something that trivial. Or, more likely, it's just a commentary on how long it takes to negotiate with other supplier businesses about things that the average consumer sees trivial: it ''can'' take months or years when outsourcing to determine and contract which kind of glass, how much, what price, what happens when base materials change in price, what other kinds of glass are acceptable, what compounds are allowed around the glass during production, &c &c.
|-
|4 hours of meetings || It takes several meetings for the design team to fully determine and justify what size is best for the market, and to relay this information to the rest of the company. Then, they receive feedback on what is or isn't acceptable, frequently by people who don't know exactly ''why'', so they have to return again for another meeting for further clarification.
|-
|Months of tip-over testing || The thicker the base of a glass is, the lower its center of gravity is, and the heavier it is. A balance between stability and ease of handling must be reached. In addition, testing generally takes longer than the consumer expects, and every variation must be tested to determine which one performs the most acceptably.
|-
|Wood source changed due to 20 year legal fight over logging in the Great Bear rainforest || The Great Bear rainforest is a temperate rainforest on Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. The government of British Columbia recently announced an agreement to protect 85% of this forest from commercial logging.
|-
|Argument over putting switch on cord got someone fired || Some people are really passionate about how convenient minor features are, while other people see those features as useless or that they make the product worse. If the designers can't come to a compromise or a consensus, the disagreement will eventually escalate into an argument until the supervisor eventually figures the heated and passive-aggressive disagreements aren't worth the value of the passionate designers.
|}

==Transcript==
:[A table is shown with a glass of water to the left and a lamp standard type desk lamp on the right. There are nine labels in relation to different parts of these three items. For each label, one or two arrows points to the relevant part. Five labels are written above the table, two on the table and two below the table between the front legs. These last two labels are causing the table legs to the rear to disappear, and also cuts the lamp cord, going beneath the table, in two. Below each bitch will be written under a description of what they point to going in normal reading order from left to right, two lines above, one line on and one line below the table.]

:[Arrow points a line that follow the curve of the lamps shade:]
:An engineer worked late drawing this curve in AutoCAD

:[Arrow points to back of lamp shade just above the stem. The shade has four visible vents on the front. The part the arrow points to is not visible:]
:Extra vents added to avoid California safety recall

:[Arrow points to glass:]
:Years-long negotiation with glass supplier

:[A double arrow is placed above the center of the glass, ending on two lines above the edges of the glass:]
:4 hours of meetings

:[Two arrow points on either side of the lamp's stem:]
:9 hours of meetings

:[Two arrow, one pointing up at the bottom and the other down at the inside bottom of the glass:]
:Months of tip-over testing

:[An arrow points to the lamp information sticker on the bottom part of the lamps base. Unreadable text can be seen as thins lines on the sticker:]
:Ongoing debate

:[An autist is mad as fuck in the history discussion]
:KYS MY MAN

:[An arrow points to the front edge of the desk, ending in a starburst on the edge:]
:Wood source changed due to 20 year legal fight over logging in the Great Bear rainforest

:[Arrow points to the switch on the lamps cord which can be seen going over the right edge of the table and hanging down below the table. The switch can be seen just under the table edge:]
:Argument over putting switch on cord got someone fired

:[Caption under the panel:]
:Sometimes I get overwhelmed thinking about the amount of work that went into the ordinary objects around me.

{{comic discussion}}

982: Set Theory

2016-10-03T18:43:41Z

108.162.215.184: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 982
| date = November 25, 2011
| title = Set Theory
| image = set_theory.png
| titletext = Proof of Zermelo's well-ordering theorem given the Axiom of Choice: 1: Take S to be any set. 2: When I reach step three, if S hasn't managed to find a well-ordering relation for itself, I'll feed it into this wood chipper. 3: Hey, look, S is well-ordered.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic is a pun on the phrase "{{w|Proof by Intimidation}}" which normally is a jocular term used mainly in mathematics. It refers to a style of presenting a purported mathematical proof by giving an argument loaded with jargon and appeals to obscure results, so that the audience is simply obliged to accept it, lest they have to admit their ignorance and lack of understanding.

However, in this comic, "Proof by Intimidation" is taken to mean that by intimidating the elements within a set, they will conform to the proof (or, as the title text says, they will become "well-ordered"). This is accomplished by believing that the elements can be {{w|anthropomorphize}}d such that they feel fear. The idea of executing as an example was exemplified by Sun Tzu in the ancient book {{w|The Art Of War}}.

The {{w|axiom of choice}} (which has been referenced in previously in [[804: Pumpkin Carving]], says that given any collection of bins, each containing at least one object, it is possible to make a selection of exactly one object from each bin. It was later referenced in the title text of [[1724: Proofs]], another comic about a math class with a similar theme on how teachers teach their student mathematical proofs.

In the title text, the well-ordering theorem states that every set can be well-ordered. A set X is well-ordered by a strict total order if every non-empty subset of X has a least element under the ordering. This is also known as {{w|Zermelo's theorem}} and is equivalent to the Axiom of Choice. The woodchipper is a reference to the 1996 film {{w|Fargo (film)|Fargo}}, where a character uses one to dispose of a body.

There is another layer to the joke. If you can feed the set to the wood-chipper, that defines an ordering on the set (the order in which the elements are fed to the wood chipper) which would be well-ordered. Hey, look, the set really is well-ordered! If there were no way of defining a well-ordering on the set, you wouldn't be able to feed it to the wood-chipper.

==Transcript==
:[Ponytail stands at a blackboard, facing away from it. She has a pointer in her hand, and written on the blackboard is some set theory math, although one of the set elements is being pointed into a guillotine.]
:Ponytail: The axiom of choice allows you to select one element from each set in a collection
:Ponytail: and have it ''executed'' as an example to the others.
:My math teacher was a big believer in Proof by Intimidation.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Math]]
[[Category:Logic]]
[[Category:Puns]]

804: Pumpkin Carving

2016-10-03T18:41:31Z

108.162.215.184: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 804
| date = October 11, 2010
| title = Pumpkin Carving
| image = pumpkin carving.png
| titletext = The Banach-Tarski theorem was actually first developed by King Solomon, but his gruesome attempts to apply it set back set theory for centuries.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic is a reference to the custom of carving {{w|pumpkins}} to set out on porches and front steps for the holiday of {{w|Halloween}}, which occurs on October 31. (This comic was released 20 days before Halloween in 2010, maybe trying to give people some great ideas for their pumpkins.)

The pumpkin has the inside emptied out and a face or design carved in the side. Then a light is placed inside (usually a candle). These are called "{{w|Jack-o'-lantern|Jack-O'-Lantern}}s". The Jack-O'-Lantern in the 3rd frame is the typical and standard design for a carved pumpkin.

The comic is set up as a typical TV program where an off-screen interviewer asks four (very) different people what they have made out of their Halloween pumpkin. In the [http://xkcd.com/804/info.0.json official transcript] the interviewer that talks in three of the panels is called an [https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/interlocutor Interlocutor]; "A person who takes part in dialogue or conversation."

In the '''1st frame''', [[Beret Guy]], naturally, stays oddly on-topic by physically carving an image of a pumpkin in his pumpkin.

In the '''2nd frame''', [[Black Hat]] is shown with a box of {{w|nitroglycerin}} (a highly explosive liquid that may explode violently by just small bump) next to his pumpkin. He has not carved a hole for his lamp, but it seems he has emptied the inside of the pumpkin as the stem at the top has been removed. This will make it possible to fill up the pumpkin with nitroglycerin which would cause it to explode if agitated. Teenagers are a rather impulsive and rebellious lot{{Citation needed}}; as Halloween is a night with lots of meticulously erected decorations and more lax parental supervision, troublemaker teens see it as an enticing time to engage in rampant vandalism, including but not limited to pumpkin-smashing. Hence, the off-panel character presumes that Black Hat is setting up a trap to get back at these ne'er-do-wells.

Black Hat, rather unconvincingly, insists that his pumpkin is suffering from chest pains, and that he is merely treating these pains with nitroglycerin. While it is true that this chemical is used to treat {{w|angina}} (chest pain due to blocked arteries in the heart), nitroglycerin used for this purpose is dispensed in small spray bottles and controlled by prescription. Also, pumpkins are a vegetable and do thus not contain nervous or circulatory systems of mammalian complexity; even if they did, the process of pumpkin carving involves hollowing them out, making it a moot point.

To top it off, Black Hat plans to put up a sign warning passers-by to not smash the pumpkin. This would only serve to tempt impulsive teenagers to disturb it, which is very likely what the sadistic and chaos-loving [[72: Classhole|Classhole]] is hoping for. If he succeeds with his plan, with a completely hollowed out pumpkin of the shown size filled with nitroglycerin it would seem likely that he would kill a teenager that stomped on it, or at least would blow off a leg. In either case a punishment that most people would not consider befitting of such a petty crime.

[[Randall]] was out in time with this comic for someone to try this out at home when Halloween fell 20 days later. It has been known (particularly by Randall) that people copy his ideas... See for instance this earlier [http://xkcd.com/chesscoaster/ post] on xkcd based on [[249: Chess Photo]]. Soon after he even made a comic, [[254: Comic Fragment]], that was supposed to be impossible to copy, which he mentioned him self later (see the explanation). So he must have been expecting someone to try this one out...

In the '''3rd frame''', [[Megan]] is our typical emotional xkcd comic character. She is projecting herself onto the typical jack-o'-lantern she has carved (as the only one of the four), which she has even named Harold. It (or she) has been using a lot of time daydreaming and she has just realized that she now uses that time for worrying. She(it) now tries to distract herself with holiday traditions, but she already knows that it won't work. An example of a typical holiday depression.

In the '''4th and frame''', [[Cueball]] is shown in front of two un-carved pumpkins exclaming that he carved and carved in one and suddenly had two. He is here referencing the {{w|Banach-Tarski paradox}} (which is made clear in the title text), a theorem which states that it is possible to carve a three-dimensional ball, in this case a pumpkin, into a finite number of "pieces," and then reassemble these "pieces" into two different balls identical to the original. This paradox has been proven for just about anything theoretically, but requires infinitely complicated pieces, which are impossible for anything made of physical {{w|atomic theory|atoms}} rather than mathematical {{w|point (geometry)|points}}.

The off-screen interviewer in that frame references the {{w|Axiom of Choice}} stating that Cueball should not have used that. The axiom says that given a set of buckets or bins, each containing one or more objects, it is possible to select exactly one object from each bucket. The Banach-Tarski rests on several axioms which are fairly well respected, but also requires the Axiom of Choice to work correctly. So a person who does not believe in the Axiom of Choice would not have been able to do what Cueball managed to do.

The title text says that {{w|Solomon|King Solomon}} developed the Banach-Tarski theorem first. This is a reference to the story of two women being brought before him. Both were arguing that a particular child was their own. Solomon said that the solution was to cut the baby in half and give each woman one of the halves. One of the two women said that the other should have the baby whole. Solomon then knew she was the true mother, and gave her the child. The joke is that Solomon may have actually intended to cut the child, but, believing that two whole children could be made from the one, intended to give a baby to each woman, and the Banach-Tarski paradox states that, were the baby infinitely divisible, it should have been possible. As he of course failed completely in this process (so in Randall's version he actually did try to cut the baby), he set back the set theory for centuries, because he had "proved" the theorem wrong. The axiom of choice and set theory was later referenced in [[982: Set Theory]] and, much later, the axiom of choice was mentioned again in the title text of [[1724: Proofs]].

==Transcript==
:[Beret Guy, holding his arms out, stands behind a large orange pumpkin with the stem on top. It is sitting on a table. The pumpkin has been carved out as a lamp with large hole, and a lit candle is visible in the hole. The hole is in the shape of another carved out pumpkin. An interviewer speaks from off panel.]
:Interviewer (off-panel): So what did you—
:Beret Guy: I carved a pumpkin!
:Interviewer (off-panel): ...

:[Black Hat stands behind a large orange pumpkin which has not been carved out as a lamp, but the stem at the top has been removed and is placed tilting on the side of the pumpkin. It is sitting on a table. A gray box with a labeled and a warning stands next to and partly in front of the pumpkin. On the end of the box there is a label at the top with unreadable text and below that some kind of drawing with a circle at the top. The interviewer speaks from off panel.]
:Interviewer (off-panel): Taking on teen vandals, I see.
:Black Hat: Heavens, No. My pumpkin simply has chest pains. In fact, I'll leave a note ''warning'' them not to smash it.
:Label:
::Nitro-
::glycerin
:Waning: Do not shake

:[Megan stands next to a large orange pumpkin with the stem on top. It is sitting on a table. The pumpkin has been carved out as a typical Halloween lamp. The bottom part of a white candle stick is visible in the mouth shaped hole. The hole is in the shape of a typical jack-o' lantern, with two slanted eyes, double slit nose and a smiling mouth with a tooth sticking out from both upper and lower lip, on either side of the candle stick.]
:Megan: My pumpkin's name is Harold. He just realized that all the time he used to spend daydreaming, he now spends worrying. He'll try to distract himself later with holiday traditions, but it won't work.

:[Cueball stands next to a two orange pumpkins with their stems on top, the left pumpkin is slightly larger than the right which is partly in front of the larger pumpkin. They have not been carved out even though a knife lies next to them to the right in front of Cueball on the table where they both stand. The interviewer speaks from off panel.]]
:Cueball: I carved and carved, and the next thing I knew I had ''two'' pumpkins.
:Interviewer (off-panel): I ''told'' you not to take the axiom of choice.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Math]]
[[Category:Logic]]

804: Pumpkin Carving

2016-10-03T18:38:36Z

108.162.215.184: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 804
| date = October 11, 2010
| title = Pumpkin Carving
| image = pumpkin carving.png
| titletext = The Banach-Tarski theorem was actually first developed by King Solomon, but his gruesome attempts to apply it set back set theory for centuries.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic is a reference to the custom of carving {{w|pumpkins}} to set out on porches and front steps for the holiday of {{w|Halloween}}, which occurs on October 31. (This comic was released 20 days before Halloween in 2010, maybe trying to give people some great ideas for their pumpkins.)

The pumpkin has the inside emptied out and a face or design carved in the side. Then a light is placed inside (usually a candle). These are called "{{w|Jack-o'-lantern|Jack-O'-Lantern}}s". The Jack-O'-Lantern in the 3rd frame is the typical and standard design for a carved pumpkin.

The comic is set up as a typical TV program where an off-screen interviewer asks four (very) different people what they have made out of their Halloween pumpkin. In the [http://xkcd.com/804/info.0.json official transcript] the interviewer that talks in three of the panels is called an [https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/interlocutor Interlocutor]; "A person who takes part in dialogue or conversation."

In the '''1st frame''', [[Beret Guy]], naturally, stays oddly on-topic by physically carving an image of a pumpkin in his pumpkin.

In the '''2nd frame''', [[Black Hat]] is shown with a box of {{w|nitroglycerin}} (a highly explosive liquid that may explode violently by just small bump) next to his pumpkin. He has not carved a hole for his lamp, but it seems he has emptied the inside of the pumpkin as the stem at the top has been removed. This will make it possible to fill up the pumpkin with nitroglycerin which would cause it to explode if agitated. Teenagers are a rather impulsive and rebellious lot{{Citation needed}}; as Halloween is a night with lots of meticulously erected decorations and more lax parental supervision, troublemaker teens see it as an enticing time to engage in rampant vandalism, including but not limited to pumpkin-smashing. Hence, the off-panel character presumes that Black Hat is setting up a trap to get back at these ne'er-do-wells.

Black Hat, rather unconvincingly, insists that his pumpkin is suffering from chest pains, and that he is merely treating these pains with nitroglycerin. While it is true that this chemical is used to treat {{w|angina}} (chest pain due to blocked arteries in the heart), nitroglycerin used for this purpose is dispensed in small spray bottles and controlled by prescription. Also, pumpkins are a vegetable and do thus not contain nervous or circulatory systems of mammalian complexity; even if they did, the process of pumpkin carving involves hollowing them out, making it a moot point.

To top it off, Black Hat plans to put up a sign warning passers-by to not smash the pumpkin. This would only serve to tempt impulsive teenagers to disturb it, which is very likely what the sadistic and chaos-loving [[72: Classhole|Classhole]] is hoping for. If he succeeds with his plan, with a completely hollowed out pumpkin of the shown size filled with nitroglycerin it would seem likely that he would kill a teenager that stomped on it, or at least would blow off a leg. In either case a punishment that most people would not consider befitting of such a petty crime.

[[Randall]] was out in time with this comic for someone to try this out at home when Halloween fell 20 days later. It has been known (particularly by Randall) that people copy his ideas... See for instance this earlier [http://xkcd.com/chesscoaster/ post] on xkcd based on [[249: Chess Photo]]. Soon after he even made a comic, [[254: Comic Fragment]], that was supposed to be impossible to copy, which he mentioned him self later (see the explanation). So he must have been expecting someone to try this one out...

In the '''3rd frame''', [[Megan]] is our typical emotional xkcd comic character. She is projecting herself onto the typical jack-o'-lantern she has carved (as the only one of the four), which she has even named Harold. It (or she) has been using a lot of time daydreaming and she has just realized that she now uses that time for worrying. She(it) now tries to distract herself with holiday traditions, but she already knows that it won't work. An example of a typical holiday depression.

In the '''4th and frame''', [[Cueball]] is shown in front of two un-carved pumpkins exclaming that he carved and carved in one and sudenly had two. He is here referencing the {{w|Banach-Tarski paradox}} (which is made clear in the title text), a theorem which states that it is possible to carve a three-dimensional ball, in this case a pumpkin, into a finite number of "pieces," and then reassemble these "pieces" into two different balls identical to the original. This paradox has been proven for just about anything theoretically, but requires infinitely complicated pieces, which are impossible for anything made of physical {{w|atomic theory|atoms}} rather than mathematical {{w|point (geometry)|points}}.

The off-screen interviewer in that frame references the {{w|Axiom of Choice}} stating that Cueball should not have used that. The axiom says that given a set of buckets or bins, each containing one or more objects, it is possible to select exactly one object from each bucket. The Banach-Tarski rests on several axioms which are fairly well respected, but also requires the Axiom of Choice to work correctly. So a person who does not believe in the Axiom of Choice would not have been able to do what Cueball managed to do.

The title text says that {{w|Solomon|King Solomon}} developed the Banach-Tarski theorem first. This is a reference to the story of two women being brought before him. Both were arguing that a particular child was their own. Solomon said that the solution was to cut the baby in half and give each woman one of the halves. One of the two women said that the other should have the baby whole. Solomon then knew she was the true mother, and gave her the child. The joke is that Solomon may have actually intended to cut the child, but, believing that two whole children could be made from the one, intended to give a baby to each woman, and the Banach-Tarski paradox states that, were the baby infinitely divisible, it should have been possible. As he of course failed completely in this process (so in Randall's version he actually did try to cut the baby), he set back the set theory for centuries, because he had "proved" the theorem wrong. The axiom of choice and set theory was later referenced in [[982: Set Theory]] and, much later, the axiom of choice was mentioned again in the title text of [[1724: Proofs]].

==Transcript==
:[Beret Guy, holding his arms out, stands behind a large orange pumpkin with the stem on top. It is sitting on a table. The pumpkin has been carved out as a lamp with large hole, and a lit candle is visible in the hole. The hole is in the shape of another carved out pumpkin. An interviewer speaks from off panel.]
:Interviewer (off-panel): So what did you—
:Beret Guy: I carved a pumpkin!
:Interviewer (off-panel): ...

:[Black Hat stands behind a large orange pumpkin which has not been carved out as a lamp, but the stem at the top has been removed and is placed tilting on the side of the pumpkin. It is sitting on a table. A gray box with a labeled and a warning stands next to and partly in front of the pumpkin. On the end of the box there is a label at the top with unreadable text and below that some kind of drawing with a circle at the top. The interviewer speaks from off panel.]
:Interviewer (off-panel): Taking on teen vandals, I see.
:Black Hat: Heavens, No. My pumpkin simply has chest pains. In fact, I'll leave a note ''warning'' them not to smash it.
:Label:
::Nitro-
::glycerin
:Waning: Do not shake

:[Megan stands next to a large orange pumpkin with the stem on top. It is sitting on a table. The pumpkin has been carved out as a typical Halloween lamp. The bottom part of a white candle stick is visible in the mouth shaped hole. The hole is in the shape of a typical jack-o' lantern, with two slanted eyes, double slit nose and a smiling mouth with a tooth sticking out from both upper and lower lip, on either side of the candle stick.]
:Megan: My pumpkin's name is Harold. He just realized that all the time he used to spend daydreaming, he now spends worrying. He'll try to distract himself later with holiday traditions, but it won't work.

:[Cueball stands next to a two orange pumpkins with their stems on top, the left pumpkin is slightly larger than the right which is partly in front of the larger pumpkin. They have not been carved out even though a knife lies next to them to the right in front of Cueball on the table where they both stand. The interviewer speaks from off panel.]]
:Cueball: I carved and carved, and the next thing I knew I had ''two'' pumpkins.
:Interviewer (off-panel): I ''told'' you not to take the axiom of choice.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Math]]
[[Category:Logic]]

1125: Objects In Mirror

2016-10-03T18:33:51Z

108.162.215.184: please be smart with your signatures

{{comic
| number = 1125
| date = October 24, 2012
| title = Objects In Mirror
| image = objects_in_mirror.png
| titletext = Universes in mirror, like those in windshield, are larger than they appear.
}}

==Explanation==
For all people who are not from USA, India, Canada and Korea: "Objects in mirror are closer than they appear" is a required, although marginally ridiculous, "safety warning", required to be engraved on passenger side mirrors of motor vehicles. These mirrors in these countries are typically the only ones that are slightly convex, making objects appear smaller (and farther away) than their true size. Other countries often have convexity in driver-side and passenger-side rearview mirrors to give a larger field of view, at the cost of natural distance proportions of the mirror image, without making any statements about it on the mirror itself using engravings.

This comic is a reference to the phenomena known as {{w|redshift}}/{{w|blueshift}}. Due to the {{w|Doppler effect}}, objects that are moving toward an observer appear bluer than they actually are (known as blueshift). Objects moving away from the observer (e.g. objects viewed in the rear-view mirror of a moving vehicle) appear redder than they actually are (known as redshift), and thus the objects are in reality bluer than they appear. This is generally relevant only in terms of high speed motion such as observation of the expansion of the universe in astrophysics. The joke is that the relative speed of any object visible in a side-view mirror would create an insignificant and unobservable redshift.

Another possible explanation is that the redshift refers to the actual reflection itself.
As photons are reflected in a mirror, momentum is transferred and thereby they lose a very small amount of energy. This loss of energy results in a slight redshift of the light. (This effect is similar to {{w|compton scattering}})

Edwin Hubble was an astronomer credited ({{w|Stigler's law of eponymy|amid some controversy}}) with "{{w|Hubble's Law}}," which states that a Doppler shift can be observed for objects in deep space moving with relative velocity to Earth and that their velocity is proportional to their distance from Earth. Probably the most famous application of the law was measurement of relative velocities of galaxies, such as those seen in the picture known as {{w|Hubble Deep Field}}, taken by the {{w|Hubble Space Telescope}}. The results proved that most galaxies keep getting farther apart as a result of expansion of the universe. This is one of many pieces of evidence supporting the {{w|Big Bang}} theory.

The title text references that we see the universe as it was in the past (due to the distances involved and the speed of light), when it was smaller than it is today. It may may also be a reference to comic [[1110: Click and Drag]].

== Transcript ==
:[View of a car mirror that reads "Objects in mirror are bluer than they appear."]
:Edwin Hubble's car

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Physics]]

1486: Vacuum

2016-09-29T00:30:44Z

108.162.215.184: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 1486
| date = February 13, 2015
| title = Vacuum
| image = vacuum.png
| titletext = Do you think you could actually clean the living room at some point, though?
}}

==Explanation==
[[1240: Quantum Mechanics|According to quantum mechanics]] there is tremendous energy density in space-time itself: this is known as: {{w|vacuum energy}}, zero point energy, vacuum foam, etc. So far we don't know any way to tap this energy, although it does {{w|Hawking radiation|evaporate}} off {{w|black hole}}s (see the “What If?” released the same week as this comic: [http://what-if.xkcd.com/129/ Black Hole Moon]).

In the cartoon, [[Beret Guy]] appears to be making a silly mistake, confusing the "vacuum" referred to in calculations of the theoretical energy density of space time with a {{w|vacuum cleaner}}, which is also commonly referred to as just a "vacuum".

[[Cueball]] tries to correct him, but it turns out that Beret Guy really is able to tap into this fundamental source of energy. Having such strange and impossible powers is second nature to Beret Guy, as can be seen in many of his [[:Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy|appearances]] – for instance in [[1388: Subduction License]].

But even though Beret Guy now claims the Universe is his to command (a sentence used by the crazy villain in many movies), Cueball is not fazed by this and simply asks, in the title text, if Beret Guy would use the vacuum for its intended purpose and clean the living room.

On an additional note, many scientific breakthroughs in history have been made because the person making them did not realize they were supposedly impossible, such as {{w|spin-stabilized magnetic levitation}}. This comic could be seen as a nod to that.

==Transcript==
:[Beret guy is holding an upright vacuum cleaner upside-down by the handle, waving it around above his head.]

:[The vacuum cleaner is upright on the ground, and Beret guy is standing on its body, wiggling the handle.]
:Cueball: What are you doing?
:Beret Guy: Trying to unlock the tremendous energy of the vacuum.

:[Beret guy rides the vacuum cleaner as it begins to lift off, propelled upward by an unknown force.]
:Cueball: That’s not what that—
:Beret Guy: '''''—Ha ha! It works!'''''

:[Beret guy flies away on the vacuum cleaner.]
:Cueball: I '''''said,''''' that’s—
:Beret Guy: '''''The universe is mine to command!!'''''

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Strange powers of Beret Guy]]

568: Well 2

2016-09-28T18:42:23Z

108.162.215.184: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 568
| date = April 13, 2009
| title = Well 2
| image = well_2.png
| titletext = But I've made $13.72 already today! Ow, stop throwing pennies.
}}

==Explanation==
This is the second comic in the [[:Category:Well|Well]] series: The first was [[561: Well]].

The average person's lifespan is 80 years now. So, while immortality may become a reality within the coming century, [[Ponytail]] won't live long enough to achieve it.

[[Cueball]] is looking for a programming language that does not need him to be specific about his ideas. When humans communicate ideas to other humans they may be vague but still understood, since the listener can infer a lot of detail from context and basic knowledge. Until we start 'raising' compilers (like you would a child) compilers will not possess that feature. Hence the need for the programmer to be exact in communicating his ideas to the compiler. No language will ever be able to change that. Cueball complains that '''he knows''' what he means.

Finally we find out that one of [[Megan]]'s admirers, Mike, whom she avoids, is hiding in the well. He has been waiting for her to come for her ''uncomfortable truth'', so he can make her believe that she is actually attracted to him. But she is not so easily fooled and calls his bluff, telling him to come out of the well.

The title text suggests he might also have been down there for the money everyone is throwing in to the
well to get this uncomfortable truth. So it has never been a working well. When everyone (or just Megan) finds out about this, Mike is bombarded with the all the pennies people have brought along.

In the comic game [[1608: Hoverboard]] there is also a well in the left part of the world. This well has the same type of covered top and at the bottom (it is very deep) there is a girl and above her a coin, like the one thrown into a wishing well. On these links, to images on {{xkcd}}; used in the game, the [http://xkcd.com/1608/980:-1077+s.png top] and the [http://xkcd.com/1608/980:-1073+s.png bottom] of the well can be seen.

==Transcript==
:[Four people are lined up by a covered well, Ponytail in front followed by Cueball, Megan and a man with some kind of hat (could be Beret Guy, but only half of his head is shown so it is not clear). A large sign stands well in front of the well. Ponytail throws in a coin.]
:Well: Science may discover immortality, but it won't happen in the next eighty years.
:Sign: The Uncomfortable Truths Well.

:[Zoom in on the well and Cueball who throws in a coin.]
:Well: You'll never find a programming language that frees you from the burden of clarifying your ideas.
:Cueball: But ''I'' know what I mean!

:[Same zoom in on Megan who throws in a coin.]
:Well: You avoid your friend Mike because you're uncomfortably attracted to him.

:[Megan bend in over the well looking down]
:Megan: Nice try, Mike.
:Megan: Get out of the well.
:Mike (from inside the well): Aww.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Well]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Sarcasm]]
[[Category:Romance]]
[[Category:Programming]]

1205: Is It Worth the Time?

2016-09-28T18:40:23Z

108.162.215.184: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1205
| date = April 29, 2013
| title = Is It Worth the Time?
| image = is it worth the time.png
| titletext = Don't forget the time you spend finding the chart to look up what you save. And the time spent reading this reminder about the time spent. And the time trying to figure out if either of those actually make sense. Remember, every second counts toward your life total, including these right now.
}}

==Explanation==
The comic is a straightforward chart showing the amount of work (time) one can dedicate to making a task more efficient, in order not to spend more time optimizing the task than the total time saved. This may illustrate the fact that computer scientists often try to optimize tasks they are likely to perform again in the future - a common goal in their work - even though the work needed for that optimization can itself prove much longer than the time saved when doing the task again; this was previously referenced in [[974: The General Problem]].

E.g. if you do some task every week once, and you are able to save 1 minute of time by doing some preparatory work (e.g. build or buy a tool), you can spend 4 hours doing this preparatory work, and you will, across five-years time, come even. Any less time spent doing the preparatory work, and you will profit from it.

The calculation on which the chart is based, for this example:
:5 years / 1 week = 260 occurrences of the task
:260 occurrences × 1 saved minute = 260 saved minutes = 4.3 hours

Therefore, 1 minute saved every week would, across five years, save over 4 hours of your time.

Or, in algebraic form:
:Total time shaved off across 5 years = 5 × "How often you do the task every year" × "How much time you shave off"

The grayed out areas represent times which are either impossible to save, or where, if you could save this much (say 6 hours on one day), it would almost be worth it no matter how long it takes. For instance it is impossible to shave 1 hour off a task if you perform it more than 24 times a day – the total time shaved off per day would amount to more than one day, and thus you could not have performed the task this many times in a day to begin with. On the other hand, 6 hours shaved off for one day is not impossible, but the net benefit would be so great, that it would very quickly earn it self in again almost no matter how long it takes. If the assumption is that a work day is 8 hours, then even if it took 2 years to do the improvement, you would already have earned it in after less than five years in total - both with the 2 years to make it and the time it takes to save 2 years (2.67 years in this case for at total of 4.67 years).

The comic assumes that equal amounts of time have equal value, which is not necessarily true. For an extreme example, consider programming a telephone with speed dials to be used when there is a fire or to call an ambulance or the police. This may take longer than the time saved when the call is placed, but it is worthwhile to spend a large amount of free time to save any time during an emergency.

Of course, all these conclusions presume you are the only one that benefits. If the savings can be easily adapted by others - for example, computer code for a program that automates a task for hundreds of people - then the amount of time that can be spent increases. Indeed, in some cases, when optimizing for others, spending far more time than they save can be worth it, if the people you're working for are paying you for the product and the time savings keep them happy and likely to keep paying you. And if what you're optimizing is a business process that's unlikely to go out of date with your employer's current tools ''or'' its current products, then you may have more than 5 years to amortize the improvement.

The title text points out the time you spend studying this comic detracts from your overall efficiency, and concludes that maximizing efficiency would require optimal use of every second and finishes of very philosophically by pointing out that every second you use counts towards your life total - also those you spend editing a wiki about a web comic...

The comic derives humor from the absurd conclusions of hyper-efficiency, which have been examined in [http://what-if.xkcd.com/22/ ''What if?'' - Cost of Pennies], and also in [[951: Working]] which is devoted to insufficient economy, where the money saved is compared to the time wasted while looking for a bargain. In [[1319: Automation]] Randall investigates how bad it really goes when you decide to automate a program to save you time... See also the [[:Category:Time management|Time management category]].

==Transcript==
:[Above the frame is written the following text:]
:How long can you work on making a routine task more
:efficient before you're spending more time than you save?
:::::(across five years)

:[The table in the comic is not exactly as given here below. The text in the top two rows are written above the real table. The top line is written on the center part of a square bracket encompassing the horizontal time scale in the second row. Similarly the text in the first to columns to the left are not part of the real table. The first column to the left is also written on a square bracket encompassing the vertical time scale.]
:[The number ''1'' in ''1 day'' or any ''n'' in ''n days'' are drawn in what looks like a sheet from a tear-off calendar. When it is a number of weeks, seven small squares, representing a week, is drawn above the text. For minutes and seconds these words are written below the number.]
:[The empty fields in the calendar are shaded dark gray]

:{| class="wikitable"
! colspan="2" rowspan="2" |
! colspan="6" | How often you do the task
|-
! 50/day !! 5/day !! Daily !! Weekly !! Monthly !! Yearly
|-
!rowspan="9" style="width:50px;" | How much time you shave off
! 1 second
| 1 day || 2 hours || 30 minutes || 4 minutes || 1 minute || 5 seconds
|-
! 5 seconds
| 5 days || 12 hours || 2 hours || 21 minutes || 5 minutes || 25 seconds
|-
! 30 seconds
| 4 weeks || 3 days || 12 hours || 2 hours || 30 minutes || 2 minutes
|-
! 1 minute
| 8 weeks || 6 days || 1 day || 4 hours || 1 hour || 5 minutes
|-
! 5 minutes
| 9 months || 4 week || 6 days || 21 hours || 5 hour || 25 minutes
|-
! 30 minutes
| || 6 months || 5 weeks || 5 days || 1 day || 2 hours
|-
! 1 hour
| || 10 months || 2 months || 10 days || 2 days || 5 hours
|-
! 6 hours
| || || || 2 months || 2 weeks || 1 day
|-
! 1 day
| || || || || 8 weeks || 5 days
|}

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Math]]
[[Category:Time management]]

1732: Earth Temperature Timeline

2016-09-14T17:43:37Z

108.162.215.184: /* Trivia */

{{comic
| number = 1732
| date = September 12, 2016
| title = Earth Temperature Timeline
| before = [[#Explanation|↓ Skip to explanation ↓]]
| image = earth_temperature_timeline.png
| titletext = [After setting your car on fire] Listen, your car's temperature has changed before.
}}

==Explanation==
{{TOC}}
{{incomplete|[[#Table of all elements|Table for explanations]] now ready to be filled out. Please remove this tag only when everything is explained.}}
In the past 100 years, human action produced lots of {{w|CO₂ emissions}}, which have caused a rise in average global temperature through the {{w|greenhouse effect}}. This is called {{w|global warming}} and is part of a {{w|climate change}}, a subject that has become a [[:Category:Climate change|recurrent subject]] on xkcd. There are still many people who claim that this is not happening, or at least that it is not caused by any human actions, called "climate change deniers". One argument of theirs is that global warming is happening for natural causes, summarized with the phrase "temperature has changed before". This comic is a direct, but much more thorough, follow up on the previous global warming comic: [[1379: 4.5 Degrees]].

This comic shows that while temperature changes have indeed occurred before, the speed of the current temperature rise is much, much faster than those seen (actually: estimated) in the previous thousands of years. It seemed to touch on something in peoples consciousness, because it became so popular that [[Randall]] [[#Popularity_of_comic|postponed the release]] of his next comic to keep this one on the front page one day longer.

This comic is a [[:Category:Timelines|timeline]] on how the temperature has changed since 20,000 BCE to the present day and extrapolated 84 years on from present day of the release of the comic (2016) to 2100 depending on the choice of actions to stop CO₂ emission that is taken now or never. It is meant to contrast the slow-paced natural changes with the rapid temperature rise in the recent years. The effect is achieved by forcing the reader to scroll endlessly through slow, building-up changes and then face them with an almost instantaneous, quick rise towards the end. The temperature curve is a dotted line most of the time, but from about 1850 to present day (2016) the measurement data is good enough to let the curve become a solid line indicating that this is not an estimate. Before 1850 the temperature is an estimate bases on the [[#Sources|sources]] given. And likewise into the future the curve is also dotted as this is predictions. And here there are even three possible outcomes depending on how seriously politicians and other influential people (and the population of Earth) take knowledge (and comics) like this.

Below in the [[#Table of all elements|table]] each entry will be noted and explained (in time). This is one of the comics where Randall cites his [[#Sources|sources]] like he did for one of his other very large comics [[980: Money]].

The title text compares the saying that "the temperature has changed before" comparing temperature changes over thousands of years to the rapid global warming over the last century with saying that the "small" changes to the temperature a car experiences over the years of normal usage should not make you worried over the rapid temperature increase that happens when someone sets your car on fire. A related joke was used recently in [[1693: Oxidation]].

===Table of all elements===
*Here is table (to be filled out) of all elements with explanations including reading of temperature and year for each event from the curve.
*Table ready for use:
**The year group is just an easy way to find the section.
**The actual year of an event should be read off more precisely on the chart.
***Suggestion for doing this:
***Top part of element
***Central part of element
***Other?
**Element is a description mainly taken from the transcript. Feel free to remove redundant information, but the guess was that getting the table ready was the most important feature for getting the explanation started.
**T (°C) should be read of for the curve for every element.
**Explanation explains itself.
{| class="wikitable"
!Year group
!Element
!Year
!T (°C)
!Explanation
|-
| rowspan="2"| 20000 BCE
| [An arrow goes from the dotted line to the central line at 0°C. In the middle of the line there is a temperature label:] 4.3°C At the start of our timeline, 22,000 years ago, Earth is 4°C colder than during the late 20th century. || 20000 BCE || -4.3 || The temperature at the beginning of the chart compared to the average from 1961-1990 that we compare temperatures with today.
|-

| {{w|Boston}} is buried under almost a mile of ice, and the {{w|glaciers}} reach as far south as {{w|New York City}}. [The Statue of Liberty is shown in front of a glacier front. A guy with a white {{w|knit cap}} is seen walking in a snowy landscape. The skyline of Boston is shown under a half a mile of ice.] || 19700 BCE || -4.3 || The Boston image is directly taken from [[1225: Ice Sheets]] about the ice age glacier coverage and the guy with the white knit cap could be the guy from [[1321: Cold]] also about global warming. It shows what a difference 4 degree in global temperature means (massive effect), as opposed to what four degree means on a daily weather wise scale (nothing!). [[Randall]] lives in Boston. It was also shown buried in ice in [[1379: 4.5 Degrees]]. Knit caps have only been used a few times in xkcd, most prominently on [[1350:_Lorenz#Knit_Cap_Girl|Knit Cap Girl]] in [[1350: Lorenz]], see her section for more details.

|-
| rowspan="3"| 19500 BCE
| But the world is about to warm up. || || || This is sarcasm; the natural warming process takes thousands of years.
|-
| By this time, humans have already spread across Africa, Eurasia, and Australia. || || ||
|-
| They’ve created painting, pottery, rope, and bows and arrows, but haven’t developed writing or farming. || || ||

|-
| rowspan="2"| 19000 BCE
| Changes in the Earth’s orbit mean that more sunlight reaches the polar ice… || || ||{{w|Milankovitch cycles}} are repeated climate variations on a timescale of tens of millennia.
|-
| [A line chart with a labeled Y-axis "Summer sun W/m2 at 60°N" with three labeled ticks ranging from 450-550. The curve starts up and then goes down five times and up four times ending down. There is one plateau towards the end compared to the rest of the curve where the ups and downs are quite alike.] || || ||

|-
| rowspan="1"| 18500 BCE
| [A map of the world. At the top is a light gray area covering North America, Greenland and northern Europe and most of the northern part of Russia. A similar gray area covers Antarctica. The gray areas are labeled as ice.] || || ||

|-
| rowspan="1"| 18000 BCE
| …And the ice sheets start to melt. || || ||

|-
| rowspan="1"| 17500 BCE
| Temperatures have been creeping upward, but around this point, CO2 levels start to climb…|| || ||

|-
| rowspan="1"| 17000 BCE
| …And then the warming speeds up. || || ||Again, sarcasm about the slow speed of natural climate change compared to modern anthropogenic warming.

|-
| rowspan="1"| 16500 BCE
| [Cueball is standing with a spear just the right of the graph talking to a rabbit.] Cueball: Still pretty cold. || || ||

|-
| rowspan="2"| 16000 BCE
| [Megan points to the graph to the right of her and between her and Ponytail standing on the other side. Mean is the first drawing on the left side of the dotted curve, which has hardly moved since the beginning, only to just on the other side of 4°C.] || || ||
|-
| [In the right part of the chart is an explanation of the data. Below the first two lines there are four drawings each showing possible temperature swings in reality compared to the smoothed data that represents the dotted curve of the entire chart. The dotted curve is shown in all four drawings and a thin line is shown running along it but with much more fluctuation left and right on the first two, a large spike right on the third and a large bump way right on the fourth. Above these there are two labels. The first labels is inside a bracket that covers the first three, and the last label is for the last drawing. Below is a list of sources.] Limits of this data: Short warming or cooling spikes might be “smoothed out” by these reconstructions but only if they’re small or brief enough. Possible Unlikely Reconstructions are from Shakun (2012) and Marcott (2013), scaled to Annan + Hargreaves (2013) estimate for the last glacial period. || || ||

|-
| rowspan="1"| 15500 BCE
| In what is now France, humans paint murals on the walls of the Lascaux caves [Hairy paints three animals, two with horns, and two humans, Cueball holding hand with Hairy who has a spear. On the other side of the central line Megan writes three letters, the last of which is reversed:] NIИ || || || A reference to the industrial techno band {{w|Nine Inch Nails}}.

|-
| rowspan="1"| 15000 BCE
| Ice sheets around Alaska shrink, exposing a land bridge between Asia and North America [From around the bottom if this section and down to 11500 BCE the dotted curve moved steadily to the right towards warmed temperature peaking close to -1.5°C. Before this the temperature had not moved much away from that at the start.] || || ||

|-
| rowspan="1"| 14500 BCE
| [Cueball walks right looking back at the graph behind him. Megan walks in front of him pointing further right.] | Cueball: Cool. || || ||

|-
| rowspan="2"| 14000 BCE
| The edge of the ice withdraws from New York City and retreats North. || || ||
|-
| [A large glacier front speaks in a speech bubble with an arrow pointing at it. Behind is there are four peaks in the horizon and in front of it three small melting pools and some rocks on the ground.] Glacier: ''That’s it! I’m moving to Canada!'' || || || When US citizens are unhappy with changes in their country, they sometimes say they will move to Canada in protest.

|-
| rowspan="2"| 13500 BCE
| Humans domesticate dogs (Date uncertain, may be much earlier) || || ||
|-
|| [Megan and Cueball is watching a wolf looking at them.] Megan: Okay, you can live in our homes and we’ll feed you, but we’ll still get mad if you poop on the floor. Wolf: Deal. Cueball: And we get to breed you to be tiny and dress you in little costumes. Wolf: …Wait. || || || See {{w|Origin of the domestic dog}}. They are often bred for size and occasionally made to wear clothing.

|-
| rowspan="2"| 13000 BCE
| {{w|Woolly Rhino}} goes extinct || || ||
|-
| Oregon is scoured by huge floods as glacial dams burst and lakes of meltwater flow to the sea || || || See {{w|Missoula Floods}}

|-
| rowspan="1"| 12500 BCE
| Ice sheets withdraw from Chicago || || ||

|-
| rowspan="1"| 12000 BCE
| Humans settle Abu Hureyra in Syria || || ||

|-
| rowspan="1"| 11500 BCE
| [An arrow on the left side of the dotted curve is pointing down along the dotted curve and to the left indicate temperature is declining again, meaning the dotted curve now moves left to colder temperatures. This only continues until 10500 BCE. It is only the second time something is noted on the left side after Megan at 16000 BCE] Temperatures start to decline, mainly in the Northern hemisphere This may be caused by changes in ocean circulation due to the floods of cold fresh meltwater flowing into the Atlantic as the North American ice sheet melts. This cooler period is called the {{w|Younger Dryas}} || || ||

|-
| rowspan="1"| 11000 BCE
| [This is the first text to the left of the dotted curve:] Humans reach Argentina || || ||

|-
| rowspan="2"| 10500 BCE
| [An arrow pointing down along the right side of the dotted curve and to the right indicate temperature is increasing again, meaning the dotted curve now moves right to hotter temperatures. This continues until 8000 BCE where it levels out just above 0°C.] Warming resumes || || ||
|-
| Human settlements at Jericho || || ||

|-
| rowspan="1"| 10000 BCE
| First development of farming || || ||

|-
| rowspan="2"| 9500 BCE
| Saber-toothed cat goes extinct || || ||
|-
| Horses disappear from North America || || ||

|-
| rowspan="4"| 9000 BCE
| | Last North American Pokémon go extinct [Cueball with a spear and Megan is looking up at this last “fact”.] Megan: That is not a real fact. || || || As prehistoric [[Megan]] states, this is not a real fact. Pokémon are still thriving throughout the entire world (see [[1705: Pokémon Go]]), and are most commonly found near [http://time.com/4443225/pokemon-go-affluent-white-neighborhoods-report/ affluent first world neighborhoods].
|-
| Temperatures reach modern levels || || ||
|-
| Rising seas cut off the land bridge between North America and Asia || || ||
|-
| {{w|Cattle}} domesticated || || ||

|-
| rowspan="2"| 8500 BCE
| Ice sheets retreat across the Canadian border || || ||
|-
| Temperatures start to level out slightly above 1961-1990 levels || || ||

|-
| rowspan="1"| 8000 BCE
| [The above sentence breaks over the 8000 BCE line. From here a maximum in temperature on the chart is reached at 0.5°C which will not be overtaken until 2000 CE. It stays almost constant here until 5000 BCE where a slight cooling begins.] || || ||

|-
| rowspan="2"| 7500 BCE
| This warm, stable period is called the {{w|Holocene Climate Optimum}} || || ||
|-
| {{w|Jiahu}} settled in China || || ||

|-
| rowspan="2"| 7000 BCE
| Final collapse of the North American ice sheet leads to rapid 2-4m sea level rise… || || ||
|-
| [A small arrow points down and left to the right of the dotted curve. There is a small decrease in temperature but it is very small and would have been missed without the arrow and label.] …And a period of cooling in the Northern hemisphere || || ||

|-
| rowspan="1"| 6500 BCE
| As seas rise to near their modern levels, Britain is cut off from mainland Europe || || ||

|-
| rowspan="1"| 6000 BCE
| Humans develop copper metalworking || || ||

|-
| rowspan="2"| 5500 BCE
| Massive volcanic eruption in Oregon creates crater lake || || ||
|-
| {{w|Gold}} metalworking || || ||

|-
| rowspan="2"| 5000 BCE
| {{w|Invention of the wheel}} || || ||
|-
| [To the right of the dotted curve is an arrow pointing down and slightly left. From here temperature decreases very slowly but steadily from 0.5°C until 1000 BCE where a stable plateau is reached around 0°C.] Earth begins to cool slowly mainly due to regular cycles in its orbit || || ||

|-
| rowspan="3"| 4500 BCE
| Proto-Indo-European language develops || || ||
|-
| [To the right of the curve Ponytail holds up a hand towards Cueball.] Ponytail: Let’s make out language heavily inflected, so future students have to memorize a zillion verb endings! Cueball: Okay! || || ||[[Ponytail]] refers to [[1709: Inflection]].
|-
| Permanent settlements in the fertile crescent || || ||

|-
| rowspan="2"| 4000 BCE
| Horses domesticated || || ||
|-
| {{w|Minoan civilization|Minoan}} culture arises on Crete || || ||

|-
| rowspan="4"| 3500 BCE
| {{w|Egyptian mummification}} || || ||
|-
| Rise of the Indus Valley civilization || || ||
|-
| Invention of writing in Sumer “prehistory” ends, “history” begins || || ||
|-
| Earliest human whose name we know (Pharaoh Iry-Hor in Egypt) || || ||

|-
| rowspan="5"| 3000 BCE
| {{w|Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors}} period in China || || ||
|-
| {{w|Gilgamesh}} || || ||
|-
| {{w|Imhotep}} || || ||
|-
| {{w|Maya civilization|Mayan}} culture emerges || || ||
|-
| {{w|Egyptian pyramids|Great Pyramid}} constructed || || ||

|-
| rowspan="3"| 2500 BCE
| {{w|Corded Ware culture}} in Europe || || ||
|-
| [To the left of the curve two rock musicians with long hair and electrical guitars are standing on either side of a small gate made of three slabs of stone, one on top of the other two standing stones.] Stonehenge completed || 2250 || || The drawing is a reference to the 1984 movie "This is Spinal Tap" (A documentary/parody featuring the fake metal band "Spinal Tap", http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0088258/), the musicians order a Stone Henge prop for the stage, which turns out to be too small (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qAXzzHM8zLw)
|-
| {{w|Chariots}} developed || || ||

|-
| rowspan="3"| 2000 BCE
| {{w|Alphabetic writing}} developed in Egypt || || ||
|-
| Last mammoths on a tiny Siberian island go extinct || || ||
|-
| {{w|Minoan eruption}} || || ||

|-
| rowspan="5"| 1500 BCE
| {{w|Iron smelting}} || || ||
|-
| {{w|Olmec}} civilization develops in Central America || || ||
|-
| [A Trojan horse with two Cueball-like guys in front and a third standing on its back. Its back is at three Cueball’s height and its head rises to the level of the Cueball on its back. It stands on a platform with four wheel on the visible side. There is text on the horse] Setting of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'' Text on horse: Not a trap || || ||
|-
| Invasion of the Sea peoples* * A real thing || || ||
|-
| {{w|Polynesians}} explore the Pacific Ocean || || ||

|-
| rowspan="8"| 1000 BCE
| [From 1000 BBC to 1000 CE the temperature is stable and very close to 0°C.] || || ||
|-
| {{w|Solomon}} || || ||
|-
| {{w|Iliad}} and {{w|Odyssey}} composed || || ||
|-
| Rise of Greek city-states || || ||
|-
| {{w|Neo-Assyrian}} empire || || ||
|-
| First Olympics || || ||
|-
| {{w|Zapotec civilization|Zapotec}} writing in modern Mexico || || ||
|-
| {{w|Confucius}} || || ||

|-
| rowspan="10"| 500 BCE
| The stuff in the 300 (film)|movie ''300'', but regular speed and with more clothing || || ||
|-
| {{w|Buddha}} || || ||
|-
| {{w|Nazca Lines}} || || ||
|-
| {{w|Alexander the Great}} || || ||
|-
| {{w|Mayan hieroglyphics}} || || ||
|-
| {{w|Ashoka the Great}} || || ||
|-
| {{w|Paper}} invented || || ||
|-
| {{w|Asterix}} || || ||
|-
| {{w| Teotihuacan|Teotihuacán}} metropolis || || ||
|-
| {{w|Julius Caesar}} || || ||
|-

|-
| rowspan="8"|1 BCE 1 CE
| [At the year 0, there is instead two numbers for each of the two scales before (1 BCE) and after Christ (1 CE)] || || ||
|-
| {{w|Roman Empire}} || || ||
|-
| {{w|Jesus}} || || ||
|-
| [To the left and erupting volcano.] {{w|Pompeii}} || || ||
|-
| {{w|Three Kingdoms}} period || || ||
|-
| {{w|Gupta empire}} || || ||
|-
| Various groups take turns sacking Rome || || ||
|-
| {{w|Attila the Hun}} || || ||

|-
| rowspan="4"| 500 CE
| {{w|Muhammad}} || || ||
|-
| {{w|Tang Dynasty}} || || ||
|-
| [An arrow to the right of the dotted curve pointing down, takes a swing far out from the curve and then bends back again. The text label next to it breaks into the next 500 period. The dotted curve stays stable at 0°C along this arrow.] Medieval warm period in Europe and some northern regions (too regional to affect the global average much) || || ||
|-
| {{w|Leif Eriksson}} || || ||

|-
| rowspan="7"| 1000 CE
| [The dotted curve moves to the left towards lower temperature reaching a minimum around 1650 of about -0.6°C at the Little Ice Age.] || || ||
|-
| [To the left a drawing of a compass with needle pointing the black end towards north west. There are labels for the four main directions (N, S, E, W) and a label next to it:] Magnetic compass navigation || || ||
|-
| {{w|Ghengis Khan}} || || ||
|-
| {{w|Zheng He}}’s fleet explores Asia and Africa || || ||
|-
| {{w|Aztec Empire|Aztec Alliance}} || || ||
|-
| {{w|Printing press}} || || ||
|-
| {{w|Christopher Columbus|Columbus}} || || ||

|-
| rowspan="2"| 1500 CE
| {{w|European Renaissance}} || || ||
|-
| {{w|Shakespeare}} || || ||

|-
| rowspan="2"| 1600
| {{w|Isaac Newton|Newton}} || || ||
|-
| [To the right of the dotted curve there is an arrow pointing down that makes a swing in towards the curve and then back out again. At -0.6°C this is the coldest it has been since 9500 BCE. It is labeled:] ”{{w|Little Ice Age}}” || || || This was not a true geologic Ice Age, just a slightly chilly period.

|-
| rowspan="2"| 1700
| {{w|Steam engines}} || || ||
|-
| {{w|United States Declaration of Independence|Unites States Independence}} || || ||

|-
| rowspan="3"| 1800
| {{w|Industrial Revolution}} || || ||The beginning of the {{w|Anthropocene}} epoch.
|-
| {{w|Electrical telegraph|Telegraphs}} || || ||
|-
| [After this the dotted curve becomes solid.] || || || In the late 1800s, weather records became sufficiently accurate and widespread to greatly improve the precision of climate measurements.

|-
| rowspan="6"| 1900
| {{w|Airplanes}} || || ||
|-
| {{w|World Wars}} || || ||
|-
| [The solid line takes a step to the right close to 0°C. Over the rest of the 1900s it moves closer to 0°C crossing it before 2000 where it almost reaches the maximum temperature of 0.5 °C from earlier in 8000 BCE.] || || || This is what the previous 14000 pixels of comic has been leading up to. After a laborious 20 millennia of gradual and meandering climate change, it should be clear that a full degree of warming in a single century is unprecedented in human history, and very unlikely to be natural variation.
|-
| {{w|Fossil fuel}} CO2 emissions start rapidly increasing || || ||
|-
| {{w|Nuclear weapons}} || || ||
|-
| {{w|Internet}} || || ||

|-
| rowspan="2"| 2000
| {{w|Northwest Passage}} opens || || ||
|-
|[From here to present day the solid line increases rapidly and in 2016 present day is almost reaches 1°C, with about 0.8°C.] || || || [http://www.skepticalscience.com/argument.php?a=11&p=2 No, warming did not stop in 1998].

|-
| rowspan="3"| 2016
| | Present day || || ||
|-
| [From here the curve once again becomes dotted as this is the future. After one dot it splits in two and after the first two dots another split between them occurs forming three possible future dotted curves.] || || ||
|-
|The first curve bending down before the others, and thus to the right of the other two reaches about 1.2°C and then goes straight down and stops at the 2100 line. An arrow points to it from the left and a label is written partly before and the rest after the 2100 line to the left of the curve:] Best-case scenario assuming immediate massive action to limit emissions || || ||

|-
| rowspan="2"| 2100
| [The middle curve bends a little down after reaching 1.3°C and then continues this path reaching 2°C in 2100. An arrow point from below to it and a label is written below the curve and below 2100 line:] Optimistic scenario|| || ||
|-
| [The last line continues along the path from the last 16 years of the solid line reaching 4.2°C at 2100, almost as far on the other side of 0°C in 150 years as it took 14000 years to move from the other side from the start of the chart. Another arrow point to this from below with a label below the curve and below 2100 line:] Current Path || || ||
|}

===Sources===
The image attributes climate data sources as "Shakun et al. (2012), Marcott et al. (2013), Annan and Hargreaves (2013), HadCRUT4, IPCC":
* Shakun et al. (2012) - [http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v484/n7392/full/nature10915.html Nature], [http://www.atm.damtp.cam.ac.uk/mcintyre/shakun-co2-temp-lag-nat12.pdf (pdf)]
* Marcott et al. (2013) - [http://science.sciencemag.org/content/339/6124/1198 Science], [http://www.atm.damtp.cam.ac.uk/mcintyre/shakun-co2-temp-lag-nat12.pdf (pdf)]
* Annan and Hargreaves (2013) - [http://www.clim-past.net/9/367/2013/cp-9-367-2013.html Climate of the Past] [http://www.jamstec.go.jp/frsgc/research/d5/jdannan/LGM_temp.pdf (pdf)]
* {{w|HadCRUT#HadCRUT4 wikipedia|HadCRUT4}} - [http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/hadobs/hadcrut4/ Official site]
* {{w|Intergovernmental_Panel_on_Climate_Change|IPCC}} -[http://www.ipcc.ch/ Official site]

==Transcript==
'''Note''' there are several spelling errors in the comic, so please do only correct spelling errors that are not part of the comic! See more in the [[#Trivia|trivia section]].
:[A large heading, followed by a sub-caption. Below that two lines with a statement in between:]
:<big>A timeline of Earth’s average temperature</big>
:since the last ice age glaciation
:When people say “The climate has changed before,” these are the kinds of changes they’re talking about.

:[A very long chart below the headings above is headed with a label for the scale of the X-axis above the chart. Below that a sub-caption. To the left an arrow down to the top of the chart pointing to the dotted curves starting point (at -4.3°C) with a label above the arrow. And arrow pointing left to the left of the center and another pointing right to the right of the center has labels. Below these is the temperature scale of the X-axis, with 9 ticks between the borders each with a label ranging from -4 to +4°C, but with another step in each direction not labeled towards to axis so the chart covers -5 to +5°C.]
:'''Temperature'''
: Compared to the 1961-1990 average
:Start
:Colder
:Warmer
:-4°C -3°C -2°C -1°C 0°C +1°C +2°C +3°C +4°C

:[To the right of the chart is a gray text standing on the side down along the outer boarder of the chart with the sources for the chart:]
: Source: Shakun et. al. (2012) , Marcott et. al. (2013), Annan and Hargreaves (2013) , HadCRUT4, IPCC 

:[The chart is split in 10 columns by the temperature scale and the borders. The two central columns are white, and then from there to the left the background becomes a faded color that changes from light blue to blue at the edge in four steps. Similarly to the right the color changes from light red to red. To the left there is a time scale taking 500 years leaps from 20,000 BCE all the way to year 1, where there are two years, one for BBC and one for CE. The 500 year leaps continue until 1500 CE and from there the steps are down to 100 years until 2100 with also present day 2016 labeled. After 1500 the CE is omitted. The labels stop there, but there is space below covering down to 2200 CE. There is clearly visible division line across the chart on the level of each of the 500 step, and fainter lines for each of the 100 steps all the way even though only the last 5 of these 100 steps are labeled. There is a similar clear line at 2016. Below each step on the Y-axis is noted, and then any text starting before the next step is noted below indented. If there are extra image belonging to text this is indented once more. The graph that the whole chart is about is a dotted line that begins at the “start” point mentioned above at -4.3°C and then begins to go straight down. It will change left and right all the way down. To being with all text and most drawings are to right of the dotted curve. Whenever something is to the left it will be noted. When it says to the left above something, and then nothing over the next, then the next will be to the right. Only at the very bottom are there more entries to the left than right. ]
:20000 BCE
::[An arrow goes from the dotted line to the central line at 0°C. In the middle of the line there is a temperature label:]
::4.3°C
::At the start of our timeline, 22,000 years ago, Earth is 4°C colder than during the late 20th century.
::Boston is buried under almost a mile of ice, and the glaciers reach as far south as New York City.
:::[The Statue of Liberty is shown in front of a glacier front. A very tiny Cueball is on top of the glacier. The drawing is labeled and so is also the glacier.]
:::New York
:::Ice
:::[A guy with a white knit cap is seen walking in a snowy landscape leaving black footprints behind him. He walks through the white central part of the chart.]
:::[The skyline of Boston is shown with two clear buildings among all the other. Above it is a line and in between this area has been filled with thin lines. The drawing is labeled and so is this area. Also the skyline has an arrow pointing at it with a label:]
:::Boston
:::Ice
:::Modern skyline

:19500 BCE
::But the world is about to warm up.
::By this time, humans have already spread across Africa, Eurasia, and Australia.
::They’ve created painting, pottery, rope, and bows and arrows, but haven’t developed writing or farming.

:19000 BCE
::Changes in the Earth’s orbit mean that more sunlight reaches the polar ice…
:::[A line chart with a labeled Y-axis with three labeled ticks. The curve starts up and then goes down five times and up four times ending down. There is one plateau towards the end compared to the rest of the curve where the ups and downs are quite alike.]
:::Summer sun W/m2 at 60°N
:::550
:::500
:::450

:18500 BCE
::[A map of the world. At the top is a light gray area covering North America, Greenland and northern Europe and most of the northern part of Russia. A similar gray area covers Antarctica. There are two labels in the gray area above and one in the gray area below:]
::Ice Ice
::Ice

:18000 BCE
::…And the ice sheets start to melt.

:17500 BCE
::Temperatures have been creeping upward, but around this point, CO2 levels start to climb…

:17000 BCE
::…And then the warming speeds up.

:16500 BCE
::[Cueball is standing with a spear just the right of the graph talking to a rabbit.]
::Cueball: Still pretty cold.

:16000 BCE
::[Megan points to the graph to the right of her and between her and Ponytail standing on the other side. Mean is the first drawing on the left side of the dotted curve, which has hardly moved since the beginning, only to just on the other side of 4°C.]
::[In the right part of the chart is an explanation of the data. Below the first two lines there are four drawings each showing possible temperature swings in reality compared to the smoothed data that represents the dotted curve of the entire chart. The dotted curve is shown in all four drawings and a thin line is shown running along it but with much more fluctuation left and right on the first two, a large spike right on the third and a large bump way right on the fourth. Above these there are two labels. The first labels is inside a bracket that covers the first three, and the last label is for the last drawing. Below is a list of sources.]
::Limits of this data:
::Short warming or cooling spikes might be “smoothed out” by these reconstructions but only if they’re small or brief enough.
:::Possible Unlikely
::Reconstructions are from Shakun (2012) and Marcott (2013), scaled to Annan + Hargreaves (2013) estimate for the last glacial period.

:15500 BCE
::In what is now France, humans paint murals on the walls of the Lascaux caves
::[Hairy paints three animals, two with horns, and two humans, Cueball holding hand with Hairy who has a spear. On the other side of the central line Megan writes three letters, the last of which is reversed.]
:::NIИ

:15000 BCE
::Ice sheets around Alaska shrink, exposing a land bridge between Asia and North America
::[From around the bottom if this section and down to 11500 BCE the dotted curve moved steadily to the right towards warmed temperature peaking close to -1.5°C. Before this the temperature had not moved much away from that at the start.]

:14500 BCE
::[Cueball walks right looking back at the graph behind him. Megan walks in front of him pointing further right.]
::Cueball: Cool.

:14000 BCE
::The edge of the ice withdraws from New York City and retreats North.
::[A large glacier front speaks in a speech bubble with an arrow pointing at it. Behind is there are four peaks in the horizon and in front of it three small melting pools and some rocks on the ground.]
::Glacier: ''That’s it! I’m moving to Canada!''

:13500 BCE
::Humans domesticate dogs
::(Date uncertain, may be much earlier)
::[Megan and Cueball is watching a wolf looking at them.]
::Megan: Okay, you can live in our homes and we’ll feed you, but we’ll still get mad f you poop on the floor.
::Wolf: Deal.
::Cueball: And we get to breed you to be tiny and dress you in little costumes.
::Wolf: …Wait.

:13000 BCE
::[Randall did not use the normal spelling for Woolly Rhino, but this is an accepted alternative spelling:]
::Wooly Rhino goes extinct
::Oregon is scoured by huge floods as glacial dams burst and lakes of meltwater flow to the sea

:12500 BCE
::Ice sheets withdraw from Chicago

:12000 BCE
::Humans settle Abu Hureyra in Syria

:11500 BCE
::[An arrow on the left side of the dotted curve is pointing down along the dotted curve and to the left indicate temperature is declining again, meaning the dotted curve now moves left to colder temperatures. This only continues until 10500 BCE. It is only the second time something is noted on the left side after Megan at 16000 BCE]
::Temperatures start to decline, mainly in the Northern hemisphere
::This may be caused by changes in ocean circulation due to the floods of cold fresh meltwater flowing into the Atlantic as the North American ice sheet melts.
::This cooler period is called the Younger Dryas

:11000 BCE
::[This is the first text to the left of the dotted curve:]
::Humans reach Argentina

:10500 BCE
::[An arrow pointing down along the right side of the dotted curve and to the right indicate temperature is increasing again, meaning the dotted curve now moves right to hotter temperatures. This continues until 8000 BCE where it levels out just above 0°C.]
::Warming resumes
::Human settlements at Jericho

:10000 BCE
::First development of farming

:9500 BCE
::Saber-toothed cat goes extinct
::[To the left:]
::Horses disappear from North America

:9000 BCE
::[To the left, Randall spelled Pokémon wrong:]
:::Last North American Pokemon go extinct
:::[Cueball with a speak and Megan is looking up at this last “fact”.]
:::Megan: That is not a real fact.
::Temperatures reach modern levels
::Rising seas cut off the land bridge between North America and Asia
::Cattle domesticated

:8500 BCE
::Ice sheets retreat across the Canadian border
::Temperatures start to level out slightly above 1961-1990 levels

:8000 BCE
::[The above sentence breaks over the 8000 BCE line. From here a maximum in temperature on the chart is reached at 0.5°C which will not be overtaken until 2000 CE. It stays almost constant here until 5000 BCE where a slight cooling begins.]

:7500 BCE
::[To the left:]
::This warm, stable period is called the Holocene Climate Optimum
::[To the left:]
::Jiahu settled in China

:7000 BCE
::Final collapse of the North American ice sheet leads to rapid 2-4m sea level rise…
::[A small arrow points down and left to the right of the dotted curve. There is a small decrease in temperature but it is very small and would have been missed without the arrow and label.]
::…And a period of cooling in the Northern hemisphere

:6500 BCE
::[To the left:]
::As seas rise to near their modern levels, Britain is cut off from mainland Europe

:6000 BCE
::Humans develop copper metalworking

:5500 BCE
::[To the left:]
::Massive volcanic eruption in Oregon creates crater lake
::Gold metalworking

:5000 BCE
::[To the left:]
::Invention of the wheel
::[To the left. To the right of the dotted curve is an arrow pointing down and slightly left. From here temperature decreases very slowly but steadily from 0.5°C until 1000 BCE where a stable plateau is reached around 0°C.]
::Earth begins to cool slowly mainly due to regular cycles in its orbit

:4500 BCE
::[To the left:]
:: Proto-Indo-European language develops
:::[To the right of the curve Ponytail holds up a hand towards Cueball.]
:::Ponytail: Let’s make out language heavily inflected, so future students have to memorize a zillion verb endings!
:::Cueball: Okay!
::[To the left:]
::Permanent settlements in the fertile crescent

:4000 BCE
::Horses domesticated
::[To the left:]
::Minoan culture arises on Crete

:3500 BCE
::Egyptian mummification
::Rise of the Indus Valley civilization
::[To the left:]
::Invention of writing in Sumer “prehistory” ends, “history” begins
::Earliest human whose name we know
::(Pharaoh Iry-Hor in Egypt)

:3000 BCE
::''Three Sovereigns and five emperors'' period in China
::Gilgamesh
::[To the left:]
::Imhotep
::Mayan culture emerges
::[To the left:]
::Great Pyramid constructed

:2500 BCE
::Corded Ware culture in Europe
::[To the left of the curve two rock musicians with long hair and electrical guitars are standing on either side of a small gate made of three slabs of stone, one on top of the other two standing stones.]
::Stonehenge completed
::Chariots developed

:2000 BCE
::[To the left:]
::Alphabetic writing developed in Egypt
::Last mammoths on a tiny Siberian island go extinct
::[To the left:]
::Minoan eruption

:1500 BCE
::[To the left:]
::Iron smelting
::Olmec civilization develops in Central America
::[A Trojan horse with two Cueball-like guys in front and a third standing on its back. Its back is at three Cueball’s height and its head rises to the level of the Cueball on its back. It stands on a platform with four wheel on the visible side. There is text on the horse]
:::Setting of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey''
:::Text on horse: Not a trap
::[To the left:]
::Invasion of the Sea peoples*
::* A real thing
::Polynesians explore the Pacific Ocean

:1000 BCE
::[From 1000 BBC to 1000 CE the temperature is stable and very close to 0°C.]
::[To the left:]
::Solomon
::[Randall spelled Iliad wrongly this time:]
::Illiad and Odyssey composed
::[To the left:]
::Rise of Greek city-states
::Neo-Assyrian empire
::[To the left:]
::First Olympics
::Zapotec writing in modern Mexico
::[To the left:]
::Confucius

:500 BCE
::[To the left:]
::The stuff in the 300 (film)|movie ''300'', but regular speed and with more clothing
::Buddha
::Nazca Lines
::[To the left:]
::Alexander the Great
::[To the left:]
::Mayan hieroglyphics
::Ashoka the Great
::[To the left:]
::Paper invented
::[To the left:]
::Asterix
::Teotihuacán metropolis
::[To the left:]
::Julius Caesar

:[At the year 0, there is instead two numbers for each of the two scales before and after Christ:]
:1 BCE
:1 CE
::[To the left:]
::Roman Empire
::Jesus
::[To the left and erupting volcano.]
::Pompeii
::Three Kingdoms period
::[To the left:]
::Gupta empire
::[To the left:]
::Various groups take turns sacking Rome
::[Randall spelled Attila wrong:]
::Atilla the Hun

:500 CE
::Muhammad
::[To the left:]
::Tang Dynasty
::[An arrow to the right of the dotted curve pointing down, takes a swing far out from the curve and then bends back again. The text label next to it breaks into the next 500 period. The dotted curve stays stable at 0°C along this arrow.]
::Medieval warm period in Europe and some northern regions (too regional to affect the global average much)
::[To the left:]
::Leif Eriksson

:1000 CE
::[The dotted curve moves to the left towards lower temperature reaching a minimum around 1650 of about -0.6°C at the Little Ice Age.]
::[To the left a drawing of a compass with needle pointing the black end towards north west. There are labels for the four main directions and a label next to it:]
:::N
:::E W
:::S
:::Magnetic compass navigation
::[To the left:]
::Ghengis Khan
::Zheng He’s fleet explores Asia and Africa
::[To the left:]
::Aztec Alliance
::[To the left:]
::Printing press
::[To the left:]
::Columbus

:1500 CE
::European Renaissance
::[To the left:]
::Shakespeare

:1600
::[To the left:]
::Newton
::[To the right of the dotted curve there is an arrow pointing down that makes a swing in towards the curve and then back out again. At -0.6°C this is the coldest it has been since 9500 BCE. It is labeled:]
::”Little Ice Age”

:1700
::Steam engines
::[To the left:]
::Unites States Independence

:1800
::Industrial Revolution
::[To the left:]
::Telegraphs
::[After this the dotted curve becomes solid.]

:1900
::[To the left, and on the line for 1900:]
::Airplanes
::[To the left:]
::World Wars
::[The solid line takes a step to the right close to 0°C. Over the rest of the 1900s it moves closer to 0°C crossing it before 2000 where it almost reaches the maximum temperature of 0.5 °C from earlier in 8000 BCE.]
::Fossil fuel CO2 emissions start rapidly increasing
::[To the left:]
::Nuclear weapons
::[To the left:]
::Internet

:2000
::Northwest Passage opens
::[From here to present day the solid line increases rapidly and in 2016 present day is almost reaches 1°C, with about 0.8°C.]

:2016
::[To the left on the line for 2016:]
::Present day
::[From here the curve once again becomes dotted as this is the future. After one dot it splits in two and after the first two dots another split between them occurs forming three possible future dotted curves. The first curve bending down before the others, and thus to the right of the other two reaches about 1.2°C and then goes straight down and stops at the 2100 line. An arrow points to it from the left and a label is written patly before and the rest after the 2100 line to the left of the curve:]
::Best-case scenario assuming immediate massive action to limit emissions

:2100
::[The middle curve bends a little down after reaching 1.3°C and then continues this path reaching 2°C in 2100. An arrow point from below to it and a label is written below the curve and below 2100 line:]
::Optimistic scenario
::[The last line continues along the path from the last 16 years of the solid line reaching 4.2°C at 2100, almost as far on the other side of 0°C in 150 years as it took 14000 years to move from the other side from the start of the chart. Another arrow point to this from below with a label below the curve and below 2100 line:]
::Current Path

==Trivia==
*There have been several ''[[:Category:Large drawings|large drawings]]'' in the history of xkcd, and also some that are bigger than this one (for instance [[1110: Click and Drag]].
**But among those that can be viewed in one go, without downloading a larger file or moving around, this is by far the longest.
**The next longest is probably [[482: Height]].
*The timeline starts at 20,000 BCE (22,000 years ago) and ends at 2100 CE, thus covering 22,100 years.
*There are several spelling mistakes.
**Most obvious is the second time Randall wrote the word "Iliad," because he just spelled it correctly at 1500 BCE and then spelled it ''Illiad'' at 1000 BCE with two "L"s.
**Attila the Hun becomes ''Atilla the Hun'' with ''one'' T and ''two'' L's.
**Pokémon is spelled ''Pokemon'', but then again that is not so strange for Randall (see [[1647: Diacritics]]).
**Note that the fact that Woolly rhinoceros becomes ''Wooly rhino'' with only one l is not a spelling mistake but an alternative spelling of the word.

===Popularity of comic===
*This comic became so popular with a broader audience that Randall decided to push the release of the next comic one day back to Thursday instead of Wednesday.
**He noted this above the comic in the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6d/1732_Earth_Temperature_Timeline_header_text_changed.png header text on xkcd]:
::Note: Since a lot of new people are here looking for this chart today,
::I'll be posting Wednesday's comic on Thursday instead.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Large drawings]]
[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Timelines]]
[[Category:Line graphs]]
[[Category:Maps]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]] 
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]
[[Category:Climate change]]
[[Category:Science]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Music]] 
[[Category:Fiction]] 
[[Category:Sport]] 
[[Category:Religion]] 
[[Category:Internet]]
[[Category:Pokémon]]

1350: Lorenz

2016-09-14T05:24:36Z

108.162.215.184: /* Political debate */ cueball holds the sword, not hairy

__NOTOC__
{{comic
| number = 1350
| date = April 1, 2014
| title = Lorenz
| image = lorenz - alternative options.png
| titletext = Every choice, no matter how small, begins a new story
}}
<div class="toclimit-3" style="float:right; margin-left: 10px;">__TOC__</div>
*'''NOTE: The above is the first panel of an interactive comic.'''
**To actually experience the interactive content you need to go to this comic on xkcd (click on the date above the comic, which, as always, takes you to the xkcd comic)
**For a collection of images that appear in this comic, see [[1350: Lorenz/Images]].
***These will also be described below under [[#Themes|themes]].
**Also note that the order of the options are random.
***By adding that there is a [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/3d/lorenz.png fifth option]
****''Let's see if BSD is any easier to install nowadays.''
***Where only four can be shown - this means there are 5*4*3*2 = '''120 different permutations''' of the way the options can be arranged only in this first image.
**So the above image will only appear with these four options in this order in less than 1% of the cases!
***Of course when you choose an option it is indifferent what the order of the other options was.

==Explanation==
This [[:Category:April fools' comics|April fools' comics]] was posted a day earlier than normal (on Tuesday instead of Wednesday) to honor {{w|April Fools' Day}} of 2014.

It is an interactive and dynamic comic with the first picture shown on top of this page, with a possible combination of text options to choose from (see above). The picture is always the same but the order of the four sentences is chosen randomly (and there can be more than four). The result of all the interactions by the readers led to the generation of {{w|Crowdsourcing|crowd-sourced content}}.

The title 'Lorenz' is referring to {{w|Edward Norton Lorenz}} who, among other subjects, was famous for {{w|Chaos theory}} and the {{w|Butterfly effect}} (mentioned later in the title text of [[1519: Venus]]). This comic is an example of a {{w|Choose Your Own Adventure}} story as mentioned in the title text.

The title text is also a reference to how the story line of this comic will be chaotic by nature, since it includes all of the user submitted dialogue and updates over time based on statistics of user clicks. In this manner, it is a reference to the butterfly effect, a phrase coined by Edward Lorenz to describe how a small initial change can lead to wide variations in outcome in a chaotic system.

Every time a story comes to a point where the user can either choose something or contribute when asked to ''Suggest a line'' then a link will appear by hovering the mouse over the bottom right corner of the last image. This is named a ''{{w|permalink}}'' as it is a link that will recreate this particular story up to the point, making it permanent. It will not save the options listed below that image (i.e. the order of these will change, new options may appear, either because more than four is already present or new will be added and some options may even disappear). An option is thus only saved by choosing it and then saving the next permalink - see [[#Permalink|more below]].

The best way to enjoy this comic is to {{xkcd|1350|try it yourself!}} If you didn't do that already, '''reading any below''' will spoil you from truly enjoying the comic, and maybe make some interesting discoveries yourself! So here is a '''spoiler alert''' if you read on. If you do then see also the section below about [[#Functionality and bugs|Functionality and bugs]].

Any particular story-line will typically only have one or two of the many [[#Themes|themes]] possible in the comic, but some very long stories may have several, see the [[#Record length|Record section]] below. Several of the themes refer to previous comics or generally recurring themes in xkcd. Most obviously is the [[#Blowtorch|blowtorch theme]] which is a direct reference to the previous comic [[1349: Shouldn't Be Hard]] where the last comment is ''I'll find a blowtorch'' as a response to Cueball's frustration over his problems.

Because it is not always ending "as well" as with a burnt PC, they might instead end up in a shark infested ocean - see the [[#Ocean|Ocean theme]], which is a direct reference to [[349: Success]], a comic that came exactly 1000 comics before the other one referenced in the same computer problem theme. In that comic the sharks had not appeared yet, but here there may be several, and sharks is also a [[:Category:Sharks|recurring topic]] in xkcd.

These issues with computers is generally a reference to the [[#Computer problems|computer problems themes]] that precedes both the burning of the laptop and the ocean story-lines, because [[#Knit Cap Girl|Knit Cap Girl]], the new character from the first image, tries to install [[:Category:BSD|BSD]], and then when it fails she takes her friend [[Hairy]] with her in the fall, in the water, into space or into a Pokémon fight etc. as they are the two main character of this comic. Also [[Cueball]] (as a politician vs. another politician with hair) and [[White Hat]] has small appearances, but only in a small sections of particular story-line. Only few others interact directly with the main characters in the rest of the possible stories.

Other themes that are recurring in xkcd is [[:Category:Politics|Politics]], [[:Category:Pokémon|Pokémon]], [[:Category:Boomerangs|Boomerangs]] and [[:Category:Dinosaurs|Dinosaurs]]. Dinosaurs enter the comic in the form of the green talking T-rex from {{w|Dinosaur Comics}}, a clip-art-based webcomic that uses the same artwork with different captions for every strip. This particular [http://www.qwantz.com/index.php?comic=2420 ''Dinosaur Comics''] has a title text that actually refer to [[Randall]] and xkcd, and the comic has previously appeared on xkcd in [[145: Parody Week: Dinosaur Comics]].

A way to combine more than one story line is to let characters wake up from a dream or a nightmare, as can be see in the [[#Dreams|Dreams theme]], and dreams is also a [[:Category:Dreams|recurring topic]]. Here it can even get recursive so there can be dreams within dreams. One of the way to wake from a dream is of course by encountering a dinosaur that tries to step on your house (with you inside), but another is in reference to the possible rocket trip that may take the characters into space. See the [[#Space|Space theme]] another [[:Category:Space|recurring topic]].

There are a few other topics that are covered by Randall himself, but many others will be referenced in the text in the comic. However, since most of the options the users have is created by user input, including naming the characters different names, then any reference made by the text, is not considered part of Randall's work, and will only sporadically be mentioned below under the [[#Themes|themes section]], and not be included as a category.

Here is an example with a [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:d8856ae6-bafb-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd permalink] where the last comment, in the ocean with a shar, references {{w|Malaysia Airlines Flight 370}} that disappeared less than a month before this comic was released and has still to been found two years later. But this is a user input not Randall's.

Some of the idea of this comic was used again in the next year's April Fools' comic [[1506: xkcloud]], where user input also generated a very complex comic and the concept of permalink was used again.

==Transcript==
:[This transcript only transcribes what can be seen in the picture shown at the top of the explanation here.]

:[The comic starts with two panels. In the top panel we see Knit Cap Girl sitting at a desk in front of her laptop typing. There is a speech line up to a gray but empty speech bubble.]
:[The second panel below has the same gray background as the empty speech bubble above. Here is presented four options to what Knit Cap Girl could be saying. They are marked a, b, c and d written in small white rectangles next to the text. There is a small arrow at the top pointing to the first panel:]

:a Hurry! We're in talks with Facebook.
:b These stupid tiles... I'll just play one more game.
:c Refresh... No new email... Refresh... No new tweets... Refresh...
:d Oh. Hey. There's some kind of political thing going on.

:[Once the reader chooses one of the options the text will appear in the speech bubble where the gray area is replaced with the usual white background. The lower gray panel disappears. Now the comic really begins.]
:[A new panel is shown after the selection, again with one to four options to choose from in the new gray panel below. This will continue until it comes to an end where the reader finally only has the choice to suggest the next line.]

:[The order of the up to four options are random, and changes every time you begin again (or even go back to a previous frame). This means that the a-d in the transcript is not the same next time. In some few panels there are even more than four options. To see the fifth you have to reload, then you may find this fifth option next time. The first panel is one of those with five options.]
:[The fifth not shown above is: '''Let's see if BSD is any easier to install nowadays.''', see image with this option in the [[#Trivia|trivia section]].]

:[In the first days of the comic when it developed quickly, new options appeared only to later disappear. '''Gravity. Lots of it.''' is one of those lost options from the first panel. At one time there was also by mistake two versions of one of the other five mentioned above. But this was later deleted. Below in the [[#Trivia|trivia section]] there are permalinks to all the different starting options, including the now lost gravity story.]

:[Although it may be impossible to finish? ... it has been tried to make a complete '''[[1350: Lorenz/Transcript|interactive transcript]]'''.]

==Functionality and bugs==
The reader is initially presented with only one panel where [[#Knit Cap Girl|Knit Cap Girl]] is sitting in front of her computer. The reader is given multiple choices concerning what exactly Knit Cap Girl is thinking. Upon choosing any option - the chosen text will appear where her gray speech bubble was (and this will then disappear), and then a second panel appears to the right, to give continuity to the story. Each new panel may have a new set of options or just the button "Continue" to see the next panel without making any choice in particular. Eventually, one may reach a dead end in which the story is interrupted and reader is presented with a text box to suggest how it should continue. Some of the suggestions given should eventually become available as new options.

===Knit Cap Girl===
Knit Cap Girl is a completely new character wearing a {{w|knit cap}}. It was at first debated if this was a girl or a boy, but since Knit Cap Girl seems to be together with [[Hairy]] that was reason enough to call her a girl. She has some similarities to [[Megan]] with a Knit Cap but since Megan never before has been shown with a knit cap or been together as a pair with Hairy it would be strange if this should represent Megan. (Hairy has some bad reputation in trying to fool girls to fall for him. Perhaps he has finally found out how to be with a woman; although they seem to fight in this comic some times.)

*Other comics with knit caps:
*Before this comic:
**A guy with a knit cap can be seen in [[1037: Umwelt]] in the [[1037#Aurora|aurora story line]].
**A [http://imgs.xkcd.com/clickdrag/1n5w.png guy with knit cap] can be seen on a boat in [[1110: Click and Drag]].
**A guy looking very similar to Knit Cap Girl, even starting in the same position in front of a laptop, can be seen in [[1112: Think Logically]].
***He is described as ''guy in a knit hat'' in the [http://xkcd.com/1112/info.0.json official transcript].
**Randall's wife is depicted with a knit cap in [[1141: Two Years]], one she uses due to chemotherapy treatments causing her to loose her hair.
***Since it is clear that Knit Cap Girl has hair, she do not wear the cap for that reason.
***It is described as ''...the woman (who is wearing a '''knit cap''')...'' in the [http://xkcd.com/1141/info.0.json official transcript]:
**Two guys wear knit caps in [[1321: Cold]].
***They are called winter hats in the [http://xkcd.com/1321/info.0.json official transcript].
*After this comic:
**One of the user pictures for the April fools' comic the year after, [[1506: xkcloud]], also [[1506: xkcloud/Transcript#User pictures|looked like]] Knit Cap Girl.
**Another user picture with a person wearing a knit cap can be seen in [[1689: My Friend Catherine]]
**At the top of the huge chart in [[1732: Earth Temperature Timeline]] a guy with a white knit cap similar to the one in [[1321: Cold]] is freezing.
*In this comic the knit cap is not even mentioned in the [http://xkcd.com/1350/info.0.json official transcript]!

*Other names for knit caps (but obviously this is the name that fits best with the three different official transcripts versions mentioned above):
**{{w|Beanie (seamed cap)|Beanie}}.
***The knit caps that appeared in [[1190: Time]] are traditionally referred to as "beanies"; by extension, the people wearing them are known as "Beanies" (and their language as "Beanish").
**{{w|Toque}}.
**{{w|Knit_cap#Canadian_tuque|Tuque}}.
**{{w|Skullcap}} or skully.

===Number of options===
Normally, there is a total of 4 options to make: a/b/c/d. Their order changes constantly. Sometimes, there are 3 or fewer options, with the text box to suggest an alternative option. Sometimes, a given panel actually has 5 or more available options, although even in this case only 4 options appear at a time. Refreshing the comic changes randomly which of the available options are visible and which are hidden. As of late April 2014, the existence of 5 options seems to occur only in a few rare cases, including the first panel itself. There are no longer any panels that seem to have six options.

===Easy navigation===
Instead of clicking with the mouse you can move more quickly through the panels using the keyboard:
*Up/Down - navigate options
*Enter/Right/Spacebar - choose option after navigating with Up/Down
*Left - go back one panel
*a/b/c/d - choose any option directly

===New panels===
It appeared that new panels were generated by Randall in near real time as user suggestions to dialog were submitted around the release of the comic.

This text can (now) be found under the [http://xkcd.com/1350/info.0.json official transcript] at xkcd:
This April Fools' Day comic has a dynamic panel structure along the lines of a choose-your-own-adventure format - the viewer is presented with up to 4 options for each bit of dialogue, with each choice opening up a new subtree of potential options for the next bit of dialog, and new panel images are chosen semi-randomly based on a graph of potential panel transitions. Readers were also invited to submit dialog options for trees where there were not yet 4 fixed options, thus growing the potential story space. As such there is no fixed transcript for this comic.

The dialog options could be based on click-through rates and hence will change over time based on which choices are clicked most using {{w|A/B testing|A/B measurement techniques}}. This will mean that the most popular choices for dialog lines will prevail as the statistics build up. In some cases, dialog line options do not depend on the continuity of the storyline followed, suggesting that some parts of the story are planned. For example, several of the story lines involve one of the two main characters waking up and for instance telling the other character, "I had the strangest dream…" or even reliving the dream. This may be due to common submissions across story lines. Of course there is the other option that Randall has used the first week of April to look though some input and choose himself. These possibilities are not mutually exclusive. Some of the options that were there very early were in quite poor English. Later the same idea was still there but in a more refined sentence. However, after the first week or two, no new panels seemed to appear, which suggests that some were drawn to match the story's progression.

===Permalink===
A "{{w|permalink}}" is a portmanteau, of "permanent-link". Each panel has a "permalink" button which generates a unique URL for all the choices made by the reader — so a reader can save the chosen choices to compare them to other ways going through the selections. The permalink do only save the chosen options, not the order or the visible options in the image where the permalink is recorded. So it is not possible to save a copy where the options are in the same order as they are in the 1/120 version shown at the top. Also if you go back in the story from a permalink, you can risk, when passing back through a panel with five options, that the option you just got back from, is no longer available, as it is the option randomly not shown this time.

===Suggest a line===
Some times it is possible to add your own suggestions in a panel where there are still other choices. But if not before, then the story will always reach a "final" panel (dead-end) where the reader only has the option left to "suggest a line..." By doing so and pressing enter this text is then shown in the speech bubble. But these suggestions can't be saved as there are no permalink button after this. The reader has to do a screen shot by himself - if he wishes to save his own witty remark. As a few weeks had progressed there were probably so few new suggestions that Randall stopped changing the comic. A few images have been found month (or even more than a year) after the release, but there has been no reason to believe that Randall continued to make new panels after the first few weeks of April. But maybe he returns and do one once in a while. For certain the options and text continue to evolve.

===Bugs===
Since this interactive comic relies on many servers in the background to provide the response to the reader's actions, there are some problems reported here:
*{{w|HTTP cookie|Cookies}} and {{w|Javascript}} are required to see this page properly. Without cookies, the next panel will not render; attempting to load the page in the UNIXKCD terminal or loading the page without Javascript will just get you the [[1349|previous comic]].
*In the first week after the comic was released, if a response led to a panel where two characters speak at the same time, it was impossible to proceed past the first speech bubble. This was subsequently fixed.
As a consequence of these bugs many readers had trouble understanding how this interactive comic worked.

==Themes==
{{Notice|Preferably there should be [[#Permalink|permalink]] that shows all the possible images below. But sadly this is not the case, as many images are no longer accessible by "playing" the comic game. Only if someone saved a permalink in the beginning of the comics "life" will it be possible to see examples of all images in a story line. If you do have some of these old permalinks saved, please fill in for any missing images here below. There are also notices in the relevant sections, which have no all been streamlined so they are build up in the same way and with as many permalink as are available at the moment.}}
*The 17 themes below have been split up after what type of images appear in the comic.
**At present (April 2016) there are 149 different images, which are all described here below.
**To see all images go to [[1350: Lorenz/Images]].
*Below several images have been used in more than one theme, and there will thus be more than 149 images displayed in the tables below.
**To avoid this section becomes extremely long all the tables under each section has been collapsed, and can be opened by clicking the link [show].
*Permalinks has been provided (where possible) to story-lines that includes all the images shown in a given section.
**As the story may continue to evolve there may eventually be added more images, although there is reason to believe that this will no longer happen.
**But if any are discovered please include them in the table below with a permalink.
*In general only little mention will be of the user contributed text.
**But if a story seems to evolve around the choices this may be mentioned.
**Try only to make reference to anything that can be backed up with a permalink.

===The beginning===
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |
! To see/hide images click here:
! Description of images
|-
! The beginning [[Image:lorenz - computer.png]]
|
*This is the opening image shown at the top of the explanation.
*Knit Cap Girl sits at her laptop saying something either to herself or maybe to Hairy.
*You choose what she says from four options written below the panel and thus starts this interactive and dynamic comic.
**Originally on April the 1st there where only four choices, but this quickly increased to six, but eventually ended up on five options.
**But you always only have four options to choose from when you begin.
**By reloading the page you will eventually get the fifth also.
*There are only three different images that can follow this first image see below:
|-
! Possible follow up images [[Image:lorenz_-_laptop_1.png]] [[Image:lorenz - visit.png]] [[Image:lorenz - debate laptop.png]]
|
*These images are the only three that can follow after the first image:
**[http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:9b96fda0-bb48-11e3-804b-002590d77bdd Knit Cap Girls with question marks].
**[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:2ed958de-badf-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd Hairy walks in].
**[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:718ad9a6-bc6e-11e3-800f-002590d77bdd Live debate].
|}

===Computer problems===
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |
! To see/hide images click here:
! Description of images
|-
! Computer problems [[Image:lorenz - laptop 1.png]] [[Image:lorenz - laptop 2.png]] [[Image:lorenz - laptop 3.png]] [[Image:lorenz - laptop 4.png]] [[Image:lorenz - laptop 5.png]] [[Image:lorenz - laptop 6.png]]
|
*Knit Cap Girl's laptop has an unspecified problem.
*Hairy walks in and they attempt to fix it by connecting his laptop with hers.
*It doesn't work so now Knit Cap Girl tries to write something on Hairy's laptop from a paper (a manual?) she holds in her hand.
**See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:2ed958de-badf-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example] with all the images shown in this section, including the blow torch option mentioned below).
*There are two outcomes possible:
**When Knit Cap Girls manual fails the story continues with the blowtorch scene, see [[#Blowtorch|below]].
**Knit Cap Girls fails so badly that they both end up randomly floating in the ocean (with or without circling sharks - a reference to [[349: Success]]), see [[#Ocean|below]].
|}

===Blowtorch===
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |
! To see/hide images click here:
! Description of images
|-
! Manual failing [[image:lorenz - laptop 6.png]]
|
*Knit Cap Girl tries to write something on Hairy's laptop from a note (manual?) she has in her hand while Hairy watches.
*In this story line it just doesn't work and Knit Cap Girl takes revenge on her laptop:
**This image is the last in the [[#Computer problems|computer problem theme]] above and can also lead to the [[#Ocean|Ocean scene]] below.
|-
! Blowtorch [[Image:lorenz - laptop 7.png]] [[Image:lorenz - laptop 8.png]] [[Image:lorenz - laptop 9.png]] [[Image:lorenz - laptop 10.png]] [[Image:lorenz - laptop 11.png]]
|
*Knit Cap Girl becomes so upset with her laptop that she decides to melt it using a blowtorch
**A clear reference to the comic from the day before this one: [[1349: Shouldn't Be Hard]].
*After this they walk out of the building.
**See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:2ed958de-badf-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example] with all images shown here, the one also used above for the [[#Computer problems|Computer problems]].
**See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:bd44a816-bae5-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example] where the burning first takes place after a dream after a rocket launch.
|}

===Ocean===
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |
! To see/hide images click here:
! Description of images
|-
! Wrong move [[image:lorenz - laptop 6.png]]
|
*Knit Cap Girl tries to write something on Hairy's laptop from a note (manual?) she has in her hand while Hairy watches.
*In this story line it goes really wrong and the Ocean scene appears right after this:
**This image is the last in the [[#Computer problems|computer problem theme]] above and can also lead to the [[#Blowtorch|Blowtorch scene]] above.
*Usually they get to this point directly from the starting point, but the story can also return here after a dream.
**See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:3df213b4-ba4f-11e3-8037-002590d77bdd example].
|-
! Sharks [[image:lorenz - shark zero.png]] [[image:lorenz - shark one.png]] [[image:lorenz - sharks.png]] [[image:lorenz - squids.png]] [[image:lorenz - blood.png]]
|
*Knit Cap Girl and Hairy are floating in the ocean, with or without sharks.
**A clear reference to [[349: Success]].
*{{w|Sharks}} have also been the subject of [[:Category:Sharks|several other comics]].
**Three giant squids appear and a lone shark seems disturbed.
**Maybe the squids killed the sharks leaving the blood in the last of these images?
*Here are three examples than together uses all the images shown in this section
**[http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:9b96fda0-bb48-11e3-804b-002590d77bdd Zero and one shark]
**[http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:9b6e3082-bb48-11e3-804b-002590d77bdd Three sharks]
**[http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:310127b6-bbb3-11e3-801c-002590d77bdd Squids and blood].
|-
! Beach [[image:lorenz - hairy swims away.png]] [[image:lorenz - beach.png]]
|
*Knit Cap Girl and Hairy starts to swim out of the shark free ocean.
*Finally reaches a beach - see [[349: Success]] again.
**Here is an [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:30f53d98-bbb3-11e3-801c-002590d77bdd example] where they reach the beach and walk on.
|}

===Political debate===
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |
! To see/hide images click here:
! Description of images
|-
! Let's go live [[image:lorenz - debate laptop.png]]
|
*Knit Cap Girl uses her laptop to watch a debate online.
**The images that follows are what she sees on her screen.
*Usually they get to this point directly from the starting point, but the story can also return here after a dream.
**See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:31c6e414-bab0-11e3-8029-002590d77bdd example] where they even leave the laptop afterwards.
|-
! The debate [[image:lorenz - debate 1.png]] [[image:lorenz - debate 2.png]] [[image:lorenz - debate 5.png]] [[image:lorenz - debate 4.png]] [[image:lorenz - debate 3.png]]
|
*An online debate between two politicians, one with hair to the left and [[Cueball]] to the right is shown on Knit Cap Girls laptop screen.
**The subject and the actual conversation of which varies according to the storyline. But it always begins with the hairy politician speaking and then Cueball replying.
**This may be the end of the conversation but sometimes there is a picture where both politician speaks in the same image
**There may even be two (more?) images in a row where both politician speak in the same image
***See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:f6b4b374-bd25-11e3-802c-002590d77bdd example].
*Eventually one of two things can happen:
**They fight each other, Cueball using a {{w|lightsaber}} (or something that looks like a {{w|Magic sword|holy sword}}) with the hairy politician using his bare fists
***A clear reference to {{w|Star Wars}} which has been [[:Category:Star Wars|referenced often]] in xkcd.
***See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:ba7794b6-bafb-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example].
**The hairy politician is going down on one knee - either to pray or as in a suggestion to ask the other to marry him...
***See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:ea25460c-baf3-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example].
**All images used in this section are shown in the above examples.
*Subjects debated is most likely user suggestions and so any references made is not from Randall even though they have been used in xkcd before.
**Here below are some of the subject already up on April the 1st:
**The hairy politician accuses Cueball of having never liked {{w|Firefly}} see [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:bf86fba8-baed-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd this example]).
**The hairy politician vows to end the "war on Christmas" if elected (see [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:ea25460c-baf3-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd this example]).
**The hairy politician praises his adversary and supports his economic plan (see [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:ba7794b6-bafb-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd this example]).
**The hairy politician questions Cueball's project of tying multiple birds to a car as fuel replacement, which would require some method to make the birds take off in unison.
***This is a reference to {{w|Monty Python and the Holy Grail}} where two swallows tied together to a coconut with a string try to lift it.
***The solutions mentioned for this topic are given here as an example:
***Opening and closing an umbrella near them (a reference to {{W|Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade}}). (see [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:df6d1952-bc0f-11e3-8037-002590d77bdd this example]).
***Using a predatory bird to the car to scare them (see [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:ef2c870e-baea-11e3-8002-002590d77bdd this example]).
***Putting resources in the hands of bird educators for the purpose of training them (see [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:bfaccbe4-ba98-11e3-8008-002590d77bdd this example]).
***Employing {{w|Alan_Seabaugh#Fiscal_Hawk|fiscal hawks}}. (see [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:4996daf6-baf4-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd this example]).
**If the hairy politician points out some problem with the reasoning, often the solution proposed by Cueball would be doing the same in a larger scale or saying he completely agrees with everything the other says... (see some of the above examples).
|-
! After the debate [[image:lorenz - visit.png]] [[image:lorenz - wake up 1.png]]
|
*In the end either:
**Hairy walks in to Knit Cap Girl and points out something happening near which may or may not involve birds (or whatever was the subject).
***This could be a direct result of Cueball's project. But all this is most likely based on user input!
***See [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:4996daf6-baf4-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd this example].
**Knit Cap Girl wakes up as it turns out it was just a bad dream (see [[#Dreams|Dreams]] below).
***See [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:ea25460c-baf3-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd this example].
*Both of these last two images have also been used in other story lines.
|}

===Dinosaur===
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |
! To see/hide images click here:
! Description of images
|-
! Dinosaur Comics [[Image:lorenz - dinosaur 1.png]] [[Image:lorenz - dinosaur 2.png]] [[Image:lorenz - dinosaur 3.png]]
|
*The green T-rex from {{w|Dinosaur Comics}}, (a clip-art-based webcomic that uses the same artwork with different captions for every strip), interrupts the story and proceeds to talk about his tiny arms or other subjects.
**The first three pictures are taken directly from the webcomic, except that the third picture is larger in the real comic
***See this particular [http://www.qwantz.com/index.php?comic=2420 ''Dinosaur Comics''] where the title text actually refer to Randall and xkcd.
***See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:4e66ab6e-bae1-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example] with only these three T-rex images.
**The entire ''Dinosaur Comics'' was parodied in [[145: Parody Week: Dinosaur Comics]], where Randall copied the drawings himself, and T-Rex has appeared in [[1452: Jurassic World]], where it was the last image from the actual comic that was used, as opposed to the three first here.
|-
! Stepping on the house [[Image:lorenz - dinosaur 4.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 1.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 5.png]]
|
*In the end, the dinosaur stamps on the house where the main characters are inside Knit Cap Girl covering and Hairy escaping.
**This is thus Randall's own picture but with the foot, seemingly taken from the T-rex, scaling it up to fit the size.
**Usually the dinosaur story gets to this point before the characters [[#Leaving the building|leaves the building]].
***But when they do so, in other story-lines, it is a completely different building they walk out of
***The explanation for this (apart from that it looks like this in ''Dinosaur Comics'') is that whenever the story gets this far one of the characters will wake up from a dream. See more under the [[#Dreams|dream theme]].
**When the building gets stepped on either Hairy or Knit Cap Girl wakes up:
***See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:f2b12f1e-bbae-11e3-801c-002590d77bdd example] where Hair wakes up.
***Here are two examples where Knit Cap Girl awakes where the dinosaur dream is the second dream from which she awakes:
****After the [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:5e94d028-bb7d-11e3-8012-002590d77bdd hole dream]
****After the [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ffa26ce0-bade-11e3-8001-94de80a03a29 rocket dream].
****The characters has thus left the other building first, but then again both buildings turned out to be part of a dream.
|}

===Leaving the building===
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |
! To see/hide images click here:
! Description of images
|-
! Leaving [[Image:lorenz - going.png]] [[Image:lorenz - laptop 11.png]]
|
*In some storylines the two characters leaves the building.
**Either with the laptop intact:
***Either directly after the first image or
***After the [[#Political debate|politic debate]].
**Or with a fused laptop (see the [[# Blowtorch|Blowtorch theme]]).
***See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:bd44a816-bae5-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd eaxmple] where they leave the house twice, once first with the laptop intact and secondly after burning it.
*In either case they encounter one of the following scenarios when they come out the door:
|-
! Empty lawn [[Image:lorenz - away.png]]
|
*Sometimes nothing is outside the building except the pavement they walk upon there is just an empty lawn.
**See [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:b69f6096-b9f0-11e3-8009-002590d77bdd this example] where the laptop is burned.
*From this point they will continue walking past different landscapes - see the [[#Walking|Walking theme]].
|-
! Rocket on the lawn [[Image:lorenz - rocket 1.png]]
|
*Sometimes there is a space rocket on the lawn outside the building. See the [[#Rocket launch|rocket launch]] theme.
**See [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ffa26ce0-bade-11e3-8001-94de80a03a29 this example] with the computer intact and no political debate.
|-
! Huge hole on the lawn [[image:lorenz - hole.png]]
|
*Sometimes there is a huge hole in the ground just outside of the building.
**The two characters always end up falling into it and one of them awakes from a nightmare - see more below about [[#Dreams|dreams]].
**See [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:8440e346-bb16-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd this example] with the computer intact and no political debate.
**See [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:718ad9a6-bc6e-11e3-800f-002590d77bdd this example] with the computer intact after political debate.
|}

===Walking===
{{Notice |Does anyone have [[#Permalink|permalinks]] for the image where Hairy is walking alone in silhouette, and maybe a situation where he walks alone without the ''meanwhile'' image first (maybe because of arguing, see below)? Please help by posting them in the table below:}}
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |
! To see/hide images click here:
! Description of images
|-
! Starting the walk [[Image:lorenz - away.png]] [[Image:lorenz_-_pikachu_dead_5.png]] [[Image:lorenz - beach.png]] [[Image:lorenz - run.png]] [[Image:lorenz - boomerang accident 2.png]] l[[Image:lorenz - meanwhile.png]]
|
*A walk can begin in more than one way.
**The most direct way to start the walk is when the two characters are [[#Leaving the building|leaving the building]], and finding noting out on the lawn.
**A walk can also start when they leave the Pikachu from the [[#Pokémon|Pokémon theme]].
***See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:8737f5b4-ba92-11e3-8008-002590d77bdd example] where the first ''walking together'' image appear after the house and a new walk begins after Pikachu with both the ''passing'' images.
**A walk can also start when they leave the beach after the [[#Ocean|ocean theme]].
***See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:30f53d98-bbb3-11e3-801c-002590d77bdd example] and this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:310127b6-bbb3-11e3-801c-002590d77bdd example] where respectively a ''walking together'' and a ''passing'' image appear after they come out of the ocean.
**In the examples above Knit Cap Girl and Hairy are in principle always walking together.
***But such a walk can start directly with a zoom in on one of the characters thinking.
***See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:81c9e8c8-ba1d-11e3-8018-002590d77bdd example] where leaving the house is replaced with Knit Cap Girl thinking and then finding Pikachu.
***As it turns out she was still with Hairy and they continue the walk together after, but if the story stops before the last Pikachu picture, it would not be clear that Hairy was still there.
**But one of them sometimes ends up walking alone even though they started walking together.
***This happens after they have an [[#Arguing|argument]]. '''Example of this is missing!'''
**But walks can also start from different starting point where only one of them are walking
***After Knit Cap Girl runs away from hitting something with the [[#Boomerang|boomerang]] or is hit herself by the boomerang.
****See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:b94d8be4-bb47-11e3-804b-002590d77bdd example] where she runs away.
****See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ee6b910c-bae5-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example] where she hits herself.
***After the ''meanwhile'' image where Hairys alone walk can begin.
****See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:aee5abf0-bb29-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd example].
*So the walking images from below can also appear or re-appear in other ways longer into a complicated story, as with the Pokémon example above with two walks one early one later.
*There are also two images which zoom in on one of the characters thinking.
**This mainly happens for Knit Cap Girl when they are together?
***See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:55a9e1ae-baa3-11e3-8017-002590d77bdd example].
***But can also happen when she is alone as seen in this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:b9575048-bb47-11e3-804b-002590d77bdd example].
**This only seems to happen for Hairy when he walks alone?
***See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:aee5abf0-bb29-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd example].
|-
!Passing something [[Image:lorenz - tree.png]] [[Image:lorenz - gap.png]]
|
*Knit Cap Girl and Hairy walks together past the following items:
*A tree where the two are walking past, and only Hairy speaks.
**See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:a012d55a-bf3c-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example] where they get past..
*A gap/pit in the ground which Knit Cap Girl jumps over, much like in a pit from Mario brothers, while Hairy looks down speaking.
**See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:97c42da2-bb01-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd example].
**See also this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:8737f5b4-ba92-11e3-8008-002590d77bdd example] with both images at the end.
|-
!Walking together [[Image:lorenz - walking.png]] [[Image:lorenz - walking 2.png]] [[Image:lorenz - dark.png]] [[Image:lorenz - thinking.png]]
|
*The two characters are seen walking together from different perspectives.
**See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:52e63998-bb3b-11e3-8002-002590d77bdd example] with all three walking together images.
***See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:8737f5b4-ba92-11e3-8008-002590d77bdd example] with the image with Hairy in front.
***See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:81c9e8c8-ba1d-11e3-8018-002590d77bdd example] with Hairy behind.
***See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:30f53d98-bbb3-11e3-801c-002590d77bdd example] with the silhouette image.
*At one point, while they are walking together, a zoom in of Knit Cap Girl's head shows she is thinking
**See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:8737f5b4-ba92-11e3-8008-002590d77bdd example].
**As it turns out she was still with Hairy and they continue the walk together after, but if the story stops before the last Pikachu picture, it would not be clear that Hairy was still there.
***See also this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:55a9e1ae-baa3-11e3-8017-002590d77bdd example] where she thinks twice on the same walk.
***See also this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:bf610654-bb43-11e3-804b-002590d77bdd example] where she thinks two images in a row.
***This image can also appear while she walks alone. See below.
|-
!Alone - Knit Cap Girl [[Image:lorenz - walk 3.png]] [[Image:lorenz - walk 2.png]] [[Image:lorenz - walk 1.png]] [[Image:lorenz - walk 4.png]] [[Image:lorenz - walk 9.png]] [[Image:lorenz - bird gift.png]] [[Image:lorenz - bird money.png]] [[Image:lorenz - thinking.png]] [[Image:lorenz - walk 5.png]] [[Image:lorenz - walk 8.png]]
|
*Knit Cap Girl walks alone.
**She is seen walking alone in many different poses and perspectives.
***There also exist an image with a zoom in of her head showing she is thinking.
***See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:b9575048-bb47-11e3-804b-002590d77bdd example] where she is walking alone and then the thinking image comes at the very end.
***This image has mainly been used while she is walking with Hairy, see above.
***In this example seven of the images from this section is used, only the last normal walking image above those with birds as well as those two with birds are missing.
**At some point a bird passes over her carrying a parcel. It then returns - now with a money note in its beak.
***See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:d09d6e40-bbd3-11e3-802e-002590d77bdd example].
****The remaiing three images are shown here.
****The birds could be a reference to Amazon's plans for using drones to deliver packages. Something referred to later, for instance in [[1523: Microdrones]].
****In the example the text is a reference to {{w|Monty Python and the Holy Grail}} where it is discussed if two swallows could carry a coconut to explain their precense in England.
***In most other cases only one of the bird pictures are shown like in these examples:
****The picture of the bird with parcel can be seen in this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:b94af780-bb47-11e3-804b-002590d77bdd example] and this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:79bfc3d8-baa3-11e3-8017-002590d77bdd example] at the very end.
****The picture of the bird with money can be seen in this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:b94d8be4-bb47-11e3-804b-002590d77bdd example] and this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:7b3383ae-baa2-11e3-8012-002590d77bdd example] at the very end.
****In this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:50d05aa2-baa1-11e3-800d-002590d77bdd example] the story continues after the bird with the parcel.
****In this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:7448daea-ba97-11e3-8007-002590d77bdd example] the bird with the parcel comes twice.
****In this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:4e6dc4d8-bb01-11e3-8003-002590d77bdd example] the bird with the parcel is shown twice in a row.
****In this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:7fc6e57a-baeb-11e3-8002-002590d77bdd example] the bird with the money is shown twice in a row.
**The image where she is standing without saying anything, may only be seen in the [[#Boomerang|boomerang theme]]? That image will thus (so far) not be shown here.
|-
!Alone - Hairy [[Image:lorenz - meanwhile.png]] [[Image:lorenz - walk 7.png]] [[Image:lorenz - walk 10.png]] [[Image:lorenz - thinking 2.png]] [[Image:lorenz - walk 6.png]]
|
*Hairy is seen walking alone.
**He is seen walking alone in two poses.
**At one point a zoom in of his head shows he is thinking - this does not have to be while alone!
**In one story line the ''meanwhile'' image appears before this walk.
***See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:aee5abf0-bb29-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd example] with the first four images from this section.
***It seems that this image only appear before Hairy's alone walk?
**There '''still misses examples''' of him walking alone without this image first
****There '''still misses''' an example with the silhouette images of Hairy alone.
|}

===Arguing===
{{Notice |Does anyone have [[#Permalink|permalinks]] for the image after the main argument where Hairy leaves? It would be really nice if ther was also a stor-line where that and the other with Knit Cap Girl where followed by some of the walking alone pictures too, as this supposedly occurred to begin with. Please help by posting them in the table below:}}
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |
! To see/hide images click here:
! Description of images
|-
!Arguing [[Image:lorenz - discuss.png]] [[Image:lorenz - knit cap leaves.png]] [[Image:lorenz - hairy leaves.png]]
|
*Knit Cap Girl and Hairy begins an argument.
**The fight can either commence during a walk:
***See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:2a2d5f80-badd-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example] with only the start of the fight.
**Or after they come out of the rocket when it failed to launch:
***See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:b8c820a2-bb61-11e3-800e-002590d77bdd example] with only the start of the fight.
*Then either she or he leaves the other by walking back the way they came.
**See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:b65f48a8-bbc1-11e3-802c-002590d77bdd example] where Knit Cap Girl is walking away.
**'''Examples are missing...''' for Hairy walking away.
*After this either of them can continue the walk alone.
**'''Examples are missing...''' for both walking along - i.e. a story-line that actually shows that at least one of them can continues to walk alone afterwards.
|-
!Leading to the argument [[Image:lorenz - tree.png]] [[Image:lorenz - gap.png]] [[Image:lorenz - thinking.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 6.png]]
|
*The following examples show where these images lead to the first argument image.
**[http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:bf610654-bb43-11e3-804b-002590d77bdd Tree].
**[http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:4b2b6f7e-ba92-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd Jumping over pit].
**[http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:75c1569a-bae7-11e3-8002-002590d77bdd Thinking].
**[http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:b8c820a2-bb61-11e3-800e-002590d77bdd Failed rocket launch].
***'''There are likely more''' from the walking range of images.
|}

===Pokémon===
{{Notice|It seems like it is the pictures Pikachu which represent the enemy who uses the moves described below. But when they are effective it is that very Pokémon which faints. This seems counterintuitive. How can this be understood by someone who never played Pokémon, or does it also not make any sense for those who knows? Please explain at the first image below.}}
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |
! To see/hide images click here:
! Description of images
|-
! A wild Pikachu appeared [[Image:lorenz - pikachu appeared.png]]
|
*Some of the story-lines involve Pokémon-battles featuring {{w|Pikachu}}, a very popular {{w|Pokémon}}.
**Pokémon has often been [[:Category:Pokémon|featured in xkcd]].
*The battles are drawn in the style of the video games.
**A trainer in the left-bottom corner facing the foe in the right-top corner, with a narration box below the scene and the trainer's {{w|Pokéballs}} visible
**Although some elements are missing, such as the level, gender and HP bar.
*In this first image Pikachu the wild pokémon appears.
**Then the fight begins.
**Pikachu is the reason no fight begins in [[1516: Win by Induction]].
|-
! As part of the walk [[Image:lorenz - walking.png]] [[Image:lorenz - dark.png]] [[Image:lorenz - tree.png]] [[Image:lorenz - thinking.png]]
|
*The Pokémon story-line always begins during a walk where the two characters are together
**It can for certain happen after these images, so typically shortly after they [[#Leaving the building|leave the building]].
***But it can occur after a [[#Dreams|dream]]:
****See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:97c42da2-bb01-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd example] that begins with a hole dream and then reaching the Pikachu after the thinking image.
***The thinking image can occur without they are together, but mainly it has been used as part of their walks together, and this will always be the case in the Pokémon story as they both are there if the moves are effective.
****See more detail in the [[#Walking|Walking section]].
***They can meet more than one Pikachu, but then the story return to one of these images before it happens again:
****See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:9a86363c-bb53-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example] that begins after walking past a three first and then later where Knit Cap Girl thinks before the next attack.
***Other images are listed here:
****See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:feaa5d4e-bbd2-11e3-802c-002590d77bdd example] with the silhouette image.
****See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:0f6483ac-baee-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example] with the walking together image with Hairy in front.
|-
! Pikachu's moves [[Image:lorenz - pikachu abandonment.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu anguish.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu ant.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu ethylene.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu extrude.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu faceless.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu friendship.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu granite.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu graph.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu ink cloud.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu radicality.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu theft.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu uplift.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu blank.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu not very effective.png]]
|
*Pikachu uses a number of different moves, though these are mostly made up and are not from the Pokémon games.
**It is written as "Enemy Pikachu used "''move''", with the possible ''moves'' listed here below.
**Pikachu's moves are almost invariably remarked by the narrator as "It's not very effective...",
***This is included as the last image in this section, as it comes in between all these non effective moves.
***It can lead on as seen below.
**But "It's super effective!" is also possible to appear
***This will always lead on as can be seen at the bottom.
**In the video games a move is:
***"Not very effective" when the opponent's type resists the attacking move's type
***"Super effective" when the opponent's type is weak to the attacking move's type.

*'''Pikachu's moves'''
**See below for examples
***The examples below are marked with ¤ $ £ etc. and the moves are similarly marked to indicate in which examples they appear.
****Those that can be ''not very effective'' in a way that takes the characters past Pikachu are written in ''italics'' below.
****Those that can be '''super effective''' are written in '''bold''' below.
*****A move that sometimes can result in a move past Pikachu will in another story line not give the same result.
*****None of the moves have yet been shown to be able to get past Pikachu in both possible ways though!
*****For instance the examples marked with "¤" and "&" below both uses ''graph theory'' and only in the first example is it super effective. But in the other it is not the last move.
*Here are the moves in alphabetical order:
** {{w|Abandonment (emotional)|Abandonment}} ^~@ - Pikachu disappears completely.
** {{w|Anguish}} ¤%~ - Pikachu is sad.
** ''{{w|Ant Colony}}'' ~ - Pikachu is covered in ants.
** ''{{w|1,2-Dichloroethane|Ethylene Dichloride}}'' ¤= - Pikachu holds a glass with Ethylene Dichloride
*** Nothing seems to happen, although Ethylene Dichloride is a toxic chemical, therefore there may be future consequences for the characters.
** ''{{w|Extrude}}'' + - Pikachu's head moves away from his body as his neck becomes long and malleable.
** '''[http://www.dictionary.com/browse/faceless Faceless]''' $@ - Pikachu's face disappears.
** {{w|Friendship}} £= - Pikachu is on Knit Cap Girl's head, signifying they are now friends.
*** Friendship, though not a move, is a game mechanic in the video games.
** {{w|Granite}} % - Pikachu is atop a block of granite.
** '''{{w|Graph Theory}}''' ¤& - The theory can be seen behind Pikachu
** {{w|Ink|Ink Cloud}} %+@ - Pikachu is covered in ink.
*** In the storyline Pikachu uses it, there is the option to "gather" the ink.
** '''[http://da.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=radicality Radicality]''' £ - Pikachu is on a skateboard.
** ''{{w|Theft}}'' &@ - Pikachu wears Knit Cap Girl's hat.
*** Pikachu seems to be using "Thief", a similarly-named actual move from the games, that is used to steal the foe's item and use it as its own.
** [https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/uplift Uplift] §@ - Pikachu's head goes upward, separated from its body, showing a long, thick cable still connecting the head and the body.
*Finally there is a blank text box - for '''user input''' ¤£%@&~+
**The below items are using the blank text box picture with that text coming from users input to appear in the blank picture at the bottom of this section:
***Google Maps did not warn me of this @
***In Google Maps it was easy to capture pokemons @
****Those two above are referencing the [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YMD6xELI_k Google Maps: Pokémon Challenge].
***Where's Twitch when I need help? @
****a reference to {{w|Twitch Plays Pokémon}} which was also covered by comic [[1333: First Date]].
***Cute face @ (Written out correctly as ''Enemy Pikachu used "cute face"'').
***Cuteness % (Written out correctly as ''Enemy Pikachu used cuteness'').
***Yet %
***Go charizard! £
***Pikachu, find a Hamiltonian cycle in this graph! &
***Player wonders why Pikachu is working day labour at the home depot these days? ~
***Player used twitch crowdsource ~
***Enemy Pikachu used "the discrete metric" +
***I'm carrying so many Pokémon!! ¤
***Was is diluted ¤
****(i.e. was it diluted as in the Ethylene Dichloride).

*Here are some '''examples of battle''' that together includes all the moves images.
**The examples below are marked with ¤ $ £ etc.
***Above the moves are similarly marked to indicate in which examples they appear.
**These moves are '''not very effective''':
:::@ [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:d5bba698-badf-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd 9 different moves] - including four user inputs and ending on '''theft''' (28 panels, '''record length''' although not passing all the way by Pikachu).
:::= [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:9a86363c-bb53-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd 2 different moves] - ending both on '''Ethylene Dichloride''' and later on '''Friendship''' (26 panels, '''moving past''' Pikachu and then '''returning for another fight''' ending with the empty image for the user to fill in).
:::+ [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:47fe85d0-bbbd-11e3-801c-002590d77bdd 3 different moves] - including a user input and ending on '''extrude''' (20 panels, '''moving past''' Pikachu).
:::§ [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:97c42da2-bb01-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd 1 move only] - ending on '''uplift''', and then followed by an empty image for the user to fill in (21 panels, not getting to the end, but only one here coming to Pikachu '''through a dream''').
:::~ [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:0f6483ac-baee-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd 5 different moves] - including two user inputs and ending on '''ant colony''' (19 panels, not passing all the way by Pikachu).
:::% [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:f203d1c6-ba22-11e3-801a-002590d77bdd 5 different moves] - including two user inputs and ending on '''granite''', and then followed by an empty image for the user to fill in (17 panels, not getting to the end).
:::^ [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:2f0612e0-bbd7-11e3-8030-002590d77bdd 1 move only] - ending on '''abandonment''', and then followed by an empty image for the user to fill in (9 panels, not getting to the end).
:::& [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:b8fe0a3c-bb52-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd 3 different moves] - including a user input and ending on '''theft''' (15 panels, not passing all the way by Pikachu, and ineffective even though graph theory is also included before then end, which is effective in another example see below).
:*These moves are '''super effective''':
:::¤ [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:81c9e8c8-ba1d-11e3-8018-002590d77bdd 5 different moves] - including two user inputs and ending on '''graph theory''' (24 panels, but no new text after poking the Pokémon).
:::£ [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:8737f5b4-ba92-11e3-8008-002590d77bdd 3 different moves] - including a user input and ending on '''radicality''' (22 panels, with '''one line of text after poking''' the Pokémon).
:::$ [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:feaa5d4e-bbd2-11e3-802c-002590d77bdd 1 move only] - ending on '''faceless''' (17 panels, but no new text after poking the Pokémon).
|-
! Not very effective [[Image:lorenz - pikachu not very effective.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu um.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu end 1.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu end 2.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu dead 5.png]]
|
*Normally after a few failed attempts - where the result is given as ''It's not very effective'', there is an uncomfortable silence as the Pikachu says "Um..."
**Then it talks to Knit Cap Girl and Hairy from the tall grass
**They ignore this remark and walk away past the Pókemon. The Pikachu is left in the tall grass looking after them and has time to make a final remark which they also seem to ignore.
**After that they come out of the tall grass (without an image where they walk in the tall grass without Pikachu as seen below in the very effective version).
*See these examples that are not very effective:
**In these they do not even get all the way out of the grass:
***[http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:81c9e8c8-ba1d-11e3-8018-002590d77bdd Theft], on the ninth move!
***[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:0f6483ac-baee-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd Ant colony], on the fifth move.
***[http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:b8fe0a3c-bb52-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd Theft], on the third move.
**In these they do get all the way out of the grass:
***[http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:47fe85d0-bbbd-11e3-801c-002590d77bdd Extrude], on the third move.
***[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:9a86363c-bb53-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd Ethylene Dichloride], on the first move! But first after burning the lap top. After this move they walk away only to meet another (or the same) wild Pikachu for another unfinished fight.
****In this particular example on the way past it says:
****"I used to be better at chemistry."
****"Wait I can install you BSD".
*****This last line could have been different:
*****"Come back! I don't like it here in the tall grass!", see this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:33d9e268-baa3-11e3-8017-002590d77bdd example].
*****"Wait you can't flee from a trainer battle!", see this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:372bbc40-ba97-11e3-8006-002590d77bdd example].
*****"No really guys I can still remember most of it", see this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:6a2b3ca0-baa7-11e3-801e-002590d77bdd example].
****In another line out it says: "This is still better than all the lightning crap."
*****See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:62d0439e-baaf-11e3-801f-002590d77bdd example], where there is no follow up lines.
****There are several endings to this particular story-line, and in another story-line they do not meet the second Pikachu but lines are still spoken.
*****See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:93aeb59c-bce2-11e3-801e-002590d77bdd example].
*Below are some other transcript of lines from user input and their references:
**Other remarks from Pikachu or about Pikachu can be seen in these examples from the same storyline:
*** Pikachu: Aren't you going to catch me? It's not difficult, I promise... Please? [Knit Cap Girl and Hairy ignore him and go away] and may get the following responses.
**** Please! Jigglypuff keeps on drawing on my face!
*****See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:e8dc6866-bbd4-11e3-8030-002590d77bdd example].
**** You were walking in tall grass! You asked for it!
*****See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:e90d70be-bbd4-11e3-8030-002590d77bdd example].
**** Please... Tame me! I want to party on days other than Thursday.
*****Hairy remarks while waking away: "Y'know, if we catch a Pikachu, we would never to pay our electric bills again." (Missing have between never and to - user input...)
*****See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:93b5fbea-bce2-11e3-801e-002590d77bdd example].
*Pokémon mentioned other than Pikachu in user input:
** Charizard (In one storyline, "Go Charizard" is one usable move in battle)
***See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:8737f5b4-ba92-11e3-8008-002590d77bdd example].
** Jigglypuff
***See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:e8dc6866-bbd4-11e3-8030-002590d77bdd example].
|-
! Super effective [[Image:lorenz - pikachu not very effective.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu super effective.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu fainted.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu dead 1.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu dead 2.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu dead 3.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu dead 4.png]] [[Image:lorenz - pikachu dead 5.png]]
|
*Rarely, a suggested move knocks Pikachu out.
**This is stated as ''It's super effective''
***But this image seem to always first come right after the one with ''It's not very effective'' which makes no sense, but is why this is also included here.
**The result is that Pikachu faints.
***Knit Cap Girl and Hairy looks at the fainted (not dead) Pikachu who lies facedown in the grass.
***Then Knit Cap Girl ''pokes'' the pókemon and they walk past him
***Through and then out of the tall grass
*See these examples that are super effective:
**[http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:81c9e8c8-ba1d-11e3-8018-002590d77bdd Graph theory], on the fifth move.
**[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:8737f5b4-ba92-11e3-8008-002590d77bdd Radicality], on the third move, and with one line of text after poking the Pokémon.
***Hairy looking down the pit: Now. what?
**[http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:feaa5d4e-bbd2-11e3-802c-002590d77bdd Faceless], on the first move!
|}

===Rocket launch===
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |
! To see/hide images click here:
! Description of images
|-
!Rocket on the lawn [[Image:lorenz - rocket 1.png]]
|
*When [[#Leaving the building|leaving the building]] they may find a rocket on the lawn.
|-
!Into the rocket [[Image:lorenz - rocket 2.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 3.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 4.png]]
|
*The characters climb into the rocket.
**See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:f0ff797c-badd-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example].
**Note that Hairy can be seen climbing up the ladder in the second image and the door is slammed shut in the third indicated with small lines.
|-
!Out of the rocket [[Image:lorenz - rocket 4.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 5.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 6.png]]
|
*In some story-lines the rocket does not launch.
**Either it fails or they just don't wish to go into space today.
*So the two characters climb out again.
**See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:4b2b6f7e-ba92-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd example] where they then walk on and then have an argument.
**Note that after the door has been slammed there is an image without these lines indicating the door is now shut, before they climb out again.
|-
!Rocket launch [[Image:lorenz - rocket 4.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 7.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 8.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 9.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 11.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 1.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 5.png]]
|
*If they do not climb out again, the rocket will launch towards space right after the door has slammed without waiting for the picture with the door closed.
**Sometimes an image from the flight simulator program {{W|Kerbal Space Program}} (KSP) will then appear (see [[#Kerbal Space Program|KSP theme]]) instead of the black image.
***See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:8440e346-bb16-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd example] where the launch wakes up Knit Cap Girl from a (second) dream. (See the [[#Dreams|dream theme]]).
***See alto this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:c9cfde56-bae6-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example] where the launch wakes up Hairy.
**If the characters doesn't wake up here, then the rocket will go into space (see [[#Space|space theme]]).
***Before reaching space a dark image will turn up.
***See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ffa26ce0-bade-11e3-8001-94de80a03a29 example] where the space trip turns out to be a dream.
****Here another KSP image is also used to end the dream.
***The black picture is also used in the dream sequence with the hole just before wake up.
****This never seems to happen from the launch sequence.
|}

===Space===
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |
! To see/hide images click here:
! Description of images
|-
!Successful launch [[Image:lorenz - rocket 9.png]]
|
*When the [[#Rocket launch|rocket launch]] is successful the rocket will go into space and a black image will turn up as the first evidence of this
**See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ffa26ce0-bade-11e3-8001-94de80a03a29 example].
**The black picture is also used in the dream sequence with the hole.
|-
!Flying over earth [[Image:lorenz - rocket 10.png]]
|
*After entering space, the rocket is always shown in an orbit over earth.
|-
!In space [[Image:lorenz - rocket 13.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 14.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 19.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 20.png]]
|
*From earth the rocket flies into deep space.
**These images will appear and reappear (sometimes several times) intermixed with those below.
***Exceptions are with those of the little prince and those after the attacking space ship which will always end the space journey.
***See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:cccdb9ea-baf3-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example] with all the images from this section and the two from above as well as most of those below (several of them (many) more than one time). The first image is only used once right after Earth orbit.
***See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:6322a5a2-ba97-11e3-8007-002590d77bdd example] where the first image is not included.
***See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:6490cc4a-b9f0-11e3-8009-002590d77bdd example] where the first image is used twice, but not to begin with.
|-
!Asteroids [[Image:lorenz - rocket 24.png]]
|
*Passing the {{W|Asteroid belt}}.
**See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:cccdb9ea-baf3-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example] where the image is used twice in a row.
|-
!Saturn [[Image:lorenz - rocket 12.png]]
|
*Passing {{W|Saturn}} with its majestic rings.
**See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:cccdb9ea-baf3-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example] where the image is used eight times, but only for five flybys as the image is used both twice and three times in a row.
|-
!Space ship [[Image:lorenz - rocket 15.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 16.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 17.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 18.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 22.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 23.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 5.png]]
|
*The rocket encounters another space ship that asks a question about relativity
**It is the same question that appeared in [[265: Choices: Part 2]].
*If the question is answered satisfactory the two rockets will just fly past each other.
**See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:ccd0b334-baf3-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example] where the ship passes the space ship ones and then meets up with it again at the end.
*If the answer to the space ship is not acceptable it will turn around after passing, and shoot down the rocket.
**The next image is from the {{w|Kerbal Space Program}} (KSP) simulator, see the [[#Kerbal Space Program|KSP theme]].
***But in this case it is an image where the rockets are turned off as opposed to the one that could have appeared at the beginning of the launch. But that would not result in a space trip but in a dream.
**The KSP image is followed by Hairy waking up from a dream (it seems it can only be him), see the [[#Dreams|dream theme]].
***Most of the images above as well as this attack is included in this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ffa26ce0-bade-11e3-8001-94de80a03a29 this example]
***In this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:6322a5a2-ba97-11e3-8007-002590d77bdd example] Hairy wakes up and starts to sing.
|-
!Little Prince [[Image:lorenz - rocket 21.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 25.png]]
|
*Eventually the space rocket meets a guy on a very tiny planet
**This is a reference to {{w|The Little Prince}}, which has been referenced before in xkcd in both [[2: Petit Trees (sketch)]] and [[618: Asteroid]].
**This could also be a reference to the asteroid [http://blog.xkcd.com/2013/09/30/asteroid-4942-munroe/ 4942 Munroe], and then it could be Randall on the rock...
***See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:6490cc4a-b9f0-11e3-8009-002590d77bdd example] that stops at the first picture.
**The story originally never seemed to move past this first image with the prince and the rocket, but finally there appeared one more without the rocket.
***See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:25743f70-baee-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example].
|}

===Kerbal Space Program===
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |
! To see/hide images click here:
! Description of images
|-
!Kerbal space program [[Image:lorenz - rocket 11.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 23.png]]
|
*These pictures are from the flight simulator program {{W|Kerbal Space Program}} (KSP).
**The first shows a rocket with the engines on from [[#Rocket launch|rocket launch]].
**The second shows a rocket with the engines off after the attack in the [[#Space|space theme]].
*They both appear in a certain sequence leading to a [[#Dreams|dream]], see below:
|-
!Engines on [[Image:lorenz - rocket 8.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 11.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 1.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 5.png]]
|
*During rocket launch when the engine is on it turns out to be just a dream.
**One of the two characters wakes up in their bed.
***See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:8440e346-bb16-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd example] where Knit Cap Girl wakes.
***See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:c9cfde56-bae6-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example] where Hairy wakes.
***It seems that the image can (no longer?) precede a space travel going into deep space.
|-
!Engines off [[Image:lorenz - rocket 22.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 23.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 5.png]]
|
*After the space ship attacks and shoots the rocket we see a KSP image with the engines off.
**See this [http://i.imgur.com/UofvQ.png image] from KSP where the rocket engines are not on.
**After this image it turns out it was just a dream and Hairy seems to be the only one to wake from this dream.
***See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ffa26ce0-bade-11e3-8001-94de80a03a29 example].
|}

===Dreams===
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |
! To see/hide images click here:
! Description of images
|-
! Walking up [[Image:lorenz - wake up 1.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 5.png]]
|
*Sometimes, Knit Cap Girl or Hairy find themselves waking from a dream, suggesting that all prior events were just them dreaming.
**Some situations will always result in a character waking up
**Others situations will only in some story lines lead to an awakening.
***In those stories there will always be another way to continue the story.
**Below are several situations, where a dream will or may occur, described (and shown with the full sequence leading up to the dream displayed).
*Often a dream loops upon itself, as a character wakes up multiple times in the same storyline
**Either from the [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:20698602-bbb1-11e3-801c-002590d77bdd same dream].
**Or from [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:5e94d028-bb7d-11e3-8012-002590d77bdd different dreams].
**Sometimes it even turns out that [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ffa26ce0-bade-11e3-8001-94de80a03a29 each character] has different dreams in the same storyline
***This means that the last to wake up, has dreamt that they were the other character waking up before...
*The dream scenarios (together with the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/80/lorenz_-_meanwhile.png ''meanwhile'' image]) would make it possible to connect all images into one long sequence!
**This has not been seen yet though.
*As can be seen in these two images:
**Knit Cap Girl wakes up with her head to the left and the cap lying on the end of the bed.
**Hairy wakes up with his head to the right.
|-
! Falling [[Image:lorenz - hole.png]] [[Image:lorenz - falling.png]] [[Image:lorenz - aaa.png]] [[Image:lorenz - aaa 2.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 9.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 1.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 5.png]]
|
*One of the most obvious dreams is the one about falling as in this case where both characters falls into a big hole outside the [[#Leaving the building|building they are leaving]].
**As shown here in [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:20698602-bbb1-11e3-801c-002590d77bdd this example] where first one then the other characters awake from the same falling dream.
*The hole situation will always turn out to be a dream from which one (or either as shown above) of the characters wakes up from the nightmare after falling into the hole.
**But they can wake up after any of the three black pictures shown here.
**The other two pictures (which were not included in the first example) can be seen in [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ba285dea-baa3-11e3-801c-002590d77bdd this example] with only Knit Cap Girl waking.
**A situation with only Hairy waking can be seen in [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:2c6df10a-bb15-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd this example].
*The total black picture is also sometimes used at the end of the [[#Rocket launch|rocket launch]].
|-
! Dinosaur [[Image:lorenz - dinosaur 1.png]] [[Image:lorenz - dinosaur 2.png]] [[Image:lorenz - dinosaur 3.png]] [[Image:lorenz - dinosaur 4.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 1.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 5.png]]
|
*A Dinosaur enters the comic (see more about these same images under the [[#Dinosaur|Dinosaur theme]]).
**If the comic goes on long enough all four images with the green dinosaur will appear
**When reaching the fourth image where the dinosaur steps on the building the story will always turn out to be a nightmare from which either of the character may wake up from.
***See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:f2b12f1e-bbae-11e3-801c-002590d77bdd example] where Hair wakes up.
***Here are two examples where Knit Cap Girl awakes where the dinosaur dream is the second dream from which she awakes:
****After the [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:5e94d028-bb7d-11e3-8012-002590d77bdd hole dream]
****After the [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ffa26ce0-bade-11e3-8001-94de80a03a29 rocket dream].
|-
! Rocket launch [[Image:lorenz - rocket 7.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 8.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 11.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 1.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 5.png]]
|
*The [[#Rocket launch|rocket launch]] will not always turn into a dream.
**And this dream is not really a nightmare, as opposed to the three above, from which the characters always wake up.
**During take-off after the rocket ignites there are two possible images.
***If the last image is black then the take-off succeeds.
***But if the last image during take off is from the flight simulator program {{w|Kerbal Space Program}} (KSP) with the rockets on - see [[#Kerbal Space Program|KSP theme]] they story always result in that either Knit Cap Girl or Hairy wakes up during.
****See [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:8440e346-bb16-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd this example] where Knit Cap Girl wakes after she has already awoken once before from the hole dream.
****See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:c9cfde56-bae6-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example] and this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:4e6cbc5a-bb01-11e3-8003-002590d77bdd example] where Hairy awakes from the launch.
|-
! Evil spaceship [[Image:lorenz - rocket 15.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 16.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 17.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 18.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 22.png]] [[Image:lorenz - rocket 23.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 5.png]]
|
*During a space travel the rocket passes another space ship.
**If a failed communication occurs the evil space ship turns around and shoots down the rocket.
**At this point it turns out it was just a nightmare and one of the characters wake up (maybe only Hairy?).
***See [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ffa26ce0-bade-11e3-8001-94de80a03a29 this example] that continues to a dinosaur dream from where Knit Cap Girl wakes up.
**In the last picture before waking we see an image from the flight simulator program Kerbal Space Program (KSP) with the rockets off - see the [[#Kerbal Space Program|KSP theme]].
***This situation will always turn out to be a dream.
|-
! Politic debate [[Image:lorenz - debate 1.png]] [[Image:lorenz - debate 2.png]] [[Image:lorenz - debate 4.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 1.png]]
|
*In this dream, that is not so much a nightmare that it will always be a dream (like the first three) Knit Cap Girl wakes up after a silly political debate
**See [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:ea25460c-baf3-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd this example].
*It is probably not possible that Hairy wakes up from this as he is not present when the debate starts.
|}

===Waking up===
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |
! To see/hide images click here:
! Description of images
|-
! Walking up [[Image:lorenz - wake up 1.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 5.png]]
|
*Sometimes, Knit Cap Girl or Hairy find themselves waking from a dream, suggesting that all prior events were just them dreaming. (See the [[#Dreams|dream theme]]).
**After they awake they stay in bed for a while and then go out in to the world.
**These scenes will be shown here below.
*As can be seen in these two images:
**Knit Cap Girl wakes up with her head to the left and the cap lying on the end of the bed.
**Hairy wakes up with his head to the right.
|-
! In bed - Girl [[Image:lorenz - wake up 1.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 2.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 10.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 3.png]]
|
*Knit Cap Girl wakes up with a ''Gasp''.
**She sits for a while.
***Maybe he even starts to sing, see below.
***After this she may either lie down or leave the bed empty.
****See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:f894ceb2-bae7-11e3-8002-002590d77bdd example] where she lies back down again (and then finds a boomerang, see below).
****See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:8440e346-bb16-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd example] where the bed is empty before moving on (twice yawning and with singing the 2nd time).
**When she does get out of bed she may either:
***Walk yawning into her office if the bed was empty (see below).
***Go out and find a [[#Boomerang|boomerang]] if she lay down again.
|-
! In bed - Guy [[Image:lorenz - wake up 5.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 6.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 7.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 12.png]]
|
*Hairy wakes up with a ''Gasp''.
**He sits for a while.
***Maybe he even starts to sing, see below.
***After this he may either lie down or leave the bed empty.
****See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ffa26ce0-bade-11e3-8001-94de80a03a29 example] where he leaves the bed empty (and yawns and then Knit Cap Girl has another dream later).
****See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:f2b12f1e-bbae-11e3-801c-002590d77bdd example] where he lies back down again (and goes to meet the salesman, see below).
****Notice that Randall forgot to draw Hairy's hairy hair as he lay down again.
****If it was a wig, it should have hung over the bed like Knit Cap Girls knit cap does.
**When he does get out of bed he may either:
***Walk into Knit Cap Girl at her laptop while yawning if the bed was empty, see below.
***Go outside to meet White Hat the [[#Salesman|salesman]] if he lay back down again.
|-
! Singing in bed [[Image:lorenz - wake up 11.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 13.png]]
|
*After having sat up in bed with a gasp either character may may then begin to sing ''I woke up like this''.
**See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:8440e346-bb16-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd example] with Knit Cap Girl (walkikng twice singing second time) where the bed is empty before moving on (both times).
**See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:6322a5a2-ba97-11e3-8007-002590d77bdd example] with Hairy where the bed is empty before moving on .
*This is likely a reference to {{W|Beyoncé|Beyoncé's}} song ''{{W|Flawless (Beyoncé song)|Flawless}}''.
**See the [http://lyricsmusic.name/beyonce-knowles-lyrics/beyonca/flaweless.html lyrics here].
**The line ''I woke up like this'' is repeated eight times in the song, four time in each of the last to verses.
|-
!Yawning - Girl [[Image:lorenz - wake up 4.png]] [[Image:lorenz - computer.png]]
|
*Yawning Knit Cap Girl gets back to her laptop and we are back to the first image.
**See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:20698602-bbb1-11e3-801c-002590d77bdd example], where both characters yawning pictures appear after two times the same dream.
|-
!Yawning - Guy [[Image:lorenz - wake up 8.png]] [[Image:lorenz - wake up 9.png]]
|
*Yawning Hairy walks in where Knit Cap Girl sits at her laptop and tells her about his dream(?)
**See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:0bfb9832-baa7-11e3-801e-002590d77bdd example], where both pictures from this section appears and they continue to walk out after.
**See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:20698602-bbb1-11e3-801c-002590d77bdd example], where both characters yawning pictures appear after two times the same dream.
|}

===Salesman===
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |
! To see/hide images click here:
! Description of images
|-
! Salesman [[Image:lorenz - wake up 7.png]] [[Image:lorenz - sale 1.png]] [[Image:lorenz - sale 2.png]] [[Image:lorenz - sale 3.png]] [[Image:lorenz - sale 4.png]]
|
*After walking up with a gasp from a nightmare and then laying down again (without hair) he has chosen not to go to Knit Cap Girl.
**Which is why the laying picture is included here.
*Hairy takes an alternative route where he meets [[White Hat]], a salesman with a small stand.
**White Hat tries to sell something to Hairy. Will he succeed?
*The last picture with the graph did not appear until much later than the rest (or was at least not found.)
**Here is an [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:f2b12f1e-bbae-11e3-801c-002590d77bdd example] where Hairy meets White Hat, but not reaching the graph picture.
**Here is an [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:2c6df10a-bb15-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd example] that reaches the graph picture.
**Here is another [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:39dfd484-bb01-11e3-8003-002590d77bdd example] that reaches the graph picture.
***These two may be the only one two years after the release.
|}

===Boomerang===
{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" |
! To see/hide images click here:
! Description of images
|-
! Finding Boomerang [[Image:lorenz - wake up 10.png]] [[Image:lorenz - boomerang 1.png]] [[Image:lorenz - boomerang 2.png]]
|
*After Knit Cap Girl awakes from a [[#Dreams|dream]] and then lies down in bed she may (always?) go outside to find a{{w|Boomerang}} on the ground.
**She picks it up and then always expresses her feelings about it in a thought bubble when she picks it up.
***She may also pick it up following another image where she is just walking
***But then it is always longer into the story and the second time she picks up a boomerang, with the first time proceeding after the dream as mentioned above.
****See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ee6b910c-bae5-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example].
**The other throwing images listed below, may come more or less in any order and any number of times
***As just mentioned so may the first two boomerang images here also reappear, and hence also more than one accident can happen, even though they always stop the current run of throwing.
**She may comment on it again after catching it.
***She may also put it down and leave, but may then also find it or another boomerang again later.
****This is the cause for the longest story-lines almost always includes the boomerang.
****Since this only occurs after a dream, gives the longest stories, and never really gets on to any other stories (except a short story where Hairy walks alone), this has been placed last in this list.
*Boomerangs have been [[:Category:Boomerangs|featured in xkcd before]]. See in particular these that are clearly referenced:
**[[445: I Am Not Good with Boomerangs]].
**[[475: Further Boomerang Difficulties]].
|-
! Throwing Boomerang [[Image:lorenz - boomerang 3.png]] [[Image:lorenz - boomerang 4.png]] [[Image:lorenz - boomerang 8.png]] [[Image:lorenz - boomerang 6.png]] [[Image:lorenz - boomerang 9.png]] [[Image:lorenz - boomerang 10.png]] [[Image:lorenz - boomerang 5.png]] [[Image:lorenz - boomerang 7.png]] [[Image:lorenz - boomerang 11.png]]
|
*Knit Cap Girl throws the boomerang, and it flies back to her so she catches it.
**This can go on for a while, and she may even lay it down and walk away:
***See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:08896f1c-bade-11e3-8001-94de80a03a29 example].
**It may also fly back and forth above her.
***See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:84eb4738-bade-11e3-8001-94de80a03a29 example].
*However, more often than not she will end up with an accident:
|-
! Accidents [[Image:lorenz - boomerang accident.png]] [[Image:lorenz - boomerang accident 2.png]] [[Image:lorenz - boomerang accident 5.png]] [[Image:lorenz - boomerang accident 6.png]] [[Image:lorenz - boomerang rocket 1.png]] [[Image:lorenz - boomerang rocket 2.png]] [[Image:lorenz - boomerang boom.png]] [[Image:lorenz - surprise.png]] [[Image:lorenz - run.png]] [[Image:lorenz - boomerang accident 3.png]] [[Image:lorenz - boomerang accident 4.png]] [[Image:lorenz - meanwhile.png]]
|
*These accidents are:
**Either character is getting hit in the face
***See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ee6b910c-bae5-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example] where both are hit.
***Knit Cap Girl get hit in the face first as the boomerang rebound then lays it down only to pickup a new one later
****See [[445: I Am Not Good with Boomerangs]].
***Knit Cap Girl then fails to catch the boomerang and the rebound hit Hairy in the face off screen and he then enters the frame in the next image.
**Hitting a space rocket taking off, it very much looks like the one from [[#Rocket launch|rocket launch]]
***See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:ea25460c-baf3-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example].
**The boomerang crashes into something off panel - someone may shout back - and Knit Cap Girl runs away.
***See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:fc34f46a-ba98-11e3-8008-002590d77bdd example].
****See also [[475: Further Boomerang Difficulties]]
***In some cases this last accident is followed by the ''meanwhile'' image to make the story move on with Hairy walking along which is mentioned in more detail at the bottom of the [[#Walking|Walking section]].
****See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:aee5abf0-bb29-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd example].
|-
! Leaving the boomerang [[Image:lorenz - boomerang 11.png]] [[Image:lorenz - boomerang accident 2.png]] [[Image:lorenz - run.png]] [[Image:lorenz - boomerang accident 4.png]] [[Image:lorenz - meanwhile.png]] [[Image:lorenz - boomerang accident 6.png]]
|
*The following images are the one where the boomerang story may stop (although some of them may lead back to the boomerang again):
**Leaving the boomerang on the ground without accident.
***But there seem to be no way she actually leaves the boomerang this way:
****Either the story stops before she completely leaves the image with the boomerang on the ground.
****Or she finds another and picks that up instead proceeding from there.
****See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:08896f1c-bade-11e3-8001-94de80a03a29 example] with both situations.
**Leaving the boomerang after hitting herself in the face.
***Maybe this is similar to the one above, as can at least be seen in the example given:
***See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ee6b910c-bae5-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example]
**Running away after having destroyed the rocket
***Here she definitely gets away from the boomerang:
****See this [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:ea25460c-baf3-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example].
**Running away after having hit someone off panel.
***This image seems to belong with the ''meanwhile'' image, and the storyline goes on using that route, so for sure away from the boomerang.
****See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:aee5abf0-bb29-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd example].
**Hitting Hairy off panel who then walks into the panel.
***there seems to be no story continuing from there.
***I.e. this story-line never leaves the boomerang behind, but just stops.
****See this [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ee6b910c-bae5-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd example]
|}

==Trivia==
*Here is a picture with the fifth option that could not be included in the top image
**''Let's see if BSD is any easier to install nowadays.'':
::[[Image:lorenz.png]]
*In one [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/File:lorenz_-_wake_up_7.png panel] Hairy is drawn in bed ''without'' his hair - see the [[#Waking up|Waking up]] pictures.
*Some pictures are used often and some very rarely:
**The most common pictures are [http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/a1-2014/vS9UO5cGsw1hoDrrNLMSRg.png "Not very effective"], [http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/a1-2014/VegCGBEOFJCsFxJpbmvziQ.png Throwing], [http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/a1-2014/zHPHozjDXmCUy66bYVSRoQ.png Waiting], [http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/a1-2014/ZNBJOG1e-vCfzdqKFHQ21A.png Leaving the House].
**The rarest pictures that can be found via permalink are [http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/a1-2014/VgSdMz8OAHQ8w5Ee432f5Q.png The Little Prince], [http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/a1-2014/0RW46RaD8RJDfTyBOTqlpw.png The beach], [http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/a1-2014/OZZtCeXrnU0UskVTCUQf1Q.png An exponential chart].
***As of late April there are several pictures from the complete list, that no longer seem to be available - so they are not only rare, but extinct in the comic if no one has a permalink to a comic where they appear.
***2 pictures are listed as missing two years later on April 1, 2016, and they can be seen under themes where notices has made it clear where they are.
***It is the one with Hairy walking alone seen in silhouette and the one "after arguing" where Hairy is leaving that are missing.
***The other 147 images are all accounted for.

===Record length===
====The all time longest comics by panel====
*'''Top three'''.
**Please only include '''clearly different''' storylines:
*# [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ffa26ce0-bade-11e3-8001-94de80a03a29 77 panels] - Tiles, space/dinosaur double dream, boomerang, and exploding rocket.
*# [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:b9575048-bb47-11e3-804b-002590d77bdd 50 panels] - Tiles, double hole dream, boomerang, and exploding rocket
*# [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:718ad9a6-bc6e-11e3-800f-002590d77bdd 41 panels] - Politic debate, hole dream, boomerang.
**There may be no upper boundary!
**But this is then the list of the longest comics with most panels as found so far.
**If you beat a record please post the '''permalink''' here.
**Please note themes included in comic.
**Please move beaten records down and delete the fourth.

====Longest by themes====
*Click to expand:
<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed leftAlign" style="width:100%">
Include only more than one if the story is clearly different from from the record.
#Dreams (most often multiple):
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ffa26ce0-bade-11e3-8001-94de80a03a29 77 panels] - Tiles, two dreams one by each character, after space and dinosaur attack.
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:b9575048-bb47-11e3-804b-002590d77bdd 50 panels] - Tiles, two times hole dream, boomerang, and exploding rocket.
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:718ad9a6-bc6e-11e3-800f-002590d77bdd 41 panels] - Politic debate, one dream about hole, boomerang.
##[http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:ea25460c-baf3-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd 39 panels] - Politic debate, one dream about politic, boomerang, and exploding rocket
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:2ed958de-badf-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd 36 panels] - Tiles, two dreams, hole dream, blowtorch laptop, rocket take-off dream.
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:452c03fc-bb16-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd 35 panels] - Tiles, two times the same dream with big hole by the same character (shovel/blowtorch and then boomerang).
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ba285dea-baa3-11e3-801c-002590d77bdd 28 panels] - BSD, one dream with hole that returns to starting point - does the dream continue?
##[http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:8440e346-bb16-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd 26 panels] - Tiles, two different dreams by the same character after hole and rocket.
##[http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:5e94d028-bb7d-11e3-8012-002590d77bdd 22 panels] - Tiles, two different dreams by the same character after hole and dinosaur attack.
##[http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:20698602-bbb1-11e3-801c-002590d77bdd 21 panels] - Tiles, two times the same dream with big hole - once be each character
###More than two dreams has yet to be seen...
#Boomerang:
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ffa26ce0-bade-11e3-8001-94de80a03a29 77 panels] - Tiles, two dreams one by each character, after space and dinosaur attack.
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:b9575048-bb47-11e3-804b-002590d77bdd 50 panels] - Tiles, double hole dream, boomerang, and exploding rocket
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:718ad9a6-bc6e-11e3-800f-002590d77bdd 41 panels] - Politic debate, hole dream, boomerang.
##[http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:ea25460c-baf3-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd 39 panels] - Politic debate in a dream boomerang, and exploding rocket
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:defe5742-bb15-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd 35 panels] - Political debate within a dream, then Hairy gets smacked in the face by the boomerang.
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ee6b910c-bae5-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd 34 panels] - Politic debate, as the 39 panel above, but here both the girl and then Hairy gets the boomerang in the face!
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:a1776988-ba41-11e3-8035-002590d77bdd 30 panels] - Tiles, rocket, dream, Boomerang hits her in the face. She then puts it down and then picks it up again
#Space:
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ffa26ce0-bade-11e3-8001-94de80a03a29 77 panels] - Tiles, two dreams one by each character, after space and dinosaur attack.
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:6490cc4a-b9f0-11e3-8009-002590d77bdd 30 panels] - Tiles, ending with the Little Prince and the rocket.
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:25743f70-baee-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd 24 panels] - Tiles, reaching the image with zoom in only on the Little Prince.
#Dinosaur:
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ffa26ce0-bade-11e3-8001-94de80a03a29 77 panels] - Tiles, two dreams one by each character, after space and dinosaur attack.
##[http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:5e94d028-bb7d-11e3-8012-002590d77bdd 22 panels] - Tiles, two different dreams by the same character after hole and dinosaur attack.
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:441ba2fe-bc03-11e3-8034-002590d77bdd 13 panels] - Hurry! We're in talks with Facebook, longest going directly to dinosaur dream and returning to starting point.
#Political debate:
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:718ad9a6-bc6e-11e3-800f-002590d77bdd 41 panels] - Political debate, but also dream and boomerang.
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:defe5742-bb15-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd 35 panels] - Political debate within a dream, then Hairy gets smacked in the face by the boomerang.
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:aee5abf0-bb29-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd 31 panels] - Political debate, politicians fighting and explosive bananas - including the ''meanwhile'' image
#Blowtorch:
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:2ed958de-badf-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd 36 panels] - Tiles, hole dream, blowtorch laptop, rocket take-off dream.
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:9a86363c-bb53-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd 26 panels] - BSD, blowtorch and moving past Pokémon twice
##[http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:97cbd552-bb01-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd 25 panels] - Tiles, dream of hole and then blowtorch
#Pokémon:
##[http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:d5bba698-badf-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd 28 panels] - Tiles, quick to Pikachu, then very long fight with 9 moves none effective almost moving Pikachu talks only once.
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:9a86363c-bb53-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd 26 panels] - BSD, blowtorch and moving past the Pokémon not effective, Pikachu talks and they move on only to meet a second Pikachu.
##[http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:81c9e8c8-ba1d-11e3-8018-002590d77bdd 24 panels] - Refresh no new email, long fight very effective and Megan pokes it.
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:8737f5b4-ba92-11e3-8008-002590d77bdd 22 panels] - Tiles, moving past Pokémon very effective and Megan pokes it.
##[https://xkcd.com/1350/#p:7546a2c8-bcdc-11e3-801e-002590d77bdd 22 panels] - BSD, short fight, not very effective, Pikachu talks and they move on
#Sharks
##[http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:3df213b4-ba4f-11e3-8037-002590d77bdd 22 panels] - Tiles, indirectly after launch dream and only one picture in the ocean at the end!
##[http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:30f53d98-bbb3-11e3-801c-002590d77bdd 13 panels] - BSD, longest going straight to the ocean (four images) and then reaching beach and walking on (i.e. directly without dream)
#Salesman
##[http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:39dfd484-bb01-11e3-8003-002590d77bdd 13 panels] - Tiles, hole dream, Hairy meets White Hat reaching the chart (last picture that way).
</div>
 

====Longest by starting point====
*Click to expand:
<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed leftAlign" style="width:100%">
Only the longest:
#These stupid tiles... I'll just play one more game: [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ffa26ce0-bade-11e3-8001-94de80a03a29 77 panels].
#Oh. Hey. There's some kind of political thing going on: [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:718ad9a6-bc6e-11e3-800f-002590d77bdd 41 panels].
#Let's see if BSD is any easier to install nowadays: [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ba285dea-baa3-11e3-801c-002590d77bdd 28 panels].
#Refresh... No new email... Refresh... No new tweets... Refresh...: [http://www.xkcd.com/1350/#p:81c9e8c8-ba1d-11e3-8018-002590d77bdd 24 panels].
#Hurry! We're in talks with Facebook: [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:441ba2fe-bc03-11e3-8034-002590d77bdd 13 panels] and also [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ea9342a0-bc02-11e3-8034-002590d77bdd 13 panels] but two different dreams.
#Gravity. Lots of it: [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:a069f950-bb01-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd 12 panels] (no longer among the starting options, so wont grow and this is the longest possible now!)
</div>
 

====Most unique images====
*Click to expand:
<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed leftAlign" style="width:100%">
In the longest sequences many images repeat several times.
*This record could be more interesting than just which uses most images.
*Could turn out to be the same though (no it was not - already in top 2 there was an upset!)
**Sadly this is rather tedious to check out but by saving the page and sorting other images from the remaining will only be there ones for every unique image.
Only the longest for clearly different images:
# [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ffa26ce0-bade-11e3-8001-94de80a03a29 48 unique images] - 77 panels.
# [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:2ed958de-badf-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd 35 unique images] - 36 panels (only the very first image repeated twice).
# [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:b9575048-bb47-11e3-804b-002590d77bdd 33 unique images] - 50 panels.
# [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:452c03fc-bb16-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd 29 unique images] - 35 panels.
# [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:718ad9a6-bc6e-11e3-800f-002590d77bdd 26 unique images] - 41 panels.
</div>
 

====Most actual choices====
*Click to expand:
<div class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed leftAlign" style="width:100%">
In the longest sequences many images has no choice but just ''a Continue''.
*While other images have two choices in one.
*This record could be more interesting than just which uses most images.
**Could turn out to be the same though (no it was not - already in top 3 there was an upset!)
*Count only the used choice, not the suggest a line in the last panel!
Only the longest for clearly different routes:
# [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ffa26ce0-bade-11e3-8001-94de80a03a29 13 choices] - 77 panels.
# [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:b9575048-bb47-11e3-804b-002590d77bdd 11 choices] - 50 panels.
# [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:2ed958de-badf-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd 9 choices] - 36 panels
# [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:452c03fc-bb16-11e3-8004-002590d77bdd 8 choices] - 35 panels.
# [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:718ad9a6-bc6e-11e3-800f-002590d77bdd 7 choices] - 41 panels.
</div>
 

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Comics with inverted brightness]]
[[Category:Interactive comics]]
[[Category:April fools' comics]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Boomerangs]]
[[Category:BSD]]
[[Category:Computers]]
[[Category:Dinosaurs]]
[[Category:Dreams]]
[[Category:Pokémon]]
[[Category:Politics]]
[[Category:Sharks]]
[[Category:Space]]
[[Category:Star Wars]]
[[Category:Characters with Hats]]

1718: Backups

2016-08-10T14:33:46Z

108.162.215.184:

{{comic
| number = 1718
| date = August 10, 2016
| title = Backups
| image = backups.png
| titletext = Maybe you should keep FEWER backups; it sounds like throwing away everything you've done and starting from scratch might not be the worst idea.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Needs to be cleaned up and reorganized. Also needs a transcript.}}

Here, Cueball is depicted on his laptop, exploring the strange paths files are taking from storage to storage. His laptop (presumably the one he is on) is sending its files to a server, which sends its files to ''another'' server, which in turn syncs up files with his laptop. Apparently this continued flow of information leads to growth each time it cycles, which would compound each time. This leads to an exponential growth of information being stored. Cueball, who was rather alarmed, calms down when he realizes that ''this'' exponential growth is slower than that of Moore's Law. Moore's Law is a law in computer science that states that the <strike>capacity of information storage</strike> number of transistors we can fit in a chip will double approximately every 18 months. And so, as long as Cueball keeps at the forefront of information storage density, he will never run out of room. Someone else in the house tells him, in reaction to his realization, that he is why they can't have nice things.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}

{{comic discussion}}

Talk:1552: Rulebook

2015-07-18T23:12:29Z

108.162.215.184:

Doesn't ''the law'' forbid harming another's domestic animal? --[[User:Tepples|Tepples]] ([[User talk:Tepples|talk]]) 05:20, 17 July 2015 (UTC)
:Yes. Yes it does. So, basically, the rulebook of the country says they cannot do it. It could have been a great cartoon if he had picked an example that was actually legal. [[Special:Contributions/198.41.239.32|198.41.239.32]] 05:50, 17 July 2015 (UTC)
::Well, technically ([[1475: Technically]]) the law isn't part of any rule book... Unless there is a law (or rule) which says otherwise. (edit: That doesn't mean the law wouldn't apply nevertheless!)[[User:Elektrizikekswerk|Elektrizikekswerk]] ([[User talk:Elektrizikekswerk|talk]]) 06:15, 17 July 2015 (UTC)
:Does this law exist in every country? The dog is on property owned by the sports venue in an unspecified country.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.221.17|108.162.221.17]] 08:23, 17 July 2015 (UTC)
:: Slaughter is not technically harming, otherwise we would not be able to eat beef, pork, .. -- and yes some people _do_ eat dogs (and cats) [[User:Spongebog|Spongebog]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 13:48, 17 July 2015 (UTC)
:: If an animal enters your premise and is not a protected species, you may kill it. If the owners wanted it alive they shouldn't have let it illegally trespass, since it usually only illegal to kill domestic animal on their domicile.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.9|108.162.219.9]] 00:29, 18 July 2015 (UTC)
:At least in my state (Utah) ''the law'' supports euthanasia of (non-human) animals so long as it is performed in a humane manner (which is a very different standard than applies to humans). Cruelty is punishable in the law, but one could make an argument that so long as the killing of the animal was done in a humane way, it may not be punishable by the cruelty statutes. The judgment of law enforcement officers, officers of a court with jurisdiction, juries, and perhaps the court of public opinion in some extra-legal context would all come into play if a question of whether euthanasia was cruel were to be raised. [[User:CasaDeRobison|CasaDeRobison]] ([[User talk:CasaDeRobison|talk]]) 14:17, 17 July 2015 (UTC)
::I don't think you can euthanize someone else's animal though, unless the court has ordered it. I'm pretty sure you'd be guilty of theft & destruction of private property.
:::Ya, killing and eating the dog would be a crime. You'd go to jail for theft (or something like unto it), have to pay to replace the dog and for killing him in the first place, and probably have to forfeit the game when you get arrested for disturbing the peace and using a weapon in the court. Never mind whatever harm you caused to the people trying to defend the dog. Of course, when you get out, if your muscles haven't atrophied and you aren't banned from the game, the enemy team will have lost their key player... [[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.179|108.162.238.179]] 16:57, 18 July 2015 (UTC)

On a mostly unrelated note: In at least one movie, the sports-playing dog has only three legs.
:"But, why is the dog missing a leg?" 'Well, a dog that good you don't eat all at once!' - old joke
[[Special:Contributions/108.162.221.19|108.162.221.19]] 22:12, 17 July 2015 (UTC)

Amusingly, Air Bud is also wrong because the basketball rules say that a team consists of five men, and dogs are not men. --[[User:AndyZ|AndyZ]]
:That can be argued, if Air Bud is a male dog. Besides, "baseball is a game of two teams of 9 players each", but then they go and use the Designated Hitter. So Air Bud is just the Designated Dog. [[User:PsyMar|PsyMar]] ([[User talk:PsyMar|talk]]) 07:22, 17 July 2015 (UTC)
:: Designated Hitler! --[[Special:Contributions/173.245.53.151|173.245.53.151]] 11:23, 18 July 2015 (UTC)

I'm reminded of what Paul said to the Galatians: "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such things there is no law." Life is meant to be lived in this positive way, where the more of these "fruits" we express, the better we make the world. ''— [[User:Tbc|tbc]] ([[User talk:Tbc|talk]]) 12:48, 17 July 2015 (UTC)''

:Here endeth the lesson. --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 13:04, 17 July 2015 (UTC)

I'm not convinced this is related to Pluto at all. In the Air Bud movie, the dog's jersey reads K on one side, and 9 on the other. I think the 9 is in reference to this, and not a veiled commentary on planet definitions. {{unsigned|Strangequark}}

Huh? Pluto?? Come on, let's remove that. I know some people are really traumatized about the whole Pluto thing, but there's no need to see ghosts everywhere... [[Special:Contributions/141.101.104.5|141.101.104.5]] 15:05, 17 July 2015 (UTC)

The intentional foul is also referencing basketball when the losing team will intentionally foul the winning team late in the game so that the clock may stop. The winning team can only get 0,1, or 2 points from this then the losing team can try to quickly get 2 or 3 points making it "worth it" [[Special:Contributions/173.245.50.126|173.245.50.126]] 15:09, 17 July 2015 (UTC)

I am an Israeli and 1552 is about to be very very useful in describing the actions of my government. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.91.114|162.158.91.114]] 19:41, 17 July 2015 (UTC)

;Battlebots
I guess no one else watches BattleBots here.
 A few weeks ago, in the second episode, [http://www.google.com/search?q=battlebots+Complete+Control+net the "Complete Control" team used a net against their opponent], citing the fact that the "no entanglement" rule which had previously existed had been removed from the rulebook. [https://what-if.xkcd.com/5/ Randall states he watches the show in What-if #5], so I think it's likely that Randall watched this new episode, and that this comic at least partially references it, although I concede that it's odd that he waited several weeks before doing so.
 Also, I think the connection between the 9 and Pluto is tenuous, but I concede that it's possible given the timing. -[[User:452|452]] ([[User talk:452|talk]]) 15:10, 17 July 2015 (UTC)

Many sports, especially youth sports, have rules specifying a player's minimum age. It's very likely that a dog could be excluded on those grounds. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.2.249|162.158.2.249]] 16:15, 17 July 2015 (UTC)1

:Most league sports require the player to wear footwear meeting certain requirements as well. This would surely impede Buds dunkability. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.215.184|108.162.215.184]] 23:12, 18 July 2015 (UTC)BLuDgeons

A dog is a "canine" which, depending on your dialect of English, can sound like "K 9".
[[User:WL15|WL15]] ([[User talk:WL15|talk]]) 00:11, 18 July 2015 (UTC)

1552: Rulebook

2015-07-17T05:34:30Z

108.162.215.184:

{{comic
| number = 1552
| date = July 17, 2015
| title = Rulebook
| image = rulebook.png
| titletext = It's definitely an intentional foul, but we've decided it's worth it.
}}

==Explanation==
This is a common theme in xkcd and a reference to the film series Air Bud and other similar films. In the film a golden retriever becomes the star player in a basketball team. Invariably in these films the opposing team will contest the legality of inter-species play resulting in the referees staring "nothing in the rule book says dogs can't play".

This flawed reasoning allows any number of activities that are not specifically discussed in the rule book.

In this scenario the opposing team is planning to euthanize a member of their opposition and note that it is also not specifically discussed in the rule book.

The title text alludes to the flaw in the reasoning indicating such things are discussed indirectly in the rule book. Killing a player is a technical foul, but the penalty may be well worth the removal of the opposing star player.

==Transcript==

Ponytail: There's nothing in the rulebook that says we can't kill and eat your dog.

{{comic discussion}}

1552: Rulebook

2015-07-17T05:30:29Z

108.162.215.184:

{{comic
| number = 1552
| date = July 17, 2015
| title = Rulebook
| image = rulebook.png
| titletext = It's definitely an intentional foul, but we've decided it's worth it.
}}

==Explanation==
This is a common theme in xkcd and a reference to the film series Air Bud and other similar films. In the film a golden retriever becomes the star player in a basketball team. Invariably in these films the opposing team will contest the legality of inter-species play resulting in the referees staring "nothing in the rule book says dogs can't play".

This flawed reasoning allows any number of activities that are not specifically discussed in the rule book.

In this scenario the opposing team is planning to euthanize a member of their opposition and note that it is also not specifically discussed in the rule book.

The title text alludes to the flaw in the reasoning indicating such things are discussed indirectly in the rule book. Killing a player is a technical foul, but worth the removal of the star player.

==Transcript==

Ponytail: There's nothing in the rulebook that says we can't kill and eat your dog.

{{comic discussion}}

1552: Rulebook

2015-07-17T05:28:27Z

108.162.215.184:

{{comic
| number = 1552
| date = July 17, 2015
| title = Rulebook
| image = rulebook.png
| titletext = It's definitely an intentional foul, but we've decided it's worth it.
}}

==Explanation==
This is a common theme in five and a reference to the film series Air Bud and other similar films. In the film a golden retriever becomes the star player in a basketball team. Invariably in these films the opposing team will contest the legality of inter-species play resulting in the referees staring "nothing in the rule book says dogs can't play".

This flawed reasoning allows any number of activities that are not specifically discussed in the rule book.

In this scenario the opposing team is planning to euthanize a member of their opposition and note that it is also not specifically discussed in the rule book.

The title text alludes to the flaw in the reasoning indicating such things are discussed indirectly in the rule book. Killing a player is a technical foul, but worth the removal of the star player.

==Transcript==

Ponytail: There's nothing in the rulebook that says we can't kill and eat your dog.

{{comic discussion}}

Talk:1523: Microdrones

2015-05-12T16:27:37Z

108.162.215.184: Malou Tech drone Interceptor comment

Did someone tried? I mean, can you really catch drone with butterfly net without damaging the drone or the net? -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 12:32, 11 May 2015 (UTC)
:I know people shoot them out of the air with guns and considering the height at which they're flying, it's possible. [[User:Nk22|The Twenty-second. The Not So Only. The Nathan/Nk22]] ([[User talk:Nk22|talk]]) 12:47, 11 May 2015 (UTC)
::I think the Amazon bit is implying that Amazon is artificially making drone nets unavailable because of its own drone based delivery service. Feel free to rephrase it. {{unsigned ip|108.162.219.193}}

does this reference P.K,Dick's "Vulcan's Hammer"? {{unsigned|Docski}}
:Hmm... I don't think hammers are equal to drones, but interesting. [[User:Nk22|The Twenty-second. The Not So Only. The Nathan/Nk22]] ([[User talk:Nk22|talk]]) 16:56, 11 May 2015 (UTC)
:I think there are far too many sci-fi dystopias that this could be referencing to list them all. The Matrix immediately comes to mind, but a simple google search suggests more. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.249.162|108.162.249.162]] 05:08, 12 May 2015 (UTC)

If you removed all regulations, drone theft would be legal. If it's on your property, it belongs to you. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.214.227|108.162.214.227]] 18:42, 11 May 2015 (UTC)

You mean we AREN'T living in a sci-fi dystopia right now? There are skies that are patrolled by robots with missiles. {{unsigned ip|173.245.56.210}}

:Unless they're your skies, you don't live in a sci-fi dystopia. You just share a planet with one. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.214.227|108.162.214.227]] 23:19, 11 May 2015 (UTC)

I'm attaching a butterfly net to my drone right now. Catching high flying drones is so easy, I will attach nets to my 20 drones tomorrow. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.48.158|173.245.48.158]] 22:02, 11 May 2015 (UTC)BLuDgeons
: How easy is it to take over the remote controller once you have the drone in your net? Is there a fairly generic way to pair a drone to another controller? (In current designs) [[User:Taibhse|Taibhse]] ([[User talk:Taibhse|talk]]) 22:20, 11 May 2015 (UTC)
:: Shouldn't be too hard, so far all technology is hackable, only thing that stops us from hacking most hardware (drm) are the laws blocking the technology required to do so. As long as no only drone theft, but also drone hacking is legal, this might actually be more effective than expected at keeping drones out of our every-day life. Then again, a wild west for drones might make most practical uses for drones impossible, but hugely favour for example spy-drones, that cant be stolen because they aren't found. [[User:Dorus|Dorus]] ([[User talk:Dorus|talk]]) 11:28, 12 May 2015 (UTC)

;1243

Does this have anything to do with 1243 ? I mean it suggest largely the same thing just on a different scale

[[Special:Contributions/141.101.104.89|141.101.104.89]] 09:23, 12 May 2015 (UTC)Thijser

I deleted this explanation.
:Alternatively, the title text could be interpreted to mean that the drones have already become self aware, and are incorrectly listing the nets as out of stock to prevent their capture.
Maybe we should create [[1523: Microdrones/Funny explanations for 12 year olds]]. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.144|108.162.238.144]] 14:43, 12 May 2015 (UTC)

:It is also my interpretation that the Amazon drones have altered the Amazon database to list the nets as out of stock. Your comments regarding "12 year olds" are... needless. -[[User:452|452]] ([[User talk:452|talk]]) 15:06, 12 May 2015 (UTC)

France has started trying to catch drones with a drone dragging a net recently. I thought this might be a reference to the [http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2948062/The-drone-catcher-France-reveals-flying-net-stop-terrorists-flying-bomb-laden-gadgets-nuclear-power-stations-following-spate-sightings.html Malou Tech drone Interceptor] [[Special:Contributions/108.162.215.184|108.162.215.184]] 16:27, 12 May 2015 (UTC)