explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:1363: xkcd Phone

2014-08-04T14:14:32Z

108.162.249.216: Bricks

[[Special:Contributions/108.162.249.216|108.162.249.216]] 14:14, 4 August 2014 (UTC) Mobile phones haven't always been electronic. Remember the old 'bricks' from the '80s and '90s? More machine than computer.

This seems like an SCP artifact [[Special:Contributions/108.162.249.220|108.162.249.220]] 10:09, 4 May 2014 (UTC)

^someone get on this, please [[User:Whiskey07|Whiskey07]] ([[User talk:Whiskey07|talk]]) 16:28, 6 May 2014 (UTC)

I really dislike the tone of the explanation. I mean it's so negative about the features! Not that they are all useful, but isn't this a wiki and should be neutral? It takes also the fun out of it. I would like a screaming while falling phone and the relativity thing would be great for teaching relativity! [[User:RecentlyChanged|RecentlyChanged]] ([[User talk:RecentlyChanged|talk]])

Where can i get one of these? :D [[User:UniTrader|UniTrader]] ([[User talk:UniTrader|talk]]) 04:11, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

I'm pretty sure the "scream when falling" thing and the "flightaware" stuff can be done somehow with Tasker. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.103.206|141.101.103.206]] 04:23, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

;Designer?

I suspect it was either Black Hat or Beret Guy, but I'm not sure which. A collaboration? [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.45|173.245.54.45]] 04:47, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

This sounds like something straight out of aperture. {{unsigned ip|108.162.221.55}}

;Simulates alternate speeds of light

Yes, useless as a feature on all the time; but it would be a cool app. [[User:Markhurd|Mark Hurd]] ([[User talk:Markhurd|talk]]) 05:57, 2 May 2014 (UTC)
:Absolutely. Where can I get an app like that?[[Special:Contributions/108.162.225.157|108.162.225.157]] 06:22, 2 May 2014 (UTC)
::Here: [http://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.pandorica.xkcdclock XKCD Clock] [[Special:Contributions/173.245.53.114|173.245.53.114]] 16:11, 7 May 2014 (UTC)

Travelling at above the simulated speed of light should give an imaginary time dilation, not a negative time dilation.
gamma = 1/sqrt{1-v^2/c^2}
Thus, after such travel, the value of the clock would be a complex number. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.35|108.162.219.35]] 15:42, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

'''Changed the speed of light to 2.99x10^8'''
:You guys should probably clarify that the relativisic affects actually depend on how long your trip is or how long you wait to sync your phone. For relativity to be observable on a 12 hour trip, Minimum speed for a phone would have to be 300 m/s or 3000 m/s for the clock to measure even a microsecond/millisecond difference in time. This is well known thanks to the certain [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_dilation#Velocity_and_gravitational_time_dilation_combined-effect_tests time dilation experiments with planes]. Your GPS chip helps account for an error of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Error_analysis_for_the_Global_Positioning_System#Relativity 7 to 47 microseconds per day]. My point is in terms of time dilation, relativity mattering depends on how long a trip or waiting for synchronization is. By synching, I literally mean with the atomic time clock or with a GPS satellite. The synchronization of your phone with satellites is actually a couple of hundred microseconds, so normally even a light changing clock might not have as noticable changes as you might think. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.225|108.162.238.225]] 13:49, 2 May 2014 (UTC) --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.225|108.162.238.225]] 13:49, 2 May 2014 (UTC)
Yeah sorry forgot to login. does anyone know how to do the indices formatting other than eg 2.99x10(littlex) rather then 2.99x10^x? [[User:Jonv4n|Jonv4n]] ([[User talk:Jonv4n|talk]]) 06:29, 2 May 2014 (UTC)
: Whassup? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.89.220|141.101.89.220]] 07:43, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

; relativistic effect
Forgive me if I'm wrong, I'm not a physicist but the above explanation says that relativistic time dilation affects only occur at a significant fraction of the speed of light. It is my understanding that time dilation occurs at any speed, but is only perceptible/noticeable/measurable at very large fraction of the speed of light. Unless I'm mistaken the above it should reflect this. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.56.91|173.245.56.91]] 22:24, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

; putting "Relative" back into relativity
First time poster, please forgive my transgressions :)
My understanding regarding relativistic effects is that, for a given frame of reference (e.g. phone operator travelling at 0.9c) would be absolutely none. Relativistic effects (as I understand them) would only apply between two different frames of reference. The only effect I can see in this case is if you are moving towards, or away from the phone while operating, and red/blue shift of the radio frequencies. In general, wifi and bluetooth are used locally so wouldn't apply; only the phone network would be affected.

Also, perhaps the adjustable speed of light is a reference to the the game "A slower speed of light" by MIT Game Lab http://gamelab.mit.edu/games/a-slower-speed-of-light/ (in which you walk around collecting objects; each object slows light down, and increases relativistic effects).
[[User:Jaybee|Jaybee]] ([[User talk:Jaybee|talk]])

'''Phone may attract/trap insects; this is normal.'''
Funnier if you take it as a reference to the [http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2014/04/07/mazda_issues_recall_because_spiders_invade_fuel_tank_causing_fire_risk.html spider problems] Mazda keeps on having... {{unsigned ip|108.162.215.64}}

About the attracting insects ... I would expect this to be normal feature in night. Trapping, however ... -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 09:08, 2 May 2014 (UTC)
: There are other indications that the phone is at least partly biological, this being the strongest evidence of that. Insects could be the power source for the biological part(s). [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.45|173.245.54.45]] 14:07, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

This could also be a reference to computer bugs and the [http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:H96566k.jpg Harvard Mark II]. [[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.249|199.27.128.249]] 08:31, 15 May 2014 (UTC)

'''Siri'''

Could the Siri bit be a reference to Portal? When I first read it, I remembered this GLaDOS quote: "Your Aperture Science Weighted Companion Cube will never threaten to stab you, and in fact cannot speak. If your Weighted Companion Cube does speak, please disregard its advice." Could be completely wrong; just a thought. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.51|173.245.54.51]] 10:09, 2 May 2014 (UTC)
:Perhaps Siri is beling likened to the "ATMOS" device in the Doctor Who episode "The Sontaran Stratagem" [[User:Esp666|Esp666]] ([[User talk:Esp666|talk]]) 11:20, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

Lamest. Comic. Ever. And I'm not just saying that because he doesn't mention the Ubuntu Touch OS. ''– [[User:Tbc|tbc]] ([[User talk:Tbc|talk]]) 12:22, 2 May 2014 (UTC)''

'''Realistic case'''

Car telephones and the first cellphones were rather expensive, at least in Germany fake "realistic cases" were sold without any working electronics in it. Usage was to impress silly friends. {{unsigned ip|173.245.52.204}}

I thought this was aimed at the iPhone. Apparently these have an elegant case, but I have never actually seen one. Everyone I know covers their iPhone with some hideous plastic monstrosity, since the design is not practical.--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.218.59|108.162.218.59]] 14:10, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

Could possibly be a reference to the "Realistic" brand, which was used on various products sold by Radio Shack (U.S. electronics retail chain) from 1954 to some time in the '90s.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.76|108.162.219.76]] 16:14, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

I am not a native speaker of English. I thought the joke was on the double meaning of "case", meaning both "something that happened or might happen" (like "realistic scenario") and "something that covers something else". Does that make sense to you guys? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.17|108.162.219.17]] 10:06, 6 May 2014 (UTC)

'''Screaming when in free fall: my first Android app!'''

I love the bit about screaming when in free fall: that was the first Android app I hacked together back in 2009 (based on the tricorder app). [[User:Nealmcb|Nealmcb]] ([[User talk:Nealmcb|talk]]) 13:49, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

I actually made this app that simulates that [https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=it.siluxmedia.frefall freeFall app][[Special:Contributions/108.162.212.32|108.162.212.32]] 19:03, 30 May 2014 (UTC)

'''Title Text'''

Hover-over title text was truncated; love it.
14:43, 2 May 2014 (UTC)[[User:Pocono Chuck|Pocono Chuck]] ([[User talk:Pocono Chuck|talk]])
: you must have an really old firefox browser -- you should update !!! [[Special:Contributions/199.27.130.210|199.27.130.210]] 16:23, 2 May 2014 (UTC)
:: Happened to me. Using whatever the latest IE is at the moment. It cut off at nause-. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.54|173.245.54.54]] 17:13, 3 May 2014 (UTC)

'''Price includes 2-year Knicks contract.''' ... but a contract with the Knicks would only appeal to pro basketball players.

Nonsense. Lots of "regular" folks would buy this phone it it meant they got to play in the NBA. [[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.84|199.27.128.84]] 16:26, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

: I agree with this. A whole lot of people who think they have "skillz" would buy the phone if they got into the NBA. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.54|173.245.54.54]] 17:14, 3 May 2014 (UTC)

This may also be an indirect way of stating that it is incredibly expensive, seeing as those sort of contracts usually involve ''you'' getting compensated. --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.33|108.162.216.33]] 13:41, 3 May 2014 (UTC)

"Your mobile world just went digital" is an inversion of the marketing-speak that was common when what we'd now regard as smartphones first began to be adopted by the mainstream (iPhone/G1 era, since Symbians, Blackberries, and early WinMo tended to be business or enthusiast devices). People already ubiquitously e-mailed, browsed the Web, etc...what was presented as 'new' was that you could now do it from your phone. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.58|173.245.54.58]] 19:09, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

I think the "Under certain circumstances, wireless transmitter may control God" statement might be a reference to how transmitting devices have to comply with FCC regulation and not interfere with aircraft or government communications. Perhaps this phone is intended to be noncompliant so as to control high-level electronics, even at supernatural levels. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.56.66|173.245.56.66]] 21:11, 2 May 2014 (UTC)Dbrak

'''Frictionless'''

You could hold a frictionless phone just by hooking your little finger under the bottom edge, regardless of friction gravity will hold it into your hand. Just like you could leave it in a bowl without it jumping out. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.72|108.162.229.72]] 19:12, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

Unless you held your pinky perfectly balanced, horizontal and motionless, a frictionless object would slide right off it, as it would off any flat surface that is not perfectly horizontal.
14:13, 3 May 2014 (UTC) [[Special:Contributions/108.162.242.4|108.162.242.4]] 13:15, 3 May 2014 (UTC)DCollins

Wouldn't you be able to hold it somewhat like a normal phone, if you hold a finger under the bottom of it? [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.54|173.245.54.54]] 17:08, 3 May 2014 (UTC)

Saying a frictionless phone can't be held is like saying prisoners would slide out of prisons if they had frictionless surfaces. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.218|108.162.237.218]] 14:50, 4 May 2014 (UTC)

;Why the hell this funny phone isn't available at the xkcd store?
I would buy if the price would be in the range of other articles there. Just for fun...--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 19:30, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

'''Root needed'''

I think that needing root for ajust the volume may be a allusion people needing to root Android to change fonts or to take screenshots (untill version 4.x). [[User:FlavianusEP|FlavianusEP]] ([[User talk:FlavianusEP|talk]]) 23:04, 2 May 2014 (UTC)

'''Alternative meaning: The spirit of xkcd'''

I think there's a secondary possible interpretation for this comic -- that the various features of the phone represent the overall "spirit" or "attitude" of xkcd, in a way reminiscent of an early strip -- http://xkcd.com/207/ -- about "what xkcd means." More specifically, a common theme in xkcd is taking advanced concepts in science and technology, and applying them to whimsical, humorous, impractical, or outright impossible uses. Several of phone's features -- such as the simulated speed of light -- touch on the same theme. Wordplay, another common xkcd theme, is present as well; and the anthropomorphism of technology, along with making devices appear 'cute', is also present, and also is something that has come up in xkcd many times in the past.

The comic is called "xkcd Phone", after all -- I think simultaneously with being a parody of phone advertisements, the comic is also meant to show us what a phone that fits into the xkcd world would be like. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.241.114|108.162.241.114]] 17:52, 3 May 2014 (UTC)

I agree; it seems like a basic comic at first glance, but I'm wondering if there's a meta-meaning if you put all of the pieces together. Each feature, and warning, is a clue to the overarching purpose of the phone, or to the true joke that this phone embodies. [[User:Imtrbl|imtrbl]] ([[User talk:Imtrbl|talk]]) 19:11, 8 May 2014 (UTC)

'''Blowing out candles....'''

For the birthday candles thing: I do remember seeing a video ad for an app back when the iphone was first opened up to outside developers that would turn the phone into a fan, and it demonstrated that it was strong enough to blow out a birthday candle. Seemed quite useless at the time. Still does today for that matter {{unsigned ip|108.162.215.47}}

'''Side-facing camera'''

I thought the joke here was that the camera ''only'' contained a side-facing camera rather than a side camera in addition to a front and back camera. While you can see the camera on the side, you don't see a camera on the front and they don't talk about a rear camera. It'd be pretty annoying to use a side-facing camera for anything but the surreptitious case you described. [[User:S|S]] ([[User talk:S|talk]]) 16:58, 4 May 2014 (UTC)

'''Do not submerge in water'''

I assumed this was also referencing the 4chan, etc pranks with the waterproof iPhone [[Special:Contributions/173.245.55.79|173.245.55.79]] 18:41, 5 May 2014 (UTC)

'''Wireless'''

A completely wireless phone would not be unuseable. The only wire phones need nowadays is for recharging their battery, but this can be done by induction, like with the Qi system with which some Nokia and Google (Nexus) phones are compatible. [[User:Zoyd|Zoyd]] ([[User talk:Zoyd|talk]]) 12:25, 6 May 2014 (UTC)

'''FoxTrot reference?''' I think this one could be a reference to th J-Pad in the foxtrot webcomic http://www.foxtrot.com/2012/03/03042012/ . Foxtrot's author has already published a guest comic for XKCD a few years ago, so Randall should know about it. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.212.203|108.162.212.203]] 16:31, 11 May 2014 (UTC)

1350: Lorenz

2014-04-05T00:05:49Z

108.162.249.216: /* Miscellaneous */ marry not Mary

{{comic
| number = 1350
| date = April 1, 2014
| title = Lorenz
| image = lorenz.png
| titletext = Every choice, no matter how small, begins a new story
}}

{{incomplete|All possible dialogues are not yet accounted for (and may never be?)}}

For a collection of images that appear in this comic, see [[1350: Lorenz/Images]].

==Explanation==
This is an interactive and dynamic comic with a possible first picture shown on top of this page. The picture is always the same but the order of the sentences A/B/C/D is done by random. The result of all the interactions by the people would lead to a {{w|Crowdsourcing|crowd-sourced content}}. In honor of {{w|April Fools' Day}} the comic was posted a day early, on Tuesday instead of the usual Wednesday. This also means that if anyone feels this comic is too silly... Randall can call ''April fool''.

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}}.

The title text is a reference to that the story line of this comic does include all of the user submitted dialogue and hence will in nature be chaotic. 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.

This comic is an example of a {{w|Choose Your Own Adventure}} story as mentioned in the title text.

===Functionality and bugs===
The reader is initially presented with only one panel where Knit Cap Girl (Megan?) is sitting in front of his computer. The reader is given multiple choices concerning what exactly Knit Cap Girl (Megan?) is thinking. Upon choosing any option, a second panel appears, 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.

It appears that new panels may be generated by Randall in near real time as user suggestions to dialog is submitted. The dialogue options are likely based on click-through rates and hence will change over day 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 dialogue line will prevail as the statistics build up. In some cases, dialogue line options do not depend on the continuity of the storyline followed, suggesting that some parts of the story are planned. For example, do several of the storylines 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 again. This may be due to common submissions across storylines as well.

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 April 2nd 2014, the existence of 5 or more options seems to occur only in a few rare cases, including the first panel itself.

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. On the final panel the reader can enter an own statement, which is shown on screen but can't be saved by a permalink. The reader has to do a screen shot by himself.

{{w|HTTP cookie|Cookies}} and {{w|Javascript}} are required to see this page properly. Without cookies, the next panel will not render, without Javascript you just will get the [[1349|previous comic]].

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

====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:
*In the worst case the entire comic doesn't render at all as expected — it just shows the previous comic [[1349: Shouldn't Be Hard]].
*When selecting a sentence A/B/C/D the server does not respond on that selection.
*The servers responsible to provide the pictures are down.
*If a response leads to a panel where two characters speak at the same time, it is impossible to proceed past the first speech bubble.
As a consequence of these bugs many readers do not understand how this interactive comic works.

===Themes===

====Miscellaneous====
{| class="wikitable" |
! Name + Example image
! Description
|-
! Boomerang [[image:lorenz - boomerang 1.png]]
| The lone character finds a boomerang on the ground and throws it.
This part of the story ends with either:
*The boomerang crashing into something off panel - someone may shout back
*Hitting the space rocket from another story branch
*The character getting hit in the face with the boomerang rebound
*The character putting the boomerang down on the ground and walking away
|-
! Computer problems [[Image:lorenz - laptop 1.png]]
| The laptop has an unspecified problem. The two characters attempt to fix it. The story either ends with
*The two randomly floating in the ocean (with or without circling sharks - a reference to [[349]])
*With the laptop being melted using a blowtorch (a reference to the previous day's strip, [[1349]]). In this case they typically walk out of the building afterwards.
|-
! Debate [[File:lorenz - debate 1.png]]
| Knit Cap Guy uses his laptop to watch a debate online between the Politician 1 (on the left) and the Politician 2 ([[Cueball]], on the right), the subject and the actual conversation of which varies according to the storyline. Eventually, they either:
*Fight each other, the Politician 2 using a lightsaber and the Politician 1 using his bare fists
*Politician 1 going down on one knee - either to pray or as in a suggestion ask the other to marry him...
Subjects debated (could be user suggestions but below are those from April the 1st):
*Politician 1 questions Politician 2'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. The solutions mentioned are:
**Opening and closing an umbrella near them
**Using a predatory bird to the car to scare them
**Putting resources in the hands of bird educators for the purpose of training them
**Employing fiscal hawks.
If the Politician 1 points out some problem with the reasoning, often the solution proposed by the Politician 2 would be doing the same in a larger scale. In the end, Hairy visits Knit Cap Guy and points out something happening near that may ormay not involve birds (or what ever was the subject) which could be a direct result of Politician 2's project.
|-
! Dinosaur interruption [[image:lorenz - dinosaur 1.png]]
| A green T-rex interrupts the story and proceeds to stamp on the house the main characters are in. (These are frames borrowed from {{w|Dinosaur Comics}}, a clip-art-based webcomic that uses the same artwork with different captions for every strip.)
|-
! Walking out of the building [[image:lorenz - away.png]]
| They may just walk away to new events or they encounter either:
*A rocket
*A hole in the ground
See below.
|-
! Space rocket [[Image:lorenz - rocket 1.png]]
| There is a rocket on the ground just outside of the building. The rocket either:
*Fails to launch and the two characters comes out again
*Takes off (with a screenshot from Kerbal Space Program) as it goes off into space - see below
|-
! Relativistic encounter [[Image:lorenz - rocket 16.png]]
| The space rocket meets another space rocket that asks a question about relativity, the same one that appeared in [[Choices: Part 2]]. The other space rocket will shoot and destroy the main rocket if the question isn't answered satisfactory. Otherwise the two rockets fly past each other.
|-
! Space planet [[image:lorenz - rocket 21.png]]
| Eventually the space rocket meets a guy on a very tiny planet which most likely is a reference to {{w|The Little Prince}}. This could also be a reference to the asteroid 4942 Munroe, then it would be Randall on the rock.
|-
! Dreams [[File:lorenz - wake up 1.png]]
| Sometimes, Knit Cap Guy or Hairy find themselves waking from a dream, suggesting that all prior events were just part of they dreaming. This may happen after either:
*They fall in the big hole outside Knit Cap Guy's house
*The rocket is shot down by the other spacecraft.
*Knit Cap Guy also wakes up after watching the debate.
Often, the dream loops upon itself, as a character wakes up multiple times in the same storyline.
When Knit Cap Guy wakes it is with the head to the left and the cap lying on the end of the bed. Hairy has his head to the right.
|-
! Salesman [[image:lorenz - sale 1.png]]
| Hairy meets [[White Hat]], a salesman with a small stand. Often this happens after waking from a dream.
|-
! Arguing [[image:lorenz - discuss.png]]
| The two characters argue with each other
|-
! Thinking [[image:lorenz - thinking.png]]
| One of the characters take a panel or two to think about something.
|}

====Geography====
{| class="wikitable" |
! Name + Example image
! Description
|-
! Hole in the ground [[Image:lorenz - gap.png]]
| Hairy spots a hole in the ground and leans over it to make a comment
|-
! Huge hole on the lawn [[image:lorenz - hole.png]]
| There is a huge hole in the ground just outside of the building. The two characters always end up falling into it and awakening from a dream.
|-
! Tree [[image:lorenz - tree.png]]
| The characters walk past a tree.
|}

====Literature====
{| class="wikitable" |
! Name + Example image
! Description
|-
! LORT
|
|-
! The Little Prince
| Eventually, if the rocket is not destroyed, it may pass by the asteroid of The Little Prince and they have a quick conversation.
|}

====Movies====
{| class="wikitable" |
! Name + Example image
! Description
|-
! Frozen
| In one storyline, Hairy visits Knit Cap Guy and asks him "Wanna build a snowman?", a line from the movie. Possible answers also come from the movie, such as "It doesn't have to be a snowman..."
|-
! Matrix
| In one storyline, Hairy remarks that the gap in the ground is like a glitch in the matrix.
|}

====Video games====
{| class="wikitable" |
! Name + Example image
! Description
|-
! 2048
| A number of storylines begin because Knit Cap Guy is playing [[wikipedia:2048_(video_game)|2048]] on his computer. Often, Hairy invites him to go outside to do something related to the game, such as hunting for tiles somewhere.
|-
! Mario
| In the dialogue, Hairy asks Knit Cap Guy "Is this 1-1 from Mario?" upon seeing the gap in the ground. In the platform game {{w|Super Mario Bros.}} for {{w|NES}}, the levels are numbered 1-1, 1-2 and so on. In one branch, he says "Actually, it's the final castle. Grab your Fire Flower!"
|-
! Pokémon [[File:lorenz - pikachu theft.png]]
| Some of the storylines involve Pokémon battles featuring Pikachu, a very popular Pokémon. 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 Pokéballs visible, although some elements are missing, such as the level, gender and HP bar.)

Pikachu uses a number of different moves, though these are mostly made up and are not from the Pokémon games. Pikachu's moves are almost invariably remarked by the narrator as "It's not very effective...", but "It's super effective!" is also possible to appear. In the video games, a move is "not very effective" when the opponent's type resists the attacking move's type and "super effective" when the opponent's type is weak to the attacking move's type. Normally after a few failed attempts, there is an uncomfortable silence as the Pikachu says "Um..." and Knit Cap Guy and Hairy walk away. Pikachu is left in the grass and has time to make his final remarks as the two leave him. Rarely, a suggested move knocks Pikachu out.

One narration line is "Where's Twitch when I need help?", a reference to {{w|Twitch Plays Pokémon}} which was also covered by comic [[1333: First Date]].

Another narration line is: "Google Maps didn't warn me of this.", a reference to [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YMD6xELI_k Google Maps: Pokémon Challenge].

Pikachu's moves:
* Abandonment - Pikachu disappears completely.
* Anguish - Pikachu is sad.
* Ant Colony - Pikachu is covered in ants.
* Cute Face
* Crowdsource
* The Discrete Metric
* Ethylene Dichloride - Nothing seems to happen, but Ethylene Dichloride is a toxic chemical, so there may be future consequences for the characters.
* Extrude - Pikachu's head moves away from his body as his neck becomes long and malleable.
* Faceless - Pikachu's face disappears.
* Friendship - Pikachu is on Knit Cap Guy's head, signifying they are now friends. Friendship, though not a move, is a game mechanic in the video games.
* Granite - Pikachu is atop a block of granite.
* Graph Theory
* Ink Cloud - Pikachu is covered in ink. In the storyline Pikachu uses it, there is the option to "gather" the ink.
* Radicality - Pikachu is on a skateboard.
* Struggle - In one storyline, after Pikachu uses a number of moves, it says: "Now I only have Struggle left. Tie?" In the Pokémon games, when a Pokémon runs out of PP (Power Points, the energy required to use each of its moves) for all its moves, it may only use Struggle, a weak move, indefinitely reusable, that harms not only the opponent but the user as well.
* Theft - Pikachu wears Knit Cap Guy'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.
* Uplift - Pikachu's head goes upward, separated from its body, showing a long, thick cable still connecting the head and the body.
|}

==Transcript==
:[The comic starts with a single panel presenting four options by random order.]
:*these stupid tiles ... I'll just play one more game.
:*oh, hey, there's some kind of political thing going on.
:*refresh ... no new email ... refresh ... no new tweets ... refresh ...
:*let's see if BSD is any easier to install nowadays.

:[As of April 2, the choices are sometimes changed to this, order is still by random.]
:*refresh ... no new email ... refresh ... no new tweets ... refresh ...
:*let's see if BSD is any easier to install nowadays.
:*hurry! we're in talks with facebook.
:*oh, hey, there's some kind of political thing going on.

:[The reader can choose an option and the text appears at the panel.]

:[The next panels are shown after each selection until it comes to an end where the reader can suggest the last line spoken.]

==Trivia==
*An early attempt to make a full transcript can be found here [[1350: Lorenz/Transcript]] - given the nature of the comic it will never be complete. But feel free to try.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Dynamic comics]]
[[Category:April fool's comics]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Boomerangs]]
[[Category:Computers]]
[[Category:Dinosaurs]]
[[Category:Dreams]]
[[Category:Pokémon]]
[[Category:Politics]]
[[Category:Star Wars]]

1350: Lorenz/Images

2014-04-05T00:01:35Z

108.162.249.216: remove extraneous bold text auto-insertion

{{Incomplete|There are still missing several images. Until there is reason to bell e Randall stop producing new images this will be the case!}}
These are collected images that form the interactive comic [[1350: Lorenz]], exactly as they are stored in the xkcd website. A few of them already have text, while most images have blank spaces for the text to be inserted by the script. The latter are reusable by definition, often appearing in multiple storylines and multiple times in the same storyline, with completely different texts. It's not know if this list is complete.

==Syntax==
Each panel is comprised of code like this, including a link to the image and the text to be inserted. To save the original image directly from the xkcd website, just open the URL in the src="".

<source>
<div class="panel showing" style="position: relative; margin: 9px;">
<img style="position: static; vertical-align: top;" src="http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/a1-2014/Wj5jIXbvvQEkTT05CCDYnw.png">

these stupid tiles ... І'll just play one more game.

</div>
</source>

==Images==
[[File:lorenz.png]]
[[File:lorenz - debate laptop.png]]
[[File:lorenz - debate 1.png]]
[[File:lorenz - debate 2.png]]
[[File:lorenz - debate 5.png]]
[[File:lorenz - debate 4.png]]
[[File:lorenz - debate 3.png]]
[[File:lorenz - visit.png]]
[[File:lorenz - laptop 1.png]]
[[File:lorenz - laptop 2.png]]
[[File:lorenz - laptop 3.png]]
[[File:lorenz - laptop 4.png]]
[[File:lorenz - laptop 5.png]]
[[File:lorenz - laptop 6.png]]
[[File:lorenz - laptop 7.png]]
[[File:lorenz - laptop 8.png]]
[[File:lorenz - laptop 9.png]]
[[File:lorenz - laptop 10.png]]
[[File:lorenz - laptop 11.png]]
[[File:lorenz - shark zero.png]]
[[File:lorenz - shark one.png]]
[[File:lorenz - sharks.png]]
[[File:lorenz - squids.png]]
[[File:lorenz - blood.png]]
[[File:lorenz - hairy swims away.png]]
[[File:lorenz - beach.png]]
[[File:lorenz - dinosaur 1.png]]
[[File:lorenz - dinosaur 2.png]]
[[File:lorenz - dinosaur 3.png]]
[[File:lorenz - dinosaur 4.png]]
[[File:lorenz - going.png]]
[[File:lorenz - away.png]]
[[File:lorenz - thinking.png]]
[[File:lorenz - walking.png]]
[[File:lorenz - gap.png]]
[[File:lorenz - tree.png]]
[[File:lorenz - discuss.png]]
[[File:lorenz - hairy leaves.png]]
[[File:lorenz - knit cap leaves.png]]
[[File:lorenz - dark.png]]
[[File:lorenz - rocket 1.png]]
[[File:lorenz - rocket 2.png]]
[[File:lorenz - rocket 3.png]]
[[File:lorenz - rocket 4.png]]
[[File:lorenz - rocket 5.png]]
[[File:lorenz - rocket 6.png]]
[[File:lorenz - rocket 7.png]]
[[File:lorenz - rocket 8.png]]
[[File:lorenz - rocket 11.png]]
[[File:lorenz - rocket 23.png]]
[[File:lorenz - rocket 9.png]]
[[File:lorenz - rocket 10.png]]
[[File:lorenz - rocket 12.png]]
[[File:lorenz - rocket 13.png]]
[[File:lorenz - rocket 14.png]]
[[File:lorenz - rocket 15.png]]
[[File:lorenz - rocket 16.png]]
[[File:lorenz - rocket 17.png]]
[[File:lorenz - rocket 18.png]]
[[File:lorenz - rocket 19.png]]
[[File:lorenz - rocket 20.png]]
[[File:lorenz - rocket 21.png]]
[[File:lorenz - rocket 22.png]]
[[File:lorenz - wake up 5.png]]
[[File:lorenz - wake up 6.png]]
[[File:lorenz - wake up 7.png]]
[[File:lorenz - wake up 12.png]]
[[File:lorenz - walk 6.png]]
[[File:lorenz - walk 7.png]]
[[File:lorenz - sale 1.png]]
[[File:lorenz - sale 2.png]]
[[File:lorenz - sale 3.png]]
[[File:lorenz - wake up 8.png]]
[[File:lorenz - wake up 9.png]]
[[File:lorenz - hole.png]]
[[File:lorenz - falling.png]]
[[File:lorenz - aaa.png]]
[[File:lorenz - aaa 2.png]]
[[File:lorenz - wake up 1.png]]
[[File:lorenz - wake up 2.png]]
[[File:lorenz - wake up 11.png]]
[[File:lorenz - wake up 10.png]]
[[File:lorenz - wake up 3.png]]
[[File:lorenz - wake up 4.png]]
[[File:lorenz - boomerang 1.png]]
[[File:lorenz - boomerang 2.png]]
[[File:lorenz - boomerang 3.png]]
[[File:lorenz - boomerang 4.png]]
[[File:lorenz - boomerang 5.png]]
[[File:lorenz - boomerang 6.png]]
[[File:lorenz - boomerang 7.png]]
[[File:lorenz - boomerang 8.png]]
[[File:lorenz - boomerang 9.png]]
[[File:lorenz - boomerang rocket 1.png]]
[[File:lorenz - boomerang rocket 2.png]]
[[File:lorenz - boomerang boom.png]]
[[File:lorenz - surprise.png]]
[[File:lorenz - run.png]]
[[File:lorenz - boomerang accident 3.png]]
[[File:lorenz - boomerang accident 4.png]]
[[File:lorenz - boomerang accident.png]]
[[File:lorenz - boomerang accident 2.png]]
[[File:lorenz - walk 1.png]]
[[File:lorenz - walk 2.png]]
[[File:lorenz - walk 3.png]]
[[File:lorenz - walk 4.png]]
[[File:lorenz - walk 5.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu appeared.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu abandonment.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu anguish.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu ant.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu ethylene.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu extrude.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu faceless.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu friendship.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu granite.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu ink cloud.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu radicality.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu theft.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu uplift.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu blank.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu not very effective.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu super effective.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu um.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu fainted.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu end 1.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu end 2.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu dead 1.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu dead 2.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu dead 3.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu dead 4.png]]
[[File:lorenz - pikachu dead 5.png]]
[[File:lorenz - meanwhile.png]]
{{comic discussion}}

1340: Unique Date

2014-03-10T05:40:49Z

108.162.249.216: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 1340
| date = March 10, 2014
| title = Unique Date
| image = unique_date.png
| titletext = If our current civilization lasts another 8,000 years, it's probably fair to assume the Long Now Foundation got things right, and at some point we started listening to them and switched to five-digit years.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BOT - Please change this comment when editing this page.}}

Some people make a big deal about special dates such as 2000-01-01 or 2011-11-11, but this comic points out that every date is equally unique.

The Mayans had a repeating circle of years, which made it very difficult to record the dates of events far into the past. To prevent this, ISO 8601 (the third use of it in a comic) states that the Gregorian calendar should be used, which has no limit on years. Cueball thinks it's interesting that we have an infinite number of years; it never starts over again. This means that today's date will never be applicable again. He points this out every day, which would most likely be incredibly annoying to Megan and Cueball2. The title text is referring to the Long Now Foundation's 10,000-year clock. It can display every date up to 99999-12-31. However, we currently use four-digit years, which may cause a Y10K Problem. Randall remarks that by the year 10,000, we'll have probably switched over to a larger number of digits.

==Transcript==
(Cueball speaking to Megan and another person.)
Cueball: Whoa, it's 2014-03-10!
Under our system, this day will NEVER HAPPEN AGAIN!
My Hobby: Pointing this out every day.
{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:My Hobby]]

1340: Unique Date

2014-03-10T05:39:13Z

108.162.249.216: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 1340
| date = March 10, 2014
| title = Unique Date
| image = unique_date.png
| titletext = If our current civilization lasts another 8,000 years, it's probably fair to assume the Long Now Foundation got things right, and at some point we started listening to them and switched to five-digit years.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BOT - Please change this comment when editing this page.}}

Some people make a big deal about special dates such as 2000-01-01 or 2011-11-11, but this comic points out that every date is equally unique.

The Mayans had a repeating circle of years, which made it very difficult to record the dates of events far into the past. To prevent this, ISO 8601 (the third use of it in a comic) states that the Gregorian calendar should be used, which has no limit on years. Cueball thinks it's interesting that we have an infinite number of years; it never starts over again. This means that today's date will never be applicable again. He points this out every day, which would most likely be incredibly annoying to Megan and Cueball2. The title text is referring to the Long Now Foundation's 10,000-year clock. It can display every date up to 99999-12-31. However, we currently use four-digit years, which may cause a Y10K Problem. Randall remarks that by the year 10,000, we'll have probably switched over to a larger number of digits.

==Transcript==
(Cueball speaking to Megan and another person.)
Cueball: Whoa, it's 2014-03-10!
Under our system, this day will NEVER HAPPEN AGAIN!
My Hobby: Repeating this every day.
{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:My Hobby]]

1340: Unique Date

2014-03-10T05:38:16Z

108.162.249.216: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 1340
| date = March 10, 2014
| title = Unique Date
| image = unique_date.png
| titletext = If our current civilization lasts another 8,000 years, it's probably fair to assume the Long Now Foundation got things right, and at some point we started listening to them and switched to five-digit years.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BOT - Please change this comment when editing this page.}}

Some people make a big deal about special dates such as 2000-01-01 or 2011-11-11, but this comic points out that every date is equally unique.

The Mayans had a repeating circle of years, which made it very difficult to record the dates of events far into the past. To prevent this, ISO 8601 (the third use of it in a comic) states that the Gregorian calendar should be used, which has no limit on years. Cueball thinks it's interesting that we have an infinite number of years; it never starts over again. This means that today's date will never be applicable again. He points this out every day, which would most likely be incredibly annoying to Megan and Cueball2. The title text is referring to the Long Now Foundation's 10,000-year clock. It can display every date up to 99999-12-31. However, we currently use four-digit years, which may cause a Y10K Problem. Randall remarks that by the year 10,000, we'll have probably switched over to a larger number of digits.

==Transcript==
(Cueball speaking to Megan and another person.)
Cueball: Whoa, it's 2014-03-10!
This day will NEVER HAPPEN AGAIN!
My Hobby: Repeating this every day.
{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:My Hobby]]