explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

2770: Tapetum Lucidum

2023-05-05T07:16:03Z

162.158.203.39:

{{comic
| number = 2770
| date = May 1, 2023
| title = Tapetum Lucidum
| image = tapetum_lucidum_2x.png
| imagesize = 412x492px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = Using a reflective wall in a game to give one shot two chances to hit is called a double-tapetum lucidum.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by BILL NYE'S CAT - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

{{w|Bill Nye}}, perhaps best known for<sup class="noexcerpt">[by whom?]</sup> his children's educational series ''{{w|Bill Nye the Science Guy}}'', wearing the same lab coat as in [[200: Bill Nye]], beats an unseen player (presumably [[Randall]]) in an online multiplayer game resembling {{w|XPilot}}, in which players pilot spaceships using simulated rocket physics and attempt to shoot and kill each other. During a laser battle, Bill Nye provides a scientific explanation for the {{w|tapetum lucidum}}, the layer behind the {{w|retina}} of a cat's eye. He explains that the layer reflects back some of the light that bounces off the retina, giving it a second chance to hit the retina again. This allows a cat's eye to capture more light than it otherwise would, and thus improves their night vision. It's also why [https://carnegiemnh.org/meowfest-why-do-cat-eyes-glow-in-the-dark/ cat's eyes appear to glow in the dark].

At the same time, Bill Nye's battle tactic in the online game perfectly analogizes the point he is making. His spaceship is firing energy pulses into the path of an approaching ship in an attempt to destroy it. Due to the difficulty of hitting a small, fast-moving target, it's likely that most or all of these shots will miss. However, because Bill Nye is firing at a reflective wall, each shot that misses bounces back into the path of the opponent's ship, giving it a second chance to hit the target and effectively doubling the density of the firepower. With double the number of shots to avoid, the opponent's ship is hit and explodes. This explanation is similar to how Bill Nye would explain scientific concepts by using analogous demonstrations of other things.

In the analogy, the weapon shots fired by Bill Nye's ship are the light photons entering the cat's eye, the reflective wall is the tapetum lucidum, and the opponent's ship is a retinal cell. Destroying the opponent's ship with a shot is analogous to a light photon being absorbed by the cat's retina (and therefore seen). If the reflective wall hadn't been there, the ship might have survived, which means the retina would never have seen that photon.

Randall presumably considers this "extra infuriating" because Bill Nye is showing off his scientific knowledge in some other field while also beating him in the game.

The title text is a pun that refers to "tapetum lucidum" and uses "double tap" in the way that online games, memes, and films refer to shooting something twice in rapid succession to ensure its demise. This phrase is famously{{Actual citation needed}} used in the film "Zombieland," and is the subtitle of the 2019 "Zombieland: Double Tap" sequel.

==Transcript==
:[Two triangles with two long sides of equal length (isosceles triangles) but with the short side curving a bit in, are moving inside a black structure, their movement indicated with three and two curved lines below the left and above the right triangle. Both triangles shoots green lasers out of their sharp tip, indicating they represents space ships. They are flying inside a black structure, maybe a maze. There is nothing above the left ship. but below the ships are a black segment making a triangle in the lower left corner. The right ship is inside an opening created by this triangle below it, and another black triangle above it, that centers on the middle of the right side of the panel. The left ship has shot three green laser beams, one of them hits inside the opening on the right triangle and the beam bounces off this wall. But it is not close to the right ship. The right ship has only fires one green laser, which bounces off the left wall also far from the left ship. A voice emanates from the left ship, via a star burst at the top corner. And there are sounds because of the shots it has fired.]
:Left ship: Cats have a shiny layer behind their retina called the tapetum lucidum.
:Laser shots: Pew pew pew

:[Same setting but the scene has panned a bit to the left and up so less of the black walls can be seen. The left ship has moved closer to the right wall and has turned so it's sharp tip points almost straight down, still with three curved lines to indicate movement, probably turning movement. It again fires green lasers at the other ship, four this time, with sounds coming from the shooting. The right spaceship is accelerating forward as indicated with three wavy lines behind it's short side moving in to the line of fire. It seems as though all four lasers might miss it, but one of those that already has passed it, is being reflected up against it from below the left black wall. Again a voice emanates from the left ship via a starburst in the left corner:]
:Left ship: After light passes through the retina, this layer reflects it back through a second time.
:Laser shots: Pew pew

:[Same setting but the scene has again panned a bit to show a different segments of the black walls. The ship originally to the left is now above and a bit to the right of where the right ship originally was, and it is even closer to the right wall. It is not firing any more shots, because the reflected shot from the previous panel has hit the right ship which explodes in large green cloud with the black pieces of the ship inside it, and a huge sound. The tail of the laser shot that hits it can be seen entering the explosion. Three other laser shots from before are still moving down, but might all have missed the ship. There are no movement lines now but again the voice emanates from the left ship via a starburst in the left corner:]
:Left ship: This extra bounce gives photons another chance to interact with the retinal cells...
:Explosion: Boom!

:[A man with short black hair wearing a labcoat is sitting in an office chair typing on his computer while speaking. Below him is a frame with a caption, from which it becomes clear that the man, and the owner of the voice from the left ship, is Bill Nye.]
:Bill Nye: ...Improving their night vision! Isn't science cool?
:Caption: There's something extra infuriating about losing online games to Bill Nye.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]
[[Category:Video games]]
[[Category:Biology]]
[[Category:Cats]]

2739: Data Quality

2023-02-18T12:02:32Z

162.158.203.39: /* Explanation */ I don't think that data can be favourably altered. Altering of data is in all cases unfavourably.

{{comic
| number = 2739
| date = February 17, 2023
| title = Data Quality
| image = data_quality_2x.png
| imagesize = 671x211px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = [exclamation about how cute your cat is] -> [last 4 digits of your cat's chip ID] -> [your cat's full chip ID] -> [a drawing of your cat] -> [photo of your cat] -> [clone of your cat] -> [your actual cat] -> [my better cat]
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a SUPERIOR FELINE - Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}


Digital data are transferred in bits, and {{w|data loss}} is the process by which some of these bits are lost or altered during data transport. Data can also be compressed to make transmission and/or storage more efficient; some {{w|compression algorithms}} discard some data to improve the compression (this can be acceptable in audio or visual data, since the difference may be hard for humans to perceive).

This comic shows a chart in the form of a line, moving in increasing quality from most lossy to most lossless. However, the highest quality, "better data", is using a different sense of the term "quality". In the context of data transmission or compression, it refers to how accurately the result represents the original. But in this case, he's referring to its more general excellence.

The title text uses your cat as an example of this range of losses (or, in the case of the latter reaches of the graph, gains) in the data. The most lossy is an exclamation about how cute your cat is, which is ephemeral and obviously carries very little significance in terms of actually providing specific, transferrable information about your cat. The example then progresses into your cat's chip ID; presumably your cat has been microchipped, and between the last four digits (commonly used in sensitive information as an identifier without revealing the full number) or the entire chip ID, provides a still-uninformative yet slightly improved way of identifying your cat. A drawing of your cat and a photo of your cat would portray the cat reasonably well, while a clone of your cat and (of course) your actual cat would be the best way of gaining data about your cat. However, as in the actual comic, the final, most lossless (in this case, with the most gain) form of data transfer has nothing to do with your cat, but is simply Randall's better cat. This is apparently made out by Randall to be the pinnacle of cat data.

==Transcript==
:[A line chart is shown with eight unevenly-spaced ticks each one with a label beneath the line. Above the middle of the line there is a dotted vertical line with a word on either side of this divider. Above the chart there is a big caption with an arrow pointing right beneath it.]
:<big>Data Quality</big>
:Lossy ┊ Lossless

:[Labels to the left of the dotted line from left to right:]
:Someone who once saw the data describing it at a party
:Bloom filter
:Hash table
:JPEG, GIF MPEG

:[Labels to the right of the dotted line from left to right:]
:PNG, ZIP, TIFF, WAV, Raw data
:Raw data + parity bits for error detection
:Raw data + parity bits for error ''correction''
:Better data

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Cats]]

Talk:2485: Nightmare Code

2021-07-09T01:00:13Z

162.158.203.39:

As I feared, I got into an Edit Conflict after doing (significantly more than I intended) editing of my own 'starter' explanation. '''Now resolved - thank you for your patience...'''  [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.124|141.101.98.124]] 20:24, 5 July 2021 (UTC)

Central pacific hurricanes (e.g. Iniki) have different naming conventions than Eastern Pacific/Atlantic hurricanes (13 names in a list that doesn't reset at the new year).[[User:Gacktuar|Gacktuar]] ([[User talk:Gacktuar|talk]]) 23:19, 6 July 2021 (UTC)

Is the Alphabet gag in the Title Text related to Alphabet, the company that owns Google? [[User:Kev|Kev]] ([[User talk:Kev|talk]]) 17:32, 5 July 2021 (UTC)
:It would be more expected that Alphabet would change their name if Alpha and Beta become associated with nightmare codes. OTOH, many thought that the Corona beer brand would suffer marketing problems during the pandemic, but it wasn't impacted very much. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 20:21, 5 July 2021 (UTC)

@Kev Well, the speaker ''is'' wearing Google Glass. [[User:Lightcaller|Lightcaller]] ([[User talk:Lightcaller|talk]]) 20:22, 5 July 2021 (UTC)

The speaker specifically mentions "'''Earth''' Language" and wears something that might well be some kind of life support. I don't think they are addressing earth-based humans, but rather some more diverse audience that is mostly not from earth. Many of them obviously don't know old earth languages too well. But the usage of the nightmare code seems to have spread beyond earth. Therefore, there's no implication that (earth-based) humans have forgotten the Greek language, the speaker may simply be giving a talk about their culture. -> I think the first paragraph is making wrong assumptions. @Abd are you sure? [[User:Chichak|Chichak]] ([[User talk:Chichak|talk]]) 22:37, 5 July 2021 (UTC)
:Not at all. Feel free to improve it; that's what wikis are for! [[User:Abd|Abd]] ([[User talk:Abd|talk]]) 16:20, 6 July 2021 (UTC)

Wait, what? The ''future's'' character sets? ''Our'' character sets (or at least some of them) are known as alphabets! Or have we already forgotten the term "alphabet"?
^[[unsigned]]

How far off is "the (far) future"? Based on the retro-future styled headwear & relatively minor language drift, I was picturing 20-to-60 years, tops.

Heck, which objects count as "drones" has already changed ''twice'' the last 20 years, & YouTube still thinks Steam® is related to an ironing press. If we're looking more than 60 years out, I have to assume that "nightmare" could be common parlance for 'great', "scary" means 'informative', "negative" means 'removing', & "die" means equalize.

It's a joke about language drift, featuring a floaty person referring to ancient "Earth" languages: Sounds like someone teaching a 1st-grade class at Luna L2 circa 2051, ten years after 'the Oopsie'. I really didn't get a feeling of "oh wow ''lots'' of time has passed". I got the impression we were supposed to recognize the elements of the scene so that the grammatic drift stated in the comic would be highlighted as hyperbolic change.

Hovering & silly headgear are kinda the ''bare minimum'' to represent "the future" unambiguously, these days. The presumption of extraterrestrial habitation is the most futuristic reference I see. I'd be a bit surprised if that took us more than another decade or two, if ever.

Is this comic really about the ''far'' future, or is part of the joke that language changes faster than our perceptions of what is futuristic?
[[User:ProphetZarquon|ProphetZarquon]] ([[User talk:ProphetZarquon|talk]]) 01:12, 6 July 2021 (UTC)

@ unsigned comment above: This comic is set in an imagined future in which the use of the word "alphabet" to describe a character set has fallen out of favour due to the negative connotations of the Greek root. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.249.130|108.162.249.130]] 01:17, 6 July 2021 (UTC)

:Yeah, the imagining of "the (far) future", as argued against by someone I can't be bothered to check if they're one of several <unsigned>s or not, actually seems (fictionally) realistic to me. At least one full generation of Alphabet-gnostics has died out, by time passing as well as disaster, with very little seepage of "grandpa always used to say..." into this generation. If it's so soon after a terrestrial catastrophe, I'm surprised 'the old ways' have vanished as quickly as the Jetsons future has arrived. More likely like the montage behind Fry in Futurama's setup episode, happening to lead to a totally unironic retro-futuristic setting with much discontinuity of knowledge from the past. Even without the full-on Earthwide disaster, there could be the general Spacer-like ignorance (Asimov's pre-Foundation run-up series, long before Earth itself became mythical/lost/damaged in various phases) of our everyday cultural certainties - that even the surface-shunning mass of Earthers were showing signs of succumbing to ('Lije Bailey not knowing more than that text from the US Declaration Of Independence, IIRC, was "some old document", and used it casually without understanding how fanatically important its original context was).
:And @108.162.249.130 below, yes, I also think that the great transhumance into space has removed or reworked away Greek as a living language, as well as Ancient Greek as a non-niche dead one. We're probably even hearing/reading this lecture through (historically-unaware) Translator Microbes if it's being conducted in Standard Galactic (except for the historic loanwords), or whatever hybrid spacefaring lingua franca has developed and put yet more linguistic space between the words we know well and the mere detritus of phonemes that reflect very little of their origin. (Again, reason to believe a gap of no less than a century, possibly several, to shift the popular mindsets.)
:But that's just my impression. You ''could'' shoehorn a faster turnaround, with enough tweaks. e.g. Bezos retires to his moonbase to tinker up a load of new Amazon gadgetry (Musk does the same on Mars for a Tesla-esque offshoot), the world goes all retro-techno via consumer pressure, plus capable of initiating the Google Labs nanobot swarming that leaves the gadget-ridden off-worlders now disconnected and disinclined to further the blackened legacy of Alphabet Inc, and after a generation or two of off-world schooling (from what few educators and experts had found themselves able to expound their knowledge) there are... gaps and other somewhat more blurred bits in the near(ish)-future shared memory. Your choice! [[Special:Contributions/162.158.158.105|162.158.158.105]] 11:14, 6 July 2021 (UTC)

Does Cueball's "did you know" imply that the Greek language has died out entirely? At time of writing, the origin of the alpha/beta/gamma/etc. pseudo-numbering would already be referred to as "Ancient" Greek, but the same alphabet is still very much used to write modern Greek. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.249.130|108.162.249.130]] 01:17, 6 July 2021 (UTC)

I feel like the explanation is overthinking the comic somewhat - it's a reference to the practice of using Greek letters for hurricanes once the 21 alphabetical names are exhausted (which is happening more often due to anthropogenic climate change) and the "delta variant" of SARS-CoV-2, extended to refer to futuristic disasters like nanobots. The word "alphabet" gaining perceived negative connotations is a result of that - there shouldn't be any cause to bring up ethology or Google's holding company. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.203.39|162.158.203.39]] 01:00, 9 July 2021 (UTC)

2445: Checkbox

2021-04-02T14:27:01Z

162.158.203.39: Encountered another fortune sentence

{{comic
| number = 2445
| date = April 1, 2021
| title = Checkbox
| image = checkbox.gif
| titletext = Check check check ... chhecck chhecck chhecck ... check check check
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a CHECKBOX. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
This is an April Fools comic that looks similar to a loading screen. The actual comic (this “loading screen”) consists of a gif of a checkbox (hence the name).

The frame is replaced with an interactive panel. In the centre is a check box, which clears itself immediately when checked. In the bottom right is a mute button, which begins muted.

Under the checkbox is a scrolling visual representation of the timing and duration of clicks in the check box, which also produce matching beeping sounds when unmuted.

By varying between brief and long presses, and brief and long intervals between presses, it is possible to enter characters in Morse Code.

The title text hints at the use of Morse Code in the comic; interpreting the "check" as a Morse Code dot and the "chhecck" as a Morse Code dash gives ...---..., which is the Morse Code for "SOS", the international distress signal. Incidentally, inputting the SOS signal gives "YOU TOO?".

The check box then begins operating by itself, producing sounds which can be decoded as Morse Code. These responses are also printed in the browser's JavaScript console in both plain text and a textual representation of Morse code. If left alone, it would send the message CQ.

For the majority of inputs, the check box responds with a random selection from the following list:
* COME AGAIN
* HUH
* NOT FOLLOWING
* SAY AGAIN
* TRY THAT AGAIN
* WHAT

Some keywords, however, have special responses.

Help on the comic is ascribed to Max Goodhart, Patrick, Amber, Benjamin Staffin, Kevin Cotrone, and Michael Leuchtenburg.

===Special Responses===
[.s are short presses, -s are long presses, and /s are spaces (just for readability)]

xkcd -> FILE NOT FOUND

xkcd -> A CROSS THREE LETTERS

[-..- -.- -.-. -..]

HI -> HELLO! ANYBODY OUT THERE?

[.... ..]

HELLO -> HELLO TO YOU TOO!

[.... . .-.. .-.. ---]

HELP -> ENTER IMAGE NUMBER
HELP -> YES PLEASE

[.... . .-.. .--.]

WHAT -> ECHO

[.-- .... .- -]

ECHO -> ECHO

[. -.-. .... ---]

CHECK -> MATE

[-.-. .... . -.-. -.-]

CHECKBOX -> RADIO BUTTON (and vice versa)

[-.-. .... . -.-. -.- -... --- -..-]

ILOVEYOU -> LESSTHANTHREE

[.. .-.. --- ...- . -.-- --- ..-]

E (''repeat n times'') -> E (''repeat n times'') (where n < 7. n=6 returns 'AAAAAA' instead)

[.]

T (''repeat n times'') -> T (''repeat n times'') (where n < 7)

[-]

E-> E ''then'' I -> EIEIO

I (''repeat n times'') -> I (''repeat n times'') (where n < 4. n=4 returns 'IV', which is probably the roman numeral for 4)

FLIPCOIN -> HEADS ''or'' TAILS

[..-. .-.. .. .--. -.-. --- .. -.]

LOOK AROUND -> NOT ENOUGH POWER

[.-.. --- --- -.- / .- .-. --- ..- -. -..]

SEE -> RED SOIL

[... . .]

WHO ARE YOU ''or'' WHAT IS YOUR NAME -> SOJOURNER

[.-- .... --- / .- .-. . / -.-- --- ..-]

SOJOURNER -> CFM (short for Confirm)

[... --- .--- --- ..- .-. -. . .-.]

ET -> PHONE HOME

[. -]

LS -> DID YOU MEAN DIR

DIR -> ENTER IMAGE NUMBER

(any number <=2445) -> (loads xkcd comic in new tab)

MAKE ME A SANDWICH -> NOT A CHANCE

[-- .- -.- . / -- . / .- / ... .- -. -.. .-- .. -.-. ….]

SUDO MAKE ME A SANDWICH -> NOT POSSIBLE HERE

[... ..- -.. --- / -- .- -.- . / -- . / .- / ... .- -. -.. .-- .. -.-. ....]

<nowiki />:) -> :D

[---... -.--.-]

<nowiki />:( -> :C

[---... -.--.]

<nowiki />;) -> :O

[-.-.-. -.--.-]

<nowiki />:O -> :X

[---... ---]

UWU -> OWO

[..- .-- ..-]

OWO -> UWU

[--- .-- ---]

UNIX -> (''Opens [https://uni.xkcd.com uni.xkcd.com]'')

[..- -. .. -..-]

GET YE FLASK -> YE WISH! IF THERE WAS A FLASK IN THIS GAME, WE'D KNOW ABOUT IT.

[--. . - / -.-- . / ..-. .-.. .- ... -.-]

YO -> YO

[-.-- ---]

DROP TABLE -> HAHA NO

[.... .- .... .- / -. ---]

WHY -> TO STUDY THE RED PLANET

[.-- .... -.--]

EAT -> I PHOTOSYNTHESIZE

[.. / .--. .... --- - --- ... -.-- -. - .... . ... .. --.. .]

BATTLE ''or'' FIGHT -> THROW

====Controls====

QUIET -> (turns the volume off)

[--.- ..- .. . -]

MUTE -> (turns the volume off)

[-- ..- - .]

BEEP -> (turns the volume on)

[-... . . .--.]

(see also QRS and QRQ)

====Q codes and radio shorthand====
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Q_code

CQ -> CQD DE SOJ

[-.-. --.-]

SOS -> YOU TOO?

SOS -> OH NO

[... --- ...]

QRS -> (reduces playback speed)

[--.- .-. ...]

QRQ -> (increases playback speed)

[--.- .-. --.-]

QRA -> QRA SOJOURNER

[--.- .-. .-]

QRB -> QRB 264 MILLION KM

[--.- .-. -…]

QRH -> QRH 0.652 METERS

[--.- .-. ....]

QRG -> QRG PATHFINDER

[--.- .-. --.]

QRZ -> QRZ SOJOURNER

[--.- .-. --..]

QRT -> PLEASE DON'T GO

[--.- .-. -]

QTH -> QTH ARES VALLIS

[--.- - ....]

QSL -> QSL

[--.- ... .-..]

73 -> 73 KN

====FORTUNE====

F -> DID YOU MEAN FORTUNE

[..-.]

FORTUNE -> OPEN ME

[..-. --- .-. - ..- -. .]

OPEN -> ''returns one of the following fortunes''

[--- .--. . -.]

* NEVER FEAR THE END OF SOMETHING MARKS THE START OF SOMETHING NEW
* YOUR DREAMS ARE NEVER SILLY DEPEND ON THEM TO GUIDE YOU
* YOU WILL BE A GREAT SUCCESS BOTH IN THE BUSINESS WORLD AND SOCIETY
* CHANGE IS HAPPENING IN YOUR LIFE SO GO WITH THE FLOW
* YOUR MOODS SIGNAL A PERIOD OF CHANGE
* YOUR MENTALITY IS ALERT PRACTICAL AND ANALYTICAL
* YOU SHOULD PAY FOR THIS CHECK BE GENEROUS
* EVERYWHERE YOU CHOOSE TO GO FRIENDLY FACES WILL GREET YOU
* DILIGENCE AND MODESTY CAN RAISE YOUR SOCIAL STATUS
* MANS MIND ONCE STRETCHED BY A NEW IDEA NEVER REGAINS ITS ORIGINAL DIMENSIONS
* YOU ARE GENEROUS TO AN EXTREME AND ALWAYS THINK OF THE OTHER FELLOW
* FOR THE THINGS WE HAVE TO LEARN BEFORE WE CAN DO THEM WE LEARN BY DOING THEM

OPEN -> HUH (if after something other than "FORTUNE")

====ENCABULATOR====

STATUS -> RADIO ONLINE, MOTOR ONLINE, UNILATERAL PHASE DETRACTOR UNPOWERED, CARDINAL GRAMMETER UNSYNCHRONIZED

[... - .- - ..- ...]

YOUTUBE -> RXJKDH1KZ0W ''(Note: video ID for [https://youtu.be/RXJKdh1KZ0w Rockwell Retro Encabulator])''

[-.-- --- ..- - ..- -... .]

REPAIR, ENCABULATOR, FIX, ''or'' SYSTEM -> ENTERING ENCABULATOR RECOVERY SYSTEM. OPTIONS 1 INITIATE SIDE FUMBLING 2 ALIGN SPURVING BEARINGS 3 REVERSE TREMIE PIPE

[.-. . .--. .- .. .-.]

* 1 -> SIDE FUMBLING DETECTED. MODIAL INTERACTION UNSTABLE. RECOVERY TERMINATED.
* 2 -> MODIAL INTERACTION INITIATED. OPTIONS 1 UNWIND LOTUS O DELTOID 2 INCREASE DEPLENERATION 3 CONNECT GIRDLESPRING ON DOWN END OF GRAMMETER 4 CONNECT SEVENTH CONDUCTOR TO GIRDLESPRING
** 1 -> SIDE FUMBLING DETECTED. MODIAL INTERACTION UNSTABLE. RECOVERY TERMINATED.
** 2 -> DEPLENERATION PREVENTED BY DINGLE ARM
** 3 -> SIDE FUMBLING DETECTED. MODIAL INTERACTION UNSTABLE. RECOVERY TERMINATED.
** 4 -> PANAMETRIC FAN ACTIVATED. MODIAL INTERACTION STABLE. DEFAULT CONFIGURATION MISSING. MANUALLY ENTER MARZELVANE TYPE TO COMPLETE RECOVERY
*** HYDROCOPTIC -> RECOVERY SUCCESSFUL. REBOOT Y N?
**** Y -> (''Opens [https://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/sojourner_repaired.png sojourner_repaired.png]'')
* 3 -> ERROR TREMIE PIPE NONREVERSIBLE

====MAZE====
RETURN -> DID YOU MEAN ENTER

ENTER -> DID YOU MEAN ENTERMAZE

ENTER MAZE -> AN EMPTY ROOM

[. -. - . .-. / -- .- --.. .]

* LOOK -> AN EMPTY ROOM
* HELP -> NORTH EAST SOUTH WEST GET
* EXIT -> CFM (''Exits the maze'')

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Maze
|-
|an open flame || a candle on a table || style="background-color: black;" |
|-
| style="background-color: black;" | || an empty room (start) || style="background-color: black;" |
|-
| style="background-color: black;" | || a hanging bell || an open book on a table (locked door)
|-
|}

Steps to complete (directions can be abbreviated as their first letter):
# NORTH
# GET CANDLE -> TAKEN
# WEST
# LIGHT CANDLE
# EAST
# SOUTH
# SOUTH
# RING BELL -> A DOOR OPENS
# EAST
# CLOSE BOOK -> CONGRATULATIONS YOU ESCAPE

====CROSSWORD====
CROSSWORD -> NUMBERANDDIRECTION (starts a crossword, you can ask for hints like "1 down" or "2 across")

Appears to be today's (2021-04-01) New York Times Crossword: https://rexwordpuzzle.blogspot.com/2021/04/libertarian-politico-johnson-thu-4-1-21.html

{| class="wikitable"
|+Solved Crossword
|-
| m || y || g || o || d || style="background-color: black; | || d || e || v || style="background-color: black; | || style="background-color: black; | || style="background-color: black; | || e || l || f
|-
| b || u || o || n || o || style="background-color: black; | || e || y || e || s || style="background-color: black; | || s || l || u || r
|-
| a || m || o || c || o || style="background-color: black; | || c || r || a || p || style="background-color: black; | || l || m || a || o
|-
| style="background-color: black; | || style="background-color: black; | || v || e || r || y || r || e || l || i || g || i || o || u || s
|-
| s || e || e || style="background-color: black; | || m || u || y || style="background-color: black; | || style="background-color: black; | || r || a || m || style="background-color: black; | || style="background-color: black; | || style="background-color: black; |
|-
| h || a || r || h || a || r || style="background-color: black; | || s || c || a || r || e || d || o || f
|-
| e || s || s || e || n || t || i || a || l || l || y || style="background-color: black; | || a || r || i
|-
| b || t || e || n || style="background-color: black; | || style="background-color: black; | || m || m || i || style="background-color: black; | || style="background-color: black; | || t || v || a || d
|-
| o || l || a || style="background-color: black; | || b || a || d || m || o || u || t || h || i || n || g
|-
| p || a || s || s || e || d || b || y || style="background-color: black; | || n || o || o || d || g || e
|-
| style="background-color: black; | || style="background-color: black; | || style="background-color: black; | || o || a || r || style="background-color: black; | || style="background-color: black; | || s || u || n || style="background-color: black; | || l || e || t
|-
| b || l || e || n || d || e || d || f || a || m || i || l || y || style="background-color: black; | || style="background-color: black; |
|-
| b || o || r || g || style="background-color: black; | || p || e || l || t || style="background-color: black; | || g || e || n || r || e
|-
| q || u || i || z || style="background-color: black; | || s || p || a || y || style="background-color: black; | || h || i || c || k || s
|-
| s || t || e || style="background-color: black; | || style="background-color: black; | || style="background-color: black; | || p || b || r || style="background-color: black; | || t || a || h || o || e
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"
|+ Words
! index !! down word !! across word
|-
| 1 || MBA || MYGOD
|-
| 2 || YUM ||
|-
| 3 || GOOVERSEAS ||
|-
| 4 || ONCE ||
|-
| 5 || DOORMAN ||
|-
| 6 || DECRY || DEV
|-
| 7 || EYRE ||
|-
| 8 || VEAL ||
|-
| 9 || ELMO || ELF
|-
| 10 || LUAU ||
|-
| 11 || FROS ||
|-
| 12 || || BUONO
|-
| 13 || || EYES
|-
| 14 || SPIRAL ||
|-
| 15 || SLIME || SLUR
|-
| 16 || || AMOCO
|-
| 17 || || CRAP
|-
| 18 || || LMAO
|-
| 19 || || VERYRELIGIOUS
|-
| 20 || YURT ||
|-
| 21 || GARY ||
|-
| 22 || SHEBOP || SEE
|-
| 23 || EASTLA ||
|-
| 24 || || MUY
|-
| 25 || || RAM
|-
| 26 || || HARHAR
|-
| 27 || HEN ||
|-
| 28 || SAMMY || SCAREDOF
|-
| 29 || CLIO ||
|-
| 30 || DAVIDLYNCH ||
|-
| 31 || ORANGE ||
|-
| 32 || FIDGET ||
|-
| 33 || || ESSENTIALLY
|-
| 34 || IMDB ||
|-
| 35 || || ARI
|-
| 36 || || BTEN
|-
| 37 || || MMI
|-
| 38 || THO || TVAD
|-
| 39 || || OLA
|-
| 40 || BEAD || BADMOUTHING
|-
| 41 || ADREPS ||
|-
| 42 || UNUM ||
|-
| 43 || TONIGHT ||
|-
| 44 || || PASSEDBY
|-
| 45 || SONGZ ||
|-
| 46 || || NOODGE
|-
| 47 || || OAR
|-
| 48 || SATYR || SUN
|-
| 49 || || LET
|-
| 50 || BBQS || BLENDEDFAMILY
|-
| 51 || LOUT ||
|-
| 52 || ERIE ||
|-
| 53 || DEPP ||
|-
| 54 || FLAB ||
|-
| 55 || LEIA ||
|-
| 56 || || BORG
|-
| 57 || || PELT
|-
| 58 || || GENRE
|-
| 59 || RKO ||
|-
| 60 || ESE ||
|-
| 61 || || QUIZ
|-
| 62 || || SPAY
|-
| 63 || || HICKS
|-
| 64 || || STE
|-
| 65 || || PBR
|-
| 66 || || TAHOE
|}

===Rover Scene===
After successfully repairing and rebooting Sojourner, a comic is opened which depicts it seeking out and finding its friends, Spirit, Opportunity, Curiosity, Perseverance, and Ingenuity. Curiosity and Perseverance are locked in a swordfight, and either Spirit or Opportunity is carried off by Ingenuity while the other speeds off a small mound of dirt.

===Special Console Commands===
The page's JavaScript creates a global object <code>morse</code> with <code>encode</code> and <code>decode</code> methods. From the developer console, it is possible to write <code>morse.encode("A PHRASE")</code>, which will print the Morse code corresponding to the text provided, or <code>morse.decode("... --- ...")</code> which will translate the Morse code to text.

<code>BeepComic.hurryUp()</code> to get the reply immediately in the console.
<code>BeepComic.send(...)</code> to send directly to SOJOURNER.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
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{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Interactive comics]]
[[Category:April fools' comics]]