explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:3089: Modern

2025-05-15T15:03:48Z

172.69.224.169:

Hate to be that guy, but wow, it’s empty [[User:Broseph|Broseph]] ([[User talk:Broseph|talk]]) 19:04, 14 May 2025 (UTC)

This strip reminded me of the comments in [[3063]]. Historians / historiographers typically define (early) "modernity" to begin around 1500. {{w|early modernity}} [[Special:Contributions/172.71.182.126|172.71.182.126]] 19:12, 14 May 2025 (UTC)

A similar problem exists, where a recent version of the Bible is known as the New Revised Standard Version. It will be a bit awkward when it is not new, revised, or standard. [[User:BobcatInABox|BobcatInABox]] ([[User talk:BobcatInABox|talk]]) 19:38, 14 May 2025 (UTC)
: {{w|New_Revised_Standard_Version#NRSV_Updated_Edition_(NRSVue)|It's already happened.}} [[Special:Contributions/162.158.41.167|162.158.41.167]] 06:26, 15 May 2025 (UTC)
:I'm assuming it (''and'' the NRSVue) is still at least a version, though. And one, or even both, also an edition. ;) [[Special:Contributions/172.68.229.139|172.68.229.139]] 08:04, 15 May 2025 (UTC)

:The US Military has a similar problem: naming a system "Next-Gen [X]" but then the "Next Gen" item eventually becomes the current generation, and is eventually moving towards being obsolete and you need a successor (next-next gen?).[[Special:Contributions/172.69.6.111|172.69.6.111]] 20:05, 14 May 2025 (UTC)
::I guess the phone companies got it right with the 3G, 4G, 5G naming. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 20:23, 14 May 2025 (UTC)
::: Except for that {{w|10G}} glitch. And Dilbert predicted people copyrighting "8G" years before that. [[Special:Contributions/104.23.172.75|104.23.172.75]] 20:34, 14 May 2025 (UTC)
::There is a (not ''always'' consistent) "nth generation" classification system that is quite developed. The F-22 Raptor is a 5th Generation fighter, for example, with the (next-)next-gen ones being designed for the next decade being 6th. Though, yes, "Next Gen" still pops up (currently the programs I know of are ''mostly'' aimed at the solutions for #6, of course). [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.129|141.101.99.129]] 22:23, 14 May 2025 (UTC)

Wasn't there an earlier strip describing a similar problem on Wikipedia edits, maybe tied to the {{w|recency bias}}? There's the idea that every more recent slice needs a new, relevant name. It also seems to work going backwards, where humanity's genus, tribe, subfamily, and family are "homo", "hominini", "homininae", and "hominidae" respectively. We seem to crave a name for every arbitrary slice that is relevant for a particular researcher. And now I'm thinking of Futurama's "New New York". I'm surprised there's not already a New New York somewhere. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.233.117|162.158.233.117]] 20:31, 14 May 2025 (UTC)
:Eventually, there'll be a [https://tardis.fandom.com/wiki/New_New_York New New New New New New New New New New New New New New New York]...
:Anyway, I actually live not far from a(nother) {{w|New York#United Kingdom|New York}}, and am also a regular visitor to (old) York. So I may not have been to New York, New York, on my travels, but I've got it covered on both sides. (I ''have'' been to both new Boston ''and'' the old one, but only been to the old Washington, both the original Richmond and its first copycat (but none of the US copycopyⁿcats), etc.) [[Special:Contributions/162.158.216.175|162.158.216.175]] 22:01, 14 May 2025 (UTC)

::Hmmm. I've a suspicion I know who you are.
::I'm gonna say...you ain't heavy? [[User:Yorkshire Pudding|Yorkshire Pudding]] ([[User talk:Yorkshire Pudding|talk]]) 22:16, 14 May 2025 (UTC)
:::Ah, no. Sorry, I'm not aware of any fraternal relationship. Not just not with you, but not with anyone. ;) Nice to know there are potentially more of you out there, though.
:::I also forget where I think you're ''exactly'' from, from past information, but I do know that it's a different corner from me. Though I think you wisely left it vague, and I'm happy to be even vaguer (hence why I supplied multiple possibilities)... I think it's only rather specific (sort-of-)local knowledge that even let guess what more exacting info I ''think'' I know about you. West Riding, for starters, but I'm not going to narrow you down further. :p [[Special:Contributions/172.70.86.134|172.70.86.134]] 22:38, 14 May 2025 (UTC)
::I know where you live now /j [[User:Commercialegg|Commercialegg]] ([[User talk:Commercialegg|talk]]) 00:13, 15 May 2025 (UTC)
:::...to within 3 million acres or so, sure... ...maybe! /jj [[Special:Contributions/172.69.43.221|172.69.43.221]] 05:50, 15 May 2025 (UTC)

Where do I post site suggestions?¿?¿?¿?¿ [[User:Aprilfoolsupdate!|Aprilfoolsupdate!]] ([[User talk:Aprilfoolsupdate!|talk]]) 04:20, 15 May 2025 (UTC)
:What kind of suggestion? (And, for that matter, what kind of site?!?) Though I would probably start by clicking on the Community Portal link in the side navbar over <- there (and up a bit?). Might also be worth seeing if your potential suggestion already has something like it, rather than add a new section the repeats one (or more) past subheader(s). Also might help you find which sub-page suits your particular input. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.43.221|172.69.43.221]] 05:50, 15 May 2025 (UTC)

I remember as a kid asking my parents: "Why does the New Testament look so old?". [[Special:Contributions/162.158.245.161|162.158.245.161]] 06:42, 15 May 2025 (UTC)
: In German it makes sense, sort of - "modern" can also be a verb, meaning "to rot" :-) [[Special:Contributions/162.158.245.137|162.158.245.137]] 06:55, 15 May 2025 (UTC)
:Some Gideon-types (maybe not ''actual'' Gideons, but of the same mind) came to my school one day (possibly they did it every year for each new age of students, never checked) and did a bit of basic god-bothering stuff with us. Either separate from the actual Religious Education class (which might have had more abrahamic=>judeo-christian=>christian=>protestant stuff, at times, but actually ''did'' properly cover other religions and wider belief systems) or as a once-only replacement for it (adjourning from the usual classroom, at its usual time, and instead meeting these 'missonaries' in one of the non-classroom rooms).
:...anyway... we were given handy-sized NTs. (Probably I still have mine, somewhere, because I rarely get rid of any book, of ''any'' kind, but I know other classmates probably were happily scattering them to the four winds as soon as the fancy took them.) My most immediate impression was the disappointment that it was ''just'' the NT. Whatever I thought about the ultimate veracity of either (not much, even at that age), I already knew that all the actual exciting stuff was in the OT. All the 'New' stuff basically boils down to "Be excellent to each other, dudes!" (as paraphrased by Bill and Ted) and a mixed bag of minor peril and miscarriage of justice. Whereas the 'Old' bits has various cities being destroyed, various multigenerational soap-opera plots and ''two'' completely different explanations for how everything began! They don't write 'em like that any more. Well, they do, but between The Book Of Mormon (the Joseph Smith one, not the Broadway one) and the various works of L. Ron Hubbard ("Mission: Earth" was even more escapist than "Battlefield Earth", and would have been even easier to badly make into a movie!) there's a ''lot'' of variation. ;)
:Though given how much might have been lost in translation, maybe I also ought to try reading everythihg in the original Klingon... [[Special:Contributions/172.68.229.139|172.68.229.139]] 08:04, 15 May 2025 (UTC)

Ever notice how the words modern and modem can resemble each other when presented in the correctly chosen typeface, point size and kerning? We could have had a 56k modern if we squinted sideways. [[Special:Contributions/172.71.30.251|172.71.30.251]] 11:56, 15 May 2025 (UTC)

Me when the New Super Mario Bros. series is over a decade old at this point lmao. Also, not willing to delete Incase I'm wrong, but what is this bit about communism and fascism?[[Special:Contributions/172.69.70.13|172.69.70.13]] 12:30, 15 May 2025 (UTC)
:I believe it's being suggested that these particular two 'different' philosophies (not necessarily, though, if one believes they just aimed for the same basic result from different directions) were developed in reaction to the more monarchical systems of government, both given impetus from the experiences of The Great War (though not just that) to create a ''different'' form of figurehead-dominated politics that was considered, by their proponents, a "modern" solution. Over time, various 'problems' were identified (not least WW2, that revealed Fascism's nature, though Communism temporarily ended up in a better position). Much of the rest of the world ended up moving on from the vestiges of 'traditional monarchy' over this time, too, but not the same way (and, arguably, with different problems - many still quite real or possibly getting worse). There are those who may think that Fascism/Communism actually could still work (perhaps if done ''properly''!), but the original eras of these are now more retro than modern so perhaps (unless you're good at rewriting history) not under those particularly poisoned names.
:Or so I understood it. Not sure I'd say it like that, or consider it an apt addition to this article, but then I'm not a professional (political-)historian and don't have the in-depth expertise to judge its accuracy in full. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.86.157|172.70.86.157]] 13:33, 15 May 2025 (UTC)

:: Both 'isms mentioned here have roots a fair bit older than The Great War. The bundle-of-sticks-ism is possibly the oldest form of governance there is, if you define it loosely. (Please note that that is more of a condemnation than endorsement.) --DW [[Special:Contributions/172.69.74.237|172.69.74.237]] 14:02, 15 May 2025 (UTC)
:::Definitely (and I nearly mentioned that Germany copied Italy's model, while Japan joined in from a still Imperial perspective). Though the pressures of fighting WW1 catalysed Russia's revolution (mid-fight) and many other systems (e.g. Italy) developed both -isms to some degree or other; both the Red Flags and the Black Shirts were plentiful enough in Britain, at times, too, interbellum, arguably held off by Churchill (along with other far more dodgy things) before he even had to deal with the next coming war. Spain became the "rehersal" for the various factions. For post-Kaiser Germany, the resulting defeat plus post-Verseilles demands fuelled drives for ''both'' forms of 'socialism' (the 'national' type ending up in total control, now on an Italy+ track such that most people often forget poor old Benito's part in inspiring it), setting up circumstances for the next bout. Not sure that such things could have been avoided, without WW1, but it definitely forced matters and shaped the 'modern' world differently from how it might have done if the First Great War had only boiled over later. (With different personalities, a few of the same original errors, probably a smattering of more advanced mil-tech or lost opportunities to have learnt from earlier (less effective) wide-area weaponry/long-range weaponry against both enemy and civilian targets - a rich vein for alternate history!)
:::But I say this only to help with 5he "what is this about...?", which I took to mean not quite knowing how (in their time) they were considered modern answers to age-old questions, only to become different (and eventually dated) problems on the way to today's (still problematic) future. The old "those that don't learn from history are doomed to repeat it" thing applies in spades, here... [[Special:Contributions/172.69.224.169|172.69.224.169]] 15:03, 15 May 2025 (UTC)

: I agree that seems out of place and not pertinent to the comic itself. It is true that those and other 'isms arose because of societal upheavals associated with various [adj]modern things, but that's trivially true of... almost everything. --DW [[Special:Contributions/172.69.74.237|172.69.74.237]] 14:02, 15 May 2025 (UTC)

Talk:2430: Post-Pandemic Hat

2025-05-08T12:26:39Z

172.69.224.169: Undo revision 376664 by Gatorized (talk) Unsigned, and not very helpful commentat that.

I did ''not'' get that the oval was supposed to look like a webcam; so this joke made no sense to me at all until reading the explanation. Thank goodness for explainxkcd.com!

How about just wear a shirt with a picture of oneself in a framed app window? To give people a familiar 2D face to make "eye contact" with, without staring into those creepy wet lenses which 3D faces feature. [[User:ProphetZarquon|ProphetZarquon]] ([[User talk:ProphetZarquon|talk]]) 22:39, 26 February 2021 (UTC)

Post-pandemic, I will still look at the hat first — because depending on what is written there, I might STILL ask that you keep at least six feet (or more) away from me at all times. [[User:RAGBRAIvet|RAGBRAIvet]] ([[User talk:RAGBRAIvet|talk]]) 00:33, 27 February 2021 (UTC)

: Apropo of nothing, the image of a bright red ball cap with the phrase "This is not a '''MAGA''' hat" printed on it flashed into my mind. [[User:These Are Not The Comments You Are Looking For|These Are Not The Comments You Are Looking For]] ([[User talk:These Are Not The Comments You Are Looking For|talk]]) 18:55, 28 February 2021 (UTC)

iPhones XS or later with iOS 14 or later have the Eye Contact feature, which digitally alters your image during a FaceTime call so that your eyes appear to be looking directly at your caller. --[[Special:Contributions/172.68.174.50|172.68.174.50]] 14:04, 27 February 2021 (UTC)

This explanation made no sense to me, but maybe it's the comic (if the explanation is correct.) Does anybody actually look into the camera? I don't; I am always looking '''lower''' than the camera. I know that if I '''were''' to look into the camera, then everyone would see me "looking at them", but I can't avoid just looking at the face of whomever is talking on Teams or Zoom at the moment, because I need to see their face to better understand what they are saying - plus, it feels to me like I am making eye contact with them. But maybe it's just me? [[User:Mathmannix|Mathmannix]] ([[User talk:Mathmannix|talk]]) 13:24, 2 March 2021 (UTC)

Oh, also I feel the explanation should address the irony present for both the aforementioned t-shirts and this hat, due to the fact that in both cases people are going to be reading the words, and thus staring precisely where the words are telling them not to stare! [[User:Mathmannix|Mathmannix]] ([[User talk:Mathmannix|talk]]) 14:52, 2 March 2021 (UTC)
:The shirts bit ''did'' mention that, I remember. Might have been edited out by a revamp. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.21|141.101.99.21]] 00:38, 3 March 2021 (UTC)

I don't look at the video windows at all, and my work team just leaves cameras off. We look at the screen-share document or our own work while listening.[[Special:Contributions/172.69.35.175|172.69.35.175]] 21:54, 30 March 2021 (UTC)

Talk:1323: Protocol

2025-05-08T12:24:03Z

172.69.224.169:

This is funny. I was really drawn into the conversation due to the names. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.246.117|108.162.246.117]] 07:05, 29 January 2014 (UTC)
:Me too! And I'm even more drawn to the meta-conversation!! :) [[User:Nealmcb|Nealmcb]] ([[User talk:Nealmcb|talk]]) 13:30, 29 January 2014 (UTC)
::But what about me? Alice and Bob get way too much time already.... [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_and_Bob Carol (whisper) 13:30 29 January 2014 (UTC)]
Eve appears in [[177: Alice and Bob]] --[[User:JakubNarebski|JakubNarebski]] ([[User talk:JakubNarebski|talk]]) 08:14, 29 January 2014 (UTC)

Heh. I was immediately reminded of the movie, Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0064100/ I wonder if that movie influenced the encryption names, or vice versa, or mere coincidence?[[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.72|108.162.216.72]] 12:31, 29 January 2014 (UTC)

I think the explanation looks complete to me. I vote to remove the tag. [[User:Jarod997|Jarod997]] ([[User talk:Jarod997|talk]]) 14:04, 29 January 2014 (UTC)

Removed then. There was someone who asked for more [[Cryptography]] comic references. I found 14 and have thus made a new category (see link below). Feel free to add more if I have not found them all by searching on Cryptography and Encryption (I have only included those where there were some direct mention of these issues in the commic - or title text) and not just because there was mention of it in the explanation. However, the words does not have to appear in the commic before I included them. i.e. [[PGP]]. But also feel free to delete one from the list if I was too quick to include it [[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 15:45, 29 January 2014 (UTC)

The description misses a key aspect of the comic. The conversation follows the pattern of a message being sent from Cueball to the Computer Scientist, with the CS sending an acknowledgement back and Cueball continuing --- much in the matter of an internet communication protocol, as referenced in the title. [[User:JamesCurran|JamesCurran]] ([[User talk:JamesCurran|talk]]) 17:06, 29 January 2014 (UTC)

I added a bit of text regarding the possible extra joke in the comic title. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.125|108.162.219.125]] 03:01, 18 February 2015 (UTC)

Really excellent explanation. Complete, concise and well written, with some helpful notes in the comments. Keep up the good work! [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.58|108.162.219.58]] 18:43, 29 January 2014 (UTC)

I agree this would explain the protocol title, but how does it compute with the message at the bottom: ''I've discovered a way to get computer scientists to listen to any boring story''? [[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 18:55, 29 January 2014 (UTC)
:The point is that Cueball tells a completely mundane and booooring! story (might be last evening's soap opera, for example), but by replacing the protagonist names with Alice, Bob and Eve, names commonly used in explanation of public key cryptography, he tricked the Computer Scientist into believing he describes some cryptography protocol, thus making him interested. [[User:Edheldil|Edheldil]] ([[User talk:Edheldil|talk]]) 10:22, 31 January 2014 (UTC)
::By the way, what Cueball describes might very well be DNS cache poisoning -- or what NSA's supposed FOXACID servers do. [[User:Edheldil|Edheldil]] ([[User talk:Edheldil|talk]]) 10:31, 31 January 2014 (UTC)

I believe the essence of this story is in the encryption aspect, not the TCP. Many protocols feature a message-and-reply type of structure, it's not unique to TCP. The alternative to having CS reply to each phrase is to have him not reply to each phrase, which would be boring and not really indicate what's going on in CS's head. As some cryptography problems can be complex they are sometimes stated in "chunks" so people can follow along [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dining_cryptographers_problem more easily] (See the Description section of the link). In trying to follow what might be a complex problem sometimes people will acknowledge that they understand each part in turn - weather for their own benefit or that of the problem stater. [[User:Jarod997|Jarod997]] ([[User talk:Jarod997|talk]]) 21:04, 29 January 2014 (UTC)
:Found it: [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruce_Schneier Bruce Schneier], a notable modern Cryptographer has published a number of cryptography books in which he routinely references characters such as Alice, Bob, and Eve. [[User:Jarod997|Jarod997]] ([[User talk:Jarod997|talk]])
:Also: TCP/IP doesn't necessarily ack every packet, it can also ack multiple packets in one go. This allows for a much larger throughput as the latency per packet goes down to zero. [[User:Kaa-ching|Kaa-ching]] ([[User talk:Kaa-ching|talk]]) 09:33, 30 January 2014 (UTC)

Sometimes I like thinking about archaeologists in the far future, digging through the ruins of the second dark age, and finding one of these. They may have no idea what it says, or what it's about. But if they have any sense of humor, their laughs will cause the world to crack and cumble. Cities will collapse as the vibrations echo through the planet which we so conveniently hollowed out. The world will collapse in on itself. Whoever is on the moon or wherever will look on in horror as the planet itself seems to crumble like that of a supernova. XKCD will be the death of us all. {{unsigned|DollarStoreBa'al|20:58, 18 December 2024}}

Welp, i've got to the point where im so much of un undertale yellow fan that the ost just played while i was reading this. {{unsigned ip|162.158.162.103|06:37, 8 May 2025|You don't particularly care for capital letters, I notice...}}