explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

322: Pix Plz

2014-01-08T05:50:10Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 322
| date = September 28, 2007
| title = Pix Plz
| image = pix_plz.png
| titletext = But one of the regulars in the channel is a girl!
}}

==Explanation==
Though this comic predates it, there is an [http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/there-are-no-girls-on-the-internet Internet meme] best stated as "there are no girls on the Internet." (It is also known as [http://rules-of-the-internet.urbanup.com/2799580 Rule 16] or [http://rulesoftheinternet.com Rule 30] [http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/rules-of-the-internet of the Internet], not to be confused with Wolfram's cellular automata.) This comes partly from a supposition that girls aren't smart enough to go on the Internet, or that they are afraid of interacting in such a male-dominated subculture. The {{Wiktionary|puerile}} nature of the Internet creates a repulsive force because of exactly what [[Cueball]] is doing. As soon as anyone claims to be a female online there will invariably be a slew of "[http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/tits-or-gtfo tits or gtfo]" replies.

Randall projects this stereotypical Internet douchebaggery onto [[Cueball]], who behaves this way out of {{w|misogyny}} thinly disguised as a joke. This barely-a-joke, found in certain areas of the internet (especially IRC and 4chan), holds the view that women are only "good for" sex and porn. By making such a huge deal out of her being a girl, he directs unwanted sexual attention at any female who joins.

[[Black Hat]], while usually a destructive force, and self-proclaimed [[Classhole|classhole]], stands up for women everywhere. He enlists the help of a [[Ponytail]] character named Joanna to [http://banhammer.urbanup.com/1921346 ban] Cueball from the Internet.

{{w|IRC}} is the acronym for Internet Relay Chat. It is a protocol that eventually evolved into the {{w|instant messenger}}s, {{w|chat room}}s, and {{w|XMPP|XMPP (formerly Jabber)}} servers around today. With the advent of live-streaming video online, IRC channels are making a come-back as a way for hosts and audiences to communicate with each other in real-time.

An {{w|Electromagnetic pulse|EMP}} is an electromagnetic pulse that will disrupt electronics from functioning normally. An EMP is an unusual spike in voltage. Small EMPs will disrupt electricity momentarily, larger EMPs are capable of burning out circuitry.

At the title text Cueball tries to defend his misogyny by claiming one of his IRc chat system acquaintances is a female, as if to imply that makes his words no longer misogynist (this is similar to the defense "I'm not racist because I have a black friend!").

==Transcript==
:[Black Hat stands in the entrance to a room. The door has been broken down. A surprised Cueball has turned away from his computer to face the remains of the door.]
:Black Hat: Hi. I'm here about the girl who visited your IRC channel last night looking for Java help.
:Cueball: What did you do to my door?

:Black Hat: When someone with a feminine username joins your community and you say "OMG a woman on the Internet" and 'jokingly' ask for naked pics, you are being an asshole. You are not being ironic. You are not cracking everybody up. You are the number one reason women are so rare on the Internet.
:Black Hat: At least, the parts of it you frequent.

:[Ponytail enters the room, holding some sort of device.]
:Black Hat: As someone who likes nerdy girls, I do not appreciate this. I'm here to ban you from the Internet. The gal behind me with the EMP cannon is Joanna - she'll be assigned to you for the next year. Try to go online and she'll melt your PC.
:Cueball: Dude, she's hot. Is she single?
:Black Hat: Joanna, fire.
{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]

721: Flatland

2014-01-01T00:35:18Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 721
| date = March 31, 2010
| title = Flatland
| image = flatland.png
| titletext = Also, I apologize for the time I climbed down into your world and everyone freaked out about the lesbian orgy overseen by a priest.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic is a reference to the satirical novel {{w|Flatland|Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions}}, in which a society of flat shapes live in a 2D world. Half the book is a direct parody of Victorian society, and the other half explores the experience of discovering a new dimension, where a sphere introduces a square (named A. Square) to 3D. [[Cueball]] appears to have take the place of this sphere, and the comic takes place after the square knows the third dimension exists.

Humans will never fully be able to grasp the concept of a four spatial dimensions (at least not in the foreseeable future), but there are ways of squashing or slicing four dimensions to create partial visualizations of 4D space. {{w|Miegakure}} is a 4D game that uses cross sections of 4D space. Cueball attempted to play it, but after having his mind blown he gained more sympathy for A. Square, whom he tried to introduce to 3D. A. Square accepts his apology.

The joke here is that Cueball was being silly and drew lines on the square to make it look like {{w|Spongebob}}, which did not make the square happy. Cueball apologizes again.

The title text is a third apology for when Cueball crawled down into the second dimension. Being a stick figure, he is comprised of a circle and straight lines. In the book Flatland, a circle is the highest social level and represents a priest, and all women are lines; thus, to a watcher in flatland, Cueball would look very much like a priest above many connected women, which would look like a lesbian orgy.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball encounters a square on the ground.]
:Cueball: Hey, A. Square. How's Flatland?
:Square: Still flat. What's up?
:Cueball: I just spent an hour playing a demo of this 4D game called Miegakure.

:[A character in Miegakure jumps around the 4D landscape.]
:Trying to jump from block to block in four dimensions hurt my brain.

:Cueball: So I apologize for giving you a hard time when you were slow to understand 3D space. I sympathize now.
:Square: It's okay.

:Cueball: Also, I apologize for drawing arms, legs, and eyes on you to make you look like Spongebob. That was out of line.
:Square: Yes, it was.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Sex]]
[[Category:Math]]

Talk:900: Religions

2014-01-01T00:22:59Z

Alpha:

Where's the experimental evidence that there is actually a god? '''[[User:Davidy22|{{Color|#707|David}}y²²]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 02:01, 17 April 2013 (UTC)

:Consider who is proposing such an experiment. QED. [[Special:Contributions/184.66.160.91|184.66.160.91]] 03:10, 26 August 2013 (UTC)

:The Bible, duh!  [[User:Alpha|Alpha]] ([[User talk:Alpha|talk]]) 00:22, 1 January 2014 (UTC)

900: Religions

2014-01-01T00:21:16Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 900
| date = May 18, 2011
| title = Religions
| image = religions.png
| titletext = But to us there is but one God, plus or minus one. —1 Corinthians 8:6±2.
}}

==Explanation==

The late {{w|Harold Camping}}, a Christian pastor, falsely predicted that the world would end in May 21, 2011. After that prediction failed, he moved the date to October 21 of that year, and when that passed uneventfully, he recanted his beliefs. In the Christian mythos, the end of the world is called "the second coming" (referencing the return of Jesus) or "the Rapture."

The first frame is a reference to raptors in {{w|Jurassic Park (film)|Jurassic Park}}, and certainly not Randall's first raptor joke. In this film, the raptor dinosaurs get much more dangerous once they learn how to open doors. Cueball mishears Megan, which is why he thinks she said “raptors” instead of “Rapture”.

In the second frame, Cueball references three major religions. Christian and church for {{w|Christianity}}, Mosque for {{w|Islam}} and Rabbi for {{w|Judaism}}.

The third frame is a math joke in which Megan references error bars which are used on graphs to indicate the uncertainty. So, Megan believes in one God (monotheism), as she says in the comic. But if she is still trying to find the error bars, and from the title text it is “one, plus or minus one”, that could be in the range of zero ({{w|Atheism}}) to two ({{w|Dualism|Bitheism}}).

The title text is a supposed excerpt from the holy text of experimental monotheism. {{w|First Epistle to the Corinthians|First Corinthians}} is a book of the {{w|Christian biblical canons|Christian Bible}}. Megan refers to chapter 8 verse 6 (±2), which would be [http://www.bibleserver.com/text/ESV/1%20Corinthians8:4-8 verses 4–8]. In the actual bible text, this section refers to idols and “so called gods”, but also states “There is no God but one.”

==Transcript==
:[Cueball and Megan talking.]
:Megan: So are you worried about the rapture?
:Cueball: No, unless it figures out how to open doors.
:Megan: I said ''rapture.''

:Cueball: Oh, I'm not really into that. I'm the kind of christian who only goes to church on Christmas and Easter, and then spends the other 363 days at the mosque.
:Megan: ...I don't think that's a thing.
:Cueball: Our rabbi swears it's legit.

:Cueball: What religion are you?
:Megan: Experimentalist Monotheism.
:Cueball: Which is?
:Megan: We believe there's one god, but we're trying to find the error bars on that number.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Religion]]
[[Category:Math]]

899: Number Line

2014-01-01T00:14:28Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */ rewrite phi

{{comic
| number = 899
| date = May 16, 2011
| title = Number Line
| image = number line.png
| titletext = The Wikipedia page List of Numbers opens with "This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it."
}}

== Explanation ==
{{incomplete}}
Once again, Randall seems to be just messing around, this time with a number line.

*'''Negative numbers''' have the same magnitude as positive numbers but can only be used to represent the removal of that same magnitude (hence the term "difference" being used for subtraction).

*'''0.99'''.... is {{w|0.999...|provably equal to 1}} because there is no number between 0.99.... and 1. ([http://www.exploringbinary.com/binary-converter/ Binary 0.0000000000000000000000000001 = 0.0000000037252902984619140625])

*The '''{{w|golden ratio}}''' or "phi" is the number (1 + sqrt(5)) / 2, about 1.61803. It has many interesting mathematical properties, mostly relating to geometry, and has occasional appearances in nature, such as spirals formed by the seeds in sunflowers. It is also subject to many less credible claims, such as the belief that phi appears in {{w|Parthenon}} (a well-disputed claim) or that rectangles proportioned after phi are somehow more aesthetically pleasing. Basically, awesome math clouded with pareidolic pseudoscience.

*'''Forbidden Region''' and '''Unexplored''' are both map jokes.

*'''{{w|e (mathematical constant)|e}}''' (Euler's number) is 2.71828... and '''π''' (pi) is 3.14159265...

*'''2.9299372''' is a President's Day reference. It is the average of e and pi just as the American Presidents' Day is always observed on the 3rd Monday of February (between {{w|George Washington}} and {{w|Abraham Lincoln}}'s birthdays). (For non-US residents, Washington and Lincoln were the 1st and 16th Presidents of the USA, respectively. Each has a celebrated place in American history.)

*'''{{w|Gird}}''' is a purely fictional number. (The glyph that Randall uses seems to resemble an older shape of the digit 4, such as seen on [http://www.bl.uk/learning/images/mappinghist/large2296.html archaic maps].) Gird could be a reference to any or all of:
** [http://www.strangehorizons.com/2000/20001120/secret_number.shtml Bleem] - a fictional integer between 3 and 4
** iCarly's [http://icarly.wikia.com/wiki/Derf Derf] - a fictional integer between 5 and 6
** George Carlin's [http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=bleen Bleen] - a fictional integer between 6 and 7
** [http://www.scp-wiki.net/scp-033 SCP-033] - a fictional number that causes freaky things to happen

*'''Site of the Battle of 4.108''' is another map joke, implying that 4.108 is an actual location, where an eponymous battle was previously fought. It may be a reference (or homage) to the {{w|Battle of Wolf 359}}, a famous military conflict in the fictional universe of Star Trek.

*It is often the case in the media that "It has been 7 years..." or "In the last 7 years..." etc. It is made to seem like a believable statistic but cannot always be true. Alternatively, it is intended as an absurd joke that the number 7 is just "not to be believed".

*'''8''' is not the largest even prime. 2 is. A joke intended for those who clearly know that the claim is false.

*The last entry seems to be a reference to {{w|discrete mathematics}}, which rarely deals with numbers higher than 9. It finishes off the tone of the comic that seems to be shaping the number line terms of what is commonly useful to certain areas of applied mathematics, rather than a complete, accurate version of the number line.

*The title text is a literalist joke implying that Wikipedia would like its "{{w|List of numbers}}" page to include every number from negative infinity to infinity.

== Transcript ==
:[Number line ranging from -1 to 10.]
:[Arrow pointing left, towards negative numbers] Negative "imitator" numbers (do not use)
:[Line right before the number one] 0.99... (acutally 0.0000000372 less than 1)
:[Line at the golden ratio.] Φ - Parthenon; sunflowers; golden ratio; wait, come back, I have facts!
:[Line at a region between two and 2.2] forbidden region
:[Line at Euler's number.] e
:[Line a bit before 3] 2.9299372 (e and pi, observed)
:[Line at π.] π
:[Line at 3.5 with a ribbon as the numeral] Gird - accepted as canon by orthodox mathematicians
:[Line a bit after 4.] site of battle of 4.108
:[Blob between 4.5 and 6.5 labeled unexplored.]
:[Line at seven.] Number indicating a factoid is made up ("every 7 years...", "science says there are 7...", etc)
:[Line at eight.] Largest even prime
:[Line at 8.75.] If you encounter a number higher than this, you"re not doing real math

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Math]]
[[Category:Wikipedia]]

272: Linux User at Best Buy

2013-12-31T23:59:00Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 272
| date = June 4, 2007
| title = Linux User at Best Buy
| image = linux_user_at_best_buy.png
| titletext = We actually stand around the antivirus displays with the Mac users just waiting for someone to ask.
}}

==Explanation==
{{w|Best Buy|Best Buy}} is an American chain of electronics and media shops. As many such shops, they only sell boxed software and boxed hardware - where the computers are either Macs or PCs pre-installed with Mac OS or Windows.

This salesman is trying to sell {{w|Antivirus software|antivirus software}}, but Cueball claims he doesn't need it: he runs Linux, an {{w|open source}} {{w|operating system}}. While some viruses also exist for Linux the vast majority is only able to infect Windows systems, so Cueball is positive about that he is safe without that software. Back in 2007, many Linux users believed that Linux would wipe out Windows as the operating system of choice for PCs. Six years later, at least that hasn't happened. (Note nearly all modern television sets, (wifi-)routers and all {{w|Android}} devices are running the Linux kernel, so in a way it ''has'' happened). Nevertheless there are many antivirus versions for Linux including open source software.

The rest of the comic is essentially proving how much cooler Linux users are: the user performs a few amazing tricks, like flipping over on a motorbike, doing a wheely and throwing dirt in the face of the salesman. It's one reason why Linux users claim that Linux is faster because of the actual absence of the antivirus software: no need to scan all files - which allows faster operation.

The title text confirms the above. Mostly like Linux, the software design of Macs also lessens the need for antivirus software. Apparently, Mac and Linux users flock together just waiting for the Best Buy salesmen to ask if anyone needs it - so they can laugh them in the face.

All in all, the intent of this is to mock how Linux users tend to view themselves as superior to other operating systems.

==Transcript==
:Salesman: Interested in updating your antivirus software?
:Cueball: Oh, I wouldn't need any of that.

:[In a spiky speech bubble.]
:Cueball: I RUN LINUX.

:''Flip''

:[Cueball does a backflip onto a motorcycle.]
:[Cueball performs a wheelie on the motorcycle.]
:[Cueball does a hard, donut turn on the motorcycle, kicking up dirt into the salesman's face.]
:[Cueball speeds off on the motorcycle, leaving the salesman in a cloud of black exhaust.]

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

217: e to the pi Minus pi

2013-12-15T07:44:54Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 217
| date = January 31, 2007
| title = e to the pi Minus pi
| image = e_to_the_pi_minus_pi.png
| titletext = Also, I hear the 4th root of (9^2 + 19^2/22) is pi.
}}

==Explanation==

''e'' is a mathematical constant roughly equal to 2.71828182846. ''π'' is another, roughly equal to 3.14159265359. Both are irrational.

The first panel discusses {{w|Gelfond's constant|''e''''π''}} - ''π'', which is around 19.999099979 -- very close to 20. [[Black Hat]] explains how he tricked a programming team into believing that ''e''''π'' - ''π'' is ''exactly'' 20, and that if the system they were building didn't agree, there were errors in the code. This made them waste a lot of time trying to find a nonexistent bug until they realized that Black Hat was lying.

{{w|Floating point}} numbers are how computers store real numbers -- or rather, approximate them: a true real number requires infinite amounts of data to represent. The "floating-point handlers" would be the code performing the ''e''''π'' - ''π'' calculation.

ACM is the {{w|Association for Computing Machinery}}, sponsoring the {{w|ACM International Collegiate Programming Contest|International Collegiate Programming Contest}}.

Some random facts about the math here:

* ''e''''π'' - ''π'' is an irrational number, but this is not a trivial fact. It was proven by {{w|Yuri Valentinovich Nesterenko}} in the late 20th century.
* The mysterious almost-equation is believed to be a {{w|mathematical coincidence}}, or a numerical relationship that "just happens" with no satisfactory explanation. It can be rearranged to (π + 20)i ≈ -i, so cos(ln(π + 20)) ≈ -1. Piling on a few more cosines gives cos(π cos(π cos(ln(π + 20)))) ≈ -1, which is off by less than 10-35!
* The title text gives another coincidence: ∜(9² + 19²/22) ≈ 3.1415926525, close to ''π''.

A much later comic, [[1047: Approximations]], puts forth quite a few more mathematical coincidences.

==Transcript==
:Cueball: Hey, check it out: e^pi-pi is 19.999099979. That's weird.
:Black Hat: Yeah. That's how I got kicked out of the ACM in college.
:Cueball: ...what?
:Black Hat: During a competition, I told the programmers on our team that e^pi-pi was a standard test of floating-point handlers--it would come out to 20 unless they had rounding errors.
:Cueball: That's awful.
:Black Hat: Yeah, they dug through half their algorithms looking for the bug before they figured it out.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]
[[Category:Math]]
[[Category:Programming]]

1301: File Extensions

2013-12-14T05:05:44Z

Alpha:

{{comic
| number = 1301
| date = December 9, 2013
| title = File Extensions
| image = file_extensions.png
| titletext = I have never been lied to by data in a .txt file which has been hand-aligned.
}}

==Explanation==
Computer file names often end in {{w|file extension}}s like ".ppt" or ".exe". These extensions are a holdover from early operating systems like {{W|DOS}} in which filenames had a maximum eight characters followed by a period and the three-character extension. The extension was used by the operating system to determine filetype so that the system would know how to handle the file (e.g. which program could open the file). Newer operating systems and file systems now accept longer-than eight-character filenames, and extensions of greater than three characters; although most extensions remain three characters.

Most extensions are created as proprietary to certain pieces of software, although software by other developers may later be designed to be able to read the format (for example, .doc is a Microsoft Word document, although because of that software's popularity, many word processors include the ability to open .doc files). Some common file extensions are not proprietary to a piece of software and may be handled by various programs (.jpg or .gif images are one example). In either case, a file's extension is generally a good indicator of what type of data the file contains.

Certain file types are more prevalent for certain uses, with some being almost exclusive to one use, while other are in general use and might contain almost anything. Here, [[Randall]] presents a series of file extensions which often contain information, and he is rating the reliability of the information they generally contain from most reliable to least.

* {{w|.tex}} files are source files for the programs {{w|TeX}} and {{w|LaTeX}}, which are used often and almost exclusively by academics, especially in mathematics and the hard sciences. .tex pretty much means serious business, and Randall does not anticipate that anyone would use such a format other than for reliable information.
* {{w|.pdf}} files are a document format by Adobe, frequently used for publication. Companies use them for official documentation. Thus, a .pdf file is likely to be some type of final product or polished work.
* {{w|.csv}} are character-separated values: tables of information delimited by commas or tab characters, and often consist of computer-generated raw data (from, say, a scientific experiment or a database).
* {{w|.txt}} files contain only plain text, no "rich text" or anything fancy. Programmers often use them for README files.
* {{w|.svg}} files are a vector graphics format used a lot for diagrams, such as on Wikipedia.
* {{w|.xls}} and {{w|.xlsx}} files are spreadsheets used and created by the program Microsoft Excel, part of a bundle of applications known as Microsoft Office (also supported by compatible free software such as LibreOffice). These applications are very commonly used, especially for business, finance and data analysis tasks. {{w|.xls}} is used for Excel versions prior to 2007, while {{w|.xlsx}} is used for Excel versions 2007 and later.
* {{w|.doc}} files are a rich-text document format used and created by the program {{w|Microsoft Word}}, another application in the Microsoft Office bundle. As with .xls, almost anyone with access to Microsoft Office could easily make one of these. While Excel is generally used for creating tables and presenting data, Word could be used for any text-based document. Thus, Word documents tend to be far more prevalent and casually created than Excel documents, which is presumably why Randall doesn't trust it much.
* {{w|.png}} files are a bitmap image format designed for the Internet. They enjoy wide popularity for providing crisp, full-color images with lossless (invisible) compression. Almost all xkcd comics, this diagram included, use PNG. But since he rates the format so low, is Randall saying we shouldn't trust this chart?
* {{w|.ppt}} files are used and created by the program {{w|Microsoft PowerPoint}}; as with the other two Office applications, almost anyone could easily make one of these. As they are usually used for presentations rather than documents, the information in them may be arranged differently, possibly to "dumb down" the content, or in marketing materials or talks in which the author may not be very objective. further, several years ago, PowerPoint presentations were sometimes included instead of plain images as attachments in e-mail forwards containing inaccurate information. These emails still occasionally circulate, and may be the source of Randall's distrust.
* {{w|.jpg}} files are another image format with high compression capabilities, good for storing photos (and not so good for many other things). Photographs in general are prone to image manipulation, hence Randall's low score for this file format.
* {{w|.jpeg}} files are the same thing as .jpg files, but these are more likely to have been created manually rather than automatically, making them even less reliable.
* {{w|.gif}} files are yet another bitmap image format, notable for supporting short animations. GIF was once ''the'' Internet image file format until PNG gradually replaced it. Since GIF is the only common image format capable of animation, it is often used to contain things like silly clips of cats falling into boxes, or blinking advertisements claiming that you're the '''[[570|570,000]]th VISITOR!'''. Their frequent use in the most annoying types of advertisements (pop-ups, etc.) is presumably why Randall deems it the least trustworthy out of all file extensions listed here.

Note that while the extensions .xls/.xlsx, .doc, and .ppt were originally exclusive only to Microsoft Office and users of Windows, there now exist a number of open source programs such as Open Office, Libre Office, and some Android apps that are capable of editing such files. These programs can run on systems other than just Windows, such as Linux, perhaps contributing to making them even more widespread and easy to make than before.

The title text refers to how .txt files contain only plain text and nothing else, meaning that any alignment (such as for indentation or tables) would have to be performed manually by adding in spaces or tabs. Anyone who would go through such an effort to improve their text's readability is likely to be trustworthy.

==Transcript==
:Trustworthiness of Information by File Extension
:[A bar graph charting this. No units or figures are given, but for ease of comprehension this transcript will arbitrarily designate the highest score as "+100"; subsequent scores are estimates based on the size of their bars.]
::.tex: +100
::.pdf: +89
::.csv: +85
::.txt: +67
::.svg: +65
::.xls/.xlsx: +49
::.doc: +21
::.png: +15
::.ppt: +14
::.jpg: +3
::.jpeg: -8
::.gif: -36

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

1301: File Extensions

2013-12-10T12:01:09Z

Alpha: use less words

{{comic
| number = 1301
| date = December 9, 2013
| title = File Extensions
| image = file_extensions.png
| titletext = I have never been lied to by data in a .txt file which has been hand-aligned.
}}

==Explanation==
File names often end in {{w|file extension}}s like ".ppt" or ".exe", used to determine the type of content contained in the file. Generally (but not always), a particular extension will only be used by a specific program or small set of programs, making a file's extension a quick indicator of how the file might have been produced.

Because of that last part, and the fact that certain programs will tend to be used by only certain types of people, Randall suggests here that a file's extension may provide a hint toward how trustworthy the file's content may be.

* {{w|.tex}} files are source files for the programs {{w|TeX}} and {{w|LaTeX}}, which are used often and almost exclusively by academics, especially in mathematics and the hard sciences. .tex pretty much means serious business.
* {{w|.pdf}} files are a document format by Adobe, frequently used for publication. Thus, a .pdf file is likely to be some type of final product or polished work.
* {{w|.csv}} files contain a bunch of raw data delimited by commas, and are likely computer-generated (from, say, a scientific experiment).
* {{w|.txt}} files contain only plain text, no "rich text" or anything fancy. Programmers use them for README files.
* {{w|.svg}} files are a vector graphics format used a lot for diagrams, such as on Wikipedia.
* {{w|.xls}} and {{w|.xlsx}} files are spreadsheets used and created by the program Microsoft Excel, part of a bundle of applications known as Microsoft Office (also supported by compatible free software such as LibreOffice). These applications are very commonly used, especially for business, finance and data analysis tasks. {{w|.xls}} is used for Excel versions prior to 2007, while {{w|.xlsx}} is used for Excel versions 2007 and later.
* {{w|.doc}} files are a rich-text document format used and created by the program {{w|Microsoft Word}}, another application in the Microsoft Office bundle. As with .xls, almost anyone with access to Microsoft Office could easily make one of these. Unlike Excel, Word is pretty much the #1 textual file format, which is presumably why Randall doesn't trust it much.
* {{w|.png}} files are a bitmap image format designed for the Internet. They enjoy wide popularity for providing crisp, full-color images with lossless (invisible) compression. Almost all xkcd comics, this diagram included, use PNG. But since he rates the format so low, is Randall saying we shouldn't trust this chart?
* {{w|.ppt}} files are used and created by the program {{w|Microsoft PowerPoint}}; as with the other two Office applications, almost anyone could easily make one of these. As they are usually used for presentations rather than documents, the information in them may be arranged differently, possibly to "dumb down" the content, or in marketing materials or talks in which the author may not be very objective.
* {{w|.jpg}} files are another image format with high compression capabilities, good for storing photos, and not so good for many other things. JPEG is prone to annoying compression artifacts, so it's generally bad for images of numerical or textual information. Cameras often take high-quality photos in the {{w|Raw image format|.raw}} format and then compress it into a much, much smaller JPEG; a JPEG file's content may be less trustworthy as it doesn't contain as much of the detail in the original image.
* {{w|.jpeg}} files are the same thing as .jpg files; however, it is more likely that an image with this extension was created manually rather than automatically by, for example, the aforementioned digital camera. This makes it less trustworthy.
* {{w|.gif}} files are yet another bitmap image format, notable for supporting short animations. GIF was once ''the'' Internet image file format until PNG gradually replaced it. Since GIF is the only common image format capable of animation, it is often used to contain things like silly clips of cats falling into boxes, or blinking advertisements claiming that you're the '''[[570|570,000]]th VISITOR!'''. Their frequent use in the most annoying types of advertisements (pop-ups, etc.) is presumably why Randall deems it the least trustworthy out of all file extensions listed here.

Note that while the extensions .xls/.xlsx, .doc, and .ppt were originally exclusive only to Microsoft Office and users of Windows, there now exist a number of open source programs such as Open Office, Libre Office, and some Android apps that are capable of editing such files. These programs can run on systems other than just Windows, such as Linux, perhaps contributing to making them even more widespread and easy to make than before.

The title text refers to how .txt files contain only plain text and nothing else, meaning that any alignment (such as for indentation or tables) would have to be performed manually by adding in spaces or tabs. Anyone who would go through such an effort to improve their text's readability is likely to be trustworthy.

==Transcript==
:Trustworthiness of Information by File Extension
:[A bar graph charting this. No units or figures are given, but for ease of comprehension this transcript will arbitrarily designate the highest score as "+100"; subsequent scores are estimates based on the size of their bars.]
::.tex: +100
::.pdf: +89
::.csv: +85
::.txt: +67
::.svg: +65
::.xls/.xlsx: +49
::.doc: +21
::.png: +15
::.ppt: +14
::.jpg: +3
::.jpeg: -8
::.gif: -36

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

824: Guest Week: Bill Amend (FoxTrot)

2013-12-09T21:47:26Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 824
| date = November 24, 2010
| title = Guest Week: Bill Amend (FoxTrot)
| image = guest_week_bill_amend_foxtrot.png
| titletext = Guest comic by Bill Amend of FoxTrot, an inspiration to all us nerdy-physics-majors-turned-cartoonists, of which there are an oddly large number.
}}

==Explanation==
{{w|Bill Amend}}, author of the newspaper comic {{w|FoxTrot}}, draws for [[Randall]] in this special '[[:Category:Guest Week|Guest Week]]' edition of [[xkcd]]. In it, {{w|List_of_FoxTrot_characters#Jason_Fox|Jason Fox}}, a geeky 10-year-old from Amend's strip, asks to draw comics for Randall. When Randall refuses, he uses the sudo command, used in {{w|Linux}} systems to perform an action as an administrator/power user. This forces Randall to agree. This is a reference to the very popular comic [[149: Sandwich]], which has now become a geek culture catch-phrase.

In the first comic, [[Cueball]] is making a pun on the word {{Wiktionary|attractive}}. In the first context it means a person is "good looking" or "beautiful" which the (presumably) female character attributes to her hair. In Cueball's context, it means that he is feeling an increased gravitational pull from the woman, due to her increase in mass (see {{w|Gravitation}}). This setup is also very typical of the Jason Fox character, who, ostensibly ten, is supposed to be too young to like girls.

{{w|Werner Heisenberg}} postulated in 1927, his eponymous {{w|Uncertainty principle|Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle}}, which states (roughly) that in {{w|quantum mechanics}} one cannot know both the position and momentum of a particle. The joke is that Heisenberg's wife does not know the position of her keys, because she knows too much about their (the keys') momentum (often dumbed down to velocity).

In many {{w|parliament}}ary and {{w|congress}}ional halls it is customary, when calling an issue to vote to have the people who want the issue at hand to be passed to say out loud that they agree. The customary response to this is to say "Aye." The dissenters are then asked. Their response being "Nay." Then the volume (by rough {{w|decibel}}s) of the assenters and dissenters are weighed. If it is close, a more formal vote may be called. "Aye" is pronounced as "I" and "''i''" is the mathematical value of the square root of negative one, which can be used to represent an {{w|imaginary number}}.

==Transcript==
:[Jason from FoxTrot is sitting at an artist's desk with a pencil, holding a phone.]
:Jason: Hi, Mr. Munroe? I have a great idea! Let me draw some strips for you!
:Mr. Munroe, through the telephone: Fat chance, kid.
:Jason: Sudo let me draw some strips for you.

:[There follow three strips. These will be separated by double new lines.]

:[Cueball and Ponytail are looking at each other.]
:Cueball: I find you more attractive than usual.
:Ponytail: You do? Is it my new haircut?
:Cueball: Actually, I think it's all the weight you've been putting on. Your gravitational pull is pretty severe.
:[The man is now alone in the panel.]
:Man: Just sayin'.

:[Two people are in a living room. The woman is looking through a chest of drawers.]
:At home with the Heisenbergs
:Mrs. Heisenberg: I can't find my car keys.
:Mr. Heisenberg: You probably know too much about their momentum.

:[Cueball is standing on a stage, holding up a hammer. A crowd is in front of the stage.]
:Why mathematicians should run for Congress
:Cueball: All those in favor of the bill say "aye."
:Congressman #1: Aye.
:Congresswoman #2: Aye.
:Congress–Mathematician: √-1

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Guest Week]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Math]]
[[Category:Linux]]

817: Mutual

2013-12-09T21:41:16Z

Alpha:

{{comic
| number = 817
| date = November 10, 2010
| title = Mutual
| image = mutual.png
| titletext = A universe that needed someone to observe it in order to collapse it into existence would be a pretty sorry universe indeed.
}}

==Explanation==
The comic paradoxically depicts [[Cueball]] and [[Megan]] simultaneously thinking about each other. It may be a deliberate prelude to [[818|the next comic]].

The title text refers to the aspect of {{w|Quantum Mechanics}} where a system can exist in more than one state until it is observed. An observation is required in order to "collapse" the system into a particular state (The {{w|thought experiment}} of {{w|Schrödinger's cat}} is a popular way of explaining this concept). The title text proposes that, without someone to observe the universe, it would not exist.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball and Megan are inside each others' thought bubbles.]

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Physics]]
[[Category:Romance]]

1301: File Extensions

2013-12-09T21:27:45Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1301
| date = December 9, 2013
| title = File Extensions
| image = file_extensions.png
| titletext = I have never been lied to by data in a .txt file which has been hand-aligned.
}}

==Explanation==
Almost all file names end in a period followed by a (generally three-letter) suffix known as a {{w|file extension}}, used to determine the type of content contained in the file. Generally (but not always), a particular extension will only be used by a specific program or small set of programs, making a file's extension a quick indicator of how the file might have been produced.

Because of that last part, and the fact that certain programs will tend to be used by only certain types of people, a file's extension may provide a hint toward how trustworthy the file's content may be.

* {{w|.tex}} files are {{w|TeX}} and {{w|LaTeX}} source files; the aforementioned programs are often and almost exclusively used by academics, especially in mathematics and the hard sciences. .tex means serious business.
* {{w|.pdf}} files are a document format by Adobe, frequently used for publication. Thus, a .pdf file is likely to be some type of final product or polished work.
* {{w|.csv}} files contain a bunch of raw data delimited by commas, and are likely computer-generated (from, say, a scientific experiment).
* {{w|.txt}} files contain only plain text, no "rich text" or anything fancy. They are generally used by programmers for purposes such as README files.
* {{w|.svg}} files are a vector graphics format used a lot for diagrams, such as on Wikipedia.
* {{w|.xls}} and {{w|.xlsx}} are spreadsheets. .xls (.xlsx since 2007) is a proprietary format used by Microsoft Excel as part of the Microsoft Office bundle and .xlsx is an ''Office Open XML'' format created by Microsoft. Anyone with Microsoft Office (very popular among Windows Users) could easily make one of these. The files stereotypically contain a mix of raw data (similar to a .csv) and calculations and plots using that data.
* {{w|.doc}} is another proprietary document format, used by Microsoft Word, also part of the Microsoft Office bundle. A good portion of Windows users have Microsoft Office, and any one of them could easily make one of these (probably why Randall doesn't trust it much).
* {{w|.png}} is a bitmap image format designed for the Internet. It is enjoying wide popularity for providing crisp, full-color images with lossless (invisible) compression. Almost all xkcd comics, this diagram included, use PNG. Self-deprecation, maybe?
* {{w|.ppt}} refers to a Microsoft Office Powerpoint file. Again, anyone with Windows can make one of these, but they are usually used for presentations, not documents. Thus, the information will be arranged differently, possibly to "dumb down" the content.
* {{w|.jpg}} and {{w|jpeg}} are the same and used as an image format with high compression capabilities, excellent for storing photos, but not so good for many other things. This file format is prone to annoying compression artifacts; storing numerical or textual information in a JPEG file is typically a bad idea. Digital cameras use JPEG compression while the original {{w|Raw image format|.raw}} could be up to hundred times larger. Therefore, you can't trust the content of a JPEG file, because it doesn't contain the original content. Further, there is also the ''possibility'' that [http://www.geek.com/news/updated2-new-virus-embeds-itself-in-jpg-images-549279/ viruses] can get embedded into JPEG files.
* {{w|.gif}} is a bitmap image format capable of short animations. It was once ''the'' Internet image file format until PNG gradually replaced it for many good reasons. It made a comeback in recent years, mostly for silly clips of cats falling into boxes. It's also used in blinking ads claiming that you're the '''[[570|570,000]]th VISITOR!''', and in the online adult industry for both content and marketing. In addition, because it can be animated, people will often make seemingly normal images that then have something pop out and startle you.

==Transcript==
:Trustworthiness of Information by File Extension
:[A bar graph charting this. No units or figures are given, but for ease of comprehension this transcript will arbitrarily designate the highest score as "+100"; subsequent scores are estimates based on the size of their bars.]
::.tex: +100
::.pdf: +89
::.csv: +85
::.txt: +67
::.svg: +65
::.xls/.xlsx: +49
::.doc: +21
::.png: +15
::.ppt: +14
::.jpg: +3
::.jpeg: -8
::.gif: -36

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

1301: File Extensions

2013-12-09T09:20:04Z

Alpha:

{{comic
| number = 1301
| date = December 9, 2013
| title = File Extensions
| image = file_extensions.png
| titletext = I have never been lied to by data in a .txt file which has been hand-aligned.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Needs more detail}}

The form of presentation can say a lot about the content. {{w|File extension}}s are a quick way of checking the type of a file, and this comic comments on how file extensions can tell us a few things things about the contents.

* {{w|.tex}} is for {{w|TeX}} and {{w|LaTeX}} source files; it's often used by academics. .tex means serious business.
* {{w|.pdf}} is a document format by Adobe, frequently used for publication — a final product, a polished work.
* {{w|.csv}} is just a bunch of data delimited by commas, probably computer-generated and containing raw data (from, say, a scientific experiment).
* {{w|.txt}} is a plain text file; it's usually programmers who use these (e.g. README files).
* {{w|.svg}} is a vector graphics format used a lot for diagrams, such as on Wikipedia.
* {{w|.xls}} and {{w|.xlsx}} are Excel spreadsheets, most likely containing raw data as with .csv. Excel is part of the Microsoft Office bundle.
* {{w|.doc}} is a rich-text document format, used by Word as part of the Microsoft Office bundle. Any clown with Windows could easily make one of these, which is probably why Randall doesn't trust it much.
* {{w|.png}} is a bitmap image format designed for the Internet. It is enjoying wide popularity for providing crisp, full-color images with lossless (invisible) compression.
* {{w|.jpg}} or {{w|jpeg}} is a bitmap image format, excellent for storing photos, but not too good for most other things. This file format is prone to annoying compression artifacts; storing numerical or textual information in a JPEG file is typically a bad idea.
* {{w|.gif}} is a bitmap image format capable of short animations. It was once ''the'' Internet image file format until PNG gradually replaced it for many good reasons. It made a comeback in recent years, mostly for silly clips of cats falling into boxes.

==Transcript==
:Trustworthiness of Information by File Extension
:[A bar graph charting this. No units or figures are given, but for ease of comprehension this transcript will arbitrarily designate the highest score as "+100"; subsequent scores are estimates based on the size of their bars.]
::.tex: +100
::.pdf: +89
::.csv: +85
::.txt: +67
::.svg: +65
::.xls/.xlsx: +49
::.doc: +21
::.png: +15
::.ppt: +14
::.jpg: +3
::.jpeg: -8
::.gif: -36

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

1300: Galilean Moons

2013-12-06T10:11:57Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1300
| date = December 6, 2013
| title = Galilean Moons
| image = galilean_moons.png
| titletext = I'm SO glad I escaped. They almost had me caught in their weird ... thing.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Needs further astronomical explanations}}

[[File:Galilean moon Laplace resonance animation.gif|thumb|365px|The 1:2:4 {{w|orbital resonance}} of {{w|Ganymede (moon)|Ganymede}}, {{w|Europa (moon)|Europa}}, and {{w|Io (moon)|Io}}]] 

The four {{w|Galilean moons}}—the largest of the 67 {{w|moons of Jupiter|moons orbiting Jupiter}}—have an unusual orbit, in that the three inner moons, {{w|Ganymede (moon)|Ganymede}}, {{w|Europa (moon)|Europa}}, and {{w|Io (moon)|Io}}, have an {{w|orbital resonance}} of 1:2:4, as illustrated in the picture to the right. Io has an orbital period of about 1.78 Earth days, Europa 3.55, and Ganymede 7.15. {{w|Callisto}}, the crater-scarred fourth moon, is not part of this trio with its orbital period of 16.69 days. This comic personifies the moons, with the "MOOOOOON!" interruptions representing the disruptions in their orbits created by the resonance. Io, Europa and Ganymede say "Hi!", "What's your name?" and "MOOOOON!" respectively, when facing Cueball. Callisto gets gradually tired of their antics and leaves to orbit Cueball.

Contrary to the comic, Ganymede, Europa, and Io never actually line up on the same side, but only in the same line on opposite sides (see animation).

The title text describes one of the moons (most likely {{w|Callisto (moon)|Callisto}}, the outermost of the four) escaping from the rest. "Their weird ... thing" ascribes a vaguely sexual nature to the other three moons' relationship, which is extra relevant due to the fact that all four moons are named after lovers of {{w|Zeus}} ({{w|Jupiter (mythology)|Jupiter}}'s equivalent in the Greek pantheon), who often held them captive, much as Jupiter the planet holds the four moons captive.

==Transcript==



:[[[Megan]] approaches [[Cueball]], orbited by four small floating balls.]
:Megan: Check it out!
:Cueball: What?
:Megan: I've got {{w|Galilean moons}}!

:[The moons converse as {{w|Io (moon)|Io}} and {{w|Europa (moon)|Europa}} orbits synchronize.]
:Io: Hi!
:Europa: What's your name?

:[They are separated before Io can answer. Io stands alone now.]
:Io: Hi!

:[Europa returns to her position near Io, and {{w|Ganymede (moon)|Ganymede}} joins them.]
:Io: Hi!
:Europa: What's your—
:Ganymede: MOOOOOON!

:[Io is once again alone.]
:Io: Hi!

:[Europa and Io are together again, this time absent Ganymede.]
:Io: Hi!
:Europa: What's your name?
:{{w|Callisto (moon)|Callisto}}: Ugh.

:[Once more, Europa leaves Io alone before she can answer.]
:Io: Hi!
:Callisto: So annoying.

:[Europa and Ganymede re-join Io.]
:Io: Hi!
:Europa: What's y—
:Ganymede: MOOOOOON.

:[Io is on her own once again. Callisto nudges herself toward Cueball.]
:Io: Hi!
:Callisto: ...Almost...
:Callisto: ...Almoooost...

:[Io and Europa are reunited, Ganymede by himself on the opposite side of Megan. Callisto enters orbit around Cueball.]
:Io: Hi!
:Europa: What's your name?
:Callisto: Yessss!

{{clear}}
{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Astronomy]]

1300: Galilean Moons

2013-12-06T10:02:31Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1300
| date = December 6, 2013
| title = Galilean Moons
| image = galilean_moons.png
| titletext = I'm SO glad I escaped. They almost had me caught in their weird ... thing.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Needs further astronomical explanations}}

[[File:Galilean moon Laplace resonance animation.gif|thumb|365px|The 1:2:4 {{w|orbital resonance}} of {{w|Ganymede (moon)|Ganymede}}, {{w|Europa (moon)|Europa}}, and {{w|Io (moon)|Io}}]] 

The four {{w|Galilean moons}}—the largest of the 67 {{w|moons of Jupiter|moons orbiting Jupiter}}—have an unusual orbit, in that the three inner moons, {{w|Ganymede (moon)|Ganymede}}, {{w|Europa (moon)|Europa}}, and {{w|Io (moon)|Io}}, have an {{w|orbital resonance}} of 1:2:4, as illustrated in the picture to the right. This comic personifies the moons, with the "MOOOOOON!" interruptions representing the disruptions in their orbits created by the resonance. Io, Europa and Ganymede say "Hi!", "What's your name?" and "MOOOOON!" respectively, when facing Cueball. {{w|Callisto}}, the large crater-scarred moon, gets gradually tired of their antics and leaves to orbit Cueball.

Contrary to the comic, Ganymede, Europa, and Io never actually line up on the same side, but only in the same line on opposite sides (see animation).

The title text describes one of the moons (most likely {{w|Callisto (moon)|Callisto}}, the outermost of the four) escaping from the rest. "Their weird ... thing" ascribes a vaguely sexual nature to the other three moons' relationship, which is extra relevant due to the fact that all four moons are named after lovers of {{w|Zeus}} ({{w|Jupiter (mythology)|Jupiter}}'s equivalent in the Greek pantheon), who often held them captive, much as Jupiter the planet holds the four moons captive.

==Transcript==



:[[[Megan]] approaches [[Cueball]], orbited by four small floating balls.]
:Megan: Check it out!
:Cueball: What?
:Megan: I've got {{w|Galilean moons}}!

:[The moons converse as {{w|Io (moon)|Io}} and {{w|Europa (moon)|Europa}} orbits synchronize.]
:Io: Hi!
:Europa: What's your name?

:[They are separated before Io can answer. Io stands alone now.]
:Io: Hi!

:[Europa returns to her position near Io, and {{w|Ganymede (moon)|Ganymede}} joins them.]
:Io: Hi!
:Europa: What's your—
:Ganymede: MOOOOOON!

:[Io is once again alone.]
:Io: Hi!

:[Europa and Io are together again, this time absent Ganymede.]
:Io: Hi!
:Europa: What's your name?
:{{w|Callisto (moon)|Callisto}}: Ugh.

:[Once more, Europa leaves Io alone before she can answer.]
:Io: Hi!
:Callisto: So annoying.

:[Europa and Ganymede re-join Io.]
:Io: Hi!
:Europa: What's y—
:Ganymede: MOOOOOON.

:[Io is on her own once again. Callisto nudges herself toward Cueball.]
:Io: Hi!
:Callisto: ...Almost...
:Callisto: ...Almoooost...

:[Io and Europa are reunited, Ganymede by himself on the opposite side of Megan. Callisto enters orbit around Cueball.]
:Io: Hi!
:Europa: What's your name?
:Callisto: Yessss!

{{clear}}
{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Astronomy]]

1121: Identity

2013-11-14T22:55:01Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1121
| date = October 15, 2012
| title = Identity
| image = identity.png
| imagesize =
| titletext = Not sure why I just taught everyone to flawlessly impersonate me to pretty much anyone I know. Just remember to constantly bring up how cool it is that birds are dinosaurs and you'll be set.
}}

==Explanation==
[[Cueball]] lost the server password and is asking [[Megan]] what it is. Megan correctly comments that she can't be sure through text-based messages that it's really Cueball asking for the password; it could be someone impersonating him attempting to {{w|Social engineering (security)|socially engineer}} access to the server. Cueball answers by starting to develop a cryptographic protocol they can use for proof of identity, probably something like {{w|Off-the-Record Messaging|OTR Messaging}} as implemented in many {{w|XMPP}} chat clients or {{w|Fiat-shamir protocol|Feige–Fiat–Shamir identification scheme}} (in reality, it would already be too late for that—they should have prepared something beforehand). Before he even finishes, Megan answers "It's you", meaning that no one else is so geeky that they would answer like that. Cueball tries to stop her, concerned at Megan's willingness to give out the password and also wanting to get a chance to devise his protocol.

{{w|RSA (algorithm)|RSA-style}} encryption uses two large prime, randomly chosen, numbers that when multiplied together form the public key in a public/private key-pair. This algorithm relies on the extreme difficulty in factoring large numbers into their prime components. The public key can be used to encrypt a message that can only (where only is a term used to mean without incredible computation power and time) be decrypted by the use of the private key.

In the title text, [[Randall]] suggests that this is, in fact, his own personality, and that anyone reading the comic can now impersonate him. For a bonus, he notes his own fascination with the fact that [[1211: Birds and Dinosaurs|birds are descendants of dinosaurs]], which one could use to impersonate him as well.

==Transcript==
:Cueball: Hey, I lost the server password. What is it, again?

:Megan: It's— ...Wait. How do I know it's really you?

:Cueball: Ooh, good question! I bet we can construct a cool proof-of-identity protocol. I'll start by picking two random—
:Megan (over text message):Oh good; it's you. Here's the password...
:Cueball: ''NO!''

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Psychology]]
[[Category:Internet]]

484: Flash Games

2013-11-11T20:20:38Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 484
| date = October 10, 2008
| title = Flash Games
| image = flash_games.png
| titletext = Although...who else can't wait for them to incorporate that Wiimote head-tracking stuff into games? Man, the future's gonna be *awesome*.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete}}

Dedicated hardcore gamers will often indulge in expensive, top-of-the-line equipment to get the most out of their video games.

{{w|Adobe Flash}} is a software platform allowing multimedia applications in the browser. Flash became a popular choice for game developers, since playing Flash games only requires a browser and the free cross-platform Flash runtime environment. [[Randall]] is right that Flash games are quite addictive, and gamers may find them more engaging than anything that runs on $$$$ gaming systems. (Have lots of spare time? Try [http://armorgames.com/ ArmorGames].)

Nowadays, five years after the making of this comic, Flash is starting to see a decline in favor of {{w|HTML5}} + {{w|JavaScript}}. The open-source movement especially prefers the latter, since no proprietary browser plugins are needed to run it.

The comic may also be commenting that some modern games are too focused on graphics and not enough on gameplay.

==Transcript==
:[On the left side of the panel, is a massive TV screen, large speakers, and similar devices, all connected to a "Game Station 20,000" console. Cueball, however, is over on the right side of the panel, on a modestly-sized computer.]
:Cueball: Ooh, I think I've got it figured out! Okay, one more hour.
:''Beep Plunk''
:The most powerful gaming systems in the world still can't match the addictiveness of tiny in-browser Flash games.

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

485: Depth

2013-11-11T20:19:36Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 485
| date = October 6, 2008
| title = Depth
| image = depth.png
| titletext = The Planck length is another thousand or two pixels below the comic.
}}

==Explanation==
The comic is a companion piece to [[482: Height]], which explored a {{w|logarithmic scale}} from the edge of the observable universe down to the Earth's surface. ''Depth'' continues the process, viewing logarithmically smaller scales from Earth's atmosphere down to the interior of a single {{w|proton}}. This combination is reminiscent of Charles and Ray Eames' 1977 short film [http://youtu.be/0fKBhvDjuy0 Powers of Ten].

Here's a walk through the entire comic:

* At the top we see a cutaway view of a story apartment complex. From left to right are a [[Grownups]] reference, [[Megan]] {{w|exorcising}} {{w|Windows Vista}}, [[Ponytail]] and Megan playing {{w|Guitar Hero}} or a similar game, [[Cueball]] at a desk, and what appear to be some sexytimes.
* The view descends into Cueball's tower PC.
* Entering the computer's internals, we see a mouse plugged into the PS/2 (6-pin mini-DIN) connector. This is a visual pun, since the mouse in an actual rodent and not a handheld device.
* Next we dive into the CPU. We see a multi-layered pun on the question "how many angels can dance on the head of a pin?" There may be a pun with a chip's connector pin, but the more obvious reference is Randall's answer of 32,767 = 215 - 1, the largest possible value of a signed 16-bit integer. Adding one rolls back over to -32,768, which is 32,768 devils or "negative angels." (See [[571: Can't Sleep]] for a similar joke and a more elaborate explanation.)
* A blood-sucking mosquito appears to be "leeching" a torrent.
* A {{w|segfault}} is a problem with memory access.
* We zoom into a memory unit on the CPU. Cueball is being {{w|rickrolled}}, as indicated by the label "pixel on Rick Astley's shoulder."
* A "fork();" command points at one of several unlabeled spermatazoa. Forking and sperm are capable of spawning "child processes." Groan.
* {{w|Peter Norton}} is the founder of {{w|Norton Antivirus}}. He is shown fighting a biological virus, rather than informatic malware.
* Showing the relative scale of carbon nanotubes, the suggestion is that these then lead on to a more megastructural Space Elevator, for which carbon nanotubes are often cited as a suitably strong component needed for the cable.
* We soon zoom into a silicon atom in the CPU. In the {{w|electron cloud}}, the squiggles made out of arrows are {{w|Feynman diagram}}s. A Feynman diagram in the shape of a stick figure is saying "Sup?", a pun on the "Sup" particle (supersymmetric partner 'squark' to the Up quark) and an abbreviation of the greeting "What's up?."
* An 'iPod Femto' is shown, as a pun on the 'iPod Nano' (both are {{w|SI prefixes}}).
* Brian Greene is a theoretical physicist and {{w|Popular science|pop scientist}} who discusses the nature of the universe. The picture of him knitting is a pun on {{w|string theory}} and PBS miniseries, {{w|The Fabric of the Cosmos}}.
* The {{w|Planck length}} is the smallest theoretically measurable distance, defined by three fundamental constants in physics: the {{w|speed of light}} in a vacuum, the {{w|Planck constant|Planck's constant}}, and the {{w|gravitational constant}}. The Planck length is vastly smaller than any known particle, and modern physics is a long way from being able investigate such a scale.

[[1162: Log Scale]] and [[482: Height]] are other comics about the use of log scales.

==Transcript==
:Sizes Accurate on a vertical log scale
:[Series of images of characters doing various things. The things they are doing are listed in left to right order.]
:Cueball and Megan playing in a ball pen
:Megan using witchcraft to ban vista "Out, Vista!"
:Ponytail and Megan play Rock Band
:Man and woman are having "fun" on a shaking bed.
:[Below this series of images, an image of a man on the computer.]
:Cueball is on a computer and the image expands as it goes down. Here are the labels from left to right, up to down:
:CD
:DVD
:Case
:North Bridge
:PS/2
:Mouse (a physical mouse)
:RAM
:CPU Socket Pin
:32,767 Angels Dancing (one more and they'd roll over and become 32,768 Devils), Rice, Torrent (a bug), CPU, upcoming segfault
:dust mite
:hair
:OVUM
:Data (a pixel on Rick Astley's shoulder), rust mite, fork();
:Peter Norton fighting a baxteriophage
:memory
:carbon nanotubes
:space elevator
:a line of silicon (Si), Electron Cloud, a man made out of arrows saying "sup?"
:silicon nucleus
:IPod femto
:Brian Greene knitting furiously ''clank, clunk''

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Physics]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]
[[Category:Guitar Hero]]

485: Depth

2013-11-11T19:23:27Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 485
| date = October 6, 2008
| title = Depth
| image = depth.png
| titletext = The Planck length is another thousand or two pixels below the comic.
}}

==Explanation==
The comic is a companion piece to [[482: Height]], which explored a {{w|logarithmic scale}} from the edge of the observable universe down to the Earth's surface. ''Depth'' continues the process, viewing logarithmically smaller scales from Earth's atmosphere down to the interior of a single {{w|proton}}. This combination is reminiscent of Charles and Ray Eames' 1977 short film [http://youtu.be/0fKBhvDjuy0 Powers of Ten].

Here's a walk through the entire comic:

* At the top we see a cutaway view of a story apartment complex. From left to right are a [[Grownups]] reference, [[Megan]] doing {{w|exorcising}} {{w|Windows Vista}}, [[Ponytail]] and Megan playing {{w|Guitar Hero}} or a similar game, [[Cueball]] at a desk, and what appear to be some sexytimes.
* The view descends into Cueball's tower PC.
* Entering the computer's internals, we see a mouse plugged into the PS/2 (6-pin mini-DIN) connector. This is a visual pun, since the mouse in an actual rodent and not a handheld device.
* Next we dive into the CPU. We see a multi-layered pun on the question "how many angels can dance on the head of a pin?" There may be a pun with a chip's connector pin, but the more obvious reference is Randall's answer of 32,767 = 215 - 1, the largest possible value of a signed 16-bit integer. Adding one rolls back over to -32,768, which is 32,768 devils or "negative angels." (See [[571: Can't Sleep]] for a similar joke and a more elaborate explanation.)
* A blood-sucking mosquito appears to be "leeching" a torrent.
* A {{w|segfault}} is a problem with memory access.
* We zoom into a memory unit on the CPU. Cueball is being {{w|rickrolled}}, as indicated by the label "pixel on Rick Astley's shoulder."
* A "fork();" command points at one of several unlabeled spermatazoa. Forking and sperm are capable of spawning "child processes." Groan.
* {{w|Peter Norton}} is the founder of {{w|Norton Antivirus}}. He is shown fighting a biological virus, rather than informatic malware.
* Showing the relative scale of carbon nanotubes, the suggestion is that these then lead on to a more megastructural Space Elevator, for which carbon nanotubes are often cited as a suitably strong component needed for the cable.
* We soon zoom into a silicon atom in the CPU. In the {{w|electron cloud}}, the squiggles made out of arrows are {{w|Feynman diagram}}s. A Feynman diagram in the shape of a stick figure is saying "Sup?", a pun on the "Sup" particle (supersymmetric partner 'squark' to the Up quark) and an abbreviation of the greeting "What's up?."
* An 'iPod Femto' is shown, as a pun on the 'iPod Nano' (both are {{w|SI prefixes}}).
* Brian Greene is a theoretical physicist and {{w|Popular science|pop scientist}} who discusses the nature of the universe. The picture of him knitting is a pun on {{w|string theory}} and PBS miniseries, {{w|The Fabric of the Cosmos}}.
* The {{w|Planck length}} is the smallest theoretically measurable distance, defined by three fundamental constants in physics: the {{w|speed of light}} in a vacuum, the {{w|Planck constant|Planck's constant}}, and the {{w|gravitational constant}}. The Planck length is vastly smaller than any known particle, and modern physics is a long way from being able investigate such a scale.

[[1162: Log Scale]] and [[482: Height]] are other comics about the use of log scales.

==Transcript==
:Sizes Accurate on a vertical log scale
:[Series of images of characters doing various things. The things they are doing are listed in left to right order.]
:Cueball and Megan playing in a ball pen
:Megan using witchcraft to ban vista "Out, Vista!"
:Ponytail and Megan play Rock Band
:Man and woman are having "fun" on a shaking bed.
:[Below this series of images, an image of a man on the computer.]
:Cueball is on a computer and the image expands as it goes down. Here are the labels from left to right, up to down:
:CD
:DVD
:Case
:North Bridge
:PS/2
:Mouse (a physical mouse)
:RAM
:CPU Socket Pin
:32,767 Angels Dancing (one more and they'd roll over and become 32,768 Devils), Rice, Torrent (a bug), CPU, upcoming segfault
:dust mite
:hair
:OVUM
:Data (a pixel on Rick Astley's shoulder), rust mite, fork();
:Peter Norton fighting a baxteriophage
:memory
:carbon nanotubes
:space elevator
:a line of silicon (Si), Electron Cloud, a man made out of arrows saying "sup?"
:silicon nucleus
:IPod femto
:Brian Greene knitting furiously ''clank, clunk''

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Charts]]
[[Category:Physics]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]

484: Flash Games

2013-11-11T18:58:20Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 484
| date = October 10, 2008
| title = Flash Games
| image = flash_games.png
| titletext = Although...who else can't wait for them to incorporate that Wiimote head-tracking stuff into games? Man, the future's gonna be *awesome*.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete}}

Dedicated hardcore gamers will often indulge in expensive, top-of-the-line equipment to get the most out of their video games.

{{w|Adobe Flash}} is a software platform allowing multimedia applications in the browser. Flash became a popular choice for game developers, since playing Flash games only requires a browser and the free cross-platform Flash runtime environment. [[Randall]] is right that Flash games are quite addictive, and gamers may find them more engaging than anything that runs on $$$$ gaming systems. (Have lots of spare time? Try [http://armorgames.com/ ArmorGames].)

Nowadays, five years after the making of this comic, Flash is starting to see a decline in favor of {{w|HTML5}} + {{w|JavaScript}}. The open-source movement especially prefers the latter, since no proprietary browser plugins are needed to run it.

This is a reference to the opinion that some modern games are too focused on graphics and not enough on gameplay.

==Transcript==
:[On the left side of the panel, is a massive TV screen, large speakers, and similar devices, all connected to a "Game Station 20,000" console. Cueball, however, is over on the right side of the panel, on a modestly-sized computer.]
:Cueball: Ooh, I think I've got it figured out! Okay, one more hour.
:''Beep Plunk''
:The most powerful gaming systems in the world still can't match the addictiveness of tiny in-browser Flash games.

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

1289: Simple Answers

2013-11-11T18:41:58Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1289
| date = November 11, 2013
| title = Simple Answers
| image = simple answers.png
| titletext = 'Will [ ] allow us to better understand each other and thus make war undesirable?' is one that pops up whenever we invent a new communication medium.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete}}
This is [[Randall]]'s commentary on some of the baseless skepticism and equally baseless optimism directed at new technologies. (Related: [[1215: Insight]].) While it's always healthy to evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of cutting-edge tech before blindly diving in and adopting it, it's not healthy to base that evaluation on unrealistically high standards and expectations. New developments will have pros and cons, and it's hard to tell whether they make the world a better place or not.

Randall has set up a Q&A for this kind of questioning. Most of the them are straightforward, but we'll provide some commentary on selected questions.

''Will [ ] destroy whole industries? Yes.'' A widely adopted technology usually causes another to gradually phase out, and industries will rise and fall as technologies do. This is a bit of a loaded question because "destroy industries" sounds negative, and only covers half the effect—instead of merely destroying them, we're also [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creative_destruction replacing them with something (hopefully) better].

''Will teens use [ ] for sex? Yes. Were they going to have sex anyway? Yes.'' Sex is pretty important to almost everyone, so it'll find its way into most generic technologies. Hormone-crazed tech-savvy teenagers are a particularly strong intersection of the two. Parents fearing teen sex might be worried about how their kids would use the technology, but the second question refutes these concerns quite concisely. This might also refer to [http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Rule%2034 Rule 34] which states that if something exists, it will also be used inside porn as well.

''Will [ ] destroy music/art? No.'' Every new technology for reproducing musical and artistic works (such as [https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2004/03/wicked-player-piano player pianos] and [http://www.forbes.com/sites/joshbarro/2012/01/18/thirty-years-before-sopa-mpaa-feared-the-vcr/ video cassette recorders]) has been accompanied by warnings that it will destroy the industry that supplies it content. The reality is a special case of the "destroy industries" question -- old business models will fall but new ones will arise in their place, and art and music as a whole will survive.

''But can't we go back to a time when—? No.'' Elderly people [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/WhenIWasYourAge express their disapproval] of today's technological luxuries, nostalgically longing for a time before Foo or Bar came around. That's just how the stereotype goes, but there is a large helping of truth to it. Usually, their sentiments are not a fair judgement, but an emotional attachment to the olden days and a [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheyChangedItNowItSucks resistance to change].

The final answer is a depressing and strangely beautiful comment on human nature: ''Will [ ] cause widespread alienation by creating a world of empty experiences? We are already alienated.'' Skeptics may be concerned that a new technology will make people's pleasures and interactions more artificial and shallow; Randall comments that this is already something well known in our society.

==Transcript==
:The '''simple answers''' to the questions that get asked about every new technology:
:{|
|Will [ ] make us all geniuses? || No
|-
|Will [ ] make us all morons? || No
|-
|Will [ ] destroy whole industries? || Yes
|-
|Will [ ] make us more empathetic? || No
|-
|Will [ ] make us less caring? || No
|-
|Will teens use [ ] for sex? || Yes
|-
|Were they going to have sex anyway? || Yes
|-
|Will [ ] destroy music? || No
|-
|Will [ ] destroy art? || No
|-
|But can't we go back to a time when- || No
|-
|Will [ ] bring about world peace? || No
|-
|Will [ ] cause widespread alienation by creating a world of empty experiences? || We were already alienated
|}

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

407: Cheap GPS

2013-11-11T09:28:39Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 407
| date = April 7, 2008
| title = Cheap GPS
| image = cheap gps.png
| titletext = In lieu of mapping software, I once wrote a Perl program which, given a USB GPS receiver and a destination, printed 'LEFT' 'RIGHT' OR 'STRAIGHT' based on my heading.
}}

==Explanation==
{{w|GPS}} is a system allowing people to find their location and speed on Earth. It was first developed for the U.S. military, but now it sees international usage for everyday navigation. Many motorists today have GPS devices (sometimes just called GPS's) that can give driving directions electronically.

"Hot and Cold" refers to a children's game. The goal is to identify a random object in the room, aided by another who can only give two directions: "hot" (you're getting closer to the target), and "cold" (you're moving away from the target). These are also somewhat absolute measurements, so "hot" or "warm" could also mean proximity to the target — look, give 'em a break, it's a kids' game, what do ''they'' know about scalar fields‽ Anyways, [[Cueball]]'s "cheap GPS" unhelpfully emulates this game with hilarious results.

The series of instructions spoken ("cold", "warm", "hot", then "cold" again) suggests that Cueball either missed a turn, or that he just passed his destination.

Randall describes a past engineering project of his that can only describe turns "as the crow flies." So, for example, if he was driving north with the destination to the northeast, the GPS would tell him to turn right even if no such turn was legally possible. Perhaps not very functional, but it ''is'' a pretty cool thing to build.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball driving down the road, with a GPS reading "COLD".]
:GPS: COLD... WARM... HOT! COLD...

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

Talk:603: Idiocracy

2013-11-11T09:08:52Z

Alpha:

This explanation seems to be incorrect. The key point was that White Hat actually was wrong! The average education has gone up, and the average IQ ''cannot'' sink! By allowing Cueball to agree with clearly false laments, he baits him into revealing his stupidity. --[[User:Quicksilver|Quicksilver]] ([[User talk:Quicksilver|talk]]) 19:58, 20 August 2013 (UTC)
:The title text pretty much spells out that, in Randall's mind, White Hat is correct. [[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.66|199.27.128.66]] 06:14, 10 November 2013 (UTC)

I propose that the hatted figure is not in fact [[White_Hat|White Hat]], as neither the hat shape nor the personality are consistent with other appearances. ([[Category:Comics featuring White Hat‏‎]]) The real White Hat, when he speaks, is generally a bit of a wet blanket or well-meaning buffoon. This one, whom I'll dub [[White_Derby|White Derby]], is speaking counter-buffoonery, what we may reasonably guess to be the actual thoughts of the author. Usually Cueball fills this role (eg [[258:_Conspiracy_Theories]]), and in fact if the roles here were reversed I'd tend to ignore the misshapen hat. But two and two, together, well... --[[Special:Contributions/66.114.70.139|66.114.70.139]] 18:39, 28 October 2013 (UTC)
:Eh. He hasn't appeared in any other strips, and it's not too harmful to put him under the umbrella of the real White Hat. I see your point; White Hat is no longer a generic character like [[Hairy]], but an actual recurring one.
:Also, have Black Hat and White Hat ever appeared in the same comic? (Click and Drag doesn't count.) [[User:Alpha|Alpha]] ([[User talk:Alpha|talk]]) 09:08, 11 November 2013 (UTC)

Talk:603: Idiocracy

2013-11-11T09:08:17Z

Alpha:

This explanation seems to be incorrect. The key point was that White Hat actually was wrong! The average education has gone up, and the average IQ ''cannot'' sink! By allowing Cueball to agree with clearly false laments, he baits him into revealing his stupidity. --[[User:Quicksilver|Quicksilver]] ([[User talk:Quicksilver|talk]]) 19:58, 20 August 2013 (UTC)
:The title text pretty much spells out that, in Randall's mind, White Hat is correct. [[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.66|199.27.128.66]] 06:14, 10 November 2013 (UTC)

I propose that the hatted figure is not in fact [[White_Hat|White Hat]], as neither the hat shape nor the personality are consistent with other appearances. ([[Category:Comics featuring White Hat‏‎]]) The real White Hat, when he speaks, is generally a bit of a wet blanket or well-meaning buffoon. This one, whom I'll dub [[White_Derby|White Derby]], is speaking counter-buffoonery, what we may reasonably guess to be the actual thoughts of the author. Usually Cueball fills this role (eg [[258:_Conspiracy_Theories]]), and in fact if the roles here were reversed I'd tend to ignore the misshapen hat. But two and two, together, well... --[[Special:Contributions/66.114.70.139|66.114.70.139]] 18:39, 28 October 2013 (UTC)
:Eh. He hasn't appeared in any other strips, and it's not too harmful to put him under the umbrella of the real White Hat. I see your point; White Hat is no longer a generic character like [[Hairy]], but an actual recurring one.
:Have Black Hat and White Hat ever appeared in the same comic? (Click and Drag doesn't count.) [[User:Alpha|Alpha]] ([[User talk:Alpha|talk]]) 09:08, 11 November 2013 (UTC)

603: Idiocracy

2013-11-11T09:00:52Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 603
| date = June 29, 2009
| title = Idiocracy
| image = idiocracy.png
| titletext = People aren't going to change, for better or for worse. Technology's going to be so cool. All in all, the future will be okay! Except climate; we fucked that one up.
}}
==Explanation==
{{incomplete|explain, title text and transcript}}
The title of this comic is a reference to the dystopian comedy ''{{w|Idiocracy}}''. The film postulates that over about 500 years, society will suffer from a massive decrease in intellectual potential. This development is attributed to the fact that people with a lower IQ are believed to be more fertile and thus better able to pass on their genes. The scientifical approach towards a negative correlation between intelligence and fertility is called {{w|dysgenics|intelligence dysgenics}}.

[[Cueball]] professes his approval for the theories represented in the film, and [[White Hat]] agrees with him, lamenting the gradual decay in intelligence and education. But in panel 3, White Hat suddenly reveals that all the "facts" he cited were wrong, and we learn that he doesn't support the dysgenic thesis at all. He turns to accuse Cueball of conceited self-righteousness (using religious bigots as an analogy), harshly condemning intelligence dysgenics as an excuse for feeling superior to the rest of society. Cueball's suggestion of {{w|Birth control movement in the United States|birth control}} for the unintelligent only furthers his attitude. Although it is not named, one thing at work here is the {{w|Dunning-Kruger effect}} — that stupid people don't realize they're stupid.

White Hat's punchline, playing on Cueball's birth control suggestion, is a direct insult: it would be better to reproduce with a stupid person than an elitist like Cueball.

It's pretty clear here that [[Randall]] is voicing his opinion through White Hat, and using Cueball as a straw man. In later comics, this situation is often reversed, with White Hat as the straw man and Cueball as the reasonable one.

The title text reflects the opinion. It makes a few cheery comments on the future, but then finishes on a rather sour note about {{w|climate change}}.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball looking at a DVD cover. White Hat stands next to him.]
:Cueball: ''Idiocracy'' is so true.
:White Hat: I know, right? It used to be that the intelligent, upper classes had more children.

:White Hat: Sadly, the recent reversal of this trend has dragged IQ scores and average education steadily downward.
:Cueball: Depressing, huh?

:White Hat: Yeah, except ''everything I just said was wrong.''
:Cueball: Huh?
:White Hat: Wrong. False. The opposite of true.

:White Hat: You're like the religious zealots who are ''burdened'' by their superiority with the sad duty of decrying the ''obvious'' moral decay of each new generation.
:White Hat: And you're just as wrong.
:Cueball: But look at how popular—
:White Hat: More harm has been done by people panicked over societal decline than societal decline ever did.

:Cueball: Look — all we need is a program that limits breeding to—
:[White Hat is walking off panel.]
:White Hat: New theory: Stupid people reproduce more because the alternative is sleeping with ''you.''

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat‏‎]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Biology]]

603: Idiocracy

2013-11-11T08:58:42Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 603
| date = June 29, 2009
| title = Idiocracy
| image = idiocracy.png
| titletext = People aren't going to change, for better or for worse. Technology's going to be so cool. All in all, the future will be okay! Except climate; we fucked that one up.
}}
==Explanation==
{{incomplete|explain, title text and transcript}}
The title of this comic is a reference to the dystopian comedy ''{{w|Idiocracy}}''. The film postulates that over about 500 years, society will suffer from a massive decrease in intellectual potential. This development is attributed to the fact that people with a lower IQ are believed to be more fertile and thus better able to pass on their genes. The scientifical approach towards a negative correlation between intelligence and fertility is called {{w|dysgenics|intelligence dysgenics}}.

[[Cueball]] professes his approval for the theories represented in the film, and [[White Hat]] agrees with him, lamenting the gradual decay in intelligence and education. But in panel 3, White Hat suddenly reveals that all the "facts" he cited were wrong, and we learn that he doesn't support the dysgenic thesis at all. He turns to accuse Cueball of conceited self-righteousness (using religious bigots as an analogy), harshly condemning intelligence dysgenics as an excuse for feeling superior to the rest of society. Cueball's suggestion of {{w|Birth control movement in the United States|birth control}} for the unintelligent only furthers his attitude. Although it is not named, one thing at work here is the {{w|Dunning-Kruger effect}} — that stupid people don't realize they're stupid.

White Hat's punchline, playing on Cueball's birth control suggestion, is a direct insult: it would be better to reproduce with a stupid person than an elitist like Cueball.

It's pretty clear here that [[Randall]] is voicing his opinion through White Hat, and using Cueball as a straw man. In later comics, this situation is often reversed, with White Hat as the straw man and Cueball as the reasonable one.

The title text reflects the opinion. It also makes a few cheery comments on how many dysgenic speculations are unfounded, but then finishes on a rather sour note about {{w|climate change}}.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball looking at a DVD cover. White Hat stands next to him.]
:Cueball: ''Idiocracy'' is so true.
:White Hat: I know, right? It used to be that the intelligent, upper classes had more children.

:White Hat: Sadly, the recent reversal of this trend has dragged IQ scores and average education steadily downward.
:Cueball: Depressing, huh?

:White Hat: Yeah, except ''everything I just said was wrong.''
:Cueball: Huh?
:White Hat: Wrong. False. The opposite of true.

:White Hat: You're like the religious zealots who are ''burdened'' by their superiority with the sad duty of decrying the ''obvious'' moral decay of each new generation.
:White Hat: And you're just as wrong.
:Cueball: But look at how popular—
:White Hat: More harm has been done by people panicked over societal decline than societal decline ever did.

:Cueball: Look — all we need is a program that limits breeding to—
:[White Hat is walking off panel.]
:White Hat: New theory: Stupid people reproduce more because the alternative is sleeping with ''you.''

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat‏‎]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Biology]]

1289: Simple Answers

2013-11-11T08:37:38Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

White Hat

2013-11-08T20:27:46Z

Alpha:

{{Infobox character
| image = white_hat.png
| caption = White hat as seen in [[973: MTV Generation]]
| first_appearance = [[260: The Glass Necklace]]
}}
'''White Hat''' or '''White Hat Guy''' is a [[stick figure]] character in [[xkcd]]. He is distinguished by his eponymous white hat which appears to be in the shape and style of a {{w|boater}}. His appearance is identical to that of [[Black Hat]] other than the color of their respective hats. (Interestingly, the two characters have never been depicted in one comic other than [[Click and Drag]].)

In early comics, White Hat appeared mostly as a rare secondary character. Starting with comic [[915]] or so, White Hat started appearing more often and developed more of a personality, often playing the role of a philosophically misguided person. In this way, he's a bit of a {{w|straw man}}, making [[915|logical]] [[973|fallacies]] [[1215|to help]] [[1255|advance]] [[1277|Randall's point]]. Other times, he is simply an alternative to [[Cueball]], [[Hairy]], or [[Megan]].

{{navbox-characters}}
[[Category:Characters]]

767: Temper

2013-11-08T20:12:13Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 767
| date = July 16, 2010
| title = Temper
| image = temper.png
| titletext = Mr. Rogers projected an air of genuine, unwavering, almost saintly pure-hearted decency. But when you look deeper, at the person behind the image ... that's exactly what you find there, too. He's exactly what he appears to be.
}}

==Explanation==
Actor {{w|Mel Gibson}} was the subject of controversy a few days before this comic came out because a telephone rant was taped and released to the public. He laughed off the call, saying simply "I have a bit of a temper."

{{w|Fred Rogers}} was a minister and television personality best known for his children's educational show ''{{w|Mister Rogers' Neighborhood}}''. He's also famous for his testimony before the US Senate Communications subcommittee to secure a much-needed increase in funding for public educational broadcasting. He died of stomach cancer on February 27, 2003, but the legacy he left is substantial; to quote Wikipedia: "Rogers received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, some forty honorary degrees, and a Peabody Award. He was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame, was recognized by two Congressional resolutions, and was ranked No. 35 among TV Guide's Fifty Greatest TV Stars of All Time. Several buildings and artworks in Pennsylvania are dedicated to his memory, and the Smithsonian Institution displays one of his trademark sweaters as a 'Treasure of American History'."

Part of what made Fred Rogers (and, by extension, ''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood'') so successful was the perpetually cheerful, genuine way he presented himself. He was always sincere, but he was polite and gentle in his sincerity. Additionally, in stark contrast to the celebrity stereotype, he was an enormously compassionate and kind-hearted person even when off the screen. People who knew him in real life often observed that the Mister Rogers shown on TV wasn't just a character, it ''was'' Fred Rogers himself (as the title-text notes). This counterstereotype has fueled [http://www.snopes.com/radiotv/tv/mrrogers.asp urban legends] that he was a former child molester, that he served in the military and killed many, etc., none of which are true.

This comic subverts these false suspicions. Fred Rogers is (fictionally) recorded having a fight with his wife, but instead of a Mel Gibson-style explosive rage, he approaches it with a calm, diplomatic, and loving attitude consistent with his real personality. The title-text does the same, setting up for a shocking reveal and failing to meet it.

==Transcript==
:[A black frame with the text [NO VIDEO] in the center, speech is in bubbles.]
:Voice: Sometimes, when we disagree, I feel frustrated. But I never forget how lucky I am to have you in my family. Always remember how special you are.
:Caption: 1981: An audio recorder on the set catches Fred Rogers fighting with his wife.

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

767: Temper

2013-11-08T20:05:40Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 767
| date = July 16, 2010
| title = Temper
| image = temper.png
| titletext = Mr. Rogers projected an air of genuine, unwavering, almost saintly pure-hearted decency. But when you look deeper, at the person behind the image ... that's exactly what you find there, too. He's exactly what he appears to be.
}}

==Explanation==
Actor {{w|Mel Gibson}} was the subject of controversy a few days before this comic came out because a telephone rant was taped and released to the public. He laughed off the call, saying simply "I have a bit of a temper."

{{w|Fred Rogers}} was a minister and television personality best known for his children's educational show ''{{w|Mister Rogers' Neighborhood}}''. He's also famous for his testimony before the US Senate Communications subcommittee to secure a much-needed increase in funding for public educational broadcasting. He died of stomach cancer on February 27, 2003, but the legacy he left is substantial; to quote Wikipedia: "Rogers received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, some forty honorary degrees, and a Peabody Award. He was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame, was recognized by two Congressional resolutions, and was ranked No. 35 among TV Guide's Fifty Greatest TV Stars of All Time. Several buildings and artworks in Pennsylvania are dedicated to his memory, and the Smithsonian Institution displays one of his trademark sweaters as a 'Treasure of American History'."

Part of what made Fred Rogers (and, by extension, ''Mister Rogers' Neighborhood'') so successful was the perpetually cheerful, genuine way he presented himself. He was always sincere, but he was polite and gentle in his sincerity. Additionally, in stark contrast to the celebrity stereotype, he was an enormously compassionate person (in fact, it was the main reason he aired his show on PBS, the only channel that was available for free with only a TV in some parts of the country). It was often observed by people who knew him in real life that the Mister Rogers shown on TV wasn't just a character, it ''was'' Fred Rogers himself (as the title-text notes). This counterstereotype has fueled [http://www.snopes.com/radiotv/tv/mrrogers.asp urban legends] that he was a former child molester, that he served in the military and killed many, etc., none of which are true.

If Fred Rogers ever had an argument of his recorded, it's unlikely it would be a Mel Gibson-style explosive rage, but rather a calm, measured reaction to their disagreement, which is what the comic illustrates.

==Transcript==
:[A black frame with the text [NO VIDEO] in the center, speech is in bubbles.]
:Voice: Sometimes, when we disagree, I feel frustrated. But I never forget how lucky I am to have you in my family. Always remember how special you are.
:Caption: 1981: An audio recorder on the set catches Fred Rogers fighting with his wife.

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

Talk:1285: Third Way

2013-11-04T06:35:17Z

Alpha:

One line per sentence is reminiscent of a diagrammed/formal logic argument in philosophy. It would be a much more effective convention to help people parse and interpret content and validity of e.g. political claims. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.63.198|173.245.63.198]] 17:21, 2 November 2013 (UTC)

ONE SPACE AFTER A PERIOD. '''[[User:Davidy22|{{Color|#707|David}}y²²]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 04:38, 1 November 2013 (UTC)
:MY VOTE TOO!!! --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 18:36, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

Writing plaintext, I always do two spaces after a sentence ending period.
This is probably because I did in fact start typing on a real typewriter.
In an environment where automatic formatting will take place, like a web page or wiki text, I use the newline.
I have had people in this wiki collapse my multiple line forms to one of the others.
(I was disappointed.)
--[[User:Divad27182|Divad27182]] ([[User talk:Divad27182|talk]]) 04:48, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

I prefer double spacing, but I used single spacing in writing the explanation, just to make people happy. Perhaps I should have used new lines. [[User:Concomitant|Concomitant]] ([[User talk:Concomitant|talk]]) 05:10, 1 November 2013 (UTC)
: I'm a double-spacer too. Am I wrong? I can't break myself of the habit, I even do it in tweets! --[[User:Jeff|Jeff]] ([[User talk:Jeff|talk]]) 16:43, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

The 'third way' is a little underappreciated here: it divides the text into self contained logical units, and makes text processing tools (grep, diff etc.) much more usable.
Proper text rendering engines (TeX, HTML, etc.) already make this assumption and group sentences accordingly.
If only I realized this earlier, it would have made my thesis revisions much more easier.
In fact, up to this moment, I thought I was that lone guy in the comic.
EDIT: this comment in xkcd forums makes my point clear: http://forums.xkcd.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=106217#p3489055
--[[Special:Contributions/141.101.96.11|141.101.96.11]] 05:42, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

:As a programmer, I find nothing weird in adapting your style to language. Writing two spaces in HTML or TeX is useless, as they won't render as two spaces anyway. (While using for this purpose nonbreakable spaces, which would render, is a crime.) -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 10:48, 1 November 2013 (UTC)
::It would also render incorrectly if the period was close to the end of a line. If the markup is [last word of sentence][period][nbsp][space][next sentence], the last word of the first sentence could end up on the next line unnecessarily. But if it's [last word of sentence][period][space][nbsp][next sentence], the next line of text would start with a space, which is much worse.--[[User:Rael|Rael]] ([[User talk:Rael|talk]]) 15:16, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

::I end my sentences with a line break, a % and another linebreak. Only after commata etc i use a single line break. Oh, and don't forget to protect the space after points used in abbreviations, not as full stops, by a backslash. Most TeX increase the length of the space after a full stop a bit. Bit question: Why don't double space people, when using Word not just use a longer space instead of a double space. Noone would have the idea to indent a paragraph or substitute a tab with a series of spaces.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.242.117|108.162.242.117]] 03:11, 2 November 2013 (UTC)

I always just find and replace double space with single space. If formatting suffers, someone did a bad job.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.231.228|108.162.231.228]] 06:33, 1 November 2013 (UTC) Synthetica

So, why did double spacing after a period ever exist? It doesn't seem necessary. [[User:PheagleAdler|PheagleAdler]] ([[User talk:PheagleAdler|talk]]) 07:31, 1 November 2013 (UTC)
:Here's the standard explanation: on typewriters, each character takes up the same amount of space. So a lower-case "i" takes up the same amount of space as a capital "M". This is called a monospace font. When typing, if you just put a single space after the end of period ending a sentence, the reader doesn't necessarily get the sense that a new sentence has started. This is particularly true if you were typing in all caps, as might be common on some types of forms or documents. Two spaces, however, does the job nicely. In theory, with modern proportional-width fonts, this is unnecessary. [[User:Rylon|Rylon]] ([[User talk:Rylon|talk]]) 23:36, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

even though i learned typing on a typewriter, to this day i had never heard of the double space thing. maybe it's a US only thing, like the stupid french with spaces BEFORE punctuation marks. [[User:Peter|Peter]] ([[User talk:Peter|talk]]) 07:54, 1 November 2013 (UTC)
:I've always taken the double-space thing as a US thing. Some editors like emacs default to it, which is really annoying. That said, as a frenchman, the "space before punctuation" is normal to me and it is part of the ''codified'' typography -- and I think this is actually an important distinction to make. Is this double-space vs single-space something codified somehow? As a last word, I need to be nitpicky: the exact French typography rule is "a space before punctuation made of two parts (namely colon, semi-colon, exclamation/question mark) and no space before punctuation made of a single part (dots, commas.)" It's a very deterministic rule that is easy to apply (whether one agrees to it or not.) [[User:Ralfoide|Ralfoide]] ([[User talk:Ralfoide|talk]]) 16:40, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

As a german typographer I have to say I’m ''shocked''! ''Two'' spaces per period? A space ''before'' punctuation?! My scientific opinion: you all are completely crazy ;-) (Just kidding, but seriously, two spaces? In Germany, the first possibility to do that safely is your last will …) [[User:Quoti|Quoti]] ([[User talk:Quoti|talk]]) 10:34, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

The doubled spaces appear in my browser's tooltips. (Maybe someone should add some non breaking spaces to the quotation of the tooltip text?) --[[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.236|141.101.98.236]] 10:45, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

As a(n automatic) two-spacer person (just you watch, I'll use 'em here, despite it obviously not being rendered), it's just what I learnt, back in the '70s, here in the UK. I've no idea ''why'' I learnt it. However, it may stem from the same root as the 'rule' in handwriting (not biros, but nibbed pens dipped in ink... wow, I feel old, but it ''was'' at primary school) that we use a gap as big as our our (very little) little-fingers to separate sentences. I imagine differentiating full-stops (US: periods) from commas in the messy medium of ink might be a valuable visual indicator as to what a given smudge might ''actually'' be. So, anyway, double-spacing. On the other hand I should report that, "I've dropped the habit it of appropriate punctuation prior to quotes," I say, "despite being the way I learnt it." And instead I will drop "<- Commas from that sort of position," you see, "even through I'll keep the ones that are semantic pauses." You see how my standards are slipping? Anyway, good comic. We now return you to your regularly-scheduled programme.  [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.214|141.101.98.214]] 14:44, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

:I'm in the same boat this this bloke. I don't get the typewriter tie in. I seem to recall being taught to use a finger gage correct gap of whitespace to leave between the end of one sentence and the beginning of the next. This was in an American small town southern school in the early 1980s. I assume it was for readability. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.236.25|108.162.236.25]] 16:16, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

The "third way" is used for articles on the [http://www.bbc.co.uk/news BBC News] website :-) --[[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.233|141.101.99.233]] 14:52, 1 November 2013 (UTC)
:Actually, they put each sentence into a paragraph of its own, which is yet different. (In HTML: <code>... .</code> vs. <code>... . </code>) --[[User:Das-g|Das-g]] ([[User talk:Das-g|talk]]) 16:07, 1 November 2013 (UTC)
:That's what I came here to say, that the Third Way is common-place on the web today, it is the tabloid style. This headline article http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-24775846 off the BBC right now only has full-stops (periods in en-US) before paragraph breaks, apart from quotations (ie what the BBC did not write). [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.229|141.101.98.229]] 16:11, 1 November 2013 (UTC)
:The BBC is not the only web site to do that - and it is '''so''' annoying. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.222.244|108.162.222.244]] 10:15, 2 November 2013 (UTC)

There's a FOURTH way! I receive a "Weekly Update from Senator Tim Scott" HTML formatted email about once a week (unsurprisingly) which, in lieu of spaces between words, uses a carriage return and a linefeed. This alleviates the question of how many spaces between sentences completely! It also renders as oneverylongword in my email client. Ie: <blockquote>Thankyouforsubscribingtomye-newsletter.</blockquote> [[Special:Contributions/108.162.236.25|108.162.236.25]] 16:16, 1 November 2013 (UTC)
: And a fifth: In France, they use one whitespace before and after double punctions (:;?!) but only one whitespace after single punctuation (.,). --[[Special:Contributions/141.101.79.25|141.101.79.25]] 20:15, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

I think the finger space was to help kids create clear separation while developing their proficiency at penmanship.
I think the 2x space is a fall out from the fixed width formatting of typewriters to help assist the reader (or proof reader) with the start and end of a sentence.
Double spacing has almost become OCD for me. I can't help it. Of course I also leave paragraph marks on while I type as well. I wonder if the French would require a space before a double quote, "The author ponders. "

I think we could improve old school cryptography if we just used carriage returns and ignored the 'new' line.
I might be able to accept and adopt the single space rule if I can make my spaces default to twice the point size of every other character in the style.
[[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.186|199.27.128.186]] 19:00, 1 November 2013 (UTC)
:FOROL DSCHO OLCRY PTOGR APHYT AKEYO URCUE FROME NIGMA DECOD ESAND ARRAN GEEVE RYTHI NGING ROUPS OFFIV EWITH OUT''AN Y''PUNC TUAT IONAN DINAL LCAPS  [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.214|141.101.98.214]] 01:38, 2 November 2013 (UTC)

I have my word processor set to a a gap equal to one and a half spaces after a sentence ends[[Special:Contributions/173.245.52.198|173.245.52.198]] 19:05, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

New paragraph (TWO line brakes) after every sentence :-) --[[User:Sten|Sten]] ([[User talk:Sten|talk]]) 20:36, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

I love how the explanation uses the third method. Nice touch. [[User:JRDeBo|JRDeBo]] ([[User talk:JRDeBo|talk]]) 23:29, 1 November 2013 (UTC)

Does anyone think there's any significance to the sword and the spear? [[Special:Contributions/108.162.208.144|108.162.208.144]] 23:46, 2 November 2013 (UTC)
:Yes, because this is a SERIOUS ISSUE. [[User:Alpha|Alpha]] ([[User talk:Alpha|talk]]) 06:35, 4 November 2013 (UTC)

1283: Headlines

2013-10-29T01:50:58Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1283
| date = October 28, 2013
| title = Headlines
| image = headlines.png
| titletext = 1916: 'PHYSICIST DAD' TURNS HIS ATTENTION TO GRAVITY, AND YOU WON'T BELIEVE WHAT HE FINDS. [PICS] [NSFW]
}}

==Explanation==

This comic satirizes the sensationalist language used in Internet headlines. Many websites generate ad revenue for getting visitors ("getting more clicks"), so some unscrupulous editors seek to manipulate their readers using tantalizing yet formulaic and crass headlines, designed to attract readers rather than summarize the article's contents. You might recognize this technique from those ridiculous text advertisements — "local mom discovers 1 weird tip to reduce belly fat." The practice is nothing new: {{w|tabloid journalism}} has been doing this for many years (e.g. ''{{w|National Enquirer}}''). The numbers shown at the headline are also often wrong and not covered by the article.

Signs of a dishonest headline include giving undue weight to trivial topics, or appealing to readers' emotions or needs (fear, outrage, pity, lust, laziness) instead of offering serious information. In severe cases, it may be a {{w|bait-and-switch}}, claiming to offer something it isn't. By failing to give a useful summary of the story, whilst attempting to force the reader to click on every story on the off-chance that it's interesting, they are intentionally deceptive and can be viewed as a form of spam.

Randall parodies the formula in this comic with such trivializing headlines for important historical events:

*1905 - How a shocking new theory, discovered by a dad, proves scientists are wrong about ''everything!''
:{{w|Albert Einstein}} published his {{w|Annus Mirabilis papers}}, which changed views on space, time, mass, and energy, and laid the groundwork for much of modern physics. They included his papers on {{w|special relativity}} and on {{w|mass–energy equivalence}} ("E = mc2"). He had an infant son in 1905 (born May 1904).
:The use of the term "dad" helps readers tune in emotionally. "Proving scientists wrong about everything" is obviously an inflation of Einstein's achievements. Einstein was awarded the {{w|Nobel Prize}} in 1921 for his work on the {{w|photoelectric effect}}, his work on relativity was still not accepted by many physicists at that tme.
*1912 - 6 ''Titanic'' survivors who should have died
:{{w|Sinking of the RMS Titanic}}.
*1916: 'Physicist dad' turns his attention to gravity, and you won't believe what he finds. [PICS] [NSFW]
:Einstein published his theory of {{w|General relativity}}, which is a vast generalization of the theory of {{w|Special relativity}} from 1905 and provides a model for gravity. In 1916 Einstein had two sons who lived in Zurich while he lived in Berlin.
:[NSFW] is "Not Safe for Work" - a tag to identify explicit images. Here it is used to trick readers hoping to find pornography.
:[PICS] tells the potential viewer that there are images embedded
*1920 - 17 things that will be outlawed now that women can vote
:The {{w|Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution}} was passed, guaranteeing voting rights for women in all US states.
*1928 - This one weird mold kills all germs
:{{w|Penicillin}} was discovered.
*1929 - Most embarrassing reactions to the stock market crash [GIFS]
:This is a reference to the {{w|Wall Street Crash of 1929}}, the most devastating stock market crash in history and the beginning of the Great Depression.
:[GIFS] indicates that the post will contain an animated GIF image - a crude form of short video
*1945 - These 9 Nazi atrocities will make you lose faith in humanity
:1945 is the year that World War 2 ended. It's also the year that many war crimes committed by Nazi Germany were discovered or declassified.
*1948 - 5 insane plans for feeding West Berlin you won't believe are real
:1948 is when the Soviet Union established the {{w|Berlin Blockade}}, preventing food and other critical supplies from reaching occupied Berlin. In response, Western forces organized the {{w|Berlin Airlift}}.
*1955 - Avoid polio with this one weird trick
:The {{w|polio vaccine}} was developed. See [http://www.slate.com/articles/business/moneybox/2013/07/how_one_weird_trick_conquered_the_internet_what_happens_when_you_click_on.html ''Prepare to Be Shocked! What happens when you actually click on one of those “One Weird Trick” ads?'']
*1957 - 12 nip slips potentially visible to Sputnik
:The Soviet Union launched {{w|Sputnik 1}}, the world's first artificial satellite. A ''nip slip'' is when a woman unintentionally exposes all or part of one or both of her nipples; in the context of the internet, it generally refers to a photograph capturing such a moment.
*1968 - This year's assassinations ranked from most to least tragic
:{{w|Martin Luther King Jr.}} and {{w|Robert F. Kennedy}} were both assassinated in 1968.
:Assassinations are rare and tragic, so "ranking" them trivializes the political and emotional depth of the events.
*1969 - This is the most important photo of an astronaut you'll see all day
:{{w|Apollo 11}} performed the first manned lunar landing. During this historic trip newspapers printed as many pictures of astronauts as they could.
*1986 - This video of a terminally ill child watching the ''Challenger'' launch will break your heart
:Space Shuttle Challenger broke apart 73 seconds into its flight. See {{w|Space Shuttle Challenger disaster}} for details. This was the first shuttle mission that included a teacher on board as part of the crew ({{w|Christa McAuliffe}}, ''{{w|Teacher in Space Project}}''), so there were many children watching this particular launch as teachers around the country had TV sets in their classrooms showing the fated launch to their classrooms in real time. But the launch was not shown on the most major mainstream TV stations.
*1989 - You won't ''believe'' what these people did to the Berlin wall! [video]
:{{w|Fall of the Berlin Wall}}.
:[video] indicates a link to a video
*Jan 1, 1990 - 500 signs you're a 90s kid
:A 90's kid is someone born in the late 80's or early 90's (and spent most their childhood in the 1990s). Headlines like [http://www.buzzfeed.com/melismashable/25-ways-to-tell-youre-a-kid-of-the-9 this one from BuzzFeed] toy with their readers' sense of nostalgia. The parody headline is funny because it starts precisely on the first day of the 1990's, appealing to the nostalgia of...newborns?

==Transcript==
:20th Century Headlines
:Rewritten to get more clicks

:1905 - How a shocking new theory, discovered by a dad, proves scientists are wrong about ''everything!''
:1912 - 6 ''Titanic'' survivors who should have died
:1920 - 17 things that will be outlawed now that women can vote
:1928 - This one weird mold kills all germs
:1929 - Most embarrassing reactions to the stock market crash [GIFS]
:1945 - These 9 Nazi atrocities will make you lose faith in humanity
:1948 - 5 insane plans for feeding West Berlin you won't believe are real
:1955 - Avoid Polio with this one weird trick
:1957 - 12 nip slips potentially visible to Sputnik
:1968 - This year's assassinations ranked from most to least tragic
:1969 - This is the most important photo of an astronaut you'll see all day
:1986 - This video of a terminally ill child watching the ''Challenger'' launch will break your heart
:1989 - You won't ''believe'' what these people did to the Berlin wall! [video]
:Jan 1, 1990 - 500 signs you're a 90s kid

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

1283: Headlines

2013-10-29T01:34:17Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */ seems complete now

{{comic
| number = 1283
| date = October 28, 2013
| title = Headlines
| image = headlines.png
| titletext = 1916: 'PHYSICIST DAD' TURNS HIS ATTENTION TO GRAVITY, AND YOU WON'T BELIEVE WHAT HE FINDS. [PICS] [NSFW]
}}

==Explanation==

This comic satirizes the sensationalist language used in Internet headlines. Many websites generate ad revenue for getting visitors ("getting more clicks"), so some unscrupulous editors seek to manipulate their readers using tantalizing yet formulaic and crass headlines, designed to attract readers rather than summarize the article's contents. You might recognize this technique from those ridiculous text advertisements — "local mom discovers 1 weird tip to reduce belly fat." The numbers shown at the headline are also often wrong and not covered by the article.

Signs of a dishonest headline include giving undue weight to trivial topics, or appealing to readers' emotions or needs (fear, outrage, pity, lust, laziness) instead of offering serious information. In severe cases, it may be a {{w|bait-and-switch}}, claiming to offer something it isn't. By failing to give a useful summary of the story, whilst attempting to force the reader to click on every story on the off-chance that it's interesting, they are intentionally deceptive and can be viewed as a form of spam.

Randall parodies the formula in this comic with such trivializing headlines for important historical events:

*1905 - How a shocking new theory, discovered by a dad, proves scientists are wrong about ''everything!''
:{{w|Albert Einstein}} published his {{w|Annus Mirabilis papers}}, which changed views on space, time, mass, and energy, and laid the groundwork for much of modern physics. They included his papers on {{w|special relativity}} and on {{w|mass–energy equivalence}} ("E = mc2"). He had an infant son in 1905 (born May 1904).
:The use of the term "dad" helps readers tune in emotionally. "Proving scientists wrong about everything" is obviously an inflation of Einstein's achievements. Einstein was awarded the {{w|Nobel Prize}} in 1921 for his work on the {{w|photoelectric effect}}, his work on relativity was still not accepted by many physicists at that tme.
*1912 - 6 ''Titanic'' survivors who should have died
:{{w|Sinking of the RMS Titanic}}.
*1916: 'Physicist dad' turns his attention to gravity, and you won't believe what he finds. [PICS] [NSFW]
:Einstein published his theory of {{w|General relativity}}, which is a vast generalization of the theory of {{w|Special relativity}} from 1905 and provides a model for gravity. In 1916 Einstein had two sons who lived in Zurich while he lived in Berlin.
:[NSFW] is "Not Safe for Work" - a tag to identify explicit images. Here it is used to trick readers hoping to find pornography.
:[PICS] tells the potential viewer that there are images embedded
*1920 - 17 things that will be outlawed now that women can vote
:The {{w|Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution}} was passed, guaranteeing voting rights for women in all US states.
*1928 - This one weird mold kills all germs
:{{w|Penicillin}} was discovered.
*1929 - Most embarrassing reactions to the stock market crash [GIFS]
:This is a reference to the {{w|Wall Street Crash of 1929}}, the most devastating stock market crash in history and the beginning of the Great Depression.
:[GIFS] indicates that the post will contain an animated GIF image - a crude form of short video
*1945 - These 9 Nazi atrocities will make you lose faith in humanity
:1945 is the year that World War 2 ended. It's also the year that many war crimes committed by Nazi Germany were discovered or declassified.
*1948 - 5 insane plans for feeding West Berlin you won't believe are real
:1948 is when the Soviet Union established the {{w|Berlin Blockade}}, preventing food and other critical supplies from reaching occupied Berlin. In response, Western forces organized the {{w|Berlin Airlift}}.
*1955 - Avoid polio with this one weird trick
:The {{w|polio vaccine}} was developed. See [http://www.slate.com/articles/business/moneybox/2013/07/how_one_weird_trick_conquered_the_internet_what_happens_when_you_click_on.html ''Prepare to Be Shocked! What happens when you actually click on one of those “One Weird Trick” ads?'']
*1957 - 12 nip slips potentially visible to Sputnik
:The Soviet Union launched {{w|Sputnik 1}}, the world's first artificial satellite. A ''nip slip'' is when a woman unintentionally exposes all or part of one or both of her nipples; in the context of the internet, it generally refers to a photograph capturing such a moment.
*1968 - This year's assassinations ranked from most to least tragic
:{{w|Martin Luther King Jr.}} and {{w|Robert F. Kennedy}} were both assassinated in 1968.
:Assassinations are rare and tragic, so "ranking" them trivializes the political and emotional depth of the events.
*1969 - This is the most important photo of an astronaut you'll see all day
:{{w|Apollo 11}} performed the first manned lunar landing. During this historic trip newspapers printed as many pictures of astronauts as they could.
*1986 - This video of a terminally ill child watching the ''Challenger'' launch will break your heart
:Space Shuttle Challenger broke apart 73 seconds into its flight. See {{w|Space Shuttle Challenger disaster}} for details. This was the first shuttle mission that included a teacher on board as part of the crew ({{w|Christa McAuliffe}}, ''{{w|Teacher in Space Project}}''), so there were many children watching this particular launch as teachers around the country had TV sets in their classrooms showing the fated launch to their classrooms in real time. But the launch was not shown on the most major mainstream TV stations.
*1989 - You won't ''believe'' what these people did to the Berlin wall! [video]
:{{w|Fall of the Berlin Wall}}.
:[video] indicates a link to a video
*Jan 1, 1990 - 500 signs you're a 90s kid
:A 90's kid is someone born in the late 80's or early 90's (and spent most their childhood in the 1990s). Headlines like [http://www.buzzfeed.com/melismashable/25-ways-to-tell-youre-a-kid-of-the-9 this one from BuzzFeed] toy with their readers' sense of nostalgia. The parody headline is funny because it starts precisely on the first day of the 1990's, appealing to the nostalgia of...newborns?

==Transcript==
:20th Century Headlines
:Rewritten to get more clicks

:1905 - How a shocking new theory, discovered by a dad, proves scientists are wrong about ''everything!''
:1912 - 6 ''Titanic'' survivors who should have died
:1920 - 17 things that will be outlawed now that women can vote
:1928 - This one weird mold kills all germs
:1929 - Most embarrassing reactions to the stock market crash [GIFS]
:1945 - These 9 Nazi atrocities will make you lose faith in humanity
:1948 - 5 insane plans for feeding West Berlin you won't believe are real
:1955 - Avoid Polio with this one weird trick
:1957 - 12 nip slips potentially visible to Sputnik
:1968 - This year's assassinations ranked from most to least tragic
:1969 - This is the most important photo of an astronaut you'll see all day
:1986 - This video of a terminally ill child watching the ''Challenger'' launch will break your heart
:1989 - You won't ''believe'' what these people did to the Berlin wall! [video]
:Jan 1, 1990 - 500 signs you're a 90s kid

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

1283: Headlines

2013-10-28T16:28:43Z

Alpha: /* YOU WOULDN'T BELIEVE THEIR REACTION TO RANDALL'S COMIC! */

{{comic
| number = 1283
| date = October 28, 2013
| title = Headlines
| image = headlines.png
| titletext = 1916: 'PHYSICIST DAD' TURNS HIS ATTENTION TO GRAVITY, AND YOU WON'T BELIEVE WHAT HE FINDS. [PICS] [NSFW]
}}

==YOU WOULDN'T BELIEVE THEIR REACTION TO RANDALL'S COMIC!==
{{incomplete}}

This comic satirizes the sensationalist language used in Internet headlines. Many websites generate ad revenue for getting visitors ("getting more clicks"), so some unscrupulous editors seek to manipulate their readers using tantalizing yet formulaic and crass headlines, designed to attract readers rather than summarize the article's contents. You might recognize this technique from those ridiculous text advertisements — "local mom discovers 1 weird tip to reduce belly fat."

Signs of a dishonest headline include giving undue weight to trivial topics, or appealing to readers' emotions or needs (fear, outrage, pity, lust, laziness) instead of offering serious information. In severe cases, it may be a {{w|bait-and-switch}}, claiming to offer something it isn't. By failing to give a useful summary of the story, whilst attempting to force the reader to click on every story on the off-chance that it's interesting, they are intentionally deceptive and can be viewed as a form of spam.

Randall parodies the formula in this comic with such trivializing headlines for important historical events:

*1905 - How a shocking new theory, discovered by a dad, proves scientists are wrong about ''everything!''
:Albert Einstein published his {{w|Annus Mirabilis papers}}, which changed views on space, time, mass, and energy, and laid the groundwork for much of modern physics. They included his papers on {{w|special relativity}} and on {{w|mass–energy equivalence}} ("E = mc2"). He had an infant son in 1905 (born May 1904).
:The use of the term "dad" helps readers tune in emotionally. "Proving scientists wrong about everything" is obviously an inflation of Einstein's achievements.
*1912 - 6 ''Titanic'' survivors who should have died
:{{w|Sinking of the RMS Titanic}}.
*1916: 'Physicist dad' turns his attention to gravity, and you won't believe what he finds. [PICS] [NSFW]
:Einstein published his theory of {{w|General relativity}}, which is a vast generalization of the theory of {{w|Special relativity}} from 1905 and provides a model for gravity. In 1916 Einstein had two sons who lived in Zurich while he lived in Berlin.
:[NSFW] is "Not Safe for Work" - a tag to identify explicit images. Here it is used to trick readers hoping to find pornography.
:[PICS] tells the potential viewer that there are images embedded
*1920 - 17 things that will be outlawed now that women can vote
:The {{w|Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution}} was passed, guaranteeing voting rights for women in all US states.
*1928 - This one weird mold kills all germs
:{{w|Penicillin}} was discovered.
*1929 - Most embarrassing reactions to the stock market crash [GIFS]
:This is a reference to the {{w|Wall Street Crash of 1929}}, the most devastating stock market crash in history and the beginning of the Great Depression.
:[GIFS] indicates that the post will contain an animated GIF image - a crude form of short video
*1945 - These 9 Nazi atrocities will make you lose faith in humanity
:1945 is the year that World War 2 ended. It's also the year that many war crimes committed by Nazi Germany were discovered or declassified.
*1948 - 5 insane plans for feeding West Berlin you won't believe are real
:1948 is when the Soviet Union established the {{w|Berlin Blockade}}, preventing food and other critical supplies from reaching occupied Berlin. In response, Western forces organized the {{w|Berlin Airlift}}.
*1955 - Avoid polio with this one weird trick
:The {{w|polio vaccine}} was developed. See [http://www.slate.com/articles/business/moneybox/2013/07/how_one_weird_trick_conquered_the_internet_what_happens_when_you_click_on.html ''Prepare to Be Shocked! What happens when you actually click on one of those “One Weird Trick” ads?'']
*1957 - 12 nip slips potentially visible to Sputnik
:The Soviet Union launched {{w|Sputnik 1}}, the world's first artificial satellite. A ''nip slip'' is when a woman unintentionally exposes all or part of one or both of her nipples; in the context of the internet, it generally refers to a photograph capturing such a moment.
*1968 - This year's assassinations ranked from most to least tragic
:{{w|Martin Luther King Jr.}} and {{w|Robert F. Kennedy}} were both assassinated in 1968.
:Assassinations are rare and tragic, so "ranking" them trivializes the political and emotional depth of the events.
*1969 - This is the most important photo of an astronaut you'll see all day
:{{w|Apollo 11}} performed the first manned lunar landing. During this historic trip newspapers printed as many pictures of astronauts as they could.
*1986 - This video of a terminally ill child watching the ''Challenger'' launch will break your heart
:Space Shuttle Challenger exploded one minute into its launch. See {{w|Space Shuttle Challenger disaster}} for details. This was the first shuttle mission that included a teacher on board as part of the crew ({{w|Christa McAuliffe}}, {{w|Teacher in Space Project}}), so there were a LOT of children watching this particular launch as teachers around the country (and world?) had TV sets in their classrooms showing the fated launch to their classrooms in real time.
:This is an appeal to pity. What better child to focus on for sensationalist purposes than a terminally ill one?
*1989 - You won't ''believe'' what these people did to the Berlin wall! [video]
:{{w|Fall of the Berlin Wall}}.
:[video] indicates a link to a video
*Jan 1, 1990 - 500 signs you're a 90s kid
:A 90's kid is someone born in the late 80's or early 90's (and spent most their childhood in the 1990s). Headlines like [http://www.buzzfeed.com/melismashable/25-ways-to-tell-youre-a-kid-of-the-9 this one from BuzzFeed] toy with their readers' sense of nostalgia. The parody headline is funny because it starts precisely on the first day of the 1990's, appealing to the nostalgia of...newborns?

==Transcript==
:20th Century Headlines
:Rewritten to get more clicks

:1905 - How a shocking new theory, discovered by a dad, proves scientists are wrong about ''everything!''
:1912 - 6 ''Titanic'' survivors who should have died
:1920 - 17 things that will be outlawed now that women can vote
:1928 - This one weird mold kills all germs
:1929 - Most embarrassing reactions to the stock market crash [GIFS]
:1945 - These 9 Nazi atrocities will make you lose faith in humanity
:1948 - 5 insane plans for feeding West Berlin you won't believe are real
:1955 - Avoid Polio with this one weird trick
:1957 - 12 nip slips potentially visible to Sputnik
:1968 - This year's assassinations ranked from most to least tragic
:1969 - This is the most important photo of an astronaut you'll see all day
:1986 - This video of a terminally ill child watching the ''Challenger'' launch will break your heart
:1989 - You won't ''believe'' what these people did to the Berlin wall! [video]
:Jan 1, 1990 - 500 signs you're a 90s kid

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

1283: Headlines

2013-10-28T16:18:38Z

Alpha: rewrite for clarity

{{comic
| number = 1283
| date = October 28, 2013
| title = Headlines
| image = headlines.png
| titletext = 1916: 'PHYSICIST DAD' TURNS HIS ATTENTION TO GRAVITY, AND YOU WON'T BELIEVE WHAT HE FINDS. [PICS] [NSFW]
}}

==YOU WOULDN'T BELIEVE THEIR REACTION TO RANDALL'S COMIC!==
{{incomplete}}

This comic satirizes the sensationalist language used in Internet headlines. Many websites generate ad revenue for getting visitors ("getting more clicks"), so some unscrupulous editors seek to manipulate their readers using tantalizing yet formulaic and crass headlines, designed to attract readers rather than summarize the article's contents. You might recognize this technique from those ridiculous text advertisements — "local mom discovers 1 weird tip to reduce belly fat."

Signs of a dishonest headline include giving undue weight to trivial topics, or appealing to readers' emotions or needs (fear, outrage, pity, lust, laziness) instead of offering serious information. In severe cases, it may be a {{w|bait-and-switch}}, claiming to offer something it isn't. By failing to give a useful summary of the story, whilst attempting to force the reader to click on every story on the off-chance that it's interesting, they are intentionally deceptive and can be viewed as a form of spam.

Randall parodies the formula in this comic with such trivializing headlines for important historical events:

*1905 - How a shocking new theory, discovered by a dad, proves scientists are wrong about ''everything!''
:Albert Einstein published his {{w|Annus Mirabilis papers}}, which changed views on space, time, mass, and energy, and laid the groundwork for much of modern physics. They included his papers on {{w|special relativity}} and on {{w|mass–energy equivalence}} ("E = mc2"). He had an infant son in 1905 (born May 1904).
:The use of the term "dad" helps readers tune in emotionally. "Proving scientists wrong about everything" is obviously an inflation of Einstein's achievements.
*1912 - 6 ''Titanic'' survivors who should have died
:{{w|Sinking of the RMS Titanic}}.
*1916: 'Physicist dad' turns his attention to gravity, and you won't believe what he finds. [PICS] [NSFW]
:Einstein published his theory of {{w|General relativity}}, which is a vast generalization of the theory of {{w|Special relativity}} from 1905 and provides a model for gravity. In 1916 Einstein had two sons who lived in Zurich while he lived in Berlin.
:[NSFW] is "Not Safe for Work" - a tag to identify explicit images. Here it is used to trick readers hoping to find pornography.
:[PICS] tells the potential viewer that there are images embedded
*1920 - 17 things that will be outlawed now that women can vote
:The {{w|Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution}} was passed, guaranteeing voting rights for women in all US states.
*1928 - This one weird mold kills all germs
:{{w|Penicillin}} was discovered.
*1929 - Most embarrassing reactions to the stock market crash [GIFS]
:This is a reference to the {{w|Wall Street Crash of 1929}}, the most devastating stock market crash in history and the beginning of the Great Depression.
:[GIFS] indicates that the post will contain an animated GIF image - a crude form of short video
*1945 - These 9 Nazi atrocities will make you lose faith in humanity
:1945 is the year that World War 2 ended. It's also the year that many war crimes committed by Nazi Germany were discovered or declassified.
*1948 - 5 insane plans for feeding West Berlin you won't believe are real
:1948 is when the Soviet Union established the {{w|Berlin Blockade}}, preventing food and other critical supplies from reaching occupied Berlin. In response, Western forces organized the {{w|Berlin Airlift}}.
*1955 - Avoid polio with this one weird trick
:The {{w|polio vaccine}} was developed. See [http://www.slate.com/articles/business/moneybox/2013/07/how_one_weird_trick_conquered_the_internet_what_happens_when_you_click_on.html ''Prepare to Be Shocked! What happens when you actually click on one of those “One Weird Trick” ads?'']
*1957 - 12 nip slips potentially visible to Sputnik
:The Soviet Union launched {{w|Sputnik 1}}, the world's first artificial satellite. A ''nip slip'' is when a woman unintentionally exposes all or part of one or both of her nipples; in the context of the internet, it generally refers to a photograph capturing such a moment..
*1968 - This year's assassinations ranked from most to least tragic
:{{w|Martin Luther King Jr.}} and {{w|Robert F. Kennedy}} were both assassinated in 1968.
*1969 - This is the most important photo of an astronaut you'll see all day
:{{w|Apollo 11}} performed the first manned lunar landing. During this historic trip newspapers printed as many pictures of astronauts as they could.
*1986 - This video of a terminally ill child watching the ''Challenger'' launch will break your heart
:Space Shuttle Challenger exploded one minute into its launch. See {{w|Space Shuttle Challenger disaster}} for details. This was the first shuttle mission that included a teacher on board as part of the crew ({{w|Christa McAuliffe}}, {{w|Teacher in Space Project}}), so there were a LOT of children watching this particular launch as teachers around the country (and world?) had TV sets in their classrooms showing the fated launch to their classrooms in real time. Of course, what better child to focus on for sensationalist purposes than a terminally ill one?
*1989 - You won't ''believe'' what these people did to the Berlin wall! [video]
:{{w|Fall of the Berlin Wall}}.
:[video] indicates a link to a video
*Jan 1, 1990 - 500 signs you're a 90s kid
:On the very first day of the 90's, the newspapers already have 500 signs that you are a 90's kid. But nothing has actually happened so far.

==Transcript==
:20th Century Headlines
:Rewritten to get more clicks

:1905 - How a shocking new theory, discovered by a dad, proves scientists are wrong about ''everything!''
:1912 - 6 ''Titanic'' survivors who should have died
:1920 - 17 things that will be outlawed now that women can vote
:1928 - This one weird mold kills all germs
:1929 - Most embarrassing reactions to the stock market crash [GIFS]
:1945 - These 9 Nazi atrocities will make you lose faith in humanity
:1948 - 5 insane plans for feeding West Berlin you won't believe are real
:1955 - Avoid Polio with this one weird trick
:1957 - 12 nip slips potentially visible to Sputnik
:1968 - This year's assassinations ranked from most to least tragic
:1969 - This is the most important photo of an astronaut you'll see all day
:1986 - This video of a terminally ill child watching the ''Challenger'' launch will break your heart
:1989 - You won't ''believe'' what these people did to the Berlin wall! [video]
:Jan 1, 1990 - 500 signs you're a 90s kid

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

1270: Functional

2013-09-27T07:54:51Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1270
| date = September 26, 2013
| title = Functional
| image = functional.png
| titletext = Functional programming combines the flexibility and power of abstract mathematics with the intuitive clarity of abstract mathematics.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|if that's the recursion pun I think it is, Randall needs a caning.}}

'''TL;DR:''' After [[White Hat]] questions his faith in {{w|functional programming}}, [[Cueball]] says that "tail recursion is its own reward." This implies the equivalent sentence "tail recursion is an end unto itself," and that's where the pun lies. Tail recursion refers to when a function finishes by going back and calling itself, forming a loop. If you aren't groaning by now, read on.

Recursion refers to functions that invoke themselves at some point to perform a smaller part of their computation - except where the task at hand is simple enough not to require it.

e.g. factorial(x): x == 1 ? 1 : x * factorial(x-1)

{{w|Tail recursion}} refers to a recursive function whose final operation is to invoke the function itself - crucially with no subsequent computation involved. This means that instead of pushing each level of recursion onto the stack, the compiler can simply arrange for the recursive call to jump to the start of the function with the new parameters - effectively turning a recursive call into an iterative loop, whilst retaining the simplicity of a recursive call.

The efficiency and elegance are the literal rewards of tail recursion.

The example above is not tail recursive because the multiplication cannot be evaluated until after its right operand has been calculated. This next example performs its multiplication before the final step - the recursion - and is, thereby, tail recursive.

e.g. factorial(x) : factorial2(x, 1); factorial2(x, p): x == 1 ? p : factorial2(x-1, x * p)

Cueball is making the pun that "(functional programming) is an end unto itself", which would be both figuratively and literally correct.

A simple example of tail recursion is adding a list of numbers together by adding each number one at a time to the 'rest'.

Every time the function is called, all it does is add the first number to 'whatever every other number in the list adds up to'.
To figure out 'what every other number in the list adds up to', the function just calls ''itself'', passing ''every other number in the list''.

Eventually it will call itself asking what the sum of no numbers are, which is pretty easy: 0.

This seems a bit convoluted, but actually works out fine because if, say, you ask for the sum of the numbers 1, 2 and 3:

sum( [1, 2, 3] )

this is exactly the same as asking:

1 + sum( [2, 3] )

which is exactly the same as asking:

1 + ( 2 + sum( [3] ) )

which is exactly the same as asking:

1 + ( 2 + ( 3 + sum( [] ) ) )

and if here we can say the sum of no numbers is '0', sum( [1, 2, 3] ) is exactly the same as:

1 + ( 2 + ( 3 + ( 0 ) ) ) )

=
1 + ( 2 + ( 3 ) )
=
1 + ( 5 )
=
6

In most functional languages, you can write this out really simply. e.g.:

sum [] = 0
sum ( first_thing_to_sum:everything_else_to_sum ) = first_thing_to_sum + sum( everything_else_to_sum )

or if you're using a less functional language, something like:

function sum(list_of_things to sum):
if list_of_things_to_sum is empty:
return 0
else:
return ''first thing in list'' + sum(''everything_else_in_list'')

The first bit in both cases is the special case for when you've run out of anything to do. This stops the function calling itself forever and never returning, which is the terminating call, or the 'tail call' mentioned above (the end unto itself).

==Transcript==
:[White Hat stands behind Cueball, who is sitting at a computer]
:White Hat: Why do you like functional programming so much? What does it actually ''get'' you?
:Cueball: Tail recursion is its own reward.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Programming]]
[[Category:Recursion]]

Talk:80: My Other Car

2013-09-15T05:03:37Z

Alpha:

Some comedian (Google is failing to tell me who) once claimed to have seen a bumper sticker that read "My other car is a Rolls Royce"...... on a Rolls Royce. -- mwburden [[Special:Contributions/70.91.188.49|70.91.188.49]] 21:37, 13 December 2012 (UTC)

----

This may kill some of the parody, but the audacious spoiler suggests that this may be a Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution (often referred to as simply an "Evo"). While this isn't a particularly fancy car—indeed the base Lancer model could be considered somewhat of an "econobox", on par with a Honda Civic or Toyota Tercel—the Evo trim level can be considered fairly valuable, particularly by performance enthusiasts. Comparing the 2013 models, the Evo trim has roughly twice the horsepower as the base model (291 hp vs. 148 hp), and its base price is more than twice as high (nearly $35,000 US vs. $16,000). The Evo has enhanced handling, transmission, and brakes, and is a favorite among club racers.

On the other hand, there are some who consider the Evo a "toy" car, little more than a go-kart with a stereo. This is especially applicable to the older generations of the mark, as they were less refined than more recent ones, focusing primarily on performance and eschewing creature comforts or any other hallmarks of perceived quality. The over-sized, garish spoiler only serves to enforce the "childish", low-class image (of note is that Mitsubishi seems to have abandoned the ridiculous spoiler for the latest model, offering comparatively conservative ones instead). Having driven one of the older models, I can attest to how unrefined and go-kart-like they are. My opinion is that it would be great fun to throw a car like that around the track on the weekends, but my ass couldn't handle driving one on a daily basis.

So for me, that bumper sticker could actually make sense. It could be my "other" car, one that I only used on track days. [[User:Daddy|Daddy]] ([[User talk:Daddy|talk]]) 05:22, 21 April 2013 (UTC)

----
I've discussed the issues with the image [[File talk:other car.jpg|here]]. [[User:Markhurd|Mark Hurd]] ([[User talk:Markhurd|talk]]) 09:00, 21 April 2013 (UTC)

:I fixed the image by resaving it in an image editing application. I, too, am perplexed why the original wouldn't display properly. The weird orientation doesn't seem to explain why it would fail to display at all. Perhaps it has something to do with the image being a link (e.g., the browser prepares a link area that's 372 x 300, then tries to fill it with an image that renders to 300 x 372 instead, and pukes). Regardless, it's easier to fix the image than to fix the browser. [[User:Daddy|Daddy]] ([[User talk:Daddy|talk]]) 04:35, 22 April 2013 (UTC)
::Yes, your upload allowed the wiki to display the file without attempting to thumbnail it. It's definitely a wiki problem, not a browser issue, as the image worked correctly when I got it to not use the thumbnail version, which still don't work. [[User:Markhurd|Mark Hurd]] ([[User talk:Markhurd|talk]]) 11:09, 22 April 2013 (UTC)

My other car is an honor student. [[User:Alpha|Alpha]] ([[User talk:Alpha|talk]]) 05:03, 15 September 2013 (UTC)

Talk:140: Delicious

2013-09-15T04:41:35Z

Alpha: +

[[User:Rikthoff|Rikthoff]] ([[User talk:Rikthoff|talk]]) The issue date is definitely off. Can anyone fix?
:Fixed --[[User:DanB|DanB]] ([[User talk:DanB|talk]]) 13:52, 14 August 2012 (UTC)

Also, my wife has a similar problem with cereal. She won't drink the milk after finishing the cereal, so she goes to get more milk. --[[User:DanB|DanB]] ([[User talk:DanB|talk]]) 13:52, 14 August 2012 (UTC)

If you melt the cheese enough, it becomes a vi'''sc'''ous cycle. [[User:Alpha|Alpha]] ([[User talk:Alpha|talk]]) 04:41, 15 September 2013 (UTC)

1011: Baby Names

2013-09-13T07:13:55Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1011
| date = February 1, 2012
| title = Baby Names
| image = baby names.png
| titletext = I've been trying for a couple years now but I haven't been able to come up with a name dumber than 'Renesmee'.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete}}

# '''Ponzi:''' Probably a reference to {{w|Ponzi scheme}}s.
# '''Eeemily:''' Extension of "Emily."
# '''Fire Fire'''
# '''Chipotla:''' Possible corruption of "Chipotle."
# '''Astamouthe:''' Ick.
# '''Eggsperm:''' Two important ingredients to make a person.
# '''[sound of record scratch]'''
# '''Parsley'''
# '''Hot'n'Juicy Ann'''
# '''Ovari:''' Corruption of "ovary."
# '''Friendly'''
# '''Sean (pronounced "seen"):''' Play on the unusual pronunciation of the name.
# '''Joyst'''

The punchline for this one is in the title text as Renesmee is the name of Renesmee Cullen, who is the baby born in the book and movie, {{w|Breaking Dawn|Breaking Dawn}} to parents Edward and Bella. Edward and Bella get "Renesmee" from an amalgamation of the names of Bella's mother, Renée, and Edward's adoptive mother, Esme.

Randall's point above stands. All those names are terrible, but not nearly as terrible as the name Renesmee.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball sits at a desk, thinking with his hand on his chin, his other hand holding a pen over a piece of paper. Megan stands behind him, looking over his shoulder, also with her hand on her chin.]

:[Above the drawing is the list they are writing by hand.]

:Names for daughter

:# Ponzi
:# Eeemily
:# Fire Fire
:# Chipotla
:# Astamouthe
:# Eggsperm
:# [sound of record scratch]
:# Parsley
:# Hot'n'Juicy Ann
:# Ovari
:# Friendly
:# Sean (pronounced "seen")
:# Joyst

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Charts]]

1011: Baby Names

2013-09-13T07:07:43Z

Alpha: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 1011
| date = February 1, 2012
| title = Baby Names
| image = baby names.png
| titletext = I've been trying for a couple years now but I haven't been able to come up with a name dumber than 'Renesmee'.
}}

==Explanation==
The punchline for this one is in the title text as Renesmee is the name of Renesmee Cullen, who is the baby born in the book and movie, {{w|Breaking Dawn|Breaking Dawn}} to parents Edward and Bella. Edward and Bella get "Renesmee" from an amalgamation of the names of Bella's mother, Renée, and Edward's adoptive mother, Esme.

Randall's point above stands. All those names are terrible, but not nearly as terrible as the name Renesmee.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball sits at a desk, thinking with his hand on his chin, his other hand holding a pen over a piece of paper. Megan stands behind him, looking over his shoulder, also with her hand on her chin.]

:[Above the drawing is the list they are writing by hand.]

:Names for daughter

:# Ponzi
:# Eeemily
:# Fire Fire
:# Chipotla
:# Astamouthe
:# Eggsperm
:# [sound of record scratch]
:# Parsley
:# Hot'n'Juicy Ann
:# Ovari
:# Friendly
:# Sean (pronounced "seen")
:# Joyst

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Charts]]

1008: Suckville

2013-09-13T07:05:12Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1008
| date = January 25, 2012
| title = Suckville
| image = suckville.png
| titletext = Suckville is considered by the Census Bureau to be part of the Detroit metropolitan statistical area, despite not being located anywhere near Detroit.
}}

==Explanation==
[[Megan]] and [[Cueball]] are playing a card game (maybe {{w|Dominion (game)|Dominion}} or {{w|Magic: The Gathering}}) and Megan whips a common insult, a play on the word "suck" that adds a typical city name suffix to the end of it. Other variations are: "losertown", "lameville", etc.

The phrase is originally based on the ubiquitous signage you see along roads that say "Welcome to Town X - Population Y".

Then, since Cueball one-ups Megan by indicating there is a city by that name, she can only resign herself to the fact that her smack talk did not work.

The title text informs the reader that Suckville is classified as part of the Detroit area despite not being located there. Detroit, of course, is the quintessential example of a city so run down, it might as well really be named "Suckville", or include a district of that name. In fact, the city only recently (2013) declared itself bankrupt.
(Fun fact: looking in the [http://factfinder2.census.gov/main.html factfinder] Suckville is "corrected" to {{w|Saukville, Wisconsin}}, which is indeed not particularly close to {{w|Detroit, Michigan}})

In the third panel, Megan has not turned into an insect — her legs are just shifting position and both positions are depicted at once.

==Transcript==
:[Megan is kneeling on the floor, playing a card game.]
:Megan: Hah! -- Welcome to Suckville - population: you.
:[Cueball is sitting on the floor opposite her, also playing the game.]
:Cueball: Why are you using 2000 census data? -- That's an old figure.
:[Megan turns around from the game to look at her laptop, which is sitting on the floor behind her.]
:Megan: I couldn't find Suckville in the 2010 census.
:Cueball: Huh? It's right there in SF-1 table P1.
:Megan: Oh. So it is.
:[Megan turns back to Cueball, who is looking at his cards.]
:Megan: Well, then. Welcome to Suckville - population: 83.
:Cueball: Much better.

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

1006: Sloppier Than Fiction

2013-09-13T07:00:02Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */ RIP Ebert

{{comic
| number = 1006
| date = January 20, 2012
| title = Sloppier Than Fiction
| image = sloppier_than_fiction.png
| imagesize =
| titletext = Roger Ebert once called you directionless and unwatchable.
}}

==Explanation==

This comic is basically about a terrible person that [[Cueball]] is somehow talking to, possibly at a bar or party as Goatee Guy is carrying a drink.

The title of this comic is a play on the phrase "Stranger than Fiction", which means that sometimes real life can lead to some unexpected ups and downs that would not even make sense in a fictional representation in a book or a movie. Goatee Guy unfortunately for him, is "Sloppier than Fiction".

In the title text, {{w|Roger Ebert}} was a famous American {{w|movie critic}}.

Oh and FYI, if anyone ever says "It wasn't technically cheating"... it was cheating.

==Transcript==
:[A douchebag with a goatee and a bad haircut talks to Cueball.]
:Douchebag: Even though it technically *wasn't* cheating, she dumped me anyway! So I tell Bret, and he's like "She sounds just like my crazy ex." And I was like, "dude, what was her name?" and it was the *same girl*. I swear, if they made my life into a movie, no one would believe it.
:Cueball: Yeah, though mostly because of the poorly-written dialogue and unlikeable main character.

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

1264

2013-09-13T05:56:39Z

Alpha: Redirected page to 1264: Slideshow

#REDIRECT [[1264: Slideshow]]

1264: Slideshow

2013-09-13T05:56:11Z

Alpha: Created page with "{{comic | number = 1264 | date = September 13, 2013 | title = Slideshow | image = slideshow.gif | titletext = Points to anyone who hacks the Flickr devs' compu..."

{{comic
| number = 1264
| date = September 13, 2013
| title = Slideshow
| image = slideshow.gif
| titletext = Points to anyone who hacks the Flickr devs' computers to make their text editors do this when you click on anything.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete}}

==Transcript==

:Dear website operators,
:[Animation of Cueball saying these three things with fading and zooming effects.]
:Cueball: I will ''never''...
:Cueball: ...want to browse a series of images...
:Cueball: ...like this.

{{comic discussion}}

File:slideshow.gif

2013-09-13T05:53:05Z

Alpha: Comic #1264.

== Summary ==
Comic #1264.
== Licensing ==
{{XKCD file}}

Talk:List of all comics

2013-09-13T05:51:54Z

Alpha: /* GIF */ new section

==Add blog entry==
Hmm is there a way we can have a column linking to the original explainxkcd blog entry if it exists? --[[User:SurturZ|SurturZ]] ([[User talk:SurturZ|talk]]) 08:55, 5 August 2012 (EDT)
:Sure, that makes perfect sense, especially since the comments were very important for many of the comics. Feel free to add it :) --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 14:27, 5 August 2012 (EDT)

==Create not working==
The create-links don't work because "Template:'''C'''reate" has to be written with a capital C. Unfortunately, text replacing is not installed. --[[User:Kronf|Kronf]] ([[User talk:Kronf|talk]]) 13:58, 29 August 2012 (UTC)
:For future reference, Kronf himself {{diff|11070|moved}} the template to the lowercase title to make this work. [[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 18:01, 1 May 2013 (UTC)

==Dates==
The dates for comics 12 and 5 can be deduced from the dates of the adjacent comics - they're all 2005-09-30. We can also make a jab at guessing that comic number 36 is between 2005-10-28 and 2005-10-26. Those comments in the source annoy me, and I wish them gone. We could also jump on the XKCD forums and see if they know anything, but the relative dates should be telling enough. [[User:Davidy22|Davidy22]][[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>(talk)</tt>]] 09:06, 27 November 2012 (UTC)

:XKCD back in 2005 was not published on a regular schedule. Randall doesn't have logs from when those comics went live, so the dates are in fact lost to history. [[User:Lcarsos|lcarsos]]_a ([[User talk:Lcarsos|talk]]) 15:57, 27 November 2012 (UTC)

::Yeeah, but we can see from the dates on comics submitted around the unknowns that the first 14 comics seem to have been batch-uploaded on the same day, and that comics 35 and 37 leave a three-day range that comic 36 could have been published on, the most likely of those dates being 2005-10-27 given the way that Randall seems to never release two comics on the same day after his initial 14. [[User:Davidy22|Davidy22]][[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>(talk)</tt>]] 06:10, 28 November 2012 (UTC)

According to [http://xkcd.com/archive/ xkcd archive] the first comics are released on 01.01.2006 at xkcd. I think we should reflect this here and only mention earlier releases at explanation. What do you think?--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 20:34, 3 June 2013 (UTC)

:Those are automatically entered dates for null fields. They're not necessarily correct. It would be nice if we could figure out exactly when they were uploaded though. Not enough information, we'll probably just have to build up clout and grill Randall for information. Nooot optimal. '''[[User:Davidy22|{{Color|#707|David}}y²²]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 23:39, 3 June 2013 (UTC)
::You're right, it's not optimal. When I am looking for historical websites I am often using this site: [http://web.archive.org web.archive.org]. The first entry gave me this:
:::http://www.xkcd.com:80/ | 17:01:40 Dec 17, 2003
:::Got an HTTP 302 response at crawl time
:::Redirecting to...
:::lacuna.res.wpi.net/~xkcd
::'''Whois''' is telling this (Registered through: GoDaddy.com):
::: Domain Name: XKCD.COM Created on: 25-Jan-03
::So it seems it's really hard to determine what Randall did ten years ago. Needs many more investigations...--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 20:58, 4 June 2013 (UTC)

== Broken comics here ==

The comics 1031 and 1245 do need a review on special characters. Links do not work while pages do exit.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 20:53, 31 July 2013 (UTC)

== GIF ==

Crap. 1264 is an animated GIF, and the template used on this page has PNG hardcoded into it. Can someone fix this? [[User:Alpha|Alpha]] ([[User talk:Alpha|talk]]) 05:51, 13 September 2013 (UTC)

List of all comics (1001-1500)

2013-09-13T05:48:46Z

Alpha: adding comic 1264

This is the list of comics from '''1001 to {{LATESTCOMIC}}'''.
:For the first 500 comics, see [[List of all comics (1-500)]].
:For comics 501-1000, see [[List of all comics (501-1000)]].
:The whole list is available at [[List of all comics (full)]].

{| class="wikitable sortable plainlinks table-padding"
|-
!xkcd
!Title
!Redirects
!Image
!Date<onlyinclude>
{{comicsrow|1264|2013-09-13|Slideshow}}
{{comicsrow|1263|2013-09-11|Reassuring}}
{{comicsrow|1262|2013-09-09|Unquote}}
{{comicsrow|1261|2013-09-06|Shake That}}
{{comicsrow|1260|2013-09-04|LD50}}
{{comicsrow|1259|2013-09-02|Bee Orchid}}
{{comicsrow|1258|2013-08-30|First}}
{{comicsrow|1257|2013-08-28|Monster}}
{{comicsrow|1256|2013-08-26|Questions}}
{{comicsrow|1255|2013-08-23|Columbus}}
{{comicsrow|1254|2013-08-21|Preferred Chat System}}
{{comicsrow|1253|2013-08-19|Exoplanet Names}}
{{comicsrow|1252|2013-08-16|Increased Risk}}
{{comicsrow|1251|2013-08-14|Anti-Glass|anti_glass.png}}
{{comicsrow|1250|2013-08-12|Old Accounts}}
{{comicsrow|1249|2013-08-09|Meteor Showers}}
{{comicsrow|1248|2013-08-07|Sphere}}
{{comicsrow|1247|2013-08-05|The Mother of All Suspicious Files}}
{{comicsrow|1246|2013-08-02|Pale Blue Dot}}
{{comicsrow|1245|2013-07-31|10-Day Forecast|10 day forecast.png}}
{{comicsrow|1244|2013-07-29|Six Words}}
{{comicsrow|1243|2013-07-26|Snare}}
{{comicsrow|1242|2013-07-24|Scary Names}}
{{comicsrow|1241|2013-07-22|Annoying Ringtone Champion}}
{{comicsrow|1240|2013-07-19|Quantum Mechanics}}
{{comicsrow|1239|2013-07-17|Social Media}}
{{comicsrow|1238|2013-07-15|Enlightenment}}
{{comicsrow|1237|2013-07-12|QR Code}}
{{comicsrow|1236|2013-07-10|Seashell}}
{{comicsrow|1235|2013-07-08|Settled}}
{{comicsrow|1234|2013-07-05|Douglas Engelbart (1925-2013)|douglas_engelbart_1925_2013.png}}
{{comicsrow|1233|2013-07-03|Relativity}}
{{comicsrow|1232|2013-07-01|Realistic Criteria}}
{{comicsrow|1231|2013-06-28|Habitable Zone}}
{{comicsrow|1230|2013-06-26|Polar/Cartesian|polar_cartesian.png}}
{{comicsrow|1229|2013-06-24|Screensaver}}
{{comicsrow|1228|2013-06-21|Prometheus}}
{{comicsrow|1227|2013-06-19|The Pace of Modern Life}}
{{comicsrow|1226|2013-06-17|Balloon Internet}}
{{comicsrow|1225|2013-06-14|Ice Sheets}}
{{comicsrow|1224|2013-06-12|Council of 300}}
{{comicsrow|1223|2013-06-10|Dwarf Fortress}}
{{comicsrow|1222|2013-06-07|Pastime}}
{{comicsrow|1221|2013-06-05|Nomenclature}}
{{comicsrow|1220|2013-06-03|Hipsters}}
{{comicsrow|1219|2013-05-31|Reports}}
{{comicsrow|1218|2013-05-29|Doors of Durin}}
{{comicsrow|1217|2013-05-27|Cells}}
{{comicsrow|1216|2013-05-24|Sticks and Stones}}
{{comicsrow|1215|2013-05-22|Insight}}
{{comicsrow|1214|2013-05-20|Geoguessr}}
{{comicsrow|1213|2013-05-17|Combination Vision Test}}
{{comicsrow|1212|2013-05-15|Interstellar Memes}}
{{comicsrow|1211|2013-05-13|Birds and Dinosaurs}}
{{comicsrow|1210|2013-05-10|I'm So Random|im_so_random.png}}
{{comicsrow|1209|2013-05-08|Encoding}}
{{comicsrow|1208|2013-05-06|Footnote Labyrinths}}
{{comicsrow|1207|2013-05-03|AirAware}}
{{comicsrow|1206|2013-05-01|Einstein}}
{{comicsrow|1205|2013-04-29|Is It Worth the Time?|is_it_worth_the_time.png}}
{{comicsrow|1204|2013-04-26|Detail}}
{{comicsrow|1203|2013-04-24|Time Machines}}
{{comicsrow|1202|2013-04-22|Girls and Boys}}
{{comicsrow|1201|2013-04-19|Integration by Parts}}
{{comicsrow|1200|2013-04-17|Authorization}}
{{comicsrow|1199|2013-04-15|Silence}}
{{comicsrow|1198|2013-04-12|Geologist}}
{{comicsrow|1197|2013-04-10|All Adobe Updates}}
{{comicsrow|1196|2013-04-08|Subways}}
{{comicsrow|1195|2013-04-05|Flowchart}}
{{comicsrow|1194|2013-04-03|Stratigraphic Record}}
{{comicsrow|1193|2013-04-01|Externalities}}
{{comicsrow|1192|2013-03-29|Humming}}
{{comicsrow|1191|2013-03-27|The Past}}
{{comicsrow|1190|2013-03-25|Time}}
{{comicsrow|1189|2013-03-22|Voyager 1}}
{{comicsrow|1188|2013-03-20|Bonding}}
{{comicsrow|1187|2013-03-18|Aspect Ratio}}
{{comicsrow|1186|2013-03-15|Bumblebees}}
{{comicsrow|1185|2013-03-13|Ineffective Sorts}}
{{comicsrow|1184|2013-03-11|Circumference Formula}}
{{comicsrow|1183|2013-03-08|Rose Petals}}
{{comicsrow|1182|2013-03-06|Rembrandt Photo}}
{{comicsrow|1181|2013-03-04|PGP}}
{{comicsrow|1180|2013-03-01|Virus Venn Diagram}}
{{comicsrow|1179|2013-02-27|ISO 8601}}
{{comicsrow|1178|2013-02-25|Pickup Artists}}
{{comicsrow|1177|2013-02-22|Time Robot}}
{{comicsrow|1176|2013-02-20|Those Not Present}}
{{comicsrow|1175|2013-02-18|Moving Sidewalks}}
{{comicsrow|1174|2013-02-15|App}}
{{comicsrow|1173|2013-02-13|Steroids}}
{{comicsrow|1172|2013-02-11|Workflow}}
{{comicsrow|1171|2013-02-08|Perl Problems}}
{{comicsrow|1170|2013-02-06|Bridge}}
{{comicsrow|1169|2013-02-04|Expedition}}
{{comicsrow|1168|2013-02-01|tar}}
{{comicsrow|1167|2013-01-30|Star Trek into Darkness}}
{{comicsrow|1166|2013-01-28|Argument}}
{{comicsrow|1165|2013-01-25|Amazon}}
{{comicsrow|1164|2013-01-23|Home Alone}}
{{comicsrow|1163|2013-01-21|Debugger}}
{{comicsrow|1162|2013-01-18|Log Scale}}
{{comicsrow|1161|2013-01-16|Hand Sanitizer}}
{{comicsrow|1160|2013-01-14|Drop Those Pounds}}
{{comicsrow|1159|2013-01-11|Countdown}}
{{comicsrow|1158|2013-01-09|Rubber Sheet}}
{{comicsrow|1157|2013-01-07|Sick Day}}
{{comicsrow|1156|2013-01-04|Conditioning}}
{{comicsrow|1155|2013-01-02|Kolmogorov Directions}}
{{comicsrow|1154|2012-12-31|Resolution}}
{{comicsrow|1153|2012-12-28|Proof}}
{{comicsrow|1152|2012-12-26|Communion}}
{{comicsrow|1151|2012-12-24|Tests}}
{{comicsrow|1150|2012-12-21|Instagram}}
{{comicsrow|1149|2012-12-19|Broomstick}}
{{comicsrow|1148|2012-12-17|Nothing to Offer}}
{{comicsrow|1147|2012-12-14|Evolving}}
{{comicsrow|1146|2012-12-12|Honest}}
{{comicsrow|1145|2012-12-10|Sky Color}}
{{comicsrow|1144|2012-12-07|Tags}}
{{comicsrow|1143|2012-12-05|Location}}
{{comicsrow|1142|2012-12-03|Coverage}}
{{comicsrow|1141|2012-11-30|Two Years}}
{{comicsrow|1140|2012-11-28|Calendar of Meaningful Dates}}
{{comicsrow|1139|2012-11-26|Rubber and Glue}}
{{comicsrow|1138|2012-11-23|Heatmap}}
{{comicsrow|1137|2012-11-21|RTL}}
{{comicsrow|1136|2012-11-19|Broken Mirror}}
{{comicsrow|1135|2012-11-16|Arachnoneurology}}
{{comicsrow|1134|2012-11-14|Logic Boat}}
{{comicsrow|1133|2012-11-12|Up Goer Five}}
{{comicsrow|1132|2012-11-09|Frequentists vs. Bayesians|frequentists_vs_bayesians.png}}
{{comicsrow|1131|2012-11-07|Math}}
{{comicsrow|1130|2012-11-05|Poll Watching}}
{{comicsrow|1129|2012-11-02|Cell Number}}
{{comicsrow|1128|2012-10-31|Fifty Shades}}
{{comicsrow|1127|2012-10-29|Congress}}
{{comicsrow|1126|2012-10-26|Epsilon and Zeta}}
{{comicsrow|1125|2012-10-24|Objects In Mirror}}
{{comicsrow|1124|2012-10-22|Law of Drama}}
{{comicsrow|1123|2012-10-19|The Universal Label}}
{{comicsrow|1122|2012-10-17|Electoral Precedent}}
{{comicsrow|1121|2012-10-15|Identity}}
{{comicsrow|1120|2012-10-12|Blurring the Line}}
{{comicsrow|1119|2012-10-10|Undoing}}
{{comicsrow|1118|2012-10-08|Microsoft}}
{{comicsrow|1117|2012-10-05|My Sky}}
{{comicsrow|1116|2012-10-03|Traffic Lights|traffic_lights.gif}}
{{comicsrow|1115|2012-10-01|Sky}}
{{comicsrow|1114|2012-09-28|Metallurgy}}
{{comicsrow|1113|2012-09-26|Killed in Action}}
{{comicsrow|1112|2012-09-24|Think Logically}}
{{comicsrow|1111|2012-09-21|Premiere}}
{{comicsrow|1110|2012-09-19|Click and Drag}}
{{comicsrow|1109|2012-09-17|Refrigerator}}
{{comicsrow|1108|2012-09-14|Cautionary Ghost}}
{{comicsrow|1107|2012-09-12|Sports Cheat Sheet}}
{{comicsrow|1106|2012-09-10|ADD}}
{{comicsrow|1105|2012-09-07|License Plate}}
{{comicsrow|1104|2012-09-05|Feathers}}
{{comicsrow|1103|2012-09-03|Nine}}
{{comicsrow|1102|2012-08-31|Fastest-Growing|fastest_growing.png}}
{{comicsrow|1101|2012-08-27|Sketchiness}}
{{comicsrow|1100|2012-08-27|Vows}}
{{comicsrow|1099|2012-08-24|Tuesdays}}
{{comicsrow|1098|2012-08-22|Star Ratings}}
{{comicsrow|1097|2012-08-20|A Hypochondriac's Nightmare|a_hypochondriacs_nightmare.png}}
{{comicsrow|1096|2012-08-17|Clinically Studied Ingredient}}
{{comicsrow|1095|2012-08-15|Crazy Straws}}
{{comicsrow|1094|2012-08-13|Interview}}
{{comicsrow|1093|2012-08-10|Forget}}
{{comicsrow|1092|2012-08-08|Michael Phelps}}
{{comicsrow|1091|2012-08-06|Curiosity}}
{{comicsrow|1090|2012-08-03|Formal Languages}}
{{comicsrow|1089|2012-08-01|Internal Monologue}}
{{comicsrow|1088|2012-07-30|Five Years}}
{{comicsrow|1087|2012-07-27|Cirith Ungol}}
{{comicsrow|1086|2012-07-25|Eyelash Wish Log}}
{{comicsrow|1085|2012-07-23|ContextBot}}
{{comicsrow|1084|2012-07-20|Server Problem}}
{{comicsrow|1083|2012-07-18|Writing Styles}}
{{comicsrow|1082|2012-07-16|Geology}}
{{comicsrow|1081|2012-07-13|Argument Victory}}
{{comicsrow|1080|2012-07-11|Visual Field}}
{{comicsrow|1079|2012-07-09|United Shapes}}
{{comicsrow|1078|2012-07-06|Knights}}
{{comicsrow|1077|2012-07-04|Home Organization}}
{{comicsrow|1076|2012-07-02|Groundhog Day}}
{{comicsrow|1075|2012-06-29|Warning}}
{{comicsrow|1074|2012-06-27|Moon Landing}}
{{comicsrow|1073|2012-06-25|Weekend}}
{{comicsrow|1072|2012-06-22|Seventies}}
{{comicsrow|1071|2012-06-20|Exoplanets}}
{{comicsrow|1070|2012-06-18|Words for Small Sets}}
{{comicsrow|1069|2012-06-15|Alphabet}}
{{comicsrow|1068|2012-06-13|Swiftkey}}
{{comicsrow|1067|2012-06-11|Pressures}}
{{comicsrow|1066|2012-06-08|Laundry}}
{{comicsrow|1065|2012-06-06|Shoes}}
{{comicsrow|1064|2012-06-04|Front Door}}
{{comicsrow|1063|2012-06-01|Kill Hitler}}
{{comicsrow|1062|2012-05-30|Budget News}}
{{comicsrow|1061|2012-05-28|EST}}
{{comicsrow|1060|2012-05-25|Crowdsourcing}}
{{comicsrow|1059|2012-05-23|Bel-Air|bel_air.png}}
{{comicsrow|1058|2012-05-21|Old-Timers|old_timers.png}}
{{comicsrow|1057|2012-05-18|Klout}}
{{comicsrow|1056|2012-05-16|Felidae}}
{{comicsrow|1055|2012-05-14|Kickstarter}}
{{comicsrow|1054|2012-05-11|The bacon|thebacon.png}}
{{comicsrow|1053|2012-05-09|Ten Thousand}}
{{comicsrow|1052|2012-05-07|Every Major's Terrible|every_majors_terrible.png}}
{{comicsrow|1051|2012-05-04|Visited}}
{{comicsrow|1050|2012-05-02|Forgot Algebra}}
{{comicsrow|1049|2012-04-30|Bookshelf}}
{{comicsrow|1048|2012-04-27|Emotion}}
{{comicsrow|1047|2012-04-25|Approximations}}
{{comicsrow|1046|2012-04-23|Skynet}}
{{comicsrow|1045|2012-04-20|Constraints}}
{{comicsrow|1044|2012-04-18|Romney Quiz}}
{{comicsrow|1043|2012-04-16|Ablogalypse}}
{{comicsrow|1042|2012-04-13|Never}}
{{comicsrow|1041|2012-04-11|Whites of Their Eyes}}
{{comicsrow|1040|2012-04-09|Lakes and Oceans}}
{{comicsrow|1039|2012-04-06|RuBisCO}}
{{comicsrow|1038|2012-04-04|Fountain}}
{{comicsrow|1037|2012-04-01|Umwelt}}
{{comicsrow|1036|2012-03-30|Reviews}}
{{comicsrow|1035|2012-03-28|Cadbury Eggs}}
{{comicsrow|1034|2012-03-26|Share Buttons}}
{{comicsrow|1033|2012-03-23|Formal Logic}}
{{comicsrow|1032|2012-03-21|Networking}}
{{comicsrow|1031|2012-03-19|s/keyboard/leopard/|s_keyboard_leopard.png}}
{{comicsrow|1030|2012-03-16|Keyed}}
{{comicsrow|1029|2012-03-14|Drawing Stars}}
{{comicsrow|1028|2012-03-12|Communication}}
{{comicsrow|1027|2012-03-09|Pickup Artist}}
{{comicsrow|1026|2012-03-07|Compare and Contrast}}
{{comicsrow|1025|2012-03-05|Tumblr}}
{{comicsrow|1024|2012-03-02|Error Code}}
{{comicsrow|1023|2012-02-29|Late-Night PBS|late_night_pbs.png}}
{{comicsrow|1022|2012-02-27|So It Has Come To This}}
{{comicsrow|1021|2012-02-24|Business Plan}}
{{comicsrow|1020|2012-02-22|Orion Nebula}}
{{comicsrow|1019|2012-02-20|First Post}}
{{comicsrow|1018|2012-02-17|Good Cop, Dadaist Cop|good_cop_dadaist_cop.png}}
{{comicsrow|1017|2012-02-14|Backward in Time}}
{{comicsrow|1016|2012-02-13|Valentine Dilemma}}
{{comicsrow|1015|2012-02-10|Kerning}}
{{comicsrow|1014|2012-02-08|Car Problems}}
{{comicsrow|1013|2012-02-06|Wake Up Sheeple}}
{{comicsrow|1012|2012-02-03|Wrong Superhero}}
{{comicsrow|1011|2012-02-01|Baby Names}}
{{comicsrow|1010|2012-01-30|Etymology-Man|etymology_man.png}}
{{comicsrow|1009|2012-01-27|Sigh}}
{{comicsrow|1008|2012-01-25|Suckville}}
{{comicsrow|1007|2012-01-23|Sustainable}}
{{comicsrow|1006|2012-01-20|Sloppier Than Fiction}}
{{comicsrow|1005|2012-01-18|SOPA}}
{{comicsrow|1004|2012-01-16|Batman}}
{{comicsrow|1003|2012-01-13|Adam and Eve}}
{{comicsrow|1002|2012-01-11|Game AIs}}
{{comicsrow|1001|2012-01-09|AAAAAA}}</onlyinclude>
|}

[[Category:Comics| ]]

627: Tech Support Cheat Sheet

2013-07-13T23:58:51Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */ half-rewrite

{{comic
| number = 627
| date = August 24, 2009
| title = Tech Support Cheat Sheet
| image = tech_support_cheat_sheet.png
| titletext = 'Hey Megan, it's your father. How do I print off a flowchart?'
}}

==Explanation==

The main point of this comic (an xkcd classic!) is that tech-savvy people really don't know everything about computers. They just have developed an intuition for technology that works in many situations. [[Randall]] brilliantly expresses this intuition in the form of a diagram. In particular, the chart exposes the computer expert's secret ingredient: trial and error.

A {{w|flowchart}} is an organizational tool for showing process flow. A box is an instruction, a diamond indicates a question, and the arrows control the flow from one symbol to another.

The title text is a sad admission that even knowing the procedure for how to fix the problem, many people will not follow it and still call tech support.

==Transcript==
:Narrator: Dear various parents, grandparents, co-workers, and other "not computer people."
:Narrator: We don't magically know how to do everything in every program. When we help you, we're usually just doing this:

:[There is a flowchart there. Numbers are included to improve clarity, and do not appear in the original.]

:Rectangle: Start.
:[go to 1]

:{1. Diamond} Find a menu item or button which looks related to what you want to do.
:[I can't find one - go to 2]
:[ok - go to 3]

:{2. Diamond} Pick one at random.
:[I've tried them all - go to 4]
:[Ok - go to 3]

:{3. Rectangle} Click it.
:[go to 5]

:{4. Rectangle} Google the name of the program plus a few words related to what you want to do. Follow any instructions.
:[go to 5]

:{5. Diamond} Did it work?
:[Yes - go to 8]
:[No - go to 6]

:{6. Diamond} Have you been trying this for over half an hour?
:[Yes - go to 7]
:[No - go to 1]

:{7. Rectangle} Ask someone for help or give up.
:[End of flowchart]

:{8. Rectangle} You're done!
:[End of flowchart]

:Narrator: Please print this flowchart out and tape it near your screen. Congratulations; you're now the local computer expert!
{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Flowcharts]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]

624: Branding

2013-07-13T23:46:27Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 624
| date = August 17, 2009
| title = Branding
| image = branding.png
| titletext = Actually, 'RSS&M' is kinda catchy.
}}

==Explanation==
This strip shows four advertisements that appear to [[Cueball]] as he browses the internet without Adblock. ({{w|Adblock Plus|Adblock}} is a browser extension for Firefox which prevents advertisements from being displayed.) All four ads are for adult-themed websites.

The first advertises a website that brands itself as the "{{w|Facebook}} of sex". Because Facebook is ubiquitous, this is probably a good branding idea. Facebook is known to most users and connotes an easy-to-use platform where it's very easy to find people, chat with them, share pictures, etc. For someone looking for sex, this would probably seem like a good site to use. There are, in fact, sites that use this branding in their advertisements and/or their user interface which is likely what inspired [[Randall]] to write this comic. Cueball sighs and moves on, probably having seen this kind of ad many times already.

The second brands itself as "Twitter for 18+ singles!". It is a similar but (seemingly) invented ad which again plays on the ubiquity and popularity of {{w|Twitter}}. Twitter being a (generally) public chat forum which limits posts to 140 characters is still popular enough to get some attention and make someone think about going to the site, although sending messages to the world in 140 characters or less might be somewhat versatile platform than Facebook for chatting with other singles, but still perhaps viable. Cueball notes that it is becoming more and more popular to brand adult sites by comparing them to popular non-adult sites.

This third takes a turn for the unusual, branding itself as "We're like Google Reader for S&M!". {{w|Google Reader}} is a now-defunct platform that allows users to aggregate web feeds such as RSS feeds into one place for convenience. The service is notably less well-known and popular than Facebook or Twitter, and given that it doesn't directly link you with other people, doesn't have the same connotation of allowing you to connect with others. Perhaps it would be a site that allowed you to aggretate various fan fictions or other written works (Fifty Shades of Grey?) relating to S&M. However, Cueball is still surprised such a site would exist.

The final ad brands itself as "the new GitHub for lesbians!". {{w|GitHub}} is a website that allows developers to collaborate on software projects using the {{w|Git (software)|Git}} revision control system. The concept is absurd absurd — GitHub has a specialized audience and it's barely a social network at all; the potential for adult content is not immediately apparent. Cueball shows his surprise and confusion at this last ad.

RSS is a technology involved in Google Reader. RSS&M is a portmanteau of RSS and S&M.

==Transcript==
:Browsing without adblock
:[Cueball is sitting at a computer.]
:[Pop-up window with red background.]
:The Facebook of SEX! Click now!
:Cueball: Sigh.
:*Close*
:
:[Pop-up window with green background.]
:Twitter for 18+ singles! Join today!
:Cueball: Does every porn site have to brand itself like this?
:*Close*
:
:[Pop-up window with blue background.]
:We're like Google Reader for S&M!
:Cueball: ''Really?''
:*Close*
:
:[Pop-up window with orange background.]
:Try the new GitHub for lesbians!
:Cueball: Ok, wait, what?

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]

624: Branding

2013-07-13T23:45:20Z

Alpha: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 624
| date = August 17, 2009
| title = Branding
| image = branding.png
| titletext = Actually, 'RSS&M' is kinda catchy.
}}

==Explanation==
This strip shows four advertisements that appear to [[Cueball]] as he browses the internet without Adblock. ({{w|Adblock Plus|Adblock}} is a browser extension for Firefox which prevents advertisements from being displayed.) All four ads are for adult-themed websites.

The first advertises a website that brands itself as the "{{w|Facebook}} of sex". Because Facebook is ubiquitous, this is probably a good branding idea. Facebook is known to most users and connotes an easy-to-use platform where it's very easy to find people, chat with them, share pictures, etc. For someone looking for sex, this would probably seem like a good site to use. There are, in fact, sites that use this branding in their advertisements and/or their user interface which is likely what inspired [[Randall]] to write this comic. Cueball sighs and moves on, probably having seen this kind of ad many times already.

The second brands itself as "Twitter for 18+ singles!". It is a similar but (seemingly) invented ad which again plays on the ubiquity and popularity of {{w|Twitter}}. Twitter being a (generally) public chat forum which limits posts to 140 characters is still popular enough to get some attention and make someone think about going to the site, although sending messages to the world in 140 characters or less might be somewhat versatile platform than Facebook for chatting with other singles, but still perhaps viable. Cueball notes that it is becoming more and more popular to brand adult sites by comparing them to popular non-adult sites.

This third takes a turn for the unusual, branding itself as "We're like Google Reader for S&M!". {{w|Google Reader}} is a platform that allows users to aggregate web feeds such as RSS feeds into one place for convenience. The service is notably less well-known and popular than Facebook or Twitter, and given that it doesn't directly link you with other people, doesn't have the same connotation of allowing you to connect with others. Perhaps it would be a site that allowed you to aggretate various fan fictions or other written works (Fifty Shades of Grey?) relating to S&M. However, Cueball is still surprised such a site would exist.

The final ad brands itself as "the new GitHub for lesbians!". {{w|GitHub}} is a website that allows developers to collaborate on software projects using the {{w|Git (software)|Git}} revision control system. The concept is absurd absurd — GitHub has a specialized audience and it's barely a social network at all; the potential for adult content is not immediately apparent. Cueball shows his surprise and confusion at this last ad.

==Transcript==
:Browsing without adblock
:[Cueball is sitting at a computer.]
:[Pop-up window with red background.]
:The Facebook of SEX! Click now!
:Cueball: Sigh.
:*Close*
:
:[Pop-up window with green background.]
:Twitter for 18+ singles! Join today!
:Cueball: Does every porn site have to brand itself like this?
:*Close*
:
:[Pop-up window with blue background.]
:We're like Google Reader for S&M!
:Cueball: ''Really?''
:*Close*
:
:[Pop-up window with orange background.]
:Try the new GitHub for lesbians!
:Cueball: Ok, wait, what?

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]