explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

2069: Wishlist

2018-11-07T18:47:38Z

Edrobot: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2069
| date = November 7, 2018
| title = Wishlist
| image = wishlist.png
| titletext = Disappointed that they caved to fan pressure and went with Ruth Bader Ginsburg over Elena Kagan.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Please only mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
''{{w|Super Smash Brothers}}'' (titled as ''Super Smash Bros.'') is a crossover fighting game series published by Nintendo, primarily featuring Nintendo characters. As of publish date, there are 77 playable characters across the 5 games in the series. Starting with the third game, ''Super Smash Bros. Brawl'', characters from third-party franchises (non-Nintendo) have been made available, though most of them had at least made major appearances on a Nintendo system at some point.

Fans have suggested new characters to add, and few of these suggestions have been implemented. The comic lists 16 "characters" that Randall wishes were made available in ''Super Smash Bros.'', ranging from plausible playable characters, to the absurd.

; Mario / Luigi hybrid
: {{w|Mario}} and {{w|Luigi}} are characters in the {{w|Super Mario}} series, one of Nintendo's flagship franchises. They are both playable characters in the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series. A hybrid of these two characters would be quite interesting, though one could argue that {{w|Dr. Mario}} is a hybrid of these two in terms of moveset.

; The SkiFree monster
: {{w|SkiFree}} is a computer game for Windows released in 1991. The player controls a skier trying to avoid obstacles. After the end of a full run, a monster (possibly the Abominable Snowman) appears, and tries to catch the player. The SkiFree monster was a subject of the [[667: SkiFree]] comic. Unlike most of the characters on this list, the Skifree monster at least has had an appearance on a Nintendo system, as the game had a Game Boy Color port as part of the "The Best of Entertainment Pack" in 2001.

; Siri
: {{w|Siri}} is the name given to Apple's personal virtual assistant for iOS, macOS, and its other operating systems. Siri is generally a voice without a visual representation, so it is unclear how Siri would be a playable character in ''Super Smash Bros.''

; Ellie from ''Up''
: Ellie is one of the characters in ''{{w|Up (2009 film)|Up}}'', a 2009 Pixar film. In the beginning of the film, Ellie passes away, leaving her husband Carl alone, and leading him to start his adventure in Paradise Falls. While there was a tie-in video game based on the movie released in the same year for multiple systems (Including the Wii and Nintendo DS), Ellie was not playable in it.

; Zordon
: {{w|Zordon}} is a fictional character from the ''Power Rangers'' franchise who serves as the mentor for the earlier Ranger teams. While he is technically trapped in another dimension, he is usually depicted as a blurry head in a tube. He occasionally has lightning powers, and had a robot sidekick (Alpha 5) who might be able to move him around. Alas, he is currently dead, having used his life energy to remove all evil from the galaxy at that time. While there have been many Power Rangers video games over the years, including on nintendo platforms, Zordon would be an unlikely character for Smash Bros not only due to his lack of extremites, but also due to the fact that the Power Rangers franchise is primarily built on stock footage of japanese sentai series.

; Clippy
: Clippit, commonly nicknamed {{w|Clippy}}, was one of the Office Assistants for Microsoft Office (versions 1997 to 2003). It was an intelligent user interface that assisted users. Clippy (and the other Office Assistants) was negatively received by users, and was eventually removed in Office 2007.

; The Sarlaac
: The {{w|Sarlaac}} is an alien monster that lived in {{w|Tatooine}} in the ''{{w|Star Wars}}'' universe. It is most prominently shown in the film ''{{w|Return of the Jedi}}'', when the main heroes are sentenced to death by being dropped into the Sarlaac's mouth. Notably, the Sarlaac is a large, stationary creature embedded in the ground (essentially, a pit).
: This could be a reference to the Piranha Plant being confirmed as a DLC character, as Piranha Plants are typically stationary and embedded in the ground, and also have their big, toothy mouth as a primary feature.
: The Sarlacc does not seem to have appeared in any Star Wars video games for nintendo consoles, but even if it did, it's undefined appearance and lack of mobility would make it a poor choice for a character.

; InstallShield Wizard
: A ''wizard'' is a type of UI that simplifies configuration of an app or process by guiding the user through a number of screens in sequence. A user makes one decision on each screen, and the overall process puts less cognitive load on the user.
: {{w|InstallShield}} is a proprietary software tool for creating installer applications (or software packages) for Microsoft Windows. When the created package is being installed, the installer application can be shown in form of a 'standard Windows Wizard' dialog. Depending on the creativity of the user creating the package, the Wizard can display images while different stages of the installer are being executed.
: There are known instances of The InstallShield Wizard showing a wizard-like character images. Also, the standard wording of the installer text shown to the user ('software-to-be-installed is preparing the InstallShield Wizard, which will guide you through the program setup process') suggests that the Wizard is a 'real character'.

; Mr. Clean
: {{w|Mr. Clean}} is a brand and mascot for Procter & Gamble used for all-purpose cleaners and melamine foam cleaners.

; Comet Cursor
: {{w|Comet Cursor}} was Windows software that allowed users or websites to customise the mouse cursor. It was often installed with mimimal user interaction and was accused of tracking users and being “spyware”.

; Beto O'Rourke
: {{w|Beto O'Rourke}} is an American politician and businessman serving as the U.S. Representative for Texas's 16th congressional district since 2013. He was the nominee of the Democratic Party in the 2018 Texas U.S. Senate election (which was held the day before this comic appeared), running against Republican incumbent Ted Cruz. O'Rourke received much media attention leading up to the election, with many considering the election abnormally competitive. He ultimately did lose against Ted Cruz.
: While not a video game character, it is more than possible to create a Mii Fighter based on Beto O'Rourke in the game. However, the game does not come with a Beto O'Rouke Mii, and Nintendo has not created an official Mii of Beto O'Rourke.

; The Monopoly boot
: The "boot" is one of the classic pewter tokens from the board game ''{{w|Monopoly (game)|Monopoly}}''. In 2017, the boot token was retired from the standard version of ''Monopoly''.

; Lot's wife
: Lot and his wife are characters from the book of Genesis in the Bible. According to the book of Genesis, Lot and his family had to {{w|Sodom_and_Gomorrah#In_the_Book_of_Genesis|flee the city of Sodom}}, which was being judged by God for its wickedness. They were commanded to flee and not look back at the city. However, Lot's wife looked back at the city and was turned into a pillar of salt. It is unclear which version of Lot's wife Randall wishes to be playable in the game.

; D.B. Cooper
: {{w|D.B. Cooper}} is the name popularly used to refer to an unidentified man who hijacked a Boeing 727 aircraft on November 24, 1971. He extorted $200,000 in ransom and parachuted out of the plane. His identity and whereabouts have never been discovered. D.B. Cooper was a subject of the [[1400: D.B. Cooper]] comic. As mentioned above, an enterprising player could easily make a Mii Fighter based on B.D. Cooper, though no such Mii has been provided by Nintendo.

; The Blair Witch
: The Blair Witch is the titular character of the ''{{w|The Blair Witch Project}}'', a 1999 "found footage" supernatural horror film. The film became one of the most successful independent films of all time.

; Mavis Beacon
: ''{{w|Mavis Beacon (character)|Mavis Beacon}}'' is a fictional character and the mascot of the ''{{w|Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing}}'' software series.

The title text refers to two US Supreme Court Associate Justices. {{w|Ruth Bader Ginsburg}} was appointed by Bill Clinton; {{w|Elena Kagan}} was appointed by Barack Obama. Both are considered to be on the “liberal” wing of the court, but Ginsburg’s forceful dissenting opinions may explain why she would have been a more popular character for Super Smash Bros.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:[A bulleted list of items:]
*Mario/Luigi hybrid
*The SkiFree monster
*Siri
*Ellie from ''Up''
*Zordon
*Clippy
*The Sarlaac
*The InstallShield Wizard
*Mr. Clean
*Comet Cursor
*Beto O'Rourke
*The Monopoly boot
*Lot's wife
*D.B. Cooper
*The Blair Witch
*Mavis Beacon

:[Caption below the frame:]
:Super Smash Brothers never did end up adding anyone from my wishlist.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Video games]]

2069: Wishlist

2018-11-07T18:29:23Z

Edrobot:

{{comic
| number = 2069
| date = November 7, 2018
| title = Wishlist
| image = wishlist.png
| titletext = Disappointed that they caved to fan pressure and went with Ruth Bader Ginsburg over Elena Kagan.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Please only mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
''{{w|Super Smash Brothers}}'' (titled as ''Super Smash Bros.'') is a crossover fighting game series published by Nintendo, primarily featuring Nintendo characters. As of publish date, there are 77 playable characters across the 5 games in the series. Starting with the third game, ''Super Smash Bros. Brawl'', characters from third-party franchises (non-Nintendo) have been made available, though most of them had at least made major appearances on a Nintendo system at some point.

Fans have suggested new characters to add, and few of these suggestions have been implemented. The comic lists 16 "characters" that Randall wishes were made available in ''Super Smash Bros.'', ranging from plausible playable characters, to the absurd.

; Mario / Luigi hybrid
: {{w|Mario}} and {{w|Luigi}} are characters in the {{w|Super Mario}} series, one of Nintendo's flagship franchises. They are both playable characters in the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series. A hybrid of these two characters would be quite interesting, though one could argue that {{w|Dr. Mario}} is a hybrid of these two in terms of moveset.

; The SkiFree monster
: {{w|SkiFree}} is a computer game for Windows released in 1991. The player controls a skier trying to avoid obstacles. After the end of a full run, a monster (possibly the Abominable Snowman) appears, and tries to catch the player. The SkiFree monster was a subject of the [[667: SkiFree]] comic. Unlike most of the characters on this list, the Skifree monster at least has had an appearance on a Nintendo system, as the game had a Game Boy Color port as part of the "The Best of Entertainment Pack" in 2001.

; Siri
: {{w|Siri}} is the name given to Apple's personal virtual assistant for iOS, macOS, and its other operating systems. Siri is generally a voice without a visual representation, so it is unclear how Siri would be a playable character in ''Super Smash Bros.''

; Ellie from ''Up''
: Ellie is one of the characters in ''{{w|Up (2009 film)|Up}}'', a 2009 Pixar film. In the beginning of the film, Ellie passes away, leaving her husband Carl alone, and leading him to start his adventure in Paradise Falls. While there was a tie-in video game based on the movie released in the same year for multiple systems (Including the Wii and Nintendo DS), Ellie was not playable in it.

; Zordon
: {{w|Zordon}} is a fictional character from the ''Power Rangers'' franchise who serves as the mentor for the earlier Ranger teams. While he is technically trapped in another dimension, he is usually depicted as a blurry head in a tube. He occasionally has lightning powers, and had a robot sidekick (Alpha 5) who might be able to move him around. Alas, he is currently dead, having used his life energy to remove all evil from the galaxy at that time. While there have been many Power Rangers video games over the years, including on nintendo platforms, Zordon would be an unlikely character for Smash Bros not only due to his lack of extremites, but also due to the fact that the Power Rangers franchise is primarily built on stock footage of japanese sentai series.

; Clippy
: Clippit, commonly nicknamed {{w|Clippy}}, was one of the Office Assistants for Microsoft Office (versions 1997 to 2003). It was an intelligent user interface that assisted users. Clippy (and the other Office Assistants) was negatively received by users, and was eventually removed in Office 2007.

; The Sarlaac
: The {{w|Sarlaac}} is an alien monster that lived in {{w|Tatooine}} in the ''{{w|Star Wars}}'' universe. It is most prominently shown in the film ''{{w|Return of the Jedi}}'', when the main heroes are sentenced to death by being dropped into the Sarlaac's mouth. Notably, the Sarlaac is a large, stationary creature embedded in the ground (essentially, a pit).
: This could be a reference to the Piranha Plant being confirmed as a DLC character, as Piranha Plants are typically stationary and embedded in the ground, and also have their big, toothy mouth as a primary feature.

; InstallShield Wizard
: A ''wizard'' is a type of UI that simplifies configuration of an app or process by guiding the user through a number of screens in sequence. A user makes one decision on each screen, and the overall process puts less cognitive load on the user.
: {{w|InstallShield}} is a proprietary software tool for creating installer applications (or software packages) for Microsoft Windows. When the created package is being installed, the installer application can be shown in form of a 'standard Windows Wizard' dialog. Depending on the creativity of the user creating the package, the Wizard can display images while different stages of the installer are being executed.
: There are known instances of The InstallShield Wizard showing a wizard-like character images. Also, the standard wording of the installer text shown to the user ('software-to-be-installed is preparing the InstallShield Wizard, which will guide you through the program setup process') suggests that the Wizard is a 'real character'.

; Mr. Clean
: {{w|Mr. Clean}} is a brand and mascot for Procter & Gamble used for all-purpose cleaners and melamine foam cleaners.

; Comet Cursor
: {{w|Comet Cursor}} was Windows software that allowed users or websites to customise the mouse cursor. It was often installed with mimimal user interaction and was accused of tracking users and being “spyware”.

; Beto O'Rourke
: {{w|Beto O'Rourke}} is an American politician and businessman serving as the U.S. Representative for Texas's 16th congressional district since 2013. He was the nominee of the Democratic Party in the 2018 Texas U.S. Senate election (which was held the day before this comic appeared), running against Republican incumbent Ted Cruz. O'Rourke received much media attention leading up to the election, with many considering the election abnormally competitive. He ultimately did lose against Ted Cruz.

; The Monopoly boot
: The "boot" is one of the classic pewter tokens from the board game ''{{w|Monopoly (game)|Monopoly}}''. In 2017, the boot token was retired from the standard version of ''Monopoly''.

; Lot's wife
: Lot and his wife are characters from the book of Genesis in the Bible. According to the book of Genesis, Lot and his family had to {{w|Sodom_and_Gomorrah#In_the_Book_of_Genesis|flee the city of Sodom}}, which was being judged by God for its wickedness. They were commanded to flee and not look back at the city. However, Lot's wife looked back at the city and was turned into a pillar of salt. It is unclear which version of Lot's wife Randall wishes to be playable in the game.

; D.B. Cooper
: {{w|D.B. Cooper}} is the name popularly used to refer to an unidentified man who hijacked a Boeing 727 aircraft on November 24, 1971. He extorted $200,000 in ransom and parachuted out of the plane. His identity and whereabouts have never been discovered. D.B. Cooper was a subject of the [[1400: D.B. Cooper]] comic.

; The Blair Witch
: The Blair Witch is the titular character of the ''{{w|The Blair Witch Project}}'', a 1999 "found footage" supernatural horror film. The film became one of the most successful independent films of all time.

; Mavis Beacon
: ''{{w|Mavis Beacon (character)|Mavis Beacon}}'' is a fictional character and the mascot of the ''{{w|Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing}}'' software series.

The title text refers to two US Supreme Court Associate Justices. {{w|Ruth Bader Ginsburg}} was appointed by Bill Clinton; {{w|Elena Kagan}} was appointed by Barack Obama. Both are considered to be on the “liberal” wing of the court, but Ginsburg’s forceful dissenting opinions may explain why she would have been a more popular character for Super Smash Bros.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:[A bulleted list of items:]
*Mario/Luigi hybrid
*The SkiFree monster
*Siri
*Ellie from ''Up''
*Zordon
*Clippy
*The Sarlaac
*The InstallShield Wizard
*Mr. Clean
*Comet Cursor
*Beto O'Rourke
*The Monopoly boot
*Lot's wife
*D.B. Cooper
*The Blair Witch
*Mavis Beacon

:[Caption below the frame:]
:Super Smash Brothers never did end up adding anyone from my wishlist.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Video games]]

244: Tabletop Roleplaying

2016-01-24T01:49:17Z

Edrobot:

{{comic
| number = 244
| date = April 4, 2007
| title = Tabletop Roleplaying
| image = tabletop roleplaying.png
| titletext = I may have also tossed one of a pair of teleportation rings into the ocean, with interesting results.
}}

==Explanation==
Four people are playing a {{w|role-playing game}}. [[Megan]] is the game master (GM), describing the adventure and what happens. The other people control imaginary characters in the game. [[Cueball]] attempts to have his character lead other characters in the imaginary construction of dice and gaming sheets. This would allow his character to become the GM of a new game inside the game they're currently playing. "Recursing" refers to "recursion," a concept of computer programming where a piece of code calls itself, essentially making the code run multiple times "within" itself. Looping is a rudimentary form of recursion.

It should be noted that the GM has multiple ways of dealing with this scene. She could simply allude to the success or failure of the recursive game and "skip to the next scene", allow the roleplaying to continue (with crafting checks determining the quality of the miniatures, and a gambling check determining the outcome of the in-universe rpg session), have the party's plans [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ChandlersLaw be interrupted by some sort of threat], or Megan could simply [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/RocksFallEveryoneDies drop huge rocks on the party].

The title text refers to a pair of fictional rings. Anything passing through one gets teleported instantly to the other, as if the two rings were next to each other. There's an old gamer theory that, if you drop one of the rings in the ocean, water will naturally pass through it and out the other ring, potentially draining the entire ocean, or at least creating a perpetual seawater fountain out of the other ring. And if you teleported one ring directly to the bottom of the ocean, the amount of pressure pushing the water through would cause a gigantic, never-ending torrent, obliterating anything placed in its path. That idea is drawn out in [[969: Delta-P]].

The rings themselves are most likely inspired by the "Ring Gates" item from the {{w|wikipedia|Dungeons and Dragons}} 3.5 Dungeon Master's Guide (the most recent edition of Dungeons and Dragons at the time this comic was published), which had a similar function. However, a key thing to note is that the rings only allow 100 lbs of material to pas through them each day, meaning that your geyser would only erupt every 24 hours (though this may still qualify as an "interesting result").

==External Links==
* [http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicItems/wondrousItems.htm#ringGates The DnD 3.5 SRD's "Ring Gates"]
* [http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?123123-Pair-of-teleportation-rings-ocean A Giant in the Playground forum thread discussing the "pair of teleportation rings"]

==Transcript==
:[Four people sit around a table.]
:Megan: Your party enters the tavern.
:Cueball: I gather everyone around a table. I have the elves start whittling dice and get out some parchment for character sheets.
:Megan: Hey, no recursing.

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

244: Tabletop Roleplaying

2016-01-24T01:49:01Z

Edrobot:

{{comic
| number = 244
| date = April 4, 2007
| title = Tabletop Roleplaying
| image = tabletop roleplaying.png
| titletext = I may have also tossed one of a pair of teleportation rings into the ocean, with interesting results.
}}

==Explanation==
Four people are playing a {{w|role-playing game}}. [[Megan]] is the game master (GM), describing the adventure and what happens. The other people control imaginary characters in the game. [[Cueball]] attempts to have his character lead other characters in the imaginary construction of dice and gaming sheets. This would allow his character to become the GM of a new game inside the game they're currently playing. "Recursing" refers to "recursion," a concept of computer programming where a piece of code calls itself, essentially making the code run multiple times "within" itself. Looping is a rudimentary form of recursion.

It should be noted that the GM has multiple ways of dealing with this scene. She could simply allude to the success or failure of the recursive game and "skip to the next scene", allow the roleplaying to continue (with crafting checks determining the quality of the miniatures, and a gambling check determining the outcome of the in-universe rpg session), have the party's plans [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ChandlersLaw be interrupted by some sort of threat], or Megan could simply [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/RocksFallEveryoneDies drop huge rocks on the party].

The title text refers to a pair of fictional rings. Anything passing through one gets teleported instantly to the other, as if the two rings were next to each other. There's an old gamer theory that, if you drop one of the rings in the ocean, water will naturally pass through it and out the other ring, potentially draining the entire ocean, or at least creating a perpetual seawater fountain out of the other ring. And if you teleported one ring directly to the bottom of the ocean, the amount of pressure pushing the water through would cause a gigantic, never-ending torrent, obliterating anything placed in its path. That idea is drawn out in [[969: Delta-P]].

The rings themselves are most likely inspired by the "Ring Gates" item from the {{w|wikipedia|Dungeons and Dragons}} 3.5 Dungeon Master's Guide (the most recent edition of Dungeons and Dragons at the time this comic was published), which had a similar function. However, a key thing to note is that the rings only allow 100 lbs of material to pas through them each day, meaning that your geyser would only erupt every 24 hours (though this may still qualify as an "interesting result").

==External Links==
* [[http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicItems/wondrousItems.htm#ringGates The DnD 3.5 SRD's "Ring Gates"]]
* [[http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?123123-Pair-of-teleportation-rings-ocean A Giant in the Playground forum thread discussing the "pair of teleportation rings"]]

==Transcript==
:[Four people sit around a table.]
:Megan: Your party enters the tavern.
:Cueball: I gather everyone around a table. I have the elves start whittling dice and get out some parchment for character sheets.
:Megan: Hey, no recursing.

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

244: Tabletop Roleplaying

2016-01-24T01:33:08Z

Edrobot:

{{comic
| number = 244
| date = April 4, 2007
| title = Tabletop Roleplaying
| image = tabletop roleplaying.png
| titletext = I may have also tossed one of a pair of teleportation rings into the ocean, with interesting results.
}}

==Explanation==
Four people are playing a {{w|role-playing game}}. [[Megan]] is the game master (GM), describing the adventure and what happens. The other people control imaginary characters in the game. [[Cueball]] attempts to have his character lead other characters in the imaginary construction of dice and gaming sheets. This would allow his character to become the GM of a new game inside the game they're currently playing. "Recursing" refers to "recursion," a concept of computer programming where a piece of code calls itself, essentially making the code run multiple times "within" itself. Looping is a rudimentary form of recursion.

The title text refers to a pair of fictional rings. Anything passing through one gets teleported instantly to the other, as if the two rings were next to each other. There's an old gamer theory that, if you drop one of the rings in the ocean, water will naturally pass through it and out the other ring, potentially draining the entire ocean, or at least creating a perpetual seawater fountain out of the other ring. And if you teleported one ring directly to the bottom of the ocean, the amount of pressure pushing the water through would cause a gigantic, never-ending torrent, obliterating anything placed in its path. That idea is drawn out in [[969: Delta-P]].

It should be noted that the GM has multiple ways of dealing with this scene. She could simply allude to the success or failure of the recursive game and "skip to the next scene", allow the roleplaying to continue (with crafting checks determining the quality of the miniatures, and a gambling check determining the outcome of the in-universe rpg session), have the party's plans [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ChandlersLaw be interrupted by some sort of threat], or Megan could simply [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/RocksFallEveryoneDies drop huge rocks on the party].

==Transcript==
:[Four people sit around a table.]
:Megan: Your party enters the tavern.
:Cueball: I gather everyone around a table. I have the elves start whittling dice and get out some parchment for character sheets.
:Megan: Hey, no recursing.

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

Talk:483: Fiction Rule of Thumb

2014-05-23T19:42:18Z

Edrobot:

Also, you get minus points if you have to add a totally reading-flow rupturing explanation.
And if the words which supposedly come from one language have completely different linguistic structure.
And for random apostrophes.
And if you cannot read the book without a wordlist for constant reference next to you.
Rule of thumb #2: if it's not clear from the context or from a smooth, unobtrusive explanation* and/or if the reader has to go back the second time it is mentioned to remember what it was, don't use it.
*Exception to this: Terry Prachett. How the hell can that guy make funny literature out of annoyingly large footnotes??
[[Special:Contributions/132.187.20.160|132.187.20.160]] 09:14, 25 June 2013 (UTC)

I know an author who made up words and still turned out well! His name is Andrew Hussie, creator of Homestuck. Captchalogue, Sylladex, Alchemiter, Cruxite, Respiteblock, Recuperacoon, Cookalizer, Fenestrated Wall, you name it! {{unsigned ip|108.162.219.47}}
*Well one, that's a webcomic, not a book. Two, most of these words are portamntus (Captcha + Catalogue = Captchalogue, Recuperate + Cocoon = Recuperacoon). And while this is certainly a nice observation, it doesn't really contribute to the discussion since the page is not really about Homestuck.--[[User:Edrobot|Edrobot]] ([[User talk:Edrobot|talk]]) 19:42, 23 May 2014 (UTC)

''Dune'' comes to mind... [[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.71|199.27.128.71]] 07:07, 15 April 2014 (UTC)

Talk:483: Fiction Rule of Thumb

2014-05-23T19:42:08Z

Edrobot:

Also, you get minus points if you have to add a totally reading-flow rupturing explanation.
And if the words which supposedly come from one language have completely different linguistic structure.
And for random apostrophes.
And if you cannot read the book without a wordlist for constant reference next to you.
Rule of thumb #2: if it's not clear from the context or from a smooth, unobtrusive explanation* and/or if the reader has to go back the second time it is mentioned to remember what it was, don't use it.
*Exception to this: Terry Prachett. How the hell can that guy make funny literature out of annoyingly large footnotes??
[[Special:Contributions/132.187.20.160|132.187.20.160]] 09:14, 25 June 2013 (UTC)

I know an author who made up words and still turned out well! His name is Andrew Hussie, creator of Homestuck. Captchalogue, Sylladex, Alchemiter, Cruxite, Respiteblock, Recuperacoon, Cookalizer, Fenestrated Wall, you name it! {{unsigned ip|108.162.219.47}}
*Well one, that's a webcomic, not a book. Two, most of these words are portamntus (Captcha + Catalogue = Captchalogue, Recuperate + Cocoon = Recuperacoon). And while this is certainly a nice observation, it doesn't really contribute to the discussion since the page is not really about Homestuck.

''Dune'' comes to mind... [[Special:Contributions/199.27.128.71|199.27.128.71]] 07:07, 15 April 2014 (UTC)

1239: Social Media

2013-07-17T17:23:02Z

Edrobot: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1239
| date = July 17,2013
| title = Social Media
| image = social_media.png
| titletext = The social media reaction to this asteroid announcement has been sharply negative.Care to respond?
}}

==Explanation==
This comic parodies how the media tends to focus on social networking. Specifically in the case of revolutions, social media is given a lot of weight, even in countries with limited internet access. A direct parallel is made to the so called Twitter revolution. Obviously, twitter comments don't change the orbit of an asteroid. <strike>Or do they?</strike> No they don't.

People who are not on social media tend to react like Cueball and come to the conclusion that twitter makes press coverage more stupid.

The title text continues the joke. The negativity on twitter concerning an earth bound asteroid has nothing to do with twitter but rather with the negativity of wiping out life on earth in general. Again, undue weight is given to social media.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball at a press conference]
:Cueball: NASA has confirmed that the asteroid is heading directly for us.
:Cueball: ...Yes, a question?

:Audience member 1: What role has social media played in this asteroid's orbit?

:Cueball: *''sigh''*

:Audience member 1: Has twitter changed the way we respond to asteroid threats?
:Cueball: Well, it's made the press conference questions stupider.
:Audience member 2: Fascinating!
:Audience member 3: What about Facebook?

{{comic discussion}}

483: Fiction Rule of Thumb

2013-05-29T00:31:16Z

Edrobot: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 483
| date = October 1, 2008
| title = Fiction Rule of Thumb
| image = fiction_rule_of_thumb.png
| titletext = Except for anything by Lewis Carroll or Tolkien, you get five made-up words per story. I'm looking at you, Anathem.
}}

==Explanation==
In this comic, Randall uses a graph that purports that the more words an author makes up, the less likely his book is any good. To demonstrate this, he provides a an example where a hypothetical author uses three made up words, Fra'as, Farmlings, and Krytoses. The latter of these words are is described very unprofessionally as being "like swords but ''awesomer''" (ironic, given that "awesomer" is itself a made-up word).

The alt text puports that the average author makes up five words per book, but mentions that [[wikipedia:J.R.R. Tolkien | J.R.R. Tolkien]] and [[wikipedia: Lewis Carrol | Lewis Carrol]] are exceptions, as they are both very famous, well-respected writers [[Wikipedia:Languages constructed by J. R. R. Tolkien | who made shit up]] [[Wikipedia: Jabberwocky | all the time]].

Randall also makes a dig at [[Wikipedia:Anathem|Anathem]], a speculative fiction novel by Neal Stephenson about a monastic order on another planet that studies science, mathematics, and philosophy. The book is noteworthy for having a very large number of made-up or repurposed words.

==Transcript==

:[Line graph shown with an inverse curve]
: [Y-Axis: Probability book is good]
: [X-Axis: Number of words made up by author]
: [The curve becomes less steep as the number of words increase]
: {Quote at the bottom of the text}}"The Elders, or Fra'as, guarded the farmlings (children) with their krytoses, which are like swords but awesomer..." {Fra'as, farmlings, krytoses and awesomer are italicised}
: {Alt-Text: Except for anything by Lewis Carroll and Tolkien, you get five made-up words per story. I'm looking at you, Anathem.}



{{comic discussion}}

483: Fiction Rule of Thumb

2013-05-29T00:30:36Z

Edrobot: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 483
| date = October 1, 2008
| title = Fiction Rule of Thumb
| image = fiction_rule_of_thumb.png
| titletext = Except for anything by Lewis Carroll or Tolkien, you get five made-up words per story. I'm looking at you, Anathem.
}}

==Explanation==
In this comic, Randall purports that the more words an author makes up, the less likely his book is any good. To demonstrate this, he provides a an example where a hypothetical author uses three made up words, Fra'as, Farmlings, and Krytoses. The latter of these words are is described very unprofessionally as being "like swords but ''awesomer''" (ironic, given that "awesomer" is itself a made-up word).

The alt text puports that the average author makes up five words per book, but mentions that [[wikipedia:J.R.R. Tolkien | J.R.R. Tolkien]] and [[wikipedia: Lewis Carrol | Lewis Carrol]] are exceptions, as they are both very famous, well-respected writers [[Wikipedia:Languages constructed by J. R. R. Tolkien | who made shit up]] [[Wikipedia: Jabberwocky | all the time]].

Randall also makes a dig at [[Wikipedia:Anathem|Anathem]], a speculative fiction novel by Neal Stephenson about a monastic order on another planet that studies science, mathematics, and philosophy. The book is noteworthy for having a very large number of made-up or repurposed words.

==Transcript==

:[Line graph shown with an inverse curve]
: [Y-Axis: Probability book is good]
: [X-Axis: Number of words made up by author]
: [The curve becomes less steep as the number of words increase]
: {Quote at the bottom of the text}}"The Elders, or Fra'as, guarded the farmlings (children) with their krytoses, which are like swords but awesomer..." {Fra'as, farmlings, krytoses and awesomer are italicised}
: {Alt-Text: Except for anything by Lewis Carroll and Tolkien, you get five made-up words per story. I'm looking at you, Anathem.}



{{comic discussion}}

483: Fiction Rule of Thumb

2013-05-29T00:29:46Z

Edrobot: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 483
| date = October 1, 2008
| title = Fiction Rule of Thumb
| image = fiction_rule_of_thumb.png
| titletext = Except for anything by Lewis Carroll or Tolkien, you get five made-up words per story. I'm looking at you, Anathem.
}}

==Explanation==
In this comic, Randall purports that the more words an author makes up, the less likely his book is any good. To demonstrate this, he provides a an example where a hypothetical author uses three made up words, Fra'as, Farmlings, and Krytoses. The latter of these words are is described very unprofessionally as being ''"like swords but awesomer"'' (ironic, given that "awesomer" is itself a made-up word).

The alt text puports that the average author makes up five words per book, but mentions that [[wikipedia:J.R.R. Tolkien | J.R.R. Tolkien]] and [[wikipedia: Lewis Carrol | Lewis Carrol]] are exceptions, as they are both very famous, well-respected writers [[Wikipedia:Languages constructed by J. R. R. Tolkien | who made shit up]] [[Wikipedia: Jabberwocky | all the time]].

Randall also makes a dig at [[Wikipedia:Anathem|Anathem]], a speculative fiction novel by Neal Stephenson about a monastic order on another planet that studies science, mathematics, and philosophy. The book is noteworthy for having a very large number of made-up or repurposed words.

==Transcript==

:[Line graph shown with an inverse curve]
: [Y-Axis: Probability book is good]
: [X-Axis: Number of words made up by author]
: [The curve becomes less steep as the number of words increase]
: {Quote at the bottom of the text}}"The Elders, or Fra'as, guarded the farmlings (children) with their krytoses, which are like swords but awesomer..." {Fra'as, farmlings, krytoses and awesomer are italicised}
: {Alt-Text: Except for anything by Lewis Carroll and Tolkien, you get five made-up words per story. I'm looking at you, Anathem.}



{{comic discussion}}

483: Fiction Rule of Thumb

2013-05-29T00:29:22Z

Edrobot: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 483
| date = October 1, 2008
| title = Fiction Rule of Thumb
| image = fiction_rule_of_thumb.png
| titletext = Except for anything by Lewis Carroll or Tolkien, you get five made-up words per story. I'm looking at you, Anathem.
}}

==Explanation==
In this comic, Randall purports that the more words an author makes up, the less likely his book is any good. To demonstrate this, he provides a an example where a hypothetical author uses three made up words, Fra'as, Farmlings, and Krytoses. The latter of these words are is described very unprofessionally as being ''"like swords but awesomer"'' (ironic, given that "awesomer" is itself a made-up word).

The alt text puports that the average author makes up five words per book, but mentions that [[wikipedia:J.R.R. Tolkien | J.R.R. Tolkien]] and [[wikipedia: Lewis Carrol | Lewis Carrol]] are exceptions, as they are both very famous, well-respected writers [[Wikipedia:Languages constructed by J. R. R. Tolkien | who made shit up]] [[Wikipedia: Jabberwocky | all the time]].

Randall also makes a dig at [[Wikipedia:Anathem|Anathem]], a speculative fiction novel by Neal Stephenson about a monastic order on another planet that studies science, mathematics, and philosophy. The book is noteworthy for having a very large number of made-up or repurposed words.

==Transcript==

:[Line graph shown with an inverse curve]
: [Y-Axis: Probability book is good]
: [X-Axis: Number of words made up by author]
: [The curve becomes less steep as the number of words increase]
: {Quote at the bottom of the text}}"The Elders, or Fra'as, guarded the farmlings (children) with their krytoses, which are like swords but :awesomer..." {Fra'as, farmlings, krytoses and awesomer are italicised}
: {Alt-Text: Except for anything by Lewis Carroll and Tolkien, you get five made-up words per story. I'm looking at you, Anathem.}



{{comic discussion}}

483: Fiction Rule of Thumb

2013-05-29T00:27:21Z

Edrobot: Created page with "{{comic | number = 483 | date = October 1, 2008 | title = Fiction Rule of Thumb | image = fiction_rule_of_thumb.png | titletext = Except for anything by Lewis..."

{{comic
| number = 483
| date = October 1, 2008
| title = Fiction Rule of Thumb
| image = fiction_rule_of_thumb.png
| titletext = Except for anything by Lewis Carroll or Tolkien, you get five made-up words per story. I'm looking at you, Anathem.
}}

==Explanation==
In this comic, Randall purports that the more words an author makes up, the less likely his book is any good. To demonstrate this, he provides a an example where a hypothetical author uses three made up words, Fra'as, Farmlings, and Krytoses. The latter of these words are is described very unprofessionally as being ''"like swords but awesomer"'' (ironic, given that "awesomer" is itself a made-up word).

The alt text puports that the average author makes up five words per book, but mentions that [[wikipedia:J.R.R. Tolkien | J.R.R. Tolkien]] and [[wikipedia: Lewis Carrol | Lewis Carrol]] are exceptions, as they are both very famous, well-respected writers [[Wikipedia:Languages constructed by J. R. R. Tolkien | who made shit up]] [[Wikipedia: Jabberwocky | all the time]].

Randall also makes a dig at [[Wikipedia:Anathem|Anathem]], a speculative fiction novel by Neal Stephenson about a monastic order on another planet that studies science, mathematics, and philosophy. The book is noteworthy for having a very large number of made-up or repurposed words.

==Transcript==


{{comic discussion}}