explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

2712: Gravity

2022-12-17T04:09:38Z

GizmoDude: added two more planets

{{comic
| number = 2712
| date = December 16, 2022
| title = Gravity
| image = gravity_2x.png
| imagesize = 740x700px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = It's a long way down.
}}

*To experience the interactivity, visit the [http://xkcd.com/2712/ original comic].
==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by SPACE - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
In this interactive comic, the viewer pilots a small spaceship throughout a vast area in space. The viewer is capable of exploring various bodies and planets within the play area, many containing easter eggs alluding to What If? 2 and previous xkcd comics. The flight mechanics are largely, if not entirely Newtonian, so the player vessel is capable of using the gravity of planets to alter its trajectory or even enter orbit.

Throughout the play area are coins that change your rocket ship into different rockets and even non-space based vehicles, including humans.

This comic was released as a promotion for Randall's new book [https://xkcd.com/what-if-2/ What If? 2], which was released in September and is available for purchase. Many of the planets contain references to various What If? articles.

The following is an incomplete list of planets and other significant features:

Starting planet

Europa

B-612 (The Little Prince reference; also a reference to [[618: Asteroid]])

Dog park planet (What If? 2 reference)

What If? 2 scenario planet

Sun's core (What If? 2 reference)

The Sun

A cluster of black holes

Soup system (What If? 2 reference)

Earth without Japan (What If? 2 reference)

Just Japan (What If? 2 reference)

A blob labeled "Pigeons"

Starship Enterprise (Star Trek reference)

Dinosaur planet (Dinosaur Comics and Jurassic Park reference)

What If? 1 scenario planet

Cat blocking traffic flowing through portals

A tree larger than the planet it's growing on

Edge of the Universe (actually just a planet labeled "Edge of the Universe")

Milliways (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy reference)

The Great Attractor

What If? 2 promo planet

The Steerswoman planet (The Steerswoman reference)

==Data Dump==

extracted from a JSON blob near the bottom of <code>https://xkcd.com/2712/comic.js</code>.
I believe this to be all the data but i'm not sure. this should probably be on a different page but i'll leave that up to the smart people
<pre style="height:10em;overflow-y:scroll;">
{
"items": {
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"image": "coin",
"loc": [
359,
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"size": [
40,
40
]
},
"coin-figure": {
"consumable": "yes",
"effect": "transformship|ship-figure",
"image": "figure",
"loc": [
-15050,
-2984
],
"size": [
40,
40
]
},
"coin-regular": {
"consumable": "yes",
"effect": "transformship|ship2",
"image": "regular",
"loc": [
-29976,
-8077
],
"size": [
40,
40
]
},
"coin-soccerball": {
"consumable": "yes",
"effect": "transformship|ship-soccer",
"image": "soccerball",
"loc": [
15293,
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],
"size": [
40,
40
]
}
},
"locations": {
"b612": {
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"height": 2048,
"loc": [
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"radius": 82,
"width": 2048
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"dogplanet": {
"gravity": 300,
"height": 2048,
"loc": [
1240,
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],
"radius": 337,
"width": 2048
},
"earth": {
"gravity": 21000,
"height": 16384,
"loc": [
14360,
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],
"radius": 3275,
"width": 16384
},
"enterprise": {
"gravity": 200,
"height": 2048,
"loc": [
1010,
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],
"radius": 160,
"width": 2048
},
"europa": {
"gravity": 5000,
"height": 8192,
"loc": [
13180,
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"radius": 1625,
"width": 8192
},
"goodhart": {
"gravity": 5000,
"height": 8192,
"loc": [
-13300,
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],
"radius": 1625,
"width": 8192
},
"greatattractor": {
"gravity": 450000,
"height": 4096,
"loc": [
-297000,
-125000
],
"radius": 800,
"width": 4096
},
"japanmoon": {
"gravity": 50,
"height": 2048,
"loc": [
-5930,
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"radius": 67,
"width": 2048
},
"maw1": {
"gravity": 2000,
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"radius": 18,
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"maw10": {
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"maw11": {
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"radius": 12,
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"maw12": {
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"radius": 18,
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"maw3": {
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"radius": 18,
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"maw4": {
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"radius": 18,
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"maw5": {
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"loc": [
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"radius": 18,
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"maw6": {
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"loc": [
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],
"radius": 18,
"width": 2048
},
"maw7": {
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"loc": [
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],
"radius": 18,
"width": 2048
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"maw8": {
"gravity": 2000,
"height": 2048,
"loc": [
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"radius": 18,
"width": 2048
},
"maw9": {
"gravity": 2000,
"height": 2048,
"loc": [
-30772,
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],
"radius": 18,
"width": 2048
},
"nojapan": {
"gravity": 80,
"height": 2048,
"loc": [
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"radius": 200,
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"origin": {
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"height": 4096,
"loc": [
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"radius": 630,
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"outside": {
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"height": 16384,
"loc": [
0,
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"radius": 125,
"width": 16384
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"peeler": {
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"loc": [
-9270,
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],
"radius": 40,
"width": 2048
},
"pigeons": {
"gravity": 100,
"height": 2048,
"loc": [
-9020,
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"radius": 160,
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},
"present": {
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"loc": [
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"qwantz": {
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"remnant": {
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"roads": {
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"loc": [
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"radius": 30,
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},
"soupiter": {
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],
"radius": 812,
"width": 4096
},
"steerswoman": {
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"loc": [
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},
"sun": {
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"loc": [
-14950,
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],
"radius": 540,
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}
},
"player": {
"animation": "player.png",
"animcount": 4,
"startloc": [
0,
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],
"targetheight": 59
},
"tile_height": 1024,
"tile_source": "tile",
"tile_width": 1024
}

</pre>

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

Welcome!

To celebrate the world of what if? 2, here is your very own planet to explore!

Give someone the science question-and-answer book what if? 2 for Christmas:
xkcd.com/whatif2

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Space]]
[[Category:Book promotion]]
[[Category:Interactive comics]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]

2712: Gravity

2022-12-17T02:45:30Z

GizmoDude: Fixed previous edit

2712: Gravity

2022-12-17T02:44:25Z

GizmoDude: Began descriptions for some planets and features

User talk:Jacky720

2017-01-04T12:40:24Z

GizmoDude: /* To talk to me */

== To talk to me ==
'''I will make my comments only in this section, and in bold. Be advised that although I may keep up-to-date, I might be shying away, screening my calls, so I could but won't answer everything. [[User:Jacky720|Jacky720]] ([[User talk:Jacky720|talk]]) 02:23, 9 November 2016 (UTC)'''

Yay! Glad to see another happy user of the group! (And another coder!) :D I didn't know anyone else on this site played Minecraft... --[[User:JayRulesXKCD|JayRulesXKCD]] ([[User talk:JayRulesXKCD|talk]]) 12:08, 10 November 2016 (UTC)

Same to you! [[User:Jacky720|Jacky720]] ([[User talk:Jacky720|talk]]) 15:52, 10 November 2016 (UTC)

(That's right, go HTML!)

:What kind of stuff do you like to program? Are you a game designer? Or a web coder kind of person? --[[User:JayRulesXKCD|JayRulesXKCD]] ([[User talk:JayRulesXKCD|talk]]) 17:12, 10 November 2016 (UTC)

::It isn't a job or anything, just a hobby of messing with webpages. Also, if you don't own a domain, and you tell everyone, you can operate a totally '''free''' subdomain through [http://www.000webhost.com $0.00 webhost.] Although you might want to backup your site. If you don't visit it enough, it shuts down and you need to re-register. Just some tips. (P.S. My web portal has seen better days. (P.P.S. [[859: (]] [[User:Jacky720|Jacky720]] ([[User talk:Jacky720|talk]]) 19:49, 10 November 2016 (UTC)

::Wait, I just looked at your page and you '''publish games?''' Like I said above... But nice. I don't do that kind of thing, but I have made a couple of 9001% informal games, like on [https://scratch.mit.edu/users/Jacky720/ Scratch] and stuff.

:::What a coincidence! I use Scratch too! However, I haven't really used it in a while, as I'm sticking to normal game development, but I do still go on there from time to time to see the crazy stuff that people come up with. I was going to make a game on there called '''"Darkness"''', but development proved to be too difficult and I was only able to finish the first level and a teaser for the game. I did eventually re-vitalize the game, but with a new name and new story, and it eventually became ''' 'This Isn't Home' ''', and then I ran into problems with the development with that, and I had to take it down from GameJolt yesterday. Life of a game designer... your work is never finished. I'm going to have to fix that one now. :P --[[User:JayRulesXKCD|JayRulesXKCD]] ([[User talk:JayRulesXKCD|talk]]) 12:27, 11 November 2016 (UTC)

::::Nice, but I couldn't find your account or the game. Links? [[User:Jacky720|Jacky720]] ([[User talk:Jacky720|talk]]) 19:34, 12 November 2016 (UTC)

:::::I never uploaded 'Darkness', but I did upload a 'teaser' for it and my account is : https://scratch.mit.edu/users/JayRulesScratch/ --[[User:JayRulesXKCD|JayRulesXKCD]] ([[User talk:JayRulesXKCD|talk]]) 12:17, 14 November 2016 (UTC)

:Hey, I play Minecraft too! In fact, I've been shying away from explainxkcd because I've been playing it so much... [[User:GizmoDude|GizmoDude]] ([[User talk:GizmoDude|talk]]) 21:20, 3 January 2017 (UTC)
:P.S. I do Scratch as well! Well, not currently, but I posted about 20 projects on my old account 2 or 3 years ago...
::That's kind of the same reason why I "left" for a short period of time. Minecraft and Game design have been taking up a good chunk of my life. Life of a gamer/game designer. :) --[[User:JayRulesXKCD|JayRulesXKCD]] ([[User talk:JayRulesXKCD|talk]]) 12:07, 4 January 2017 (UTC)
:::I've also steadily become more encumbered by schoolwork. I've still been reading xkcd, but not so much editing. I've gotten back into Minecraft, especially since I started my YouTube channel. [[User:GizmoDude|GizmoDude]] ([[User talk:GizmoDude|talk]]) 12:40, 4 January 2017 (UTC)

===[http://jackm.000webhostapp.com/transcript.html Official Transcript]===
Here is the code: (with links to where I got it)
<code>
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<script>
[https://www.html5rocks.com/en/tutorials/cors/ function createCORSRequest(method, url) {
var xhr = new XMLHttpRequest();
if ("withCredentials" in xhr) {
// Check if the XMLHttpRequest object has a "withCredentials" property.
// "withCredentials" only exists on XMLHTTPRequest2 objects.
xhr.open(method, url, true);
} else if (typeof XDomainRequest != "undefined") {
// Otherwise, check if XDomainRequest.
// XDomainRequest only exists in IE, and is IE's way of making CORS requests.
xhr = new XDomainRequest();
xhr.open(method, 'https://xkcd.com/info.0.json');
} else {
// Otherwise, CORS is not supported by the browser.
xhr = null;
}

return xhr;
}

var xhr = createCORSRequest('GET', "https://xkcd.com/info.0.json");
if (!xhr) {
alert('CORS not supported');
} else {
alert('This site uses CORS.');
} ]

[http://stackoverflow.com/questions/19706046/how-to-read-an-external-local-json-file-in-javascript function readTextFile(file, callback) {
var rawFile = new XMLHttpRequest();
alert("raw file");
rawFile.overrideMimeType("application/json");
alert("json");
rawFile.open("GET", file, true);
alert(rawFile.responseText);
alert(rawFile.readyState);
alert(rawFile.status);
rawFile.onreadystatechange = function() {
if (rawFile.readyState === 4 && rawFile.status == "200") {
callback(rawFile.responseText);
alert("done?");
}
}
} ]

//My code

function getScript() {
if (parseInt(document.getElementById("ComicNumber").value)) {
var comic = new Number(
document.getElementById("ComicNumber").value);
var link = "https://xkcd.com/" + comic + "/info.0.json";
try {
readTextFile(link, function(text) {
var output = JSON.parse(text);
alert(output);
document.getElementById("output").innerHTML =
output.transcript;
});
} catch(Err) {alert("Oops! Something went wrong.");}

} else {
alert("This is not an integer!");
}
alert("The function completed.")
}
</script>
</head>
<body>
<input type="text" id="ComicNumber">
<input type="button" onclick="getScript();" value="Get Transcript">
 

</body>
</html>
</code>

==To talk about me ==

User:GizmoDude

2017-01-03T21:23:03Z

GizmoDude: Updated my contribution score.

Hi!
I'm GizmoDude. I don't really have much to say here, but since you clicked on the link to this page, you probably want to know about me.

:I am a nerd, even though I don't know how to really code. I'm more into math and music (and Minecraft!) and stuff.
:I like tostadas. (They're like flat tacos.)
:I have a cat that's cuter than yours.
:I can read text upside-down and sideways.
:I joined this wiki when [[1649: Pipelines]] came out.
:I haz a [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6pLrHVcNSZPHW1RXNZahCg YouTube!]
:I am currently 37th on top contribution scores, all time.

I have two goals on this wiki:

:Make the every comic transcript so complete, that just by reading it, you can draw the whole comic.
:Stay on the top three contributors list on the bottom of the [[Main Page|main page]].

Things I get [[356: Nerd Sniping|nerd-sniped]] about:
*The [https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandelbrot_set Mandlebrot Set]
*Puzzles
**[http://sudoku.com Sudoku] (AKA suduku, sudoko, sukudo, sudorku, suducko, suckado, and any other misspelling you can manage)
**[http://krazydad.com/inkies/ KenKens] (AKA Inkies)
**[http://www.appynation.com/apps/worlds-biggest-picture-cross/ Picture Cross] (AKA Picross, Nonograms, Hanjie, and Griddlers) and {{w|https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Picross_3D|Picross 3D}}
**[http://thewordsearch.com Word Searches]
**[https://www.pennydellpuzzles.com/Upload/PuzzleFiles/Sample/frm_p0508_samplepuz.pdf Frameworks] (AKA Kriss-Kross)
**[https://www.pennydellpuzzles.com/subcategory.aspx?c=fill-ins Fill-Ins]
**[http://www.logic-puzzles.org/index.php Logic Puzzles]
*[[What If]]
*The [http://htwins.net/scale2/ Scale of the Universe]

Some of my favorite comics:

*[[37: Hyphen]]
*[[201: Christmas GPS]]
*[[284: Tape Measure]]
*[[356: Nerd Sniping]]
*[[363: Reset]]
*[[442: xkcd Loves the Discovery Channel]]
*[[503: Terminology]] I'm in the same situation.
*[[525: I Know You're Listening]]
*[[562: Parking]]
*[[673: The Sun]]
*[[688: Self-Description]]
*[[710: Collatz Conjecture]]
*[[759: 3x9]] I hate it when tests ask me to show my work for the simplest things.
*[[970: The Important Field]]
*[[1086: Eyelash Wish Log]]
*[[1110: Click and Drag]]
*[[1170: Bridge]]
*[[1190: Time]]
*[[1256: Questions]]
*[[1331: Frequency]]
*[[1350: Lorenz]]
*[[1357: Free Speech]]
*[[1416: Pixels]]
*[[1427: iOS Keyboard]]
*[[1446: Landing]]
*[[1506: xkcloud]]
*[[1525: Emojic 8 Ball]]
*[[1607: Supreme Court]]
*[[1608: Hoverboard]]
*[[1663: Garden]]

{{infobox
| bodyclass = vcard

| abovestyle = background-color:{{{bgcolour|#BCD4E6}}};
| aboveclass = fn
| above = {{{name|{{PAGENAME}}}}}

| labelstyle = line-height: 1.3em
| datastyle = line-height: 1.3em

| image = [[File:Cueball.png]]
| caption = {{{caption|}}}

| label1 = First appearance
| data1 = [[Main Page|Beginning of time]]

| label2 = Known appearances
| data2 = '''[[User:GizmoDude|8128]]'''

| label3 = Contribution score
| data3 = [[Special:ContributionScores|{{#cscore:GizmoDude|score}}]]

| label4 = Pages edited
| data4 = [[Special:ContributionScores|{{#cscore:GizmoDude|pages}}]]

| label5 = Changes made
| data5 = [[Special:ContributionScores|{{#cscore:GizmoDude|changes}}]]
}}

User talk:Jacky720

2017-01-03T21:20:41Z

GizmoDude: /* To talk to me */

== To talk to me ==
'''I will make my comments only in this section, and in bold. Be advised that although I may keep up-to-date, I might be shying away, screening my calls, so I could but won't answer everything. [[User:Jacky720|Jacky720]] ([[User talk:Jacky720|talk]]) 02:23, 9 November 2016 (UTC)'''

Yay! Glad to see another happy user of the group! (And another coder!) :D I didn't know anyone else on this site played Minecraft... --[[User:JayRulesXKCD|JayRulesXKCD]] ([[User talk:JayRulesXKCD|talk]]) 12:08, 10 November 2016 (UTC)

Same to you! [[User:Jacky720|Jacky720]] ([[User talk:Jacky720|talk]]) 15:52, 10 November 2016 (UTC)

(That's right, go HTML!)

:What kind of stuff do you like to program? Are you a game designer? Or a web coder kind of person? --[[User:JayRulesXKCD|JayRulesXKCD]] ([[User talk:JayRulesXKCD|talk]]) 17:12, 10 November 2016 (UTC)

::It isn't a job or anything, just a hobby of messing with webpages. Also, if you don't own a domain, and you tell everyone, you can operate a totally '''free''' subdomain through [http://www.000webhost.com $0.00 webhost.] Although you might want to backup your site. If you don't visit it enough, it shuts down and you need to re-register. Just some tips. (P.S. My web portal has seen better days. (P.P.S. [[859: (]] [[User:Jacky720|Jacky720]] ([[User talk:Jacky720|talk]]) 19:49, 10 November 2016 (UTC)

::Wait, I just looked at your page and you '''publish games?''' Like I said above... But nice. I don't do that kind of thing, but I have made a couple of 9001% informal games, like on [https://scratch.mit.edu/users/Jacky720/ Scratch] and stuff.

:::What a coincidence! I use Scratch too! However, I haven't really used it in a while, as I'm sticking to normal game development, but I do still go on there from time to time to see the crazy stuff that people come up with. I was going to make a game on there called '''"Darkness"''', but development proved to be too difficult and I was only able to finish the first level and a teaser for the game. I did eventually re-vitalize the game, but with a new name and new story, and it eventually became ''' 'This Isn't Home' ''', and then I ran into problems with the development with that, and I had to take it down from GameJolt yesterday. Life of a game designer... your work is never finished. I'm going to have to fix that one now. :P --[[User:JayRulesXKCD|JayRulesXKCD]] ([[User talk:JayRulesXKCD|talk]]) 12:27, 11 November 2016 (UTC)

::::Nice, but I couldn't find your account or the game. Links? [[User:Jacky720|Jacky720]] ([[User talk:Jacky720|talk]]) 19:34, 12 November 2016 (UTC)

:::::I never uploaded 'Darkness', but I did upload a 'teaser' for it and my account is : https://scratch.mit.edu/users/JayRulesScratch/ --[[User:JayRulesXKCD|JayRulesXKCD]] ([[User talk:JayRulesXKCD|talk]]) 12:17, 14 November 2016 (UTC)

:Hey, I play Minecraft too! In fact, I've been shying away from explainxkcd because I've been playing it so much... [[User:GizmoDude|GizmoDude]] ([[User talk:GizmoDude|talk]]) 21:20, 3 January 2017 (UTC)
:P.S. I do Scratch as well! Well, not currently, but I posted about 20 projects on my old account 2 or 3 years ago...

===[http://jackm.000webhostapp.com/transcript.html Official Transcript]===
Here is the code: (with links to where I got it)
<code>
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<script>
[https://www.html5rocks.com/en/tutorials/cors/ function createCORSRequest(method, url) {
var xhr = new XMLHttpRequest();
if ("withCredentials" in xhr) {
// Check if the XMLHttpRequest object has a "withCredentials" property.
// "withCredentials" only exists on XMLHTTPRequest2 objects.
xhr.open(method, url, true);
} else if (typeof XDomainRequest != "undefined") {
// Otherwise, check if XDomainRequest.
// XDomainRequest only exists in IE, and is IE's way of making CORS requests.
xhr = new XDomainRequest();
xhr.open(method, 'https://xkcd.com/info.0.json');
} else {
// Otherwise, CORS is not supported by the browser.
xhr = null;
}

return xhr;
}

var xhr = createCORSRequest('GET', "https://xkcd.com/info.0.json");
if (!xhr) {
alert('CORS not supported');
} else {
alert('This site uses CORS.');
} ]

[http://stackoverflow.com/questions/19706046/how-to-read-an-external-local-json-file-in-javascript function readTextFile(file, callback) {
var rawFile = new XMLHttpRequest();
alert("raw file");
rawFile.overrideMimeType("application/json");
alert("json");
rawFile.open("GET", file, true);
alert(rawFile.responseText);
alert(rawFile.readyState);
alert(rawFile.status);
rawFile.onreadystatechange = function() {
if (rawFile.readyState === 4 && rawFile.status == "200") {
callback(rawFile.responseText);
alert("done?");
}
}
} ]

//My code

function getScript() {
if (parseInt(document.getElementById("ComicNumber").value)) {
var comic = new Number(
document.getElementById("ComicNumber").value);
var link = "https://xkcd.com/" + comic + "/info.0.json";
try {
readTextFile(link, function(text) {
var output = JSON.parse(text);
alert(output);
document.getElementById("output").innerHTML =
output.transcript;
});
} catch(Err) {alert("Oops! Something went wrong.");}

} else {
alert("This is not an integer!");
}
alert("The function completed.")
}
</script>
</head>
<body>
<input type="text" id="ComicNumber">
<input type="button" onclick="getScript();" value="Get Transcript">
 

</body>
</html>
</code>

==To talk about me ==

1773: Negativity

2016-12-16T13:44:53Z

GizmoDude: /* Transcript */ I don't think we include the title text in the transcript, but correct me if I'm wrong.

{{comic
| number = 1773
| date = December 16, 2016
| title = Negativity
| image = negativity.png
| titletext = [Google search] how do I block my lawn
}}

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

==Transcript==
[Cueball walking on grass]

Cueball: It's nice to get outside, away from the pain and negativity of the internet,

[Cueball stops walking]

Cueball: And just enjoy the cool breeze and the grass under my feet.

[Cueball stands there, hands to his hips, looking to the cloudy sky]

[Cueball looks surprised to the grass]

Grass: You suuuuck

Cueball: Hey!

{{comic discussion}}

1770: UI Change

2016-12-11T14:12:37Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation */ fixed grammar

{{comic
| number = 1770
| date = December 9, 2016
| title = UI Change
| image = ui_change.png
| titletext = I know they said this change is permanent, but surely when they hear how much we're complaining someone will find a way to change things back.
}}

==Explanation==
The system that sets out the way in which the user interacts with an app or program is called its "user interface" (UI). For an app, that may be the graphic design of the app, and commonly the nature and location of certain controls.

Sometimes, when websites and apps are updated, the UI is modified. This is often done to make space for new features or to make what the developer considers to be an improvement, to the look or efficiency of the app. Occasionally UIs are modified with no obvious goal in mind other than to make changes to give the illusion of improvement when no new features have been added, thus making them completely arbitrary.

Given that some users use some apps many times a day, users tend to learn and get used to the UI of common apps. [[Workflow|Whether or not these changes are good in the long term, users often complain]] because all the workflows they're familiar with have been changed, and often the software never tells you where buttons and other options have been moved to. On occasion, these changes actually make common tasks more difficult and slower to accomplish. For example, in {{w|iOS|iOS 10}}, on the quick access control panel (which formerly consisted of a single page of controls), moves the controls for music to a second page (accessed by an additional swipe). While this has a benefit of allowing more information about one's music to be displayed, it adds an additional step to the UI before one can control their music from the control panel. Changes also often require users to "unlearn" the automatic behavior they have in using the app (such as automatically moving to press a button in its old location).

Old people get to see during their lifetime ''lots'' of these kind of changes to the way they did things in the past, and they often don't see the reason why they are made, since the young people who make the changes have a different cultural environment that the elderly won't "get".
Also, just as young people like to complain about petty changes to apps, old people complain about the way their body starts to break down as they age. Muscle weakness makes tasks like opening doors and jars more difficult, the senses such as sight and hearing deteriorate, and mental processes such as memory and rationalization can become slower and less reliable. These have a far bigger impact on one's day-to-day ability to do tasks than a simple UI change.

When big websites make unpopular changes, users sometimes start petitions to have them reverted - for example, [http://www.pcworld.com/article/161752/facebook_users_against_redesign.html 1.7 million Facebook users] joined "Petition Against the New Facebook". Of course, they didn't get their way, and nowadays few will even remember the old Facebook layout. As for aging, well, there's no human you could even try petitioning{{Citation needed}}, and a petition to God would typically be called a prayer, rather than a petition. [[Cueball]]'s comment in the title text might refer to the fact that people naively believe that if they complain a lot about an undesired change on the UI of some app that is considered permanent, they might change it back, while in real life those complaints usually don't have any effect, just like the facebook example given before. It also could be a reference to scientific efforts to stop or reverse the effects of aging, such as organ transplants and various other surgeries. There has always been a market for immortality, with many historical figures seeking it through alchemy, science, or magic, but as of yet, products claiming to grant it have all been shams. Perhaps he is hoping that advancing technologies will become sufficient to keep him from experiencing the negative effects of old age at all.

==Transcript==
[Cueball is doing something on his phone]

Cueball: Ugh, I hate when apps make arbitrary changes to their UI.

Cueball: Stuff I do all the time just got harder for no reason!

Off-Screen Voice: Man.

Off-Screen Voice: You are '''''not''''' gonna like getting old.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]

1765: Baby Post

2016-11-28T15:24:53Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation */ it doesn't seem like Cueball is planning it at all. Changed all the things that said Cueball was planning the heist.

{{comic
| number = 1765
| date = November 28, 2016
| title = Baby Post
| image = baby_post.png
| titletext = [bzzzt] "REMEMBER TO CHECK IN FOR YOUR FLIGHT TO LONDON." "My wha-" [bzzzt] "YOUR UBER WILL ARRIVE IN FOUR MINUTES."
}}

==Explanation==

[[Cueball]] often leaves his daughter unattended with his tablet. As a result, she often (probably accidentally) posts things on his {{w|Facebook}}. What she posts initially would be bizarre for an adult to post, but her posts make sense when one learns it was a young child posting by accident. She also appears to accidentally post links to webpages it seems she visited herself to plan a heist. As the comic continues, it seems as though Cueball's daughter is planning to break into the tower of {{w|London}} to steal the {{w|Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom|crown jewels}}. The title text continues this by notifying Cueball that his plane flight is leaving soon, and an Uber is coming to pick him up. Since his daughter was using the tablet, the flight and Uber are probably for her.

==Transcript==

[Ponytail is looking at something on her phone while talking to Cueball]
:Ponytail: Why did you post a ''The Wheels on the Bus'' video to Facebook six times?
:Cueball: Haha, whoops! My daughter was watching the tablet and must have hit something.

[Cueball is talking to someone on the phone while pushing a shopping cart with a few items in it]
:Phone: Hey, did you mean to post "FHFF,,,M,,,," and a link to a map of hardware stores?
:Cueball: I should really look up how to lock the screen.

[White Hat is looking at his phone while talking to Cueball]
:White Hat: You just posted videos on metal-working, zip lines, and camouflage.
:Cueball: Uhh...

[Ponytail is looking at her phone while talking to Cueball]
:Ponytail: Um, you posted blueprints of the Crown Jewel rooms in the Tower of London.
:Cueball: Maybe we should be keeping more of an eye on her.

{{comic discussion}}

1762: Moving Boxes

2016-11-21T17:14:38Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation of boxes */ corrected accidental placement of traps under field lines

{{comic
| number = 1762
| date = November 21, 2016
| title = Moving Boxes
| image = moving_boxes.png
| titletext = Later, when I remember that I'm calling movers, I frantically scribble over the labels and write 'NORMAL HOUSE STUFF' on all of them, which actually makes things worse.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Fill table}}
[[Randall]] talks about moving boxes and not labeling them until he forgets what's in them. Since he doesn't know what's in them, he writes silly things on the boxes as a joke. Some things are unusual/unlikely (e.g. sand, hydrants, peat) and some are abstract/impossible (e.g. elves, taupe, dark matter).

===Explanation of boxes===
{| class="wikitable" width="100%"
!Label
!Explanation
|-
!Box 1
|-
|Grids||
|-
|Bison||{{w|Bison}}, also known as buffalo, are large animals{{Citation needed}} that would probably not fit in the box{{Citation needed}}.
|-
|Checkerboards||
|-
|Fog||{{w|Fog}} is essentially low-lying clouds which, being gaseous, are hard to box using only cardboard.
|-
!Box 2
|-
|Beacons||
|-
|Elves||
|-
|Sand||
|-
!Box 3
|-
|Hemoglobin||
|-
!Box 4
|-
|Water||
|-
|Hooves||
|-
!Box 5
|-
|Shorebirds||
|-
!Box 6
|-
|Oil||
|-
|Vectors||{{w|Vector}}s are not physical objects, so they cannot be put in boxes.
|-
|Silt||
|-
!Box 7
|-
|Membranes||
|-
|Shards||Broken pieces of smooth and hard objects, e.g. ceramic, glass, crystal. Something you would normally expect to be thrown out, rather than packed up for moving house.
|-
!Box 8
|-
|Shawls||Simple item of clothing, worn loosly over shoulders. Of rectangular shape, and is supposed to be worn in colder weather, winter.
|-
|Glucose||{{w|Glucose}} is possibly best-known as the sugar plants produce for energy, but can be manufactured.
|-
|Kits||A kit is any set of tools, supplies, and/or instructions for a specific purpose. These could be first aid kits, software development kits, bomb-making kits, sewing kits...
|-
!Box 9
|-
|Hydrants||{{w|Fire Hydrant}}s, which are likely too big to fit n boxes, and is also simply an odd object to be packing into a box.
|-
|Particles||As almost all matter is composed of {{w|particles}}, it is hard to find exceptions. Thus, this is very vague.
|-
|Knots||
|-
!Box 10
|-
|Graphite||
|-
|Taupe||
|-
!Box 11
|-
|Field Lines||
|-
!Box 12
|-
|Traps||May be a reference to 'My house is full of traps from [https://what-if.xkcd.com/34// What-If #34]
|-
!Box 13
|-
|Edges||
|-
|Tribes||
|-
|Dough||
|-
!Box 14
|-
|Dark Matter||{{w|Dark Matter}}
|-
!Box 15
|-
|Manifolds||
|-
!Box 16
|-
|Triangles||
|-
|Peat||
|-
|Crowns||
|-
!Box 17
|-
|Scrolls||
|}

According to the title text, when Randall remembers that he is calling movers, he frantically scribbles "Normal House Stuff" on all the boxes. He says this makes the situation worse because the movers see the scribble and become suspicious.

==Transcript==
[A bunch of cardboard boxes stacked up, each labeled]
{| class="wikitable"
| style="visibility:hidden" |
| colspan="2" height="80px" width="80px" |
Grids 
Bison 
Checkerboards 
Fog
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px"|
Beacons 
Elves 
Sand
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Hemoglobin
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Water 
Hooves
| style="visibility:hidden" |
|-|
| style="visibility:hidden" |
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Shorebirds
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Oil 
Vectors 
Silt
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Membranes 
Shards
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Shawls 
Glucose 
Kits
| style="visibility:hidden" |
|-|
| style="visibility:hidden" |
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Hydrants 
Particles 
Knots
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Graphite 
Taupe
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Field Lines
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Traps
| style="visibility:hidden" |
|-|
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Edges 
Tribes 
Dough
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Dark Matter
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Manifolds
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Triangles 
Peat 
Crowns
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Scrolls
|}
[A caption:]
I always forget to label my moving boxes until they're sealed up and I've forgotten what's in them.
{{comic discussion}}

1762: Moving Boxes

2016-11-21T17:13:42Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation of boxes */ added vector explanation, added hydrants explanation

{{comic
| number = 1762
| date = November 21, 2016
| title = Moving Boxes
| image = moving_boxes.png
| titletext = Later, when I remember that I'm calling movers, I frantically scribble over the labels and write 'NORMAL HOUSE STUFF' on all of them, which actually makes things worse.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Fill table}}
[[Randall]] talks about moving boxes and not labeling them until he forgets what's in them. Since he doesn't know what's in them, he writes silly things on the boxes as a joke. Some things are unusual/unlikely (e.g. sand, hydrants, peat) and some are abstract/impossible (e.g. elves, taupe, dark matter).

===Explanation of boxes===
{| class="wikitable" width="100%"
!Label
!Explanation
|-
!Box 1
|-
|Grids||
|-
|Bison||{{w|Bison}}, also known as buffalo, are large animals{{Citation needed}} that would probably not fit in the box{{Citation needed}}.
|-
|Checkerboards||
|-
|Fog||{{w|Fog}} is essentially low-lying clouds which, being gaseous, are hard to box using only cardboard.
|-
!Box 2
|-
|Beacons||
|-
|Elves||
|-
|Sand||
|-
!Box 3
|-
|Hemoglobin||
|-
!Box 4
|-
|Water||
|-
|Hooves||
|-
!Box 5
|-
|Shorebirds||
|-
!Box 6
|-
|Oil||
|-
|Vectors||{{w|Vector}}s are not physical objects, so they cannot be put in boxes.
|-
|Silt||
|-
!Box 7
|-
|Membranes||
|-
|Shards||Broken pieces of smooth and hard objects, e.g. ceramic, glass, crystal. Something you would normally expect to be thrown out, rather than packed up for moving house.
|-
!Box 8
|-
|Shawls||Simple item of clothing, worn loosly over shoulders. Of rectangular shape, and is supposed to be worn in colder weather, winter.
|-
|Glucose||{{w|Glucose}} is possibly best-known as the sugar plants produce for energy, but can be manufactured.
|-
|Kits||A kit is any set of tools, supplies, and/or instructions for a specific purpose. These could be first aid kits, software development kits, bomb-making kits, sewing kits...
|-
!Box 9
|-
|Hydrants||{{w|Fire Hydrant}}s, which are likely too big to fit n boxes, and is also simply an odd object to be packing into a box.
|-
|Particles||As almost all matter is composed of {{w|particles}}, it is hard to find exceptions. Thus, this is very vague.
|-
|Knots||
|-
!Box 10
|-
|Graphite||
|-
|Taupe||
|-
!Box 11
|-
|Field Lines||May be a reference to 'My house is full of traps from [https://what-if.xkcd.com/34// What-If #34]
|-
!Box 12
|-
|Traps||
|-
!Box 13
|-
|Edges||
|-
|Tribes||
|-
|Dough||
|-
!Box 14
|-
|Dark Matter||{{w|Dark Matter}}
|-
!Box 15
|-
|Manifolds||
|-
!Box 16
|-
|Triangles||
|-
|Peat||
|-
|Crowns||
|-
!Box 17
|-
|Scrolls||
|}

According to the title text, when Randall remembers that he is calling movers, he frantically scribbles "Normal House Stuff" on all the boxes. He says this makes the situation worse because the movers see the scribble and become suspicious.

==Transcript==
[A bunch of cardboard boxes stacked up, each labeled]
{| class="wikitable"
| style="visibility:hidden" |
| colspan="2" height="80px" width="80px" |
Grids 
Bison 
Checkerboards 
Fog
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px"|
Beacons 
Elves 
Sand
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Hemoglobin
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Water 
Hooves
| style="visibility:hidden" |
|-|
| style="visibility:hidden" |
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Shorebirds
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Oil 
Vectors 
Silt
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Membranes 
Shards
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Shawls 
Glucose 
Kits
| style="visibility:hidden" |
|-|
| style="visibility:hidden" |
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Hydrants 
Particles 
Knots
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Graphite 
Taupe
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Field Lines
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Traps
| style="visibility:hidden" |
|-|
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Edges 
Tribes 
Dough
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Dark Matter
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Manifolds
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Triangles 
Peat 
Crowns
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Scrolls
|}
[A caption:]
I always forget to label my moving boxes until they're sealed up and I've forgotten what's in them.
{{comic discussion}}

1762: Moving Boxes

2016-11-21T17:10:43Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation of boxes */ added 'my house is full of traps reference from what if 34

{{comic
| number = 1762
| date = November 21, 2016
| title = Moving Boxes
| image = moving_boxes.png
| titletext = Later, when I remember that I'm calling movers, I frantically scribble over the labels and write 'NORMAL HOUSE STUFF' on all of them, which actually makes things worse.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Fill table}}
[[Randall]] talks about moving boxes and not labeling them until he forgets what's in them. Since he doesn't know what's in them, he writes silly things on the boxes as a joke. Some things are unusual/unlikely (e.g. sand, hydrants, peat) and some are abstract/impossible (e.g. elves, taupe, dark matter).

===Explanation of boxes===
{| class="wikitable" width="100%"
!Label
!Explanation
|-
!Box 1
|-
|Grids||
|-
|Bison||{{w|Bison}}, also known as buffalo, are large animals{{Citation needed}} that would probably not fit in the box{{Citation needed}}.
|-
|Checkerboards||
|-
|Fog||{{w|Fog}} is essentially low-lying clouds which, being gaseous, are hard to box using only cardboard.
|-
!Box 2
|-
|Beacons||
|-
|Elves||
|-
|Sand||
|-
!Box 3
|-
|Hemoglobin||
|-
!Box 4
|-
|Water||
|-
|Hooves||
|-
!Box 5
|-
|Shorebirds||
|-
!Box 6
|-
|Oil||
|-
|Vectors||
|-
|Silt||
|-
!Box 7
|-
|Membranes||
|-
|Shards||Broken pieces of smooth and hard objects, e.g. ceramic, glass, crystal. Something you would normally expect to be thrown out, rather than packed up for moving house.
|-
!Box 8
|-
|Shawls||Simple item of clothing, worn loosly over shoulders. Of rectangular shape, and is supposed to be worn in colder weather, winter.
|-
|Glucose||{{w|Glucose}} is possibly best-known as the sugar plants produce for energy, but can be manufactured.
|-
|Kits||A kit is any set of tools, supplies, and/or instructions for a specific purpose. These could be first aid kits, software development kits, bomb-making kits, sewing kits...
|-
!Box 9
|-
|Hydrants||
|-
|Particles||As almost all matter is composed of {{w|particles}}, it is hard to find exceptions. Thus, this is very vague.
|-
|Knots||
|-
!Box 10
|-
|Graphite||
|-
|Taupe||
|-
!Box 11
|-
|Field Lines||May be a reference to 'My house is full of traps from [https://what-if.xkcd.com/34// What-If #34]
|-
!Box 12
|-
|Traps||
|-
!Box 13
|-
|Edges||
|-
|Tribes||
|-
|Dough||
|-
!Box 14
|-
|Dark Matter||{{w|Dark Matter}}
|-
!Box 15
|-
|Manifolds||
|-
!Box 16
|-
|Triangles||
|-
|Peat||
|-
|Crowns||
|-
!Box 17
|-
|Scrolls||
|}

According to the title text, when Randall remembers that he is calling movers, he frantically scribbles "Normal House Stuff" on all the boxes. He says this makes the situation worse because the movers see the scribble and become suspicious.

==Transcript==
[A bunch of cardboard boxes stacked up, each labeled]
{| class="wikitable"
| style="visibility:hidden" |
| colspan="2" height="80px" width="80px" |
Grids 
Bison 
Checkerboards 
Fog
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px"|
Beacons 
Elves 
Sand
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Hemoglobin
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Water 
Hooves
| style="visibility:hidden" |
|-|
| style="visibility:hidden" |
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Shorebirds
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Oil 
Vectors 
Silt
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Membranes 
Shards
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Shawls 
Glucose 
Kits
| style="visibility:hidden" |
|-|
| style="visibility:hidden" |
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Hydrants 
Particles 
Knots
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Graphite 
Taupe
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Field Lines
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Traps
| style="visibility:hidden" |
|-|
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Edges 
Tribes 
Dough
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Dark Matter
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Manifolds
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Triangles 
Peat 
Crowns
| colspan="2" width="80px" height="80px" |
Scrolls
|}
[A caption:]
I always forget to label my moving boxes until they're sealed up and I've forgotten what's in them.
{{comic discussion}}

1756: I'm With Her

2016-11-07T21:01:02Z

GizmoDude: /* Transcript */ minor punctuation fix

{{comic
| number = 1756
| date = November 7, 2016
| title = I'm With Her
| image = im_with_her.png
| titletext = We can do this.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete| Just a stub! please add what you can!}}

[[Randall]] urges his American viewership to vote, and states that he will vote for Hillary Rodham Clinton, the {{w|Democratic Party| democratic}} nominee in the 2016 United States Presidential election. The "H" with an arrow is Clinton's campaign logo, and "I'm with her" is a slogan widely used by her supporters. He then lists tips to help you cast your vote, surprisingly using only real sites. This suggests he is invested in the election.
The [[Ponytail]] character seems to be Joanna from [[322: Pix Plz]], and the [[Cueball]] on the chair is from [[303: Compiling]]. The [[Hairbun]] sitting on the top-right part of the 'H' may be the 'Old Days' programmer from the previous comic, [[1755: Old Days]].

All the information on the bottom half of the comic includes sites, numbers, info, etc that will help US voters to vote, regardless of for whom they will vote for. Including this information helps voters because every election many voters don't vote because they feel they don't know how or that it isn't worth it. It seems like Randall doesn't want the US election to have some of the same problems that the Brexit vote had (where many voters opposed to exiting the EU didn't vote for one reason or another).

The websites are:
* https://iwillvote.com/ (for looking up polling location, ID requirements, etc.)
* http://www.drive2vote.org/ (for voters in Douglas or Sarpy County, Nebraska, who need a ride to the polls from [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warren_Buffett Warren Buffett] or his friends)
* http://www.civicinnovation.com/ (a website which "gives you a list of the top 10 highest-impact potential voters in your address book to get in touch with -- based on the likelihood that they support progressive candidates, and that they live in states with the most competitive races")

The comic features a total of: 1 [[Black Hat]], 1 [[Blondie]], 2 Cueballs, 1 [[Beret Guy]], 1 [[White Hat]], 1 Hairbun, 1 [[Science Girl]], 1 Ponytail, and 2 [[Megan]]s

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Still nothing on the specific characters in the image.}}
Image of xkcd characters surrounding a large logo for the Hillary Clinton campaign.

Caption: I'm with her.

How to help

Vote-- iwillvote.com

Get a ride to the polls-- drive2vote.org

If you're having problems voting-- 866-OUR-VOTE

Experimental social turnout project-- civicinnovation.com App Store: VoteWithMe

Reminder: If you're in line when the polls close, they have to let you vote.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Blondie]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Black Hat]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairbun]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Science Girl]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]

Talk:1756: I'm With Her

2016-11-07T20:59:03Z

GizmoDude:

Instead of comic, post contained a political statement. I am not amused. I want a refund. I don't vote, and I don't even live anywhere near USA. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.96.102|141.101.96.102]] 18:40, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

The "I'm with her" and H with an arrow are CLEARLY the respective campaign slogan and campaign logo for Hillary Clinton, not some vagueness having to do with bringing a significant other. --[unsigned]
:I see it more as him endorsing voting regardless of who you vote for (as evidenced by half the comic is about "Here's how you vote" without any mention of candidates or issues) and the endorsing Clinton part is an add-on as if to say "This is how I'm voting; vote for her if you agree with me." [[User:Jeudi Violist|Jeudi Violist]] ([[User talk:Jeudi Violist|talk]]) 18:39, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

Has Randall endorsed a presidential candidate before? --[[User:Dfeuer|Dfeuer]] ([[User talk:Dfeuer|talk]]) 17:14, 7 November 2016 (UTC)
He supported Obama on his blog in '08, not in the comic though.

He could have said any number of clever things about the election, and all he did was put up a campaign sign. Disappointing. [[User:Gmcgath|Gmcgath]] ([[User talk:Gmcgath|talk]]) 17:37, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

what a cuck --[[Special:Contributions/172.68.51.63|172.68.51.63]] 17:45, 7 November 2016 (UTC)
:: leaving aside the most ridiculous slur of the past few years, I don't know what else did you expect from Randall. I guess you must have stumbled upon this wiki by chance and have never heard of xkcd before.--[[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.130|141.101.98.130]] 17:59, 7 November 2016 (UTC)
:: AHAHAHAHA. *Ahem.* Hooray for pejorative misappropriation of a kink. /s [[Special:Contributions/108.162.246.55|108.162.246.55]] 19:07, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

This is the first time I still don't get the joke even after reading the explainxkcd page [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.123|108.162.219.123]] 18:09, 7 November 2016 (UTC)
:It isn't a joke. [[Randall]] is simply encouraging people to vote. [[User:GizmoDude|GizmoDude]] ([[User talk:GizmoDude|talk]]) 20:55, 7 November 2016 (UTC)
== Bit disappointing... ==

I was hoping for a comic today. oh well. Interesting to see how he's planning to vote, though - it's a shame that there are no candidates this year in favor of strong encryption.

Funny how females outdo males in this 'comic' but in terms of frequency and of elevation. Oh well. xkcd has long been overrepresenting females, it was to be expected. <nowiki>~~~~</nowiki>

Seriously? You're whinging 'what about the men?' in a geek web comic?! [[Special:Contributions/108.162.215.212|108.162.215.212]] 18:21, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

The only disappointing this are comments like those two above. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.201.96|162.158.201.96]] 18:11, 7 November 2016 (UTC)
: Females being overrepresented in comics like xkcd (but also other ones) with respect to their controlled interest in science in reality is a fact. Therefore, you are calling facts disappointing. How geeky of you. <nowiki>~~~~</nowiki>
:: So, your real problem is that Randall likes using female stick figures, yes? Also, why are you afraid to "un-nowiki" your signature...? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.201.96|162.158.201.96]] 19:15, 7 November 2016 (UTC)
::: No. Allow me to repeat my point as you had apparently misunderstood: 'females being overrepresented'. This is something else than 'females being represented'. The more you know, the less chance there is for you to accidentally twist another person's words as misogyny/sexism. Also, identity is not relevant to discussion. <nowiki>~~~~</nowiki>
:::: I understood you perfectly fine. My point still stands: You don't like Randall's preference for female stick figures. I never said you're being misogynic/sexist, so please don't imply I did. Thing with your "hidden" identity is that it's plain visible in the history of this page, so there's really no need to nowiki the signature, that's all. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.201.96|162.158.201.96]] 20:42, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

A little disappointing to have a normally lighthearted comic dive seriously into politics, if even for one strip. Not really a fan of either candidate, but would like to see stuff like this stay above the fray.
:Completely agreed. [[User:SeanAhern|SeanAhern]] ([[User talk:SeanAhern|talk]]) 18:27, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

This is a first... comics 500 and 1130 (possibly 1131 too) were related to the election, but didn't endorse a candidate. I'm not entirely sure how I feel about this. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.89|108.162.219.89]] 18:41, 7 November 2016 (UTC)
:I think Randall is pretty much just saying '''OH GOD PLEASE DONT VOTE FOR TRUMP''' [[User:GizmoDude|GizmoDude]] ([[User talk:GizmoDude|talk]]) 20:59, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

I came here to see what the tone of the comments were going to be. I was half expecting to find an all-out flamewar in progress. I was happy to see that the comments have not devolved into the kind of attacks that one would expect to find pretty much anywhere else on the Internet. Geeks are the best people. :) [[User:Mwburden|mwburden]] ([[User talk:Mwburden|talk]]) 18:47, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

I'm very dissappointed. Randall never took sides before and - be it as it may - this comic is not a comic but plain out political campaign. Up until now I held xkcd in EXTREMELY high esteem - this comic put a serious dent in that opinion..
--[[Special:Contributions/162.158.91.60|162.158.91.60]] 18:56, 7 November 2016 (UTC)
: I'm really torn about this one. On the one hand I feel that you HAVE to take sides in this one, if your only other option is Donald Trump... on the other hand, I never liked when web comics express political opinions. It will always end in a flame war and almost never have anything to do with the web comic itself. Randall should've just put up a "go vote becaues it's important" sign without taking sides. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.201.96|162.158.201.96]] 19:17, 7 November 2016 (UTC)
: Don't let the door hit you on the way out. I'm sure there are other comics out there that would agree with your ideology. [[User:Sturmovik|Sturmovik]] ([[User talk:Sturmovik|talk]]) 19:25, 7 November 2016 (UTC)
:Randall should do whatever Randall thinks he should do. Should he put up "go read about global warming" comics instead of take the side of AGW? If you think this example is an inappropriate one to use in contrasting this comic with the current political election cycle then you've completely ignored the stances of the two popular candidates. But back to the original point: if you don't like XKCD anymore because of this one comic then go find another comic or start your own. All of art is an expression of the person. Randall knew not everyone would like his beliefs when he pushed this out to the world and is obviously prepared to deal with any consequences of taking a stand on his website. I, for one, applaud him for doing so
:: Randall did a comic about global warming a while back, which was very interesting. Because I heard the "earth has warmed up before" argument before and even used it myself at least once. The difference about the global warming comic is that he backed it up with scientific facts, which is well within the scope of this comic. Political opinions aren't (or did the slogan change to ''A webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language and politics''?). Yes, of course he can do with his web comic whatever he wants to. But readers can express their opinions about what he does with it. It's called "freedom of speech", you know? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.201.96|162.158.201.96]] 20:47, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

Can you help list all the characters in the transcript? From left to right; they're Joanna (ponytail with EMP cannon) from [[322]]; Black Hat; unknown with kite; White Hat; possibly Miss Lenhart (but his hair is somewhat different from [[1519]]); unknown possibly Megan; cueball; unknown woman with glasses; Hairbun; Beret Guy; Cueball with toy sword from [[303]]. [[User:B jonas|B jonas]] ([[User talk:B jonas|talk]]) 19:10, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

Good for Randal. I had been noticing how many Hillary leaning artists had been pulling their punches this election, likely out of fear of trolling or loss of revenue. You want to know what courage looks like? This is is. [[User:Sturmovik|Sturmovik]] ([[User talk:Sturmovik|talk]]) 19:25, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

Title text hasn't been explained yet. Is it a reference to the German chancellor Angela Merkel's phrase "Wir schaffen das!'? Don't know if Clinton has a slogan like Obama's "Yes, we can!".

I find (linking to )this civicinnovation website rather questionable. They want to audit peoples address books based on who the names in there might vote for? That sounds like Erich Mielkes wildest dreams come true. Even German newspapers (where i'm from), which are 100% anti-Trump, have in the last days noted concern about the methods of Clintons supporters bullying the other side, and this is a disquieting new piece in that picture. I'll hope this is just a ploy to step up with Trump on the ''bad manners'' side. --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.91.160|162.158.91.160]] 19:37, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

== Not all comics have to be humorous ==

From [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comics#Etymology]
:The English term ''comics'' derives from the humorous (or "[[wikt:comic|comic]]") work which predominated in early American newspaper comic strips; usage of the term has become standard for non-humorous works as well.

:The problem is that this isn't a comic, this is a campaign ad. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.238.38|162.158.238.38]] 20:32, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

== Could we please just NOT get politics involved in the comments, guys? ==

Just... please? [[User:Papayaman1000|Papayaman1000]] ([[User talk:Papayaman1000|talk]]) 20:34, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

Randall has taken a side in a political Argument before: Not counting the near-invisible easter egg, comic 1005 consists solely of Randall taking a stance on something political and providing links to show how you can help. That wasn't too long ago, but no one freaked out about a serious, political strip back then.
[[User:CJB42|CJB42]] ([[User talk:CJB42|talk]]) 20:39, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

Talk:1756: I'm With Her

2016-11-07T20:55:32Z

GizmoDude:

Instead of comic, post contained a political statement. I am not amused. I want a refund. I don't vote, and I don't even live anywhere near USA. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.96.102|141.101.96.102]] 18:40, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

The "I'm with her" and H with an arrow are CLEARLY the respective campaign slogan and campaign logo for Hillary Clinton, not some vagueness having to do with bringing a significant other. --[unsigned]
:I see it more as him endorsing voting regardless of who you vote for (as evidenced by half the comic is about "Here's how you vote" without any mention of candidates or issues) and the endorsing Clinton part is an add-on as if to say "This is how I'm voting; vote for her if you agree with me." [[User:Jeudi Violist|Jeudi Violist]] ([[User talk:Jeudi Violist|talk]]) 18:39, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

Has Randall endorsed a presidential candidate before? --[[User:Dfeuer|Dfeuer]] ([[User talk:Dfeuer|talk]]) 17:14, 7 November 2016 (UTC)
He supported Obama on his blog in '08, not in the comic though.

He could have said any number of clever things about the election, and all he did was put up a campaign sign. Disappointing. [[User:Gmcgath|Gmcgath]] ([[User talk:Gmcgath|talk]]) 17:37, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

what a cuck --[[Special:Contributions/172.68.51.63|172.68.51.63]] 17:45, 7 November 2016 (UTC)
:: leaving aside the most ridiculous slur of the past few years, I don't know what else did you expect from Randall. I guess you must have stumbled upon this wiki by chance and have never heard of xkcd before.--[[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.130|141.101.98.130]] 17:59, 7 November 2016 (UTC)
:: AHAHAHAHA. *Ahem.* Hooray for pejorative misappropriation of a kink. /s [[Special:Contributions/108.162.246.55|108.162.246.55]] 19:07, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

This is the first time I still don't get the joke even after reading the explainxkcd page [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.123|108.162.219.123]] 18:09, 7 November 2016 (UTC)
:It isn't a joke. [[Randall]] is simply encouraging people to vote. [[User:GizmoDude|GizmoDude]] ([[User talk:GizmoDude|talk]]) 20:55, 7 November 2016 (UTC)
== Bit disappointing... ==

I was hoping for a comic today. oh well. Interesting to see how he's planning to vote, though - it's a shame that there are no candidates this year in favor of strong encryption.

Funny how females outdo males in this 'comic' but in terms of frequency and of elevation. Oh well. xkcd has long been overrepresenting females, it was to be expected. <nowiki>~~~~</nowiki>

Seriously? You're whinging 'what about the men?' in a geek web comic?! [[Special:Contributions/108.162.215.212|108.162.215.212]] 18:21, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

The only disappointing this are comments like those two above. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.201.96|162.158.201.96]] 18:11, 7 November 2016 (UTC)
: Females being overrepresented in comics like xkcd (but also other ones) with respect to their controlled interest in science in reality is a fact. Therefore, you are calling facts disappointing. How geeky of you. <nowiki>~~~~</nowiki>
:: So, your real problem is that Randall likes using female stick figures, yes? Also, why are you afraid to "un-nowiki" your signature...? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.201.96|162.158.201.96]] 19:15, 7 November 2016 (UTC)
::: No. Allow me to repeat my point as you had apparently misunderstood: 'females being overrepresented'. This is something else than 'females being represented'. The more you know, the less chance there is for you to accidentally twist another person's words as misogyny/sexism. Also, identity is not relevant to discussion. <nowiki>~~~~</nowiki>
:::: I understood you perfectly fine. My point still stands: You don't like Randall's preference for female stick figures. I never said you're being misogynic/sexist, so please don't imply I did. Thing with your "hidden" identity is that it's plain visible in the history of this page, so there's really no need to nowiki the signature, that's all. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.201.96|162.158.201.96]] 20:42, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

A little disappointing to have a normally lighthearted comic dive seriously into politics, if even for one strip. Not really a fan of either candidate, but would like to see stuff like this stay above the fray.
:Completely agreed. [[User:SeanAhern|SeanAhern]] ([[User talk:SeanAhern|talk]]) 18:27, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

This is a first... comics 500 and 1130 (possibly 1131 too) were related to the election, but didn't endorse a candidate. I'm not entirely sure how I feel about this. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.89|108.162.219.89]] 18:41, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

I came here to see what the tone of the comments were going to be. I was half expecting to find an all-out flamewar in progress. I was happy to see that the comments have not devolved into the kind of attacks that one would expect to find pretty much anywhere else on the Internet. Geeks are the best people. :) [[User:Mwburden|mwburden]] ([[User talk:Mwburden|talk]]) 18:47, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

I'm very dissappointed. Randall never took sides before and - be it as it may - this comic is not a comic but plain out political campaign. Up until now I held xkcd in EXTREMELY high esteem - this comic put a serious dent in that opinion..
--[[Special:Contributions/162.158.91.60|162.158.91.60]] 18:56, 7 November 2016 (UTC)
: I'm really torn about this one. On the one hand I feel that you HAVE to take sides in this one, if your only other option is Donald Trump... on the other hand, I never liked when web comics express political opinions. It will always end in a flame war and almost never have anything to do with the web comic itself. Randall should've just put up a "go vote becaues it's important" sign without taking sides. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.201.96|162.158.201.96]] 19:17, 7 November 2016 (UTC)
: Don't let the door hit you on the way out. I'm sure there are other comics out there that would agree with your ideology. [[User:Sturmovik|Sturmovik]] ([[User talk:Sturmovik|talk]]) 19:25, 7 November 2016 (UTC)
:Randall should do whatever Randall thinks he should do. Should he put up "go read about global warming" comics instead of take the side of AGW? If you think this example is an inappropriate one to use in contrasting this comic with the current political election cycle then you've completely ignored the stances of the two popular candidates. But back to the original point: if you don't like XKCD anymore because of this one comic then go find another comic or start your own. All of art is an expression of the person. Randall knew not everyone would like his beliefs when he pushed this out to the world and is obviously prepared to deal with any consequences of taking a stand on his website. I, for one, applaud him for doing so
:: Randall did a comic about global warming a while back, which was very interesting. Because I heard the "earth has warmed up before" argument before and even used it myself at least once. The difference about the global warming comic is that he backed it up with scientific facts, which is well within the scope of this comic. Political opinions aren't (or did the slogan change to ''A webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language and politics''?). Yes, of course he can do with his web comic whatever he wants to. But readers can express their opinions about what he does with it. It's called "freedom of speech", you know? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.201.96|162.158.201.96]] 20:47, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

Can you help list all the characters in the transcript? From left to right; they're Joanna (ponytail with EMP cannon) from [[322]]; Black Hat; unknown with kite; White Hat; possibly Miss Lenhart (but his hair is somewhat different from [[1519]]); unknown possibly Megan; cueball; unknown woman with glasses; Hairbun; Beret Guy; Cueball with toy sword from [[303]]. [[User:B jonas|B jonas]] ([[User talk:B jonas|talk]]) 19:10, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

Good for Randal. I had been noticing how many Hillary leaning artists had been pulling their punches this election, likely out of fear of trolling or loss of revenue. You want to know what courage looks like? This is is. [[User:Sturmovik|Sturmovik]] ([[User talk:Sturmovik|talk]]) 19:25, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

Title text hasn't been explained yet. Is it a reference to the German chancellor Angela Merkel's phrase "Wir schaffen das!'? Don't know if Clinton has a slogan like Obama's "Yes, we can!".

I find (linking to )this civicinnovation website rather questionable. They want to audit peoples address books based on who the names in there might vote for? That sounds like Erich Mielkes wildest dreams come true. Even German newspapers (where i'm from), which are 100% anti-Trump, have in the last days noted concern about the methods of Clintons supporters bullying the other side, and this is a disquieting new piece in that picture. I'll hope this is just a ploy to step up with Trump on the ''bad manners'' side. --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.91.160|162.158.91.160]] 19:37, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

== Not all comics have to be humorous ==

From [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comics#Etymology]
:The English term ''comics'' derives from the humorous (or "[[wikt:comic|comic]]") work which predominated in early American newspaper comic strips; usage of the term has become standard for non-humorous works as well.

:The problem is that this isn't a comic, this is a campaign ad. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.238.38|162.158.238.38]] 20:32, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

== Could we please just NOT get politics involved in the comments, guys? ==

Just... please? [[User:Papayaman1000|Papayaman1000]] ([[User talk:Papayaman1000|talk]]) 20:34, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

Randall has taken a side in a political Argument before: Not counting the near-invisible easter egg, comic 1005 consists solely of Randall taking a stance on something political and providing links to show how you can help. That wasn't too long ago, but no one freaked out about a serious, political strip back then.
[[User:CJB42|CJB42]] ([[User talk:CJB42|talk]]) 20:39, 7 November 2016 (UTC)

1753: Thumb War

2016-10-31T16:23:07Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation */ punctuation and formatting fix

{{comic
| number = 1753
| date = October 31, 2016
| title = Thumb War
| image = thumb_war.png
| titletext = "Seventeen, eighteen, nineteen, twenty--" / "Can't we just read Pat the Bunny?"
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Just... More. Some parts seem like a stretch}}
A {{w|thumb war}} is a common game for children, in which two players hold hands and attempt to pin each other's thumb down. The game is often started with both players chanting "one, two three, four, I declare a thumb war," and then counting up by fours and making rhymes, all the while trying to pin the opponent's thumbs down.

The standard concept is subverted here: [[Black Hat]] interprets the simulation of hand-to-hand combat with thumbs differently, comparing it with real conflict. He shows this in further lines, invented by himself.

The second rhyme, "finger guns proliferate," describes {{w|Small arms trade|small arms proliferation}} - the spread of black-market weapons which often comes with war as captured and smuggled guns make their way into the hands of paramilitary groups. Black Hat transfers this into the "thumb war universe", introducing finger guns into the thumb hand-to-hand combat. The finger gun faction uses their military superiority to establish dominance, and thus proliferate, that is, extend territory or numbers. This is, of course, nonsensical.

The third rhyme continues the counting until twelve, thus entering the two digit number space, the idea being that multiple digits (numbers) have united against a common foe, since one alone cannot protect itself, according to Black Hat. It is left open from what the thumbs are supposed to be protected, maybe multiple digits. This is funny because of the pun involved: Digits are glyphs of numbers (compare single-digit number vs. multi-digit number) as well as one's fingers. Thus, also "fingers can't protect themselves".

The last line is utterly nonsensical: Black Hat states that, even though this useless thumb war goes on and on, the "thumb U.N.", the thumb war universe equivalent to our {{w|United Nations}}, won't try to put an end to it using diplomatic power. In real life, the U.N. has the power to mandate intervention using (blue-helmet) peace forces in war zones to put an end to violence or give out a mandate to nations so that they can intervene in some crisis on their own behalf.

All of this is a nonsensical continuation of the original rhyme since fingers don't reproduce or own territory nor unite to form a common Organization. It is, instead, a quite cynical portrayal of our world, criticizing the "might is right" mentality that is the sad reality of our globe, and the government of the world by the militarily strongest nations. It puts the UN in an unfavorable light since it portrays it either as corrupt or apathetic, both equally bad.

[[Hairy]], meanwhile, is unnerved by all this and wants to stop playing. This could be a metaphor for how our industrialized, fun-oriented societies only care about entertainment and not the real problems mankind has. Hairy could portray a happy European or American, who is only satisfied with instant gratification, games, and joy instead of confronting the problems we western nations brought about as would be our responsibility or duty.

Black Hat continues to make Hairy uncomfortable as an adult, such as in [[1210: I'm So Random]].
In the title text, Black Hat attempts to add another verse, but Hairy interrupts, requesting to do something more appropriate for children, reading a picture book.

This is the second time a young Black Hat has been used. The first was in [[1139: Rubber and Glue]].

==Transcript==
[A young Black Hat and Hairy are sitting across from each other. A toy truck is on Black Hat's left, and a stack of blocks is on Hairy's right.]

:Black hat: One, two, three, four, I declare a thumb war.
:Black hat: Five, six, seven, eight, finger guns proliferate.
:Black hat: Nine, ten, eleven, twelve, digits can't protect themselves.
:Black hat: Thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, thumb U.N. won't intervene.
:Hairy: I don't want to play with you anymore.

{{comic discussion}}

1753: Thumb War

2016-10-31T15:51:57Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1753
| date = October 31, 2016
| title = Thumb War
| image = thumb_war.png
| titletext = "Seventeen, eighteen, nineteen, twenty--" / "Can't we just read Pat the Bunny?"
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Just... More. Some parts seem like a stretch}}
A {{w|thumb war}} is a common game for children, in which two players hold hands and attempt to pin each other's thumb down. The game is often started with both players chanting "one, two three, four, I declare a thumb war," and then counting up by fours and making rhymes, all the while trying to pin the opponent's thumbs down.

The standard concept is subverted here: [[Black Hat]] interprets the simulation of hand-to-hand combat with thumbs differently, comparing it with real conflict. He shows this in further lines, invented by himself.

The second rhyme, "finger guns proliferate," describes {{w|Small arms trade|small arms proliferation}} - the spread of black-market weapons which often comes with war as captured and smuggled guns make their way into the hands of paramilitary groups. Black hat transfers this into the "thumb war universe", introducing finger guns into the thumb hand-to-hand combat. The finger gun faction uses their military superiority to establish dominance, and thus proliferate, that is, extend territory or numbers. This is, of course, nonsensical.

The third rhyme continues the counting until twelve, thus entering the two digit number space, the idea being that multiple digits (numbers) have united against a common foe, since one alone cannot protect itself, according to Black Hat. It is left open from what the thumbs are supposed to be protected, maybe multiple digits. This is funny because of the pun involved: Digits are glyphs of numbers (compare single-digit number vs. multi-digit number) as well as one's fingers. Thus, also "fingers can't protect themselves".

The last line is utterly nonsensical: Black hat states that, even though this useless thumb war goes on and on, the "thumb U.N.", the thumb war universe equivalent to our {{w|United Nations}}, won't try to put an end to it using diplomatic power. In real life, the U.N. has the power to mandate intervention using (blue-helmet) peace forces in war zones to put an end to violence or give out a mandate to nations so that they can intervene in some crisis on their own behalf.

All of this is a nonsensical continuation of the original rhyme since fingers don't reproduce or own territory nor unite to form a common Organization. It is, instead, a quite cynical portrayal of our world, criticizing the "might is right" mentality that is the sad reality of our globe, and the government of the world by the militarily strongest nations. It puts the UN in an unfavorable light since it portrays it either as corrupt or apathetic, both equally bad.

[[Hairy]], meanwhile, is unnerved by all this and wants to stop playing. This could be a metaphor for how our industrialized, fun-oriented societies only care about entertainment and not the real problems mankind has. Hairy could portray a happy European or American, who is only satisfied with instant gratification, games, and joy instead of confronting the problems we western nations brought about as would be our responsibility or duty.

−
Black Hat continues to make Hairy uncomfortable as an adult, such as in [[1210: I'm So Random]].
In the title text, Hairy adds another verse, requesting to do something more appropriate for children, reading a picture book.

This is the second time a young Black Hat has been used. The first was in [[1139: Rubber and Glue]].

==Transcript==
[A young Black Hat and Hairy are sitting across from each other. A toy truck is on Black Hat's left, and a stack of blocks is on Hairy's right.]

:Black hat: One, two, three, four, I declare a thumb war.
:Black hat: Five, six, seven, eight, finger guns proliferate.
:Black hat: Nine, ten, eleven, twelve, digits can't protect themselves.
:Black hat: Thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, thumb U.N. won't intervene.
:Hairy: I don't want to play with you anymore.

{{comic discussion}}

1750: Life Goals

2016-10-24T16:54:53Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1750
| date = October 24, 2016
| title = Life Goals
| image = life_goals.png
| titletext = I got to check off 'Make something called xkcd' early.
}}

==Explanation==
This index of goals features many words containing an excess of the letters X and Z, most of which are fictional, obscure, or proper nouns. (Note that none of the goals on this list are checked off.) The punchline climax expresses that the writer (presumably Randall) often uses these unexpected and bizarre words in Scrabble games, which exasperates his opponents to a great extent, to the point of him getting punched.

All of these words would theoretically earn a player the prize of many points. However, most of them would not be found in {{w|SOWPODS}}, the combined list of all words valid in either British or North American Scrabble, and many include too many X's, Y's or Z's (there's 1 X, 2 Y's, 1 Z in a standard set), meaning at least one would have to be substituted for a blank (which is not worth any points). Some words would also be very difficult to play in reality, since there are only 7 letters in a Scrabble hand, so they could only be played in extremely rare circumstances (there are only a couple of ways to play MUZQUIZOPTERYX: for instance, from MU and OPTER; or MU, QUIZ and ER; or an astonishingly unlikely set of crossing letters). Many are long enough that, in theory, they could net the player the additional 50 point bonus for using all seven letters in a hand if played right.

{| border =1 width=100% cellpadding=5 class="wikitable"
! Word !! Definition !! Notes !! In SOWPODS? !! Enough tiles ({{w|Scrabble letter distributions|in English version}})? !! Score !! Score (ignoring blanks) !! 50 points possible?
|-
| {{w|Skrillex}} || A dubstep musician || Proper noun || No || Yes || 19 || 19 || Yes
|-
| {{w|Phoenix, Arizona|Phoenix}} || A city in Arizona (and a mythological bird) || Proper noun and noun || Yes (but only in lower-case) || Yes || 19 || 19 || Yes
|-
| {{w|Zymology|Zymurgy}} || The study of fermentation. || || Yes || Yes || 25 || 25 || Yes
|-
| {{w|Axolotl}} || A kind of water-breathing salamander which lives on the bottom of lakes. || || Yes || Yes|| 14 || 14 || Yes
|-
| [http://villains.wikia.com/wiki/Hexxus Hexxus] || An evil spirit from the animated movie [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FernGully:_The_Last_Rainforest FernGully] || Fictional || No || With a blank as X || 23 || 15 || No
|-
| {{w|Syzygy (astronomy)|Syzygy}} || An astronomical event where three planets form a straight line. || || Yes || With a blank as Y || 25 || 21 || No
|-
| {{w|Zzyzx, California|Zzyzx}} || An unincorporated community in California || Proper noun. Recently mentioned in [http://what-if.xkcd.com/152/ this what-if] || No || Yes, with both blanks as Z || 42 || 22 || No
|-
| {{w|Zzyzzyxx}} || A 1982 arcade video game about navigating a labyrinth || Proper noun || No || No || 64 || 26 (assuming infinite blanks) || Yes
|-
| {{w|Xexyz}} || A 1988 game for the Nintendo Entertainment System with platformer and shoot-em-up gameplay. || Proper noun || No || With a blank as X || 31 || 23 || No
|-
| {{w|Xbox}} || A series of home video game consoles developed by Microsoft. || Proper noun || No || With a blank as X || 20 || 12 || No
|-
| {{w|Zzzax}} || A Marvel comic book villain. || See below || No || With both blanks as Z || 39 || 19 || No
|-
| {{w|Mister Mxyzptlk}} || A DC Comics villain. || Fictional. Since Zzzax and Mxyzptlk come from different companies, a crossover story involving them both might run into license problems. || No || Yes || 42 (8 for Mister, 35 for Mxyzptlk) || 42 || Yes
|-
| {{w|Xhafzotaj}} || A village in Albania || Proper noun || No || Yes || 38 || 38 || Yes
|-
| {{w|Qazaxbəyli}} || A village in Azerbaijan || Proper noun. It can alternatively be spelled "Kazakhbeyli". || No || Because it's spelled with a schwa (ə, upper case Ə), this word would be impossible to spell in English-language Scrabble, although you could put an E tile down upside down (Ǝ) or use a blank. || Unclear (at least 39) 36 for Kazakhbeyli || 39 || Yes
|-
| {{w|Azerbaijan}} || A country in the Caucasus || Proper noun || No || Yes || 28 || 28 || Yes
|-
| {{w|Archaeopteryx}} || A famous small feathered dinosaur || || Yes || Yes || 30 || 30 || Yes
|-
| {{w|Muzquizopteryx}} || A pterosaur || || No || With a blank as Z || 55 || 45 || Yes
|-
| {{w|xkcd}} || See [[207: What xkcd Means]]. || From title text || No || Yes || 18 || 18 || No
|}

The distance between [https://www.google.com/maps/place/Xhafzotaj,+Albanien/@41.3420999,19.538176,15z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x134fd7eb6257dec7:0xc0c17ea9f1d4ef05!8m2!3d41.3442157!4d19.547883 Xhafzotaj] in Albania and [https://www.google.com/maps/place/Gazakhbayly,+Aserbaidschan/@41.1604329,45.3040337,15z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x4041307bb83f5793:0x30f6c3728844806e!8m2!3d41.1606486!4d45.3147936 Quazaxbeyli] in Azerbaijan is about 2800km. Doing this trip by bike would be challenging, but possible.

Unfortunately Archaeopteryx and Muzquizopteryx lived in different time periods, so we can only speculate which one would win a fight.

The title text explains naming something [http://www.xkcd.com xkcd] "xkcd" was also a goal.

It seems likely that Randall created this comic after doing research for this what if article (http://what-if.xkcd.com/152/), and came across the city Zzyzx as the shortest way to dig a channel to flood Death Valley.

==Transcript==
:[A list entitled "Life Goals", where each item has an empty box, like a to-do list.]
:Meet Skrillex in Phoenix
:Study Zymurgy
:Get a pet Axolotl named Hexxus
:Observe a syzygy from Zzyzx, California
:Port the games Zzyzzyxx and Xexyz to Xbox
:Publish a Zzzax/Mister Mxyzptlk crossover
:Bike from Xhafzotaj, Albania to Qazaxbəyli, Azerbaijan
:Paint an archaeopteryx fighting a muzquizopteryx
:Finish a game of Scrabble without getting punched

{{comic discussion}}

1750: Life Goals

2016-10-24T16:53:27Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation */ I don't think Albania belongs in this list.

{{comic
| number = 1750
| date = October 24, 2016
| title = Life Goals
| image = life_goals.png
| titletext = I got to check off 'Make something called xkcd' early.
}}

==Explanation==
This index of goals features many words containing an excess of the letters X and Z, most of which are fictional, obscure, or proper nouns. The punchline climax expresses that the writer (presumably Randall) often uses these unexpected and bizarre words in Scrabble games, which exasperates his opponents to a great extent, to the point of him getting punched.

All of these words would theoretically earn a player the prize of many points. However, most of them would not be found in {{w|SOWPODS}}, the combined list of all words valid in either British or North American Scrabble, and many include too many X's, Y's or Z's (there's 1 X, 2 Y's, 1 Z in a standard set), meaning at least one would have to be substituted for a blank (which is not worth any points). Some words would also be very difficult to play in reality, since there are only 7 letters in a Scrabble hand, so they could only be played in extremely rare circumstances (there are only a couple of ways to play MUZQUIZOPTERYX: for instance, from MU and OPTER; or MU, QUIZ and ER; or an astonishingly unlikely set of crossing letters). Many are long enough that, in theory, they could net the player the additional 50 point bonus for using all seven letters in a hand if played right.

{| border =1 width=100% cellpadding=5 class="wikitable"
! Word !! Definition !! Notes !! In SOWPODS? !! Enough tiles ({{w|Scrabble letter distributions|in English version}})? !! Score !! Score (ignoring blanks) !! 50 points possible?
|-
| {{w|Skrillex}} || A dubstep musician || Proper noun || No || Yes || 19 || 19 || Yes
|-
| {{w|Phoenix, Arizona|Phoenix}} || A city in Arizona (and a mythological bird) || Proper noun and noun || Yes (but only in lower-case) || Yes || 19 || 19 || Yes
|-
| {{w|Zymology|Zymurgy}} || The study of fermentation. || || Yes || Yes || 25 || 25 || Yes
|-
| {{w|Axolotl}} || A kind of water-breathing salamander which lives on the bottom of lakes. || || Yes || Yes|| 14 || 14 || Yes
|-
| [http://villains.wikia.com/wiki/Hexxus Hexxus] || An evil spirit from the animated movie [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FernGully:_The_Last_Rainforest FernGully] || Fictional || No || With a blank as X || 23 || 15 || No
|-
| {{w|Syzygy (astronomy)|Syzygy}} || An astronomical event where three planets form a straight line. || || Yes || With a blank as Y || 25 || 21 || No
|-
| {{w|Zzyzx, California|Zzyzx}} || An unincorporated community in California || Proper noun. Recently mentioned in [http://what-if.xkcd.com/152/ this what-if] || No || Yes, with both blanks as Z || 42 || 22 || No
|-
| {{w|Zzyzzyxx}} || A 1982 arcade video game about navigating a labyrinth || Proper noun || No || No || 64 || 26 (assuming infinite blanks) || Yes
|-
| {{w|Xexyz}} || A 1988 game for the Nintendo Entertainment System with platformer and shoot-em-up gameplay. || Proper noun || No || With a blank as X || 31 || 23 || No
|-
| {{w|Xbox}} || A series of home video game consoles developed by Microsoft. || Proper noun || No || With a blank as X || 20 || 12 || No
|-
| {{w|Zzzax}} || A Marvel comic book villain. || See below || No || With both blanks as Z || 39 || 19 || No
|-
| {{w|Mister Mxyzptlk}} || A DC Comics villain. || Fictional. Since Zzzax and Mxyzptlk come from different companies, a crossover story involving them both might run into license problems. || No || Yes || 42 (8 for Mister, 35 for Mxyzptlk) || 42 || Yes
|-
| {{w|Xhafzotaj}} || A village in Albania || Proper noun || No || Yes || 38 || 38 || Yes
|-
| {{w|Qazaxbəyli}} || A village in Azerbaijan || Proper noun. It can alternatively be spelled "Kazakhbeyli". || No || Because it's spelled with a schwa (ə, upper case Ə), this word would be impossible to spell in English-language Scrabble, although you could put an E tile down upside down (Ǝ) or use a blank. || Unclear (at least 39) 36 for Kazakhbeyli || 39 || Yes
|-
| {{w|Azerbaijan}} || A country in the Caucasus || Proper noun || No || Yes || 28 || 28 || Yes
|-
| {{w|Archaeopteryx}} || A famous small feathered dinosaur || || Yes || Yes || 30 || 30 || Yes
|-
| {{w|Muzquizopteryx}} || A pterosaur || || No || With a blank as Z || 55 || 45 || Yes
|-
| {{w|xkcd}} || See [[207: What xkcd Means]]. || From title text || No || Yes || 18 || 18 || No
|}

The distance between [https://www.google.com/maps/place/Xhafzotaj,+Albanien/@41.3420999,19.538176,15z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x134fd7eb6257dec7:0xc0c17ea9f1d4ef05!8m2!3d41.3442157!4d19.547883 Xhafzotaj] in Albania and [https://www.google.com/maps/place/Gazakhbayly,+Aserbaidschan/@41.1604329,45.3040337,15z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x4041307bb83f5793:0x30f6c3728844806e!8m2!3d41.1606486!4d45.3147936 Quazaxbeyli] in Azerbaijan is about 2800km. Doing this trip by bike would be challenging, but possible.

Unfortunately Archaeopteryx and Muzquizopteryx lived in different time periods, so we can only speculate which one would win a fight.

The title text explains naming something [http://www.xkcd.com xkcd] "xkcd" was also a goal.

It seems likely that Randall created this comic after doing research for this what if article (http://what-if.xkcd.com/152/), and came across the city Zzyzx as the shortest way to dig a channel to flood Death Valley.

==Transcript==
:[A list entitled "Life Goals", where each item has an empty box, like a to-do list.]
:Meet Skrillex in Phoenix
:Study Zymurgy
:Get a pet Axolotl named Hexxus
:Observe a syzygy from Zzyzx, California
:Port the games Zzyzzyxx and Xexyz to Xbox
:Publish a Zzzax/Mister Mxyzptlk crossover
:Bike from Xhafzotaj, Albania to Qazaxbəyli, Azerbaijan
:Paint an archaeopteryx fighting a muzquizopteryx
:Finish a game of Scrabble without getting punched

{{comic discussion}}

421: Making Hash Browns

2016-10-24T13:39:52Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation */ punctuation yay

{{comic
| number = 421
| date = September 5, 2008
| title = Making Hash Browns
| image = making_hash_browns.png
| titletext = There are at least fourteen ways this could go badly (seventeen if that fork is a dangerous crossbreed.)
}}

==Explanation==
[[Cueball]] is attempting to make {{w|hash browns}}. A hash brown is a way of serving a potato where the potato has been diced or shredded in some way, then pan-fried. Cueball's method for making hash browns, though, is rather unique. He is throwing potatoes into the air and striking them with a flaming tennis racket at his friend, who is holding a tray with a dangerously tilting half filled glass balanced on top. He (the friend)is also holding a fork in the other hand.

The idea is that the tennis racket would simultaneously dice the potato, fry it, and then launch the completed product towards his friend's plate. In reality, this probably wouldn't do much. To properly {{w|Pan frying|pan-fry}} food, it must be cooked in a pan with some oil to lubricate the food, with enough time for the heat to transfer through the oil and spread properly through the food. Hitting a potato with a flaming tennis racket would not cook it as it would strike it too quickly, and it probably wouldn't dice it either unless the wire of the racket is incredibly sharp. Cueball would probably just end up batting a not even hot, uncooked, unprepared potato at his friend, while simultaneously burning his own hand.

The title text comments on how many ways this experiment could go badly (14), and jokes that there are even more potential problems (17) if the fork Cueball's friend is holding is a cross-breed (see [[419: Forks and Spoons]] which was published only four days earlier. By reading this comic it should be clear what could go wrong if they were included in the equation - 3 more ways would be a low estimate...)

It's unclear what Randall may or may not have had on his mind with regards to specific ways the situation in the comic could go wrong. But here are 14 potential ways the activity could go wrong without including {{w|Sporks}}:
#Cueball could burn himself with the flaming tennis racket.
#The can of gasoline could leak and then Cueball could drop the racket, causing a fire to spread.
#Cueball may fail to hit the potato and it would get dirty from the ground.
#Cueball may fail to hit the potato and whack himself with the aforementioned flaming tennis racket.
#Cueball may hit the potato and knock the plate out of his friend's hand, smashing it.
#Cueball may hit the potato and knock the glass out of his friend's hand, smashing that instead.
#Both of the above could happen.
#Cueball might instead hit the potato at his friend's head.
#Cueball could accidentally launch the tennis racket itself (if he has exceptionally poor grip,) at his friend.
#Cueball could drop the tennis racket onto the can of gasoline, causing it to explode.
#Even if none of the above happened, Cueball would fail to actually ''cook'' the potato,
#Likewise, Cueball would probably not succeed in dicing the potato.
#And he could miss hitting his friend's plate.
#A {{w|velociraptor}} could appear out of nowhere and eat the potato, then proceed to devour Cueball and his friend. (A possibility which likely plagues Randall's mind daily.)

==Transcript==
:[Cueball stands holding a flaming tennis racket. He is throwing a potato in the air as if to serve like a tennis ball. Behind him is a red gas can and a sack of potatoes. Across from him is a another person holding a fork in one hand and balancing a serving tray with a glass holding an orange liquid in it.]

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

1749: Mushrooms

2016-10-21T13:09:20Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation */ title text

{{comic
| number = 1749
| date = October 21, 2016
| title = Mushrooms
| image = mushrooms.png
| titletext = Evolutionarily speaking, mushrooms are technically a type of ghost.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|First draft—need transcript, links, and more detailed explanation.}}

Cueball is looking at a mushroom, and Megan tells him that genetically, mushrooms are closer to animals than to plants. Megan then walks away, and Cueball, after a while, stops looking at the mushroom and walks away too. When Cueball has his back turned, the mushroom growls, and Cueball turns his head back to look at the mushroom. The joke here is that while mushrooms may be genetically closer to animals than plants, they do not actually growl like some animals, so Cueball is startled to hear one growl.

The title text takes this further, by stating that mushrooms are technically a type of ghost.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}
[Cueball is squatting in front of a mushroom.]
:Cueball: Mushrooms are ''so weird.''
:Megan: You know, evolutionarily, they're closer to being animals than to plants.
[Megan starts walking away.]
:Cueball: Really?
:Megan: Yup!
[Cueball is still squatting.]
[Cueball stands up.]
[Cueball starts walking away.]
:Mushroom: Grrrr
[Cueball snaps his head around to look at the mushroom again.]
{{comic discussion}}

1749: Mushrooms

2016-10-21T13:07:52Z

GizmoDude: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 1749
| date = October 21, 2016
| title = Mushrooms
| image = mushrooms.png
| titletext = Evolutionarily speaking, mushrooms are technically a type of ghost.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|First draft—need transcript, links, and more detailed explanation.}}

Cueball is looking at a mushroom, and Megan tells him that genetically, mushrooms are closer to animals than to plants. Megan then walks away, and Cueball, after a while, stops looking at the mushroom and walks away too. When Cueball has his back turned, the mushroom growls, and Cueball turns his head back to look at the mushroom. The joke here is that while mushrooms may be genetically closer to animals than plants, they do not actually growl like some animals, so Cueball is startled to hear one growl.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}
[Cueball is squatting in front of a mushroom.]
:Cueball: Mushrooms are ''so weird.''
:Megan: You know, evolutionarily, they're closer to being animals than to plants.
[Megan starts walking away.]
:Cueball: Really?
:Megan: Yup!
[Cueball is still squatting.]
[Cueball stands up.]
[Cueball starts walking away.]
:Mushroom: Grrrr
[Cueball snaps his head around to look at the mushroom again.]
{{comic discussion}}

1749: Mushrooms

2016-10-21T13:06:16Z

GizmoDude: /* Transcript */ one panel at a time!

{{comic
| number = 1749
| date = October 21, 2016
| title = Mushrooms
| image = mushrooms.png
| titletext = Evolutionarily speaking, mushrooms are technically a type of ghost.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|First draft—need transcript, links, and more detailed explanation.}}

Cueball is looking at a mushroom, and Megan tells him that genetically, mushrooms are closer to animals than to plants. Megan then walks away, and Cueball, after a while, stops looking at the mushroom and walks away too. When Cueball has his back turned, the mushroom growls, and Cueball turns his head back to look at the mushroom. The joke here is that while mushrooms may be genetically closer to animals than plants, they do not actually growl like some animals, so Cueball is startled to hear one growl.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}
[Cueball is squatting in front of a mushroom.]
:Cueball: Mushrooms are ''so weird.''
:Megan: You know, evolutionarily, they're closer to being animals than to plants.
[Megan starts walking away.]
:Cueball: Really?
:Megan: Yup!
{{comic discussion}}

1749: Mushrooms

2016-10-21T13:05:18Z

GizmoDude: /* Transcript */ apparently, I'm bad.

{{comic
| number = 1749
| date = October 21, 2016
| title = Mushrooms
| image = mushrooms.png
| titletext = Evolutionarily speaking, mushrooms are technically a type of ghost.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|First draft—need transcript, links, and more detailed explanation.}}

Cueball is looking at a mushroom, and Megan tells him that genetically, mushrooms are closer to animals than to plants. Megan then walks away, and Cueball, after a while, stops looking at the mushroom and walks away too. When Cueball has his back turned, the mushroom growls, and Cueball turns his head back to look at the mushroom. The joke here is that while mushrooms may be genetically closer to animals than plants, they do not actually growl like some animals, so Cueball is startled to hear one growl.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}
[Cueball is squatting in front of a mushroom.]
:Cueball: Mushrooms are ''so weird.''
:Megan: You know, evolutionarily, they're closer to animals than to plants.
:Cueball: Really?
{{comic discussion}}

1749: Mushrooms

2016-10-21T13:04:38Z

GizmoDude: /* Transcript */

{{comic
| number = 1749
| date = October 21, 2016
| title = Mushrooms
| image = mushrooms.png
| titletext = Evolutionarily speaking, mushrooms are technically a type of ghost.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|First draft—need transcript, links, and more detailed explanation.}}

Cueball is looking at a mushroom, and Megan tells him that genetically, mushrooms are closer to animals than to plants. Megan then walks away, and Cueball, after a while, stops looking at the mushroom and walks away too. When Cueball has his back turned, the mushroom growls, and Cueball turns his head back to look at the mushroom. The joke here is that while mushrooms may be genetically closer to animals than plants, they do not actually growl like some animals, so Cueball is startled to hear one growl.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}
[Cueball is squatting in front of a mushroom.]
*Cueball: Mushrooms are ''so weird.''
*Megan: You know, evolutionarily, they're closer to animals than to plants.
*Cueball: Really?
{{comic discussion}}

1749: Mushrooms

2016-10-21T13:04:19Z

GizmoDude: /* Transcript */ started transcript

{{comic
| number = 1749
| date = October 21, 2016
| title = Mushrooms
| image = mushrooms.png
| titletext = Evolutionarily speaking, mushrooms are technically a type of ghost.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|First draft—need transcript, links, and more detailed explanation.}}

Cueball is looking at a mushroom, and Megan tells him that genetically, mushrooms are closer to animals than to plants. Megan then walks away, and Cueball, after a while, stops looking at the mushroom and walks away too. When Cueball has his back turned, the mushroom growls, and Cueball turns his head back to look at the mushroom. The joke here is that while mushrooms may be genetically closer to animals than plants, they do not actually growl like some animals, so Cueball is startled to hear one growl.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}
[Cueball is squatting in front of a mushroom.]
Cueball: Mushrooms are ''so weird.''
Megan: You know, evolutionarily, they're closer to animals than to plants.
Cueball: Really?
{{comic discussion}}

1749: Mushrooms

2016-10-21T13:02:33Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation */ spelling fixes

1749: Mushrooms

2016-10-21T13:01:57Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation */ first draft

395: Morning

2016-10-20T11:41:24Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation */ fixed weird wording

{{comic
| number = 395
| date = March 12, 2008
| title = Morning
| image = morning.png
| titletext = I'd press on them to try to unstick them, but I can't reach. Can we try cycling day and night really fast?
}}

==Explanation==
This comic makes reference to the idea, as presented in the movie {{w|The Matrix}}, that reality is a computer simulation. In {{w|Liquid-crystal display|LCD screens}}, especially {{w|TFT LCD}}, a {{w|Defective pixel|dead pixel}} is a pixel that does not work properly, usually set as black or as some other color. Megan realizes that the reality is a computer simulation when she sees dead pixels in the sky, indicating that what she sees is an LCD screen.

In last panel of the comic, there are two red and one green pixel that look exactly like actual dead pixels.

The title text refers to usual techniques for fixing a dead pixel. One way is to apply pressure and release it, which isn't possible for Megan due to the distance of the sky. Another way is to make the area of the screen that the dead pixel is on change colors really quickly, which could happen if the day-night cycle was fast enough.

==Transcript==
:[Megan is standing to one side.]
:We've all seen The Matrix
:We've all joked about "What resolution is life"
:But it doesn't blunt the shock
:Of waking up one morning
:[Megan looks up from field and sees several colored pixels in the sky.]
:And seeing dead pixels in the sky.

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

392: Making Rules

2016-10-19T15:16:20Z

GizmoDude: /* Transcript */ fixed caps, rewording

{{comic
| number = 392
| date = March 5, 2008
| title = Making Rules
| image = making_rules.png
| titletext = I never understood why someone would expect me to accept their rules right after they'd punched me. I'm sure it's all very symbolic or something.
}}

==Explanation==
"{{w|Punch Buggy}}" is a game played by two people with a view of traffic (often, but not here, during a car ride). For each Volkswagen Beetle that passes nearby, the first player to see it is entitled to punch the other player, while calling "Punch Buggy" followed by the colour of the spotted Beetle. Traditionally the other player is permitted to return the punch, unless the first player also calls "no punch back."

Many people will just assume that the game is always being played and punch you out of the blue, giving you no chance to opt out. Implicit in this game is the idea that you can make rules just by declaring them (e.g. "no punch back") even if those rules are ridiculously unfair. When [[Cueball]] realizes this, he decides to make the game stakes more desirable than just the right to punch someone, and (seemingly successfully) uses the same principle to secure the right to sleep with the other man's girlfriend.

The title text describes how silly these games are.

In the UK, a common variant uses a yellow {{w|Mini}} rather than the VW Beetle. Other examples of this type of game are the {{w|Car numberplate game}} and {{w|Padiddle}}.

==Transcript==
:[Two men are sitting. A yellow buggy passes by.]
:Man: Punch buggy yellow. No punch back!
:[Man punches Cueball, Cueball punches the man back, with seemingly greater force, causing the man to fall of the bench they are sitting on.]
:Man: I said no punch back!
:Cueball: You can do that?
:Cueball: Man, this changes everything.
:Soon...
:[A blue buggy passes by, and Cueball is holding Megan's hand.]
:Cueball: Sleep with your girlfriend buggy blue!
:Man: Hey!
:Cueball: No complaining back!
:Man: Aww...

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

392: Making Rules

2016-10-19T15:15:41Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation */ GRAMMAR FTW

{{comic
| number = 392
| date = March 5, 2008
| title = Making Rules
| image = making_rules.png
| titletext = I never understood why someone would expect me to accept their rules right after they'd punched me. I'm sure it's all very symbolic or something.
}}

==Explanation==
"{{w|Punch Buggy}}" is a game played by two people with a view of traffic (often, but not here, during a car ride). For each Volkswagen Beetle that passes nearby, the first player to see it is entitled to punch the other player, while calling "Punch Buggy" followed by the colour of the spotted Beetle. Traditionally the other player is permitted to return the punch, unless the first player also calls "no punch back."

Many people will just assume that the game is always being played and punch you out of the blue, giving you no chance to opt out. Implicit in this game is the idea that you can make rules just by declaring them (e.g. "no punch back") even if those rules are ridiculously unfair. When [[Cueball]] realizes this, he decides to make the game stakes more desirable than just the right to punch someone, and (seemingly successfully) uses the same principle to secure the right to sleep with the other man's girlfriend.

The title text describes how silly these games are.

In the UK, a common variant uses a yellow {{w|Mini}} rather than the VW Beetle. Other examples of this type of game are the {{w|Car numberplate game}} and {{w|Padiddle}}.

==Transcript==
:[Two men are sitting. A yellow buggy passes by.]
:Man: Punch buggy yellow. No punch back!
:[Man punches Cueball, Cueball punches man back, with seemingly greater force, causing the Man to fall of the bench they are sitting on.]
:Man: I said no punch back!
:Cueball: You can do that?
:Cueball: Man, this changes everything.
:Soon...
:[A blue buggy passes by, and Cueball is holding Megan's hand.]
:Cueball: Sleep with your girlfriend buggy blue!
:Man: Hey!
:Cueball: No complaining back!
:Man: Aww...

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

392: Making Rules

2016-10-19T15:13:18Z

GizmoDude: Deleted broken link. Add it back if you know how to, if you want.

{{comic
| number = 392
| date = March 5, 2008
| title = Making Rules
| image = making_rules.png
| titletext = I never understood why someone would expect me to accept their rules right after they'd punched me. I'm sure it's all very symbolic or something.
}}

==Explanation==
"{{w|Punch Buggy}}" is a game played by two people with a view of traffic (often, but not here, during a car ride). For each Volkswagen Beetle that passes nearby, the first player to see it is entitled to punch the other player, while calling "Punch Buggy" followed by the colour of the spotted Beetle. Traditionally the other player is permitted to return the punch, unless the first player also calls "no punch back".

Many people will just assume that the game is always being played and punch you out of the blue, giving you no chance to opt out. Implicit in this game is the idea that you can make rules just by declaring them (e.g. "no punch back") even if those rules are ridiculously unfair. When [[Cueball]] realizes this, he decides to make the game stakes more desirable than just the right to punch someone, and (seemingly successfully) uses the same principle to secure the right to sleep with the other man's girlfriend.

The title text describes how silly these games are.

In the UK, a common variant uses a yellow {{w|Mini}} rather than the VW Beetle. Other examples of this type of game are the {{w|Car numberplate game}} and {{w|Padiddle}}.

==Transcript==
:[Two men are sitting. A yellow buggy passes by.]
:Man: Punch buggy yellow. No punch back!
:[Man punches Cueball, Cueball punches man back, with seemingly greater force, causing the Man to fall of the bench they are sitting on.]
:Man: I said no punch back!
:Cueball: You can do that?
:Cueball: Man, this changes everything.
:Soon...
:[A blue buggy passes by, and Cueball is holding Megan's hand.]
:Cueball: Sleep with your girlfriend buggy blue!
:Man: Hey!
:Cueball: No complaining back!
:Man: Aww...

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

391: Anti-Mindvirus

2016-10-19T15:08:45Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation */ minor rewording, added description, title text description, alternate interpretation

{{comic
| number = 391
| date = March 3, 2008
| title = Anti-Mindvirus
| image = anti_mind_virus.png
| titletext = I'm as surprised as you! I didn't think it was possible.
}}

==Explanation==
''{{w|The Game (mind game)|The Game}}'' is a virus-like mind game. The rules are as follows:

#Everybody in the world who knows about The Game is playing The Game. (Or: ''Everyone'' is playing The Game.)
#If you think of The Game, you lose The Game.
#If you lose The Game, you must announce that you lost. This is often done by loudly announcing something like "I/You lost The Game", or "I lost". This usually causes other people within earshot who are playing the game to think of the game, causing them to lose the game as well, which may cause a chain reaction with people all around announcing that they lost the game.
#Once you stop thinking about The Game, you are back in, and can lose again.

From the simple way the rules are set up, there seems to be no such thing as ''winning'' The Game, except possibly by permanently forgetting about its existence. This comic gives you an alternative way to win, by simply telling you that you win and are now free from the mind virus.

An alternate interpretation may be that reading this comic causes you to ''lose'' the game, because it reminds you of The Game.

The title text states that [[Randall]] didn't know it was possible to win The Game, and he was surprised just as much as the reader.

==Transcript==
:'''You Just WON The Game.'''
:It's okay! You're free!

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

385: How it Works

2016-10-19T14:34:05Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation */ 'cause' -> 'because'

{{comic
| number = 385
| date = February 18, 2008
| title = How It Works
| image = how it works.png
| titletext = It's pi plus C, of course.
}}

==Explanation==
The comic reveals discriminative jargon against women when doing tasks such as mathematics. When a guy does something wrong, it's his own mistake. When a girl does something wrong, it is taken as a confirmation that girls are inferior.

The mathematics displayed is neither {{w|semantically}} nor {{w|syntactically}} correct. To begin with, there should (most likely) be a ''dx'' after x2. Now we have an {{w|indefinite integral}} on the left hand side.

The answer {{w|π}} is just nonsensical: What we want is a {{w|Function (mathematics)|function}}, whose {{w|derivative}} is x2. Now, x3/3 satisfies this condition. However, since adding a {{w|constant (mathematics)|constant}} to a function does not change its derivative, the full answer is (any function of the form) x3/3 {{w|Constant of integration|+ C}}, where C is any fixed number. The "plus a constant"-part is very easy to forget, and might even be omitted by a (sloppy) professional mathematician. So if someone really gave the answer π, "you forgot to add a constant" would be a pretty funny remark, because in one way it's true, but on the other hand it wouldn't quite be the main thing to worry about. It is especially inane as pi itself is a constant, so pi + C would simplify down to just C.

It would also be possible to fix the equation by adding [http://www.mathwords.com/b/bounds_of_integration.htm bounds of integration], so that {{w|π}} becomes the area below a section of the curve x2. That is called a definite integral, and there would be no "+ C". The bounds would have to be somewhat awkward though; if 0 was the lower bound, the cube root of 3π would have to be the upper.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball and a friend stand at a blackboard. The friend is writing, in standard mathematical notation, that the integral of x squared equals pi. No differential or bounds are given for the integral.]
:Cueball: Wow, you suck at math.
:[The same scene, except the writer is Megan.]
:Cueball: Wow, girls suck at math.

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

1748: Future Archaeology

2016-10-19T11:34:08Z

GizmoDude: /* Transcript */ fixed caps.

{{comic
| number = 1748
| date = October 19, 2016
| title = Future Archaeology
| image = future_archaeology.png
| titletext = "The only link we've found between the two documents is that a fragment of the Noah one mentions Aaron's brother Moses parting an ocean. Is that right?" "... yes. Yes, exactly."
}}

==Explanation==

{{incomplete|Seriously, I can't believe the last person to edit this left out the incomplete}}

This comic is a continuation of the previous comic, [[1747: Spider Paleontology]], about a time-traveler from the future who has come to see spiders. See [[1747: Spider Paleontology]] for a more complete explanation. The idea is that history is filtered in similar fashion to fossils. What is contemporaneously important, like a spider's web, [[http://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/newly-discovered-fossils-hint-all-dinosaurs-had-feathers/ dinosaur feathers]], or the United States presidential election may not survive. Bandwidth limits may pass seemingly less important but much simpler features like chitin exoskeleton, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mp5FaNe-zTM tooth bone]], and flood meme.

The joke is that in the future the Biblical story of {{w|Genesis flood narrative|Noah's Flood}} is considered as valuable a historical document when researching humans as "{{w|That's How I Beat Shaq}}" ([http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/aaroncarter/thatshowibeatshaq.html lyrics], [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfhhWA9GF0M video]), a pop song by {{w|Aaron Carter}} released in 2000.
The survival of both may have been aided by the chance one-degree-off relation to the name Aaron.

==Transcript==
[A four-panel comic featuring Cueball, Megan, and a time-traveler from the distant future, possibly from somewhere other than Earth. The time-traveler is depicted as a solid, floating black dot surrounded by six outwardly-curved segments, surrounded by small dots. In the second panel, the depiction is slightly larger, implying greater focus by Megan and Cueball.]

[Megan, Cueball and the Time-traveller converse as they casually walk, and float along.]

Megan: Since you're from the future, do you know who wins the election?

Time-traveller: Haven't the faintest idea.

Time-traveller: Hardly any text has been recovered from your era,
so we know little about your history and culture.

Time-traveller: [Quietly] We're mostly here for the spiders anyway.

[The Time-traveller stops. Megan and Cueball focus on the Time-traveller.]

Time-traveller: There are only two written accounts we've reconstructed.

Time-traveller: We don't know whether they describe real events or myths.

[The Time-traveller drifts backward, Megan and Cueball, stop and look back toward the Time-traveller.]

Time-traveller: One is a story about a man who built a boat to survive a great flood.

Megan: Oh yeah. Noah.

Cueball: We do like our flood narratives.

[The Time-traveller drifts slowly further backward. Megan and Cueball, continue standing as they listen intently.]

Time-traveller: The other is an account of how a man named Aaron Carter defeated a god named Shaq.

Megan: That one may have been mangled a bit by the eons.
{{comic discussion}}

1748: Future Archaeology

2016-10-19T11:33:38Z

GizmoDude: /* Transcript */ foxed capitalization.

{{comic
| number = 1748
| date = October 19, 2016
| title = Future Archaeology
| image = future_archaeology.png
| titletext = "The only link we've found between the two documents is that a fragment of the Noah one mentions Aaron's brother Moses parting an ocean. Is that right?" "... yes. Yes, exactly."
}}

==Explanation==

{{incomplete|Seriously, I can't believe the last person to edit this left out the incomplete}}

This comic is a continuation of the previous comic, [[1747: Spider Paleontology]], about a time-traveler from the future who has come to see spiders. See [[1747: Spider Paleontology]] for a more complete explanation. The idea is that history is filtered in similar fashion to fossils. What is contemporaneously important, like a spider's web, [[http://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/newly-discovered-fossils-hint-all-dinosaurs-had-feathers/ dinosaur feathers]], or the United States presidential election may not survive. Bandwidth limits may pass seemingly less important but much simpler features like chitin exoskeleton, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mp5FaNe-zTM tooth bone]], and flood meme.

The joke is that in the future the Biblical story of {{w|Genesis flood narrative|Noah's Flood}} is considered as valuable a historical document when researching humans as "{{w|That's How I Beat Shaq}}" ([http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/aaroncarter/thatshowibeatshaq.html lyrics], [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfhhWA9GF0M video]), a pop song by {{w|Aaron Carter}} released in 2000.
The survival of both may have been aided by the chance one-degree-off relation to the name Aaron.

==Transcript==
[A four-panel comic featuring Cueball, Megan, and a time-traveler from the distant future, possibly from somewhere other than Earth. The time-traveler is depicted as a solid, floating black dot surrounded by six outwardly-curved segments, surrounded by small dots. In the second panel, the depiction is slightly larger, implying greater focus by Megan and Cueball.]

[Megan, Cueball and the Time-traveller converse as they casually walk, and float along.]

Megan: Since you're from the future, do you know who wins the election?

Time-traveller: Haven't the faintest idea.

Time-traveller: Hardly any text has been recovered from your era,
so we know little about your history and culture.

Time-traveller: [Quietly] We're mostly here for the spiders anyway.

[The Time-traveller stops. Megan and Cueball focus on the Time-traveller.]

Time-traveller: There are only two written accounts we've reconstructed.

Time-traveller: We don't know whether they describe real events or myths.

[The Time-traveller drifts backward, Megan and Cueball, stop and look back toward the Time-traveller.]

Time-traveller: One is a story about a man who built a boat to survive a great flood.

Megan: Oh yeah. Noah.

Cueball: We do like our flood narratives.

[The Time-traveller drifts slowly further backward. Megan and Cueball, continue standing as they listen intently.]

Time-traveller: The other is an account of how a man named aaron carter defeated a god named Shaq.

Megan: That one may have been mangled a bit by the eons.
{{comic discussion}}

1748: Future Archaeology

2016-10-19T11:33:08Z

GizmoDude: /* Transcript */ minor rewording/description fixing

{{comic
| number = 1748
| date = October 19, 2016
| title = Future Archaeology
| image = future_archaeology.png
| titletext = "The only link we've found between the two documents is that a fragment of the Noah one mentions Aaron's brother Moses parting an ocean. Is that right?" "... yes. Yes, exactly."
}}

==Explanation==

{{incomplete|Seriously, I can't believe the last person to edit this left out the incomplete}}

This comic is a continuation of the previous comic, [[1747: Spider Paleontology]], about a time-traveler from the future who has come to see spiders. See [[1747: Spider Paleontology]] for a more complete explanation. The idea is that history is filtered in similar fashion to fossils. What is contemporaneously important, like a spider's web, [[http://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/newly-discovered-fossils-hint-all-dinosaurs-had-feathers/ dinosaur feathers]], or the United States presidential election may not survive. Bandwidth limits may pass seemingly less important but much simpler features like chitin exoskeleton, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mp5FaNe-zTM tooth bone]], and flood meme.

The joke is that in the future the Biblical story of {{w|Genesis flood narrative|Noah's Flood}} is considered as valuable a historical document when researching humans as "{{w|That's How I Beat Shaq}}" ([http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/aaroncarter/thatshowibeatshaq.html lyrics], [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfhhWA9GF0M video]), a pop song by {{w|Aaron Carter}} released in 2000.
The survival of both may have been aided by the chance one-degree-off relation to the name Aaron.

==Transcript==
[A four-panel comic featuring Cueball, Megan, and a time-traveler from the distant future, possibly from somewhere other than Earth. The time-traveler is depicted as a solid, floating black dot surrounded by six outwardly-curved segments, surrounded by small dots. In the second panel, the depiction is slightly larger, implying greater focus by Megan and Cueball.]

[Megan, Cueball and the Time-traveller converse as they casually walk, and float along.]

Megan: Since you're from the future, do you know who wins the election?

Time-traveller: Haven't the faintest idea.

Time-traveller: Hardly any text has been recovered from your era,
so we know little about your history and culture.

Time-traveller: [Quietly] We're mostly here for the spiders anyway.

[The Time-traveller stops. Megan and Cueball focus on the Time-traveller.]

Time-traveller: There are only two written accounts we've reconstructed.

Time-traveller: we don't know whether they describe real events or myths.

[The Time-traveller drifts backward, Megan and Cueball, stop and look back toward the Time-traveller.]

Time-traveller: One is a story about a man who built a boat to survive a great flood.

Megan: Oh yeah. Noah.

Cueball: We do like our flood narratives.

[The Time-traveller drifts slowly further backward. Megan and Cueball, continue standing as they listen intently.]

Time-traveller: The other is an account of how a man named aaron carter defeated a god named Shaq.

Megan: That one may have been mangled a bit by the eons.
{{comic discussion}}

376: Bug

2016-10-18T20:41:09Z

GizmoDude: /* Transcript */ it looks like both to me...

{{comic
| number = 376
| date = January 28, 2008
| title = Bug
| image = bug.png
| titletext = The universe started in 1970. Anyone claiming to be over 38 is lying about their age.
}}

==Explanation==
In computer systems, time is measured starting from some arbitrarily chosen point. That particular time is known as the "{{w|Unix time|epoch}}" for that system. The {{w|UNIX}} operating system internally uses an epoch of January 1, 1970, and measures the time as a number of seconds from then. Since this was intended only for things internal to the OS (File last modified times and the like), using 1-Jan-1970 was safe as no UNIX systems existed before that date. Dates before 1 January, 1970 are represented by negative values.

Commonly known as the {{w|year 2038 problem}}, at 03:14:08 on 19 January 2038, the 32-bit versions of the Unix time stamp will cease to work, as it will overflow the largest value that can be held in a signed 32-bit number. The 64-bit version "will" expire at 15:30:08 on 4 December 292,277,026,596.

[[Cueball]] has clearly misused the system date in some way, his friend makes a pun by combining "Epoch" with "Epic Fail" - a colloquial term meaning "a very big mistake was made".

The title text takes the joke to the next level, claiming that the entire universe began when Unix did, and therefore no one can be older than 38 at the time of the release of this comic, 2008. This would now be 46 as of 2016 (the formula is 'current year - 1970'), which would explain the bug since no earlier dates would be needed. This is also similar to {{w|Last Thursdayism}}.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball sits at a computer, staring at the screen and rubbing his chin in thought. A friend stands behind him.]
:Cueball: Weird — My code's crashing when given pre-1970 dates.
:Friend [pointing at Cueball and his computer]: Epoch fail!

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Computers]]
[[Category:Programming]]
[[Category:Puns]]

376: Bug

2016-10-18T20:39:41Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation */ but what if the year was 5.5/Apple/26? deleted unnecessary passage, minor fixes and rewordings.

{{comic
| number = 376
| date = January 28, 2008
| title = Bug
| image = bug.png
| titletext = The universe started in 1970. Anyone claiming to be over 38 is lying about their age.
}}

==Explanation==
In computer systems, time is measured starting from some arbitrarily chosen point. That particular time is known as the "{{w|Unix time|epoch}}" for that system. The {{w|UNIX}} operating system internally uses an epoch of January 1, 1970, and measures the time as a number of seconds from then. Since this was intended only for things internal to the OS (File last modified times and the like), using 1-Jan-1970 was safe as no UNIX systems existed before that date. Dates before 1 January, 1970 are represented by negative values.

Commonly known as the {{w|year 2038 problem}}, at 03:14:08 on 19 January 2038, the 32-bit versions of the Unix time stamp will cease to work, as it will overflow the largest value that can be held in a signed 32-bit number. The 64-bit version "will" expire at 15:30:08 on 4 December 292,277,026,596.

[[Cueball]] has clearly misused the system date in some way, his friend makes a pun by combining "Epoch" with "Epic Fail" - a colloquial term meaning "a very big mistake was made".

The title text takes the joke to the next level, claiming that the entire universe began when Unix did, and therefore no one can be older than 38 at the time of the release of this comic, 2008. This would now be 46 as of 2016 (the formula is 'current year - 1970'), which would explain the bug since no earlier dates would be needed. This is also similar to {{w|Last Thursdayism}}.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball sits at a computer, staring at the screen and rubbing his chin in thought. A friend stands behind him.]
:Cueball: Weird — My code's crashing when given pre-1970 dates.
:Friend [pointing at the computer]: Epoch fail!

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Computers]]
[[Category:Programming]]
[[Category:Puns]]

370: Redwall

2016-10-18T19:13:59Z

GizmoDude: /* Transcript */ seems complete to me

{{comic
| number = 370
| date = January 14, 2008
| title = Redwall
| image = Redwall.png
| titletext = My Redwall/Jurassic Park crossover fanfic is almost complete!
}}

==Explanation==
This comic references {{w|Brian Jacques|Brian Jacques'}} series of books, ''{{w|Redwall}}'', which star sapient woodland animals in various high fantasy adventures.

The first panel shows the similarity between the story of Martin the Warrior (from the book ''{{w|Mossflower}}'') and {{w|Aragorn}} from ''{{w|The Lord of the Rings}}'' by {{w|J. R. R. Tolkien}}. The joke is that while Martin and Aragorn introduce themselves separately, they then go on to describe their particular story, which turns out to be exactly the same for both of them. Subsequently Martin jinxes Aragorn. {{w|Jinx (children's game)|Jinx}} is a common children's game, which is initiated by shouting "Jinx" after somebody speaks the same word or sentence at the same time as you. That person is then jinxed, with the usual rules dictating that they are then not permitted to speak until unjinxed by some specific action (usually somebody saying their name). Martin and his sword was referenced again in [[1722: Debugging]].

The second panel deals with the fact that ''Redwall'' mentions the name of {{w|Satan}} or {{w|The Devil}} 4 times while it never mentions {{w|God}} or {{w|Jesus}}. [[Randall Munroe|Randall]] then points out that people who protest against {{w|Harry Potter}} because of the series witchcraft, should take note that Redwall explicitly mentions Satan although it has had little to no negative feedback from more conservative readers.

In the third panel, Randall comments on ''Redwall'''s often-used theme of critical messages being left in riddles throughout the Abbey for the occupants to find when they are in need. Randall suggests that he would use {{w|Public-key cryptography|public-key cryptography}} to encode the messages, instead of the elaborate riddles used in the books (some of which are ridiculously easy, which doesn't exactly make for good security when dealing with sensitive information).

In the title text Randall jokes that he is making a crossover {{w|Fan fiction|fan-fiction}} with ''Redwall'' and ''{{w|Jurassic Park}}''.

Redwall was also referenced in [[1688: Map Age Guide]] and [[1722: Debugging]].

==Transcript==
:Notes from reading Redwall books for the first time since childhood.

:Some of this feels familiar.
:Aragorn: Hi, I'm Aragorn.
:Martin: I'm Martin.
:Aragorn and Martin: I'm here to reforge my broken sword so I can lead an army against the tyrant threatening my people. I live in a world of moral absolutes and racist undertones.
:Martin: Jinx!

:It startled me when characters mentioned Satan.
:Redwall: "By Satan's whiskers..."
:Redwall mentions God/Jesus 0 times.
:Redwall mentions Satan/The Devil 4 times.
:(Harry Potter protesters, take note.)

:Even as a kid this bothered me: Why does everyone leave critical secret messages as simple riddles? It's silly to assume the intended recipient will be the only one to find and solve them. I would do things differently.
:Matthias: The inscription is a message from Martin!
:Brother Methuselah: What does it say?
:Matthias: Hang on, it's encrypted with my public key.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Bar chart]]
[[Category:LOTR]]
[[Category:Religion]]
[[Category:Cryptography]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Fiction]]

367: Fandom

2016-10-18T17:29:45Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation */ dont need to put a whole paragraph in parentheses.

{{comic
| number = 367
| date = January 7, 2008
| title = Fandom
| image = fandom.png
| titletext = Ron Paul wants to put the New Republic back on the Corusca gem standard.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic refers to the concept of {{w|fandom}}, which is basically the collective noun for fans of a given thing. Usually, this is used in the context of people who like a certain work of fiction, like ''Star Trek'' or ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer''.

Here, [[Cueball]] digs through a box and discovers his old collection of ''{{w|Star Wars}}'' books, referring to authors {{w|Timothy Zahn}} and {{w|Michael A. Stackpole}} (who wrote several ''Star Wars'' novels), and ''{{w|The Corellian Trilogy}}''. These books are part of the {{w|Star Wars Expanded Universe}}, which is used to refer to media that is ''Star Wars'' canon, but not the films.

Almost all of the Expanded Universe content created prior to 2015 is now considered by Disney (who are the owners of Lucasfilm and Star Wars since 2012) to be part of a separate canon called "Legends," a decision presumably made to allow a clean[er] slate for the upcoming sequel trilogy and spin-off movies to start from.

Cueball apparently loved these books as a kid, which prompts Megan to remark if he started becoming a fan of other science fiction series like ''{{w|Firefly (TV series)|Firefly}}'' or ''{{w|Battlestar Galactica}}'', to which he clarifies that he simply grew out of the fandom mindset. Megan, perhaps sarcastically, asks him about how politician {{w|Ron Paul}} (who has appeared in the comic [[:Category:Comics featuring Ron Paul|several times]]) is doing, and Cueball excitedly runs off to check, ironically disproving his earlier remark - people don't outgrow a fandom state of mind, but rather shift their point of interest.

The title refers to the {{w|New Republic (Star Wars)|New Republic}}, the main government in ''Star Wars'' after the final film, and [http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Corusca_gem Corusca gems], which are extremely rare and valuable gems from the aforementioned expanded universe. The text says that Ron Paul wants the New Republic to adopt the Corusca gem as standard currency. This entire joke is an allegory for the {{w|Gold Standard}}, which Ron Paul is a personal advocate of even though it is no longer in use by the United States.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is looking through a box.]
:Cueball: Hey, my old Star Wars books!

:[Cueball is holding a pair of books and showing them to Megan.]
:Cueball: Man. Timothy Zahn, Michael A. Stackpole, The Corellian Trilogy...
:Cueball: This was my world.

:Megan: What'd you leave it for? Firefly? BSG?
:Cueball: Nah.
:Cueball: I guess I've just grown out of the whole obsessive fan mindset.

:Megan: Really.
:Megan: So how's Ron Paul doing?
:Cueball: Ooh! Lemme recheck today's blogs.
:[Cueball heads off to do so.]

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

363: Reset

2016-10-18T17:08:42Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 363
| date = December 28, 2007
| title = Reset
| image = reset.png
| titletext = Clearance for this Sign: 11 Feet
}}

==Explanation==
A common sight in workplaces is a sign reading '[XX] days since [event]' or '[XX] days without [event]', where [XX] is a two-digit number (indicated using flip cards so it may be easily changed) and [event] is some undesirable preventable occurrence. The purpose of such signs is to inspire employees by proudly displaying how long the event has been avoided or prevented. The most common version of such signs, used in industrial workplaces, displays the number of days since the last workplace accident or injury.

In the comic, the sign says "38 days since the last time someone reset this sign". The term 'reset' is the crux, because while computer-minded people tend to interpret it as 'reboot' or 'set to zero', it also means re-set (with the meaning 'set again') [http://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/reset See definition].
We will call: 
reset ~ set to zero --> meaning 1 
reset ~ set again --> meaning 2

Because the sign uses manual flip cards, one cannot add days to the counter without resetting (meaning 2) the sign, which creates a paradox:
either you add a day by resetting (meaning 2) it (which, according to the sign, means you'd have to reset [meaning 1] the sign)
or you don't (in which case the value on the sign would not be valid). The value of the sign cannot be true for more than one day. The value of the sign in the comic (38) can only be true if someone flipped the cards 38 day ago.

The sign is [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-reference self-referential] (which causes the paradox). Self-reference is frequently used in xkcd (for example: [http://www.xkcd.com/33 33: Self-Reference] and [http://www.xkcd.com/688 688:Self-Description]).

If you only use meaning 1, the sign can be seen as a challenge/invitation ([http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reactance_%28psychology%29 Reactance]).

The title text refers to the signs sometimes hung over roadways in front of bridges which display the clearance of the bridge for the benefit of tall vehicles. However, this one displays only its own clearance, a number which would be unimportant if the sign itself were not there.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball stands looking at a flip-counter sign posted on a wall.]
:Sign: 38 days since someone reset this sign

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

363: Reset

2016-10-18T17:07:45Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation */ minor punctuation fixes

{{comic
| number = 363
| date = December 28, 2007
| title = Reset
| image = reset.png
| titletext = Clearance for this Sign: 11 Feet
}}

==Explanation==
A common sight in workplaces is a sign reading '[XX] days since [event]' or '[XX] days without [event]', where [XX] is a two-digit number (indicated using flip cards so it may be easily changed) and [event] is some undesirable preventable occurrence. The purpose of such signs is to inspire employees by proudly displaying how long the event has been avoided or prevented. The most common version of such signs, used in industrial workplaces, displays the number of days since the last workplace accident or injury.

In the comic, the sign says "38 days since the last time someone reset this sign". The term 'reset' is the crux, because while computer-minded people tend to interpret it as 'reboot' or 'set to zero', it also means re-set (with the meaning 'set again') [http://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/reset See definition].
We will call: 
reset ~ set to zero --> meaning 1 
reset ~ set again --> meaning 2

Because the sign uses manual flip cards, one cannot add days to the counter without resetting (meaning 2) the sign, which creates a paradox:
either you add a day by resetting (meaning 2) it (which, according to the sign, means you'd have to reset [meaning 1] the sign)
or you don't (in which case the value on the sign would not be valid). The value of the sign cannot be true for more than one day. The value of the sign in the comic (38) can only be true if someone flipped the cards 38 day ago.

The sign is [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-reference self-referential] (which causes the paradox). Self-reference is frequently used in xkcd (for example: [http://www.xkcd.com/33 33] and [http://www.xkcd.com/688 688]).

If you only use meaning 1, the sign can be seen as a challenge/invitation ([http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reactance_%28psychology%29 Reactance]).

The title text refers to the signs sometimes hung over roadways in front of bridges which display the clearance of the bridge for the benefit of tall vehicles. However, this one displays only its own clearance, a number which would be unimportant if the sign itself were not there.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball stands looking at a flip-counter sign posted on a wall.]
:Sign: 38 days since someone reset this sign

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

350: Network

2016-10-18T16:26:18Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation */ fixed date thing

{{comic
| number = 350
| date = November 28, 2007
| title = Network
| image = network.png
| titletext = Viruses so far have been really disappointing on the 'disable the internet' front, and time is running out. When Linux/Mac win in a decade or so the game will be over.
}}

==Explanation==
[[Cueball]] shows off his virtual fishtank of virus-infected {{w|Virtual machine|virtual}} Windows machines to [[Megan]]. The machines nominally have {{w|Trojan_horse_(computing)|mail trojans}}, {{w|Warhol worm}}s, all sorts of {{w|polymorphic virus}}es, and explicitly {{w|Blaster (computer worm)|Blaster}} and {{w|w32.welchia}}. Cueball relates to the viruses as though they are fish, and hopes that they are all getting along together nicely. This is because part of {{w|w32.welchia|welchia's}} payload was to remove the {{w|Blaster (computer worm)|Blaster Worm}}, effectively destroying it.

A computer network or data network is a telecommunications network which allows computers to exchange data. In computer networks, networked computing devices exchange data with each other using a data link. The connections between nodes are established using either cable media or wireless media. The best-known computer network is the Internet.

Network computer devices that originate, route and terminate the data are called network nodes.[1] Nodes can include hosts such as personal computers, phones, servers as well as networking hardware. Two such devices can be said to be networked together when one device is able to exchange information with the other device, whether or not they have a direct connection to each other.

Computer networks differ in the transmission medium used to carry their signals, the communications protocols to organize network traffic, the network's size, topology and organizational intent.

It would be possible to set up a virtual fishtank as described. The main issue would be to make sure that you don't accidentally let anything escape from the fishtank. Consider it like a smallpox lab. Also, some viruses are quite malicious {{Citation needed}} and will prevent a computer from running normally, or at all. An aquarium of dead computers would not be very interesting to watch.

The first part of the title text refers to the difficulty viruses have in the common doomsday threat of "disabling the internet" as a whole. {{w|SQL Slammer}} had some brief success. The second part of the title text indicates that Randall believes A) that Linux and Mac OS X are inherently less vulnerable to virus attacks than Windows, and B) that Windows will become less important and disappear, so the virus writers had better get their act together soon.

It is not certain how justified this opinion is. Nine years after this comic was written, Windows still dominates the desktop, and Linux and OS X are not ''that'' much harder to attack with viruses. A side issue is the wild growth in 'smart devices' connected to the internet, powered by non-traditional operating systems such as iOS and Android. Desktop operating systems such as Windows, Linux and OS X are ''all'' becoming less relevant (although note that Android is based on the Linux kernel and iOS is based on OS X), so both the operating system war and the struggle against computer viruses are still "anyone's game".

Something similar to this is now online (as of June 29, 2014; not sure when it first started), with some differences from the system described by this comic. Instead of executing email attachments, the 7 VM's run files uploaded to http://wecan.hasthe.technology/ by the public, making it more of a public playground aquarium than a private fishtank. Instead of wiping machines at random, each VM runs a virus scanner every 24 hours.

==Transcript==
:[Megan looking at a large screen with many green and red squares. The squares have writing in them and lines connecting them.]
:[Side view. The screen is a huge LCD connected to a wireless router.]
:Cueball: Pretty, isn't it?
:Megan: What is it?
:Cueball: I've got a bunch of virtual Windows machines networked together, hooked up to an incoming pipe from the net. They execute email attachments, share files, and have no security patches.
:Cueball: Between them they have practically every virus.
:Cueball: There are mail trojans, warhol worms, and all sorts of exotic polymorphics. A monitoring system adds and wipes machines at random. The display shows the viruses as they move through the network. Growing and struggling.
:[Cueball walks past the girl and touches the monitor.]
:Megan: You know, normal people just have aquariums.
:Cueball: Good morning, Blaster. Are you and W32.Welchia getting along?
:Cueball: Who's a good virus? You are! Yes, you are!

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

336: Priorities

2016-10-18T11:38:00Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 336
| date = October 31, 2007
| title = Priorities
| image = priorities.png
| titletext = You should start giving out 'E's so I can spell FACADE or DEFACED.
}}

==Explanation==
In some schools in the United States, a student's grades are determined mainly using letters for quick reference.{{Citation needed}} In this case:

::A — 100%–90%
::B — 89%–80%
::C — 79%–70%
::D — 69%–60%
::F — 59%–0%

Traditionally, these schools send 'report cards' in which the student's current grading of the semester or even the entirety of the class the student is taking is denoted using these letters, for example:

::English — A
::Mathematics — A
::Science — A
::Social Studies — A
::World Building — A

The student may have noted that, if he aims for certain scoring (for example: altering the quality of his homework or even sending out his homework only at the times needed for his grades to reach a certain level), he could make the report card spell every letter grade in alphabetical order. Deriving from the previous example, the student would aim for the following report card:

::English — A
::Mathematics — B
::Science — C
::Social Studies — D
::World Building — F

Interestingly, since even a 0% grade would mark the required 'F' grade, the student does not need to work at all (not even send out a school assignment) to get the required 'F' grade, this leading to the situation presented in the comic above.

The title text references that, not only can the grades in the report card inadvertently spell out certain words (for example: 'CAB' or 'FAD'), but also that the letter grade system denoted omits the letter 'E' in standard letter grading. The reason for the missing "E" is complex and explained at [http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/explainer/2010/08/e_is_for_fail.html this Slate article]

==Transcript==
:[A teacher is talking to a student, sitting at a desk.]
:Teacher: If you don't turn in at least one homework assignment, you'll fail this class.
:[The student holds up his report card.]
:Student: Yeah. But if I can fail this class, the grades on my report card will be in alphabetical order!

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]
[[Category:Language]]

326: Effect an Effect

2016-10-17T19:47:46Z

GizmoDude: /* Transcript */ if all of xkcd is in caps, words should never be in capslock.

{{comic
| number = 326
| date = October 8, 2007
| title = Effect an Effect
| image = effect_an_effect.png
| titletext = Time to paint another grammarian silhouette on the side of the desktop.
}}

==Explanation==
[http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/affect "Affect"] and [http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/effect?s=t "effect"] can each both be noun and verb, share the sense of ''influence'', and are often confused. (See the usage note under "Affect".)

In careful speech both words (as verbs) are similar but not identical. "Affect" is /əˈfɛkt/ (or uh-'''fekt''') and "effect" is /ɪˈfɛkt/ (or ih-'''fekt'''). However, for some people these words are {{w|homophones}} — it's also explained here: [http://www.writingforward.com/grammar/homophones/homophones-affect-vs-effect homophones affect vs effect].

"Effect" is usually a noun, meaning ''a result'', and "affect" usually a verb, meaning ''to act upon''. "Effect" as a verb has the slightly different meaning ''to bring about''. [[Cueball]] says that the foreign policy ''causes'' the situation, not, as the "grammar nazi" thinks, that it ''changes'' the situation.

The title of the comic translates to ''cause or bring about a result'', which is just what Cueball does! It can also be seen as a play on words, being similar to the phrase "cause and effect."

The title text refers to a practice common among fighter pilots in a war zone. Fighter pilots that score a "kill" on an opposing aircraft will have a silhouette of the downed plane painted on the side of their plane as a way of keeping track of kills. In this sense, Cueball "shot down," figuratively speaking, an online (grammar) nazi, and would mark it by painting a silhouette on the side of his computer.

See also [[1429: Data]].

==Transcript==
:My Hobby:
:Using the more obscure meanings of "affect" and "effect" to try to trip up amateur grammar Nazis.
:Cueball: I think that our foreign policy effects the situation.
:Computer: You mean "affects".
:Cueball: tee hee hee

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:My Hobby]]
[[Category:Language]]

314: Dating Pools

2016-10-17T17:36:47Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation */ that sentence didnt make any sense to me.

{{comic
| number = 314
| date = September 10, 2007
| title = Dating Pools
| image = dating pools.png
| titletext = The full analysis is of course much more complicated, but I can't stay to talk about it because I have a date.
}}

==Explanation==
[[File:half-plus-seven.png|right|Half Plus Seven Rule]]
Megan is upset because she is apparently older than 26, and among people who marry, {{w|median|half}} do so below 26. The intuitive conclusion is that the number of potential partners is decreasing as time goes on.

The [http://onehalfplusseven.com Half Plus Seven Rule] is an unwritten rule which asserts that it is creepy to date anyone who is younger than half your age plus 7 years. For example, a 50 year old dating someone who is 31 or younger would be classed as creepy. As the graph on the right shows, there is a lower limit and an upper limit.

*The lower limit defines the minimum age of your partner in order that ''you'' are not considered creepy.
*The upper limit defines the maximum age of your partner in order that ''they'' are not considered creepy.

As age increases, they age range of potential non-creepy partners widens. At 26 the range of non creepy partners is 18 years (20 to 38 year olds). At 50 it is a range of 54 years (32 to 86 years old).

At age 14, you can only date people your own age. The same also works with infinity, but even Methuselah died once.

While the application of this rule actually reduces the number of potential matches further, [[Cueball]] presents it in a positive way. By showing that there are whole swathes of people who she couldn't marry in the first place without being in a creepy relationship, and that as her age increases the range of non-creepy partners increases, combined with {{w|United States Census Bureau|Census Bureau}} data, Cueball shows that her eligible dating pool is in fact still increasing.

Megan notes that graph-making nerds like Cueball may have a hard time finding dates, but this is belied by the title text.

{{clear}}

==Transcript==
:[Megan is sitting on the ground with her elbows on her knees and her hands on her chin.]
:Megan: This sucks. The median first marriage age is 26. The pools of singles is shrinking. I'm running out of time.
:Cueball: Actually, not quite.

:Cueball: Yes, older singles are rarer. But as you get older, the dateable age range gets wider. An 18-year-old's range is 16-22, whereas a 30-year-old's might be more like 22-46.
:Text on chart: Standard creepiness rule: Don't date under (Age/2 + 7)

:Cueball: I did some analysis of this with the Census Bureau numbers just last weekend. Your dating pool actually grows until middle age. So don't fret so much!
:[The first chart is labelled Singles, and is a decreasing graph. The second graph is labelled Dating Pool, and is a bell curve.]

:Megan: Did your analysis say anything about the dating prospects of people who spend weekends at home making graphs?
:Cueball: Come on. Somewhere at the edge of the bell curve is the girl for me.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Line graphs]]
[[Category:Romance]]
[[Category:Statistics]]
[[Category:Math]]

1743: Coffee

2016-10-10T13:09:13Z

GizmoDude: /* Explanation */ fixed typo

{{comic
| number = 1743
| date = October 7, 2016
| title = Coffee
| image = coffee.png
| titletext = Remind me to order another pack of coffee filters from Dyson. Man, these things are EXPENSIVE.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Very brief summary, please update}}

This strip follows the frequently used theme of people growing up but finding themselves unable or unwilling to accept traditional adult roles (see [[150: Grownups]], [[441: Babies]], [[616: Lease]], [[905: Homeownership]] and [[1674: Adult]]).
While there are cultures where coffee is served to children, it is generally in the United States considered an adult beverage—like [[1534: Beer]], which has also served as the subject of a comic.

Here, Cueball and Megan are anticipating guests. Offering coffee to houseguests is a commonly-accepted courtesy in the United States. However, they seem to be unaware of the basics of {{w|Coffee_preparation|coffee making}}. Cueball is concerned that this lack of knowledge is an indication of their mutual immaturity (thinking of himself as a "fake adult"), but Megan is confident that the necessary steps can be determined.

They attempt to make coffee by pouring the ingredients on the ground (misinterpreting the meaning of "ground coffee"), sucking it up with a Dyson vacuum cleaner (misinterpreting the meaning of "vacuum brewing"), then boiling the mixture by placing the vacuum cleaner's removable plastic canister over a hot stove, and pouring the resulting sludge through the vacuum-cleaner filter (instead of a standard coffee filter).

Megan says she is a regular "Starbuck" after pouring the batch of coffee, believing the name of the cafe chain {{w|Starbucks}} to be synonymous with the actual job title "barista", further indicating a general lack of knowledge regarding the subject of coffee. (In fiction, "Starbuck" is the name of a male character in Moby Dick, a male character in the original Battlestar Galactica television show, a female character in the reboot of Battlestar Galactica. In real life, Starbuck Island is an island in the Pacific Ocean. The Starbucks coffee chain was named for the fictional character in Moby Dick{{Citation needed}}.)

This method of making coffee would be very expensive as it would most likely destroy the vacuum-cleaner canister and filter. If the vacuum cleaner had ever been used, then it would not be very hygienic either.

The title text refers to the expense of replacing the "filter", as vacuum-cleaner filters are considerably more costly than single-use coffee filters{{Citation needed}}.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball and Megan are talking.]
:Cueball: We should make coffee for our guests.
:Megan: Crap. I know nothing about coffee.
:Cueball: We're basically fake adults.
:Megan: Don't panic. We can figure this out.

:[Megan shakes a can of coffee grounds out on the floor as Cueball watches.]
:Megan: We just pour the coffee grounds...

:[Pan to only Megan who pours a pail of water over the grounds now lying in a pile on the floor.]
:Megan: ...Add water...

:[Cueball watches as Megan vacuums up the mixture on the floor with a bag-less vacuum cleaner, the wire going off panel right behind her.]
:Vacuum cleaner: ''Vrrrr''

:[Megan is holding the dirt canister from the vacuum cleaner over two lit gas burners on a stove. The canister free vacuum cleaner is standing behind her and Cueball is behind this watching her.]
:Megan: Now we just hold it over the burners...
:Burners: ''Hissss''

:[Megan is holding the dirt canister over one shoulder while pouring the hot content into a small mug, as Cueball watches. Three wiggly lines above the liquid indicates that it is hot.]
:Megan: Annnd... serve.
:Cueball: Nice!
:Megan: I'm a regular Starbuck!

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Food]]

User:GizmoDude

2016-10-07T12:25:24Z

GizmoDude:

Hi!
I'm GizmoDude. I don't really have much to say here, but since you clicked on the link to this page, you probably want to know about me.

:I am a nerd, even though I don't know how to really code. I'm more into math and music (and Minecraft!) and stuff.
:I like tostadas. (They're like flat tacos.)
:I have a cat that's cuter than yours.
:I can read text upside-down and sideways.
:I joined this wiki when [[1649: Pipelines]] came out.
:I haz a [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6pLrHVcNSZPHW1RXNZahCg YouTube!]
:I am currently 42nd on top contribution scores, all time.

I have two goals on this wiki:

:Make the every comic transcript so complete, that just by reading it, you can draw the whole comic.
:Stay on the top three contributors list on the bottom of the [[Main Page|main page]].

Things I get [[356: Nerd Sniping|nerd-sniped]] about:
*The [https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandelbrot_set Mandlebrot Set]
*Puzzles
**[http://sudoku.com Sudoku] (AKA suduku, sudoko, sukudo, sudorku, suducko, suckado, and any other misspelling you can manage)
**[http://krazydad.com/inkies/ KenKens] (AKA Inkies)
**[http://www.appynation.com/apps/worlds-biggest-picture-cross/ Picture Cross] (AKA Picross, Nonograms, Hanjie, and Griddlers) and {{w|https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Picross_3D|Picross 3D}}
**[http://thewordsearch.com Word Searches]
**[https://www.pennydellpuzzles.com/Upload/PuzzleFiles/Sample/frm_p0508_samplepuz.pdf Frameworks] (AKA Kriss-Kross)
**[https://www.pennydellpuzzles.com/subcategory.aspx?c=fill-ins Fill-Ins]
**[http://www.logic-puzzles.org/index.php Logic Puzzles]
*[[What If]]
*The [http://htwins.net/scale2/ Scale of the Universe]

Some of my favorite comics:

*[[37: Hyphen]]
*[[201: Christmas GPS]]
*[[284: Tape Measure]]
*[[356: Nerd Sniping]]
*[[363: Reset]]
*[[442: xkcd Loves the Discovery Channel]]
*[[503: Terminology]] I'm in the same situation.
*[[525: I Know You're Listening]]
*[[562: Parking]]
*[[673: The Sun]]
*[[688: Self-Description]]
*[[710: Collatz Conjecture]]
*[[759: 3x9]] I hate it when tests ask me to show my work for the simplest things.
*[[970: The Important Field]]
*[[1086: Eyelash Wish Log]]
*[[1110: Click and Drag]]
*[[1170: Bridge]]
*[[1190: Time]]
*[[1256: Questions]]
*[[1331: Frequency]]
*[[1350: Lorenz]]
*[[1357: Free Speech]]
*[[1416: Pixels]]
*[[1427: iOS Keyboard]]
*[[1446: Landing]]
*[[1506: xkcloud]]
*[[1525: Emojic 8 Ball]]
*[[1607: Supreme Court]]
*[[1608: Hoverboard]]
*[[1663: Garden]]

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| caption = {{{caption|}}}

| label1 = First appearance
| data1 = [[Main Page|Beginning of time]]

| label2 = Known appearances
| data2 = '''[[User:GizmoDude|8128]]'''

| label3 = Contribution score
| data3 = [[Special:ContributionScores|{{#cscore:GizmoDude|score}}]]

| label4 = Pages edited
| data4 = [[Special:ContributionScores|{{#cscore:GizmoDude|pages}}]]

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| data5 = [[Special:ContributionScores|{{#cscore:GizmoDude|changes}}]]
}}

1743: Coffee

2016-10-07T12:23:10Z

GizmoDude: /* Transcript */ fixed unnecessary capitalization

{{comic
| number = 1743
| date = October 7, 2016
| title = Coffee
| image = coffee.png
| titletext = Remind me to order another pack of coffee filters from Dyson. Man, these things are EXPENSIVE.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Very brief summary, please update}}
Cueball and Megan are anticipating guests and Cueball asserts that it would be appropriate to offer them coffee. However, they seem to be unaware of the basics of {{w|Coffee_preparation|coffee making}}, which is a very common adult skill (in the United States, where the author, Randall Munroe, lives). Cueball is concerned that this lack of knowledge is an indication of their mutual immaturity, but Megan is confident that the necessary steps can be determined.

They attempt to make coffee by pouring the ingredients on the ground (misinterpreting the meaning of "ground coffee"), sucking it up with a Dyson vacuum-cleaner, then boiling the mixture by placing the vacuum-cleaner's removable (plastic) canister over a hot stove, and serving the resulting sludge without separating the grounds from the liquid.

Megan says she is a regular "Starbuck" (likely meaning a Starbucks' barista) after serving the batch of coffee.
Her misspelling of the chain's name further indicates a general lack of knowledge regarding the subject of coffee.

This method of making coffee would be very expensive as it would most likely destroy the (previously functional) vacuum cleaner. It would probably not be very hygienic either. Furthermore, the removable canisters on bagless vacuums (such as the Dyson shown) are made of plastic and would melt or ignite if placed over direct heat from a stove. Without grinding, the coffee would likely be quite weak. In addition, failing to remove the beans before serving would produce an exceedingly chunky slurry, rather than the smooth golden-brown liquid that is desired.

The joke here is that Megan misunderstands the words "coffee grounds", and attempts to pour coffee grounds on the "ground", and that she uses the wrong kind of filter (a vacuum cleaner filter instead of a coffee filter) in order to make a proper coffee. It demonstrates her total lack of knowledge of coffee making.

The title-text refers to the extreme expense of replacing the "filter", as vacuum-cleaner filters are considerably more costly than single-use coffee filters.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}

:[Cueball and Megan are standing.]
:Cueball: We should make coffee for our guests.
:Megan: Crap. I know nothing about coffee.
:Cueball: We're basically fake adults.
:Megan: Don't panic. We can figure this out.

:[Megan shaking can of coffee grounds out on floor as Cueball watches.]
:Megan: We just pour the coffee grounds...

:[Megan pouring pail of water over grounds on floor.]
:Megan: ...Add water...

:[Cueball watching Megan vacuum up mixture with bagless vaccum cleaner.]
:vacuum: vrrrr

:[Megan holding vacuum cleaner dirt canister over stove, Cueball watching. Vacuum cleaner in background.]
:Megan: Now we just hold it over the burners...
:oven: hissss

:[Megan pouring contents of vacuum cleaner dirt canister into mug, while Cueball watches]
:Megan: Annnd...Serve.
:Cueball: Nice
:Megan: I'm a regular starbuck!
{{comic discussion}}