explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

198: Perspective

2014-04-09T14:20:35Z

Lakeside: /* Bit-top circus?!*/

{{comic
| number = 198
| date = December 18, 2006
| title = Perspective
| image = perspective.png
| titletext = I wonder what I was dreaming to prompt that. I hope it wasn't the Richard Stallman Cirque de Soleil thing again.
}}

==Explanation==
{{w|Firefox}} is a popular browser and in 2006 it was the second most commonly used browser. Its more fervent supporters sometimes wrote as if there was a moral imperative to use Firefox rather than Internet Explorer.

[[Cueball]], presumably representing [[Randall]], wakes up with a reasonable perspective on the relative unimportance of an internet browser within the world at large, but quickly loses that perspective as his enthusiasm for nerdy things like Firefox gets the better of him. The humor stems from the irony that Cueball is relieved to trade a richer perspective for a simpler, browser-oriented world view.

The title text references {{w|Richard Matthew Stallman|Richard Stallman}}, an American software freedom activist and computer programmer, and {{w|Cirque du Soleil}}, an entertainment company specializing in big-top circus performances. The two have no connection with one another. This is one example of an odd combination of topics that would only (and commonly) be connected in dreams.

Alternately, the dream may be a reference to Stallman's forceful defense of software freedom, which could be seen as "over-the-top" or circus like.

Another possible joke is that the comic, unlike most other xkcd comics, is drawn with {{w|Perspective (graphical)|perspective}} as well as being about a more metaphorical perspective.

==Transcript==
:Sometimes, when I first wake up, I am caught in the horrible grip of perspective.
:[Cueball sitting up in bed.]
:Cueball: It may be a jewel of open source, but Firefox is '''just a browser.''' It shows '''webpages.''' What the hell is '''wrong''' with us?
:Fortunately, this subsides quickly.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Richard Stallman]]
[[Category:Comics featuring real people]]

Talk:806: Tech Support

2013-11-22T16:08:15Z

Lakeside:

Actually, a shibboleth's meaning is more complex. It's actually a phrase or principle that distinguishes a group of people and can be used to identify people foreign to said group. For example, in WWII, words with lots of L's were used as a shibboleth to identify Japanese spies, as many Japanese pronounce their L's as R's. [[Special:Contributions/67.85.230.8|67.85.230.8]] 04:06, 23 December 2012 (UTC)Liz

As such, the term has been modernized to have the meaning of "password". [[Special:Contributions/194.106.220.85|194.106.220.85]] 13:09, 11 January 2013 (UTC)

The "bearded dude with swords" is probably Richard Stallman. See 225 and 344. [[Special:Contributions/84.137.219.112|84.137.219.112]] 22:39, 5 June 2013 (UTC)

This comic perfectly illustrates why I prefer nightmares over dreams in which things are better than in real life. Truthfully!{{unsigned|108.28.72.186}}

There is a company in UK that has XKCD/806 comppliance: http://revk.www.me.uk/2010/10/xkcd806-compliance.html [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.41|108.162.219.41]] 18:33, 7 November 2013 (UTC)

Cueball asking if anyone has a subway map in their cubicle is likely a reference to Subways (http://xkcd.com/1196/) which is clever cross-marketing as the Subways poster is available for purchase (http://store-xkcd-com.myshopify.com/products/subways). [[User:Lakeside|Lakeside]] ([[User talk:Lakeside|talk]]) 16:02, 22 November 2013 (UTC)

Talk:806: Tech Support

2013-11-22T16:08:02Z

Lakeside:

Actually, a shibboleth's meaning is more complex. It's actually a phrase or principle that distinguishes a group of people and can be used to identify people foreign to said group. For example, in WWII, words with lots of L's were used as a shibboleth to identify Japanese spies, as many Japanese pronounce their L's as R's. [[Special:Contributions/67.85.230.8|67.85.230.8]] 04:06, 23 December 2012 (UTC)Liz

As such, the term has been modernized to have the meaning of "password". [[Special:Contributions/194.106.220.85|194.106.220.85]] 13:09, 11 January 2013 (UTC)

The "bearded dude with swords" is probably Richard Stallman. See 225 and 344. [[Special:Contributions/84.137.219.112|84.137.219.112]] 22:39, 5 June 2013 (UTC)

This comic perfectly illustrates why I prefer nightmares over dreams in which things are better than in real life. Truthfully!{{unsigned|108.28.72.186}}

There is a company in UK that has XKCD/806 comppliance: http://revk.www.me.uk/2010/10/xkcd806-compliance.html [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.41|108.162.219.41]] 18:33, 7 November 2013 (UTC)

Cueball asking if anyone has a subway map in their cubicle is likely a reference to Subways (http://xkcd.com/1196/) which is clever cross-marketing as the Subways poster is available for purchase(http://store-xkcd-com.myshopify.com/products/subways). [[User:Lakeside|Lakeside]] ([[User talk:Lakeside|talk]]) 16:02, 22 November 2013 (UTC)

Talk:561: Well

2013-11-22T16:04:24Z

Lakeside:

Shouldn't we elaborate on the questioned superiority of DVORAK? --[[Special:Contributions/129.206.196.49|129.206.196.49]] 20:45, 11 October 2013 (UTC)

The final two frames appear to be foreshadowed by the title text within Connected (http://xkcd.com/807/) [[User:Lakeside|Lakeside]] ([[User talk:Lakeside|talk]]) 19:02, 4 November 2013 (UTC)

Talk:806: Tech Support

2013-11-22T16:02:34Z

Lakeside:

Actually, a shibboleth's meaning is more complex. It's actually a phrase or principle that distinguishes a group of people and can be used to identify people foreign to said group. For example, in WWII, words with lots of L's were used as a shibboleth to identify Japanese spies, as many Japanese pronounce their L's as R's. [[Special:Contributions/67.85.230.8|67.85.230.8]] 04:06, 23 December 2012 (UTC)Liz

As such, the term has been modernized to have the meaning of "password". [[Special:Contributions/194.106.220.85|194.106.220.85]] 13:09, 11 January 2013 (UTC)

The "bearded dude with swords" is probably Richard Stallman. See 225 and 344. [[Special:Contributions/84.137.219.112|84.137.219.112]] 22:39, 5 June 2013 (UTC)

This comic perfectly illustrates why I prefer nightmares over dreams in which things are better than in real life. Truthfully!{{unsigned|108.28.72.186}}

There is a company in UK that has XKCD/806 comppliance: http://revk.www.me.uk/2010/10/xkcd806-compliance.html [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.41|108.162.219.41]] 18:33, 7 November 2013 (UTC)

Cueball asking if anyone has a subway map in their cubicle is likely a reference to Tech Support (http://xkcd.com/1196/) which is clever cross-marketing as you can also purchase the Subways poster (http://store-xkcd-com.myshopify.com/products/subways) [[User:Lakeside|Lakeside]] ([[User talk:Lakeside|talk]]) 16:02, 22 November 2013 (UTC)

Talk:561: Well

2013-11-04T19:02:07Z

Lakeside:

Shouldn't we elaborate on the questioned superiority of DVORAK? --[[Special:Contributions/129.206.196.49|129.206.196.49]] 20:45, 11 October 2013 (UTC)

The final two frames appear to be foreshadowed by Connected (http://xkcd.com/807/) [[User:Lakeside|Lakeside]] ([[User talk:Lakeside|talk]]) 19:02, 4 November 2013 (UTC)

Talk:561: Well

2013-11-04T18:56:15Z

Lakeside: