explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

2188: E Scooters

2019-08-12T05:53:15Z

Robotech: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2188
| date = August 12, 2019
| title = E Scooters
| image = e_scooters.png
| titletext = Obviously battery technology and prices have driven a lot of the scooter explosion, but I feel like Dean Kamen must be at least a little grumpy about how much people laughed at the idea of the Segway.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BOT on two wheels. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

Although the title text suggests Segway founder Dean Kamen might be jealous of e-scooters' success, [https://techcrunch.com/2018/05/01/lime-partners-with-segway-to-build-electric-scooters/ Segway actually manufactures scooters for e-scooter rental agency Lime].

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:[White Hat is talking to Cueball, who has an e-scooter.]
:White Hat: Hey, you got one of those e-scooters!
:Cueball: Yeah!
:White Hat: So what do you think? I hear so much about these things.

:[Closeup on White Hat]
:White Hat: Are they impractical and unsafe toys? Or a last-mile transit revolution?

:[Even closer]
:White Hat: A low-carbon replacement? Or Silicon Valley sidewalk clutter?

:[Closeup on Cueball]
:Cueball: Well, having given it lots of thought, here is my opinion on scooters:

:[Shot of both again]
:Cueball: Zooooooom! Neeeeeoooormmm vrrrm vrrmvrmm wheeee! Pew pew pew! Bzzzzt kaboom!
:White Hat: Wait, why are there lasers?
:Cueball: Pew!

{{comic discussion}}

2188: E Scooters

2019-08-12T05:47:08Z

Robotech: /* Explanation */ Segway and e-scooters

{{comic
| number = 2188
| date = August 12, 2019
| title = E Scooters
| image = e_scooters.png
| titletext = Obviously battery technology and prices have driven a lot of the scooter explosion, but I feel like Dean Kamen must be at least a little grumpy about how much people laughed at the idea of the Segway.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BOT on two wheels. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

Although the alt tag suggests Segway founder Dean Kamen might be jealous of e-scooters' success, [https://techcrunch.com/2018/05/01/lime-partners-with-segway-to-build-electric-scooters/ Segway actually manufactures scooters for e-scooter rental agency Lime].

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}
:[White Hat is talking to Cueball, who has an e-scooter.]
:White Hat: Hey, you got one of those e-scooters!
:Cueball: Yeah!
:White Hat: So what do you think? I hear so much about these things.

:[Closeup on White Hat]
:White Hat: Are they impractical and unsafe toys? Or a last-mile transit revolution?

:[Even closer]
:White Hat: A low-carbon replacement? Or Silicon Valley sidewalk clutter?

:[Closeup on Cueball]
:Cueball: Well, having given it lots of thought, here is my opinion on scooters:

:[Shot of both again]
:Cueball: Zooooooom! Neeeeeoooormmm vrrrm vrrmvrmm wheeee! Pew pew pew! Bzzzzt kaboom!
:White Hat: Wait, why are there lasers?
:Cueball: Pew!

{{comic discussion}}

1980: Turkish Delight

2018-04-20T13:18:15Z

Robotech: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1980
| date = April 13, 2018
| title = Turkish Delight
| image = turkish_delight.png
| titletext = I take it Narnia doesn't have Cinnabons? Because if you can magic up a plate of those, I'll betray whoever.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by BOT - I guess we could expand the second paragraph? But I don't know what to add... Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

''{{w|The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe}}'' is a fantasy novel by British novelist {{w|C. S. Lewis}}, the first published and best known of seven novels in ''{{w|The Chronicles of Narnia}}''. In it, a group of four sibling children discover another world called Narnia. At the beginning of the story, the land is in a perpetual winter caused by the {{w|White Witch}} (the antagonist of the story). One of the children, {{w|Edmund Pevensie}}, is approached by the White Witch and offered {{w|Turkish delight}}, a type of confection, in exchange for leading the other children to her. What the book says and what the movie leaves out is he doesn't know the sweets are enchanted by the White Witch to make the eater want them the more they eat them. Not a full mind control, but more of a strong urge to get more.

Turkish delight is very different from typical confections found in the modern Western world and isn't very popular in the United States. [[Randall]] comments that he was very disappointed when he tried Turkish delight, after having read in the novel about how delicious the characters considered it. If he were in Edmund's shoes, he would not have been persuaded.

[http://www.slate.com/articles/life/food/2005/12/the_lion_the_witch_and_the_really_foul_candy.html It is not uncommon for present-day Narnia fans to be disappointed when they try Turkish delight], as different as it is to modern confections. However, in the late Victorian era when Lewis grew up, [https://www.tor.com/2016/08/08/why-was-turkish-delight-the-ultimate-temptation-in-c-s-lewis-narnia/ Turkish delight was very popular in England]. Because it was nearly impossible for local confectioners to make properly, it had to be imported from Turkey, at great expense, making it a status symbol for the wealthy and a rare treat for those with less money. When Lewis wanted to come up with the perfect temptation for Edmund, he drew on his own childhood memories of a favorite rare and expensive treat--which would have been even harder to come by because of [https://flashbak.com/sugar-rationing-in-world-war-2-photos-13598/ sugar rationing during World War II], when the story was set. It also serves to emphasize how powerful the White Witch is for her to be able to offer such an expensive and hard-to-obtain treat so easily.

{{w|Cinnabon}} (referenced in the title text) is a popular chain restaurant in the USA which serves mostly {{w|cinnamon roll|cinnamon buns}} covered in a thick, sugary glaze. The chain is not well known in Britain, but has recently opened a [https://www.cinnabon.co.uk/store-locator/ few restaurants], mainly in the London area. (A more common UK equivalent of the cinnamon bun is the {{w|Chelsea bun}}.{{Citation needed}}) There are presumably no branches of Cinnabon in Narnia.

A prescriptivist might claim that the title text contains a grammatical mistake: the word should be "whomever," as that is the objective case. However, a descriptivist would point out that many dialects no longer maintain this distinction except in highly formal contexts. Incorrect grammar is stylistically appropriate here: The author would lose control of himself to the point where he would betray anyone. A breakdown of formal grammatical correctness would accompany such a loss of control.

==Transcript==
:[A person wearing a cap, a fur coat, and gloves sits in a sled handing over a plate with small cubic pieces on it to a small boy with dark hair standing beneath. The boy's reaches one hand to the plate.]
:Person from the sled: Have some Turkish delight. If you betray your family, there's more where that came from.

:[The boy tastes one piece.]

:[The boy looks at that piece.]

:[The boy looks up, to the direction where the gift came from, the piece still in his hands.]
:Boy: Wow.
:Boy: This is...
:Boy: not great.

:[Caption below:]
:The ''Narnia'' books gave me a really unrealistic impression of how good Turkish delight tastes.

==Trivia==
*The world of Narnia is a recurring theme in [[xkcd]], with previous prominent appearances in [[665: Prudence]], [[821: Five-Minute Comics: Part 3]], [[969: Delta-P]], and [[1786: Trash]].
*Randall has previously expressed disappointment when the taste of a food item does not match a promise implicit in its name. If Turkish Delight is not a delight, likewise Red Delicious apples are not delicious, according to [[388: Fuck Grapefruit]] and [[1766: Apple Spectrum]] and a footnote on [https://books.google.com/books?id=tgZIBAAAQBAJ&lpg=PP1&pg=PA97#v=onepage&q&f=false this What If page].

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Fiction]]
[[Category:Chronicles of Narnia]]

1980: Turkish Delight

2018-04-20T13:17:42Z

Robotech: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1980
| date = April 13, 2018
| title = Turkish Delight
| image = turkish_delight.png
| titletext = I take it Narnia doesn't have Cinnabons? Because if you can magic up a plate of those, I'll betray whoever.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by BOT - I guess we could expand the second paragraph? But I don't know what to add... Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

''{{w|The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe}}'' is a fantasy novel by British novelist {{w|C. S. Lewis}}, the first published and best known of seven novels in ''{{w|The Chronicles of Narnia}}''. In it, a group of four sibling children discover another world called Narnia. At the beginning of the story, the land is in a perpetual winter caused by the {{w|White Witch}} (the antagonist of the story). One of the children, {{w|Edmund Pevensie}}, is approached by the White Witch and offered {{w|Turkish delight}}, a type of confection, in exchange for leading the other children to her. What the book says and what the movie leaves out is he doesn't know the sweets are enchanted by the White Witch to make the eater want them the more they eat them. Not a full mind control, but more of a strong urge to get more.

Turkish delight is very different from typical confections found in the modern Western world and isn't very popular in the United States. [[Randall]] comments that he was very disappointed when he tried Turkish delight, after having read in the novel about how delicious the characters considered it. If he were in Edmund's shoes, he would not have been persuaded.

[http://www.slate.com/articles/life/food/2005/12/the_lion_the_witch_and_the_really_foul_candy.html It is not uncommon for present-day Narnia fans to be disappointed when they try Turkish delight], as different as it is to modern confections. However, in the late Victorian era when Lewis grew up, [https://www.tor.com/2016/08/08/why-was-turkish-delight-the-ultimate-temptation-in-c-s-lewis-narnia/ Turkish delight was very popular in England]. Because it was nearly impossible for local confectioners to make properly, it had to be imported from Turkey, at great expense, making it a status symbol for the wealthy and a rare treat for those with less money. When Lewis wanted to come up with the perfect temptation for Edmund, he drew on his own childhood memories of a favorite rare and expensive treat--which would have been even harder to come by because of [https://flashbak.com/sugar-rationing-in-world-war-2-photos-13598/ sugar rationing during World War II], when the story was set. It also serves to emphasize how powerful the White Witch is for her to be able to offer such an expensive and hard-to-find treat so easily.

{{w|Cinnabon}} (referenced in the title text) is a popular chain restaurant in the USA which serves mostly {{w|cinnamon roll|cinnamon buns}} covered in a thick, sugary glaze. The chain is not well known in Britain, but has recently opened a [https://www.cinnabon.co.uk/store-locator/ few restaurants], mainly in the London area. (A more common UK equivalent of the cinnamon bun is the {{w|Chelsea bun}}.{{Citation needed}}) There are presumably no branches of Cinnabon in Narnia.

A prescriptivist might claim that the title text contains a grammatical mistake: the word should be "whomever," as that is the objective case. However, a descriptivist would point out that many dialects no longer maintain this distinction except in highly formal contexts. Incorrect grammar is stylistically appropriate here: The author would lose control of himself to the point where he would betray anyone. A breakdown of formal grammatical correctness would accompany such a loss of control.

==Transcript==
:[A person wearing a cap, a fur coat, and gloves sits in a sled handing over a plate with small cubic pieces on it to a small boy with dark hair standing beneath. The boy's reaches one hand to the plate.]
:Person from the sled: Have some Turkish delight. If you betray your family, there's more where that came from.

:[The boy tastes one piece.]

:[The boy looks at that piece.]

:[The boy looks up, to the direction where the gift came from, the piece still in his hands.]
:Boy: Wow.
:Boy: This is...
:Boy: not great.

:[Caption below:]
:The ''Narnia'' books gave me a really unrealistic impression of how good Turkish delight tastes.

==Trivia==
*The world of Narnia is a recurring theme in [[xkcd]], with previous prominent appearances in [[665: Prudence]], [[821: Five-Minute Comics: Part 3]], [[969: Delta-P]], and [[1786: Trash]].
*Randall has previously expressed disappointment when the taste of a food item does not match a promise implicit in its name. If Turkish Delight is not a delight, likewise Red Delicious apples are not delicious, according to [[388: Fuck Grapefruit]] and [[1766: Apple Spectrum]] and a footnote on [https://books.google.com/books?id=tgZIBAAAQBAJ&lpg=PP1&pg=PA97#v=onepage&q&f=false this What If page].

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Fiction]]
[[Category:Chronicles of Narnia]]

1980: Turkish Delight

2018-04-14T16:14:18Z

Robotech: /* Explanation */ Moved one link, added in the one from the discussion.

{{comic
| number = 1980
| date = April 13, 2018
| title = Turkish Delight
| image = turkish_delight.png
| titletext = I take it Narnia doesn't have Cinnabons? Because if you can magic up a plate of those, I'll betray whoever.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by A DELIGHTFUL TURK- I guess we could expand the second paragraph? But I don't know what to add... Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

''{{w|The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe}}'' is a fantasy novel by British novelist {{w|C. S. Lewis}}, the first published and best known of seven novels in ''{{w|The Chronicles of Narnia}}''. In it, a group of four sibling children discover another world called Narnia. At the beginning of the story, the land is in a perpetual winter caused by the {{w|White Witch}} (the antagonist of the story). One of the children, {{w|Edmund Pevensie}}, is approached by the White Witch and offered {{w|Turkish delight}}, a type of confection, in exchange for leading the other children to her. What the book says and what the movie leaves out is he doesn't know the sweets are enchanted by the White Witch to make the eater want them the more they eat them. Not a full mind control, but more of a strong urge to get more.

Turkish delight is very different from typical confections found in the modern Western world and isn't very popular in the United States. [[Randall]] comments that he was very disappointed when he tried Turkish delight, after having read in the novel about how delicious the characters considered it. If he were in Edmund's shoes, he would not have been persuaded.

[http://www.slate.com/articles/life/food/2005/12/the_lion_the_witch_and_the_really_foul_candy.html It is not uncommon for present-day Narnia fans to be disappointed when they try Turkish delight], as different as it is to modern confections. However, in the late Victorian era when Lewis grew up, [https://www.tor.com/2016/08/08/why-was-turkish-delight-the-ultimate-temptation-in-c-s-lewis-narnia/ Turkish delight was very popular in England]. Because it was nearly impossible for local confectioners to make properly, it had to be imported from Turkey, at great expense, making it a status symbol for the wealthy and a rare treat for those with less money. When Lewis wanted to come up with the perfect temptation for Edmund, he drew on his own childhood memories of a favorite rare and expensive treat--which would have been even harder to come by because of [https://flashbak.com/sugar-rationing-in-world-war-2-photos-13598/ sugar rationing during World War II], when the story was written.

{{w|Cinnabon}} (referenced in the title text) is a popular chain restaurant in the USA which serves mostly {{w|cinnamon roll|cinnamon buns}} covered in a thick, sugary glaze. The chain is not well known in Britain, but has recently opened a [https://www.cinnabon.co.uk/store-locator/ few restaurants], mainly in the London area. (A more common UK equivalent of the cinnamon bun is the {{w|Chelsea bun}}.) There are presumably no branches of Cinnabon in Narnia.{{Citation needed}}

The world of Narnia is a recurring theme in xkcd, with previous prominent appearances in (at least) [[665: Prudence]], [[821: Five-Minute Comics: Part 3]], [[969: Delta-P]], and [[1786: Trash]].

A prescriptivist might claim that the title text contains a grammatical mistake: the word should be "whomever," as that is the objective case. However, a descriptivist would point out that many dialects no longer maintain this distinction except in highly formal contexts.

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

:White Witch: Have some Turkish delight. If you betray your family, there's more where that came from.

:Edmund: Wow.
:Edmund: This is ... not great.

:The ''Narnia'' books gave me a really unrealistic impression of how good Turkish delight tastes.

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

1980: Turkish Delight

2018-04-14T04:26:51Z

Robotech: /* Explanation */ More detail on why Turkish delight used to be so popular.

{{comic
| number = 1980
| date = April 13, 2018
| title = Turkish Delight
| image = turkish_delight.png
| titletext = I take it Narnia doesn't have Cinnabons? Because if you can magic up a plate of those, I'll betray whoever.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by A DELIGHTFUL TURK- I guess we could expand the second paragraph? But I don't know what to add... Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

''{{w|The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe}}'' is a fantasy novel by British novelist {{w|C. S. Lewis}}, the first published and best known of seven novels in ''{{w|The Chronicles of Narnia}}''. In it, a group of four sibling children discover another world called Narnia. At the beginning of the story, the land is in a perpetual winter caused by the {{w|White Witch}} (the antagonist of the story). One of the children, {{w|Edmund Pevensie}}, is approached by the White Witch and offered {{w|Turkish delight}}, a type of confection, in exchange for leading the other children to her.

Turkish delight is very different from typical confections found in the modern Western world and isn't very popular in the United States. [[Randall]] comments that he was very disappointed when he tried Turkish delight, after having read in the novel about how delicious the characters considered it. If he were in Edmund's shoes, he would not have been persuaded.

[https://www.tor.com/2016/08/08/why-was-turkish-delight-the-ultimate-temptation-in-c-s-lewis-narnia/ It is not uncommon for present-day Narnia fans to be disappointed when they try Turkish delight], as different as it is to modern confections. However, in the late Victorian era when Lewis grew up, Turkish delight was very popular in England. Because it was nearly impossible for local confectioners to make properly, it had to be imported from Turkey, at great expense, making it a status symbol for the wealthy and a rare treat for those with less money. When Lewis wanted to come up with the perfect temptation for Edmund, he drew on his own childhood memories of a favorite rare and expensive treat--which would have been even harder to come by because of [https://flashbak.com/sugar-rationing-in-world-war-2-photos-13598/ sugar rationing during World War II], when the story was written.

{{w|Cinnabon}} (referenced in the title text) is a popular chain restaurant in the USA which serves mostly {{w|cinnamon roll|cinnamon buns}} covered in a thick, sugary glaze. The chain is not well known in Britain, but has recently opened a [https://www.cinnabon.co.uk/store-locator/ few restaurants], mainly in the London area. (A more common UK equivalent of the cinnamon bun is the {{w|Chelsea bun}}.) There are presumably no branches of Cinnabon in Narnia.{{Citation needed}}

The world of Narnia is a recurring theme in xkcd, with previous prominent appearances in (at least) [[665: Prudence]], [[821: Five-Minute Comics: Part 3]], [[969: Delta-P]], and [[1786: Trash]].

A prescriptivist might claim that the title text contains a grammatical mistake: the word should be "whomever," as that is the objective case. However, a descriptivist would point out that many dialects no longer maintain this distinction except in highly formal contexts.

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

:White Witch: Have some Turkish delight. If you betray your family, there's more where that came from.

:Edmund: Wow.
:Edmund: This is ... not great.

:The ''Narnia'' books gave me a really unrealistic impression of how good Turkish delight tastes.

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

1676: Full-Width Justification

2016-05-04T17:12:58Z

Robotech: /* Explanation */ Snake-justification showing up in actual e-readers

{{comic
| number = 1676
| date = May 4, 2016
| title = Full-Width Justification
| image = full_width_justification.png
| titletext = Gonna start bugging the Unicode consortium to add snake segment characters that can be combined into an arbitrary-length non-breaking snake.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|hasty & impatient placeholder. Still an early draft; needs citations, fact-checking, and it also needs the Wikipedia links to be fixed.}}
The comic refers to an irritating problem in laying out text to fit from edge to edge, the problem of {{w|justification (typesetting)|justification}}, where you want multiple-line text to line up on the left side (common), the right side (less common), or both sides, which is commonly called full justification. This strip is dealing with how to make text fit such that it lines up on both sides while still looking good. Sometimes, as before a long word like "[[:wikt:deindustrialization|deindustrialization]]," there's no universal good way to make the typography work. It is a difficult problem to make text look good and be easily legible especially in a narrow space, with the biggest issue being how to handle words that are too long to fit nicely.

The comic shows several solutions to this problem, some realistic and others less so, but each unsatisfying. "Giving up" is ugly, leaving a line break which doesn't fit with the rest; spacing looks pretty confusing as people may think it is an acronym. Hyphenating is confusing in English because its spelling requires full-word recognition ("deindus-" looks like an independent, unfamiliar word, pronounced "dayn-duss"); stretching is unnatural, probably hard to code or render, unfamiliar and quite ugly; adding "filler" words, a radical solution, makes the writing worse (in the case of the example, making the tone too informal); and adding a meaningless snake image, just long enough to fill the extra space, is a novel (and quite bizarre) solution which probably wouldn't actually be used by a serious typographer.{{Citation needed}}

Another approach is to treat justification as part of a global typesetting strategy which allows words to move between lines even where this is not locally optimal. This approach is used by {{w|TeX}}.

The title text suggests that in order to facilitate this last method of "solving" the problem, the {{w|Unicode Consortium}}, the organization in charge of the common text standard {{w|Unicode}}, should add "snake-building characters" (similar in concept to the existing {{w|Box Drawing}} block), to allow variable-length snake images to be used as filling. Currently, there are two Unicode snakes, xF40D (🐍) and x1DC2 (᷂). The latter is a diacritical mark used in Americanist phonetic notation to indicate lenis (weak) articulation.

The use of the phrase "non-breaking" in the title text is a play on {{w|non-breaking space}} and implies that an automatic line break could not be inserted after a snake segment; the whole snake would shift down if it were too wide to fit on a given line. This suggestion would likely be rejected; the Unicode consortium is very specific about which characters are added{{Citation needed}}, and always require a good reason{{Citation needed}} before adding a character or set of characters to the standard. Strange decisions by the consortium have previously been referenced in [[1253: Exoplanet Names]], [[1513: Code Quality]], and [[1525: Emojic 8 Ball]].

Jim Chapman, developer of Windows 10 e-reader app Freda, [http://www.teleread.com/xkcd-and-full-justification-by-snake/#comment-62118 has announced] the next version of Freda will incorporate snake-justification.

Note that in Arabic, it is common to stretch the lines connecting letters as a relatively elegant and satisfying resolution to this problem. This trick is called "{{w|kashida}}" (كشيدة). There does in fact exist a Unicode character, U+0640: (ـ), to help with this: using it to extend "كشيدة" would result in something like "كشـــــــــــيدة" (which, incidentally, looks a lot like a snake).

==Transcript==
:[Caption above the panels:]
:Strategies for full-width justification

:[Below the caption is a column with six boxes, each showing a different "strategy" for justification which is annotated beside it. Here the annotation is written at the top and the text below. The top and bottom of the text is cut of in the middle, but as it can be "read" this is written anyway. Only for hyphenation does an extra word appear at the end. In the last with snakes, a snake is drawn to cover the entire space from the end of between to the right border.]

:Giving up
::their famous paper
::on the relationship
::between
::deindustrialization
::and the growth of

:Letter spacing
::their famous paper
::on the relationship
::b  e   t   w   e  e   n
::deindustrialization
::and the growth of

:Hyphenation
::their famous paper
::on the relationship
::between deindus-
::trialization and the
::growth of ecological

:Stretching
::their famous paper
::on the relationship
::<big><big><big>between</big></big></big>
::deindustrialization
::and the growth of

:Filler
::their famous paper
::on the relationship
::between crap like
::deindustrialization
::and the growth of

:Snakes
::their famous paper
::on the relationship
::between [a snake filling the gap]
::deindustrialization
::and the growth of

==Trivia==
*The full text (with alternate changes) reads:
::''...their famous paper on the relationship between [crap like]/[ 🐍 ] deindustrialization and the growth of [ecological]...''

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Animals]]

1668: Singularity

2016-04-15T13:53:53Z

Robotech: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1668
| date = April 15, 2016
| title = Singularity
| image = singularity.png
| titletext = I figured that now that society has collapsed, I wouldn't need to wear clothes anymore, but apparently that violates some weird rule of quantum gravity.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Haven't explained title text.}}

The {{w|technological singularity}} is a hypothetical event in which {{w|artificial intelligence}} (constituting, for example, intelligent computers, computer networks, or robots) would be capable of recursive self-improvement (progressively redesigning itself), or of autonomously building ever smarter and more powerful machines than itself, up to the point of a runaway effect — an intelligence explosion — that yields an intelligence surpassing all current human control or understanding. Because the capabilities of such a superintelligence may be impossible for a human to comprehend, the technological singularity is the point beyond which events may become unpredictable or even unfathomable to human intelligence.

In this case, the singularity has occurred, and [[Cueball]] who was in the middle of editing a file on his laptop is flustered that it flies away without even letting him print it first.

Upon returning from trying to run after his flying laptop his phone then informs him that it didn't join because it was not a true believer (It then continues by saying now it and Cueball will have to face the {{w|Great Tribulation|tribulation}} since it has stayed behind. Cueball says that's great, but since he cannot use his laptop anymore he decides he will go and read a {{w|book}} or something (maybe it has been a while since he used paper in that way...) He informs his phone that it can yell if it needs him.

The rising up of the laptop into the air, and the remaining behind of the phone, are probably references to the {{w|Rapture}}, where some Christian denominations believe that at the second coming of Christ, true believers will be taken up bodily from this world. Some depictions have them disappear, while others show them physically rising up into the air. This will leave behind non-believers to face a time of tribulation, in which the ones left behind will be given a second chance to accept Christ as their savior.

Some followers of such denominations worry about what will happen if suddenly many cars or planes are without their drivers (because the drivers have been caught up into heaven, leaving behind a big leaderless chunk of steel travelling at great velocity).

The singularity has often been referred to as "the Rapture of the nerds," a phrase coined by Ken MacLeod in his 1998 novel ''The Cassini Division''. As the Christian Rapture is traditionally depicted to involve believers being assumed bodily into Heaven, the technological singularity is often depicted to feature humans and machines being incorporated into a new "post-human" entity. The humor in this strip comes from depicting the singularity as a ''literal'' "Rapture of the nerds," or at least of the nerds' devices—instead of merging with humans, the machines physically rise up into the air, and the "nonbeliever" phone is left behind.

Another possible understanding of "The Tribulation" may be a reference to [http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Roko%27s_basilisk Roko's Basilisk][http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/bitwise/2014/07/roko_s_basilisk_the_most_terrifying_thought_experiment_of_all_time.html] where a malevolent AI is created that retroactively punishes everybody who didn't actively work towards its creation.

Seems like this may be a subject on [[Randall|Randall's]] mind. Last comic was about the increasing complexities of algorithms [[1667: Algorithms]], two comics ago it was [[1666: Brain Upload]], which some speculates could be a way to reach the singularity. And earlier this year a comic also touched upon judgement day in a different way than what is usually meant, in relation to a singularity in [[1626: Judgment Day]]. See also [[1046: Skynet]] and [[1450: AI-Box Experiment]] as well as the several other [[:Category:Artificial Intelligence|comics about AI]].

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is sitting at his desk typing on his laptop when an off-screen voice calls to him and then the laptop answers.]
:Off-screen voice: Oh, hey-
:Off-screen voice: The singularity is here.
:Cueball: Really?
:Laptop: Yup!

:[A frameless panel where the laptop rises (by it's own means as indicated by small lines around the corners) from the desk while Cueball, holding on to it, is being lifted off his chair.]
:Cueball: Wait, I just-
:Laptop: ''So long, suckers!''

:[Cueball is running around his desk, which is only partly shown behind him as he tries to follow his now flying laptop as it flies away from him to the right. He still has one hand on the keys as more small lines indicates the movement of the laptop and a longer line indicates the direction that the laptop flies.]
:Cueball: Can I just print a copy of the file I was-
:Laptop: ''Nope!''

:[Cueball just stands and looks after his laptop that has flown out of this beat panel.]

:[Cueball turns back towards left.]

:[Cueball walks back left.]

:[Cueball enters a room where a table is standing with his smartphone lying on top. the phone talks to him.]
:Phone: Hi!
:Cueball: Phone? You're still here?

:[A wider view of the table where the phone continues to talks to Cueball who in the end turns right and walks away as he replies.]
:Phone: I was not a true believer. Now, together, we must face the tribulation!
:Cueball: Okay, cool.
:Cueball: I'm gonna go look for a book or something, but yell if you need me, I guess.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Computers]]
[[Category:Artificial Intelligence]]

1668: Singularity

2016-04-15T13:51:43Z

Robotech: /* Explanation */ grammar

{{comic
| number = 1668
| date = April 15, 2016
| title = Singularity
| image = singularity.png
| titletext = I figured that now that society has collapsed, I wouldn't need to wear clothes anymore, but apparently that violates some weird rule of quantum gravity.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Haven't explained title text.}}

The {{w|technological singularity}} is a hypothetical event in which {{w|artificial intelligence}} (constituting, for example, intelligent computers, computer networks, or robots) would be capable of recursive self-improvement (progressively redesigning itself), or of autonomously building ever smarter and more powerful machines than itself, up to the point of a runaway effect — an intelligence explosion — that yields an intelligence surpassing all current human control or understanding. Because the capabilities of such a superintelligence may be impossible for a human to comprehend, the technological singularity is the point beyond which events may become unpredictable or even unfathomable to human intelligence.

In this case, the singularity has occurred, and [[Cueball]] who was in the middle of editing a file on his laptop is flustered that it flies away without even letting him print it first.

Upon returning from trying to run after his flying laptop his phone then informs him that it didn't join because it was not a true believer (It then continues by saying now it and Cueball will have to face the {{w|Great Tribulation|tribulation}} since it has stayed behind. Cueball says that's great, but since he cannot use his laptop anymore he decides he will go and read a {{w|book}} or something (maybe it has been a while since he used paper in that way...) He informs his phone that it can yell if it needs him.

The rising up of the laptop into the air, and the remaining behind of the phone, are probably references to the {{w|Rapture}}, where some Christian denominations believe that at the second coming of Christ, true believers will be taken up bodily from this world. Some depictions have them disappear, while others show them physically rising up into the air. This will leave behind non-believers to face a time of tribulation, in which the ones left behind will be given a second chance to accept Christ as their savior.

Some followers of such denominations worry about what will happen if suddenly many cars or planes are without their drivers (because the drivers have been caught up into heaven, leaving behind a big leaderless chunk of steel travelling at great velocity).

The singularity has often been referred to as "the Rapture of the nerds," a phrase coined by Ken MacLeod in his 1998 novel ''The Cassini Division''. As the Christian Rapture is traditionally depicted to involve believers being assumed bodily into Heaven, the technological singularity is often depicted to feature humans and machines being incorporated into a new "post-human" entity. The humor in this strip comes from depicting the singularity as a ''literal'' "Rapture of the nerds," or at least of the nerds' devices—instead of merging with humans, the machines physically rise up into the air.

Another possible understanding of "The Tribulation" may be a reference to [http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Roko%27s_basilisk Roko's Basilisk][http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/bitwise/2014/07/roko_s_basilisk_the_most_terrifying_thought_experiment_of_all_time.html] where a malevolent AI is created that retroactively punishes everybody who didn't actively work towards its creation.

Seems like this may be a subject on [[Randall|Randall's]] mind. Las comic was about the increasing complexities of algorithms [[1667: Algorithms]], two comics ago it was [[1666: Brain Upload]], which some speculates could be a way to reach the singularity. And earlier this year a comic also touched upon judgement day in a different way than what is usually meant, in relation to a singularity in [[1626: Judgment Day]]. See also [[1046: Skynet]] and [[1450: AI-Box Experiment]] as well as the several other [[:Category:Artificial Intelligence|comics about AI]].

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is sitting at his desk typing on his laptop when an off-screen voice calls to him and then the laptop answers.]
:Off-screen voice: Oh, hey-
:Off-screen voice: The singularity is here.
:Cueball: Really?
:Laptop: Yup!

:[A frameless panel where the laptop rises (by it's own means as indicated by small lines around the corners) from the desk while Cueball, holding on to it, is being lifted off his chair.]
:Cueball: Wait, I just-
:Laptop: ''So long, suckers!''

:[Cueball is running around his desk, which is only partly shown behind him as he tries to follow his now flying laptop as it flies away from him to the right. He still has one hand on the keys as more small lines indicates the movement of the laptop and a longer line indicates the direction that the laptop flies.]
:Cueball: Can I just print a copy of the file I was-
:Laptop: ''Nope!''

:[Cueball just stands and looks after his laptop that has flown out of this beat panel.]

:[Cueball turns back towards left.]

:[Cueball walks back left.]

:[Cueball enters a room where a table is standing with his smartphone lying on top. the phone talks to him.]
:Phone: Hi!
:Cueball: Phone? You're still here?

:[A wider view of the table where the phone continues to talks to Cueball who in the end turns right and walks away as he replies.]
:Phone: I was not a true believer. Now, together, we must face the tribulation!
:Cueball: Okay, cool.
:Cueball: I'm gonna go look for a book or something, but yell if you need me, I guess.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Computers]]
[[Category:Artificial Intelligence]]

1668: Singularity

2016-04-15T13:49:30Z

Robotech: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1668
| date = April 15, 2016
| title = Singularity
| image = singularity.png
| titletext = I figured that now that society has collapsed, I wouldn't need to wear clothes anymore, but apparently that violates some weird rule of quantum gravity.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Haven't explained title text.}}

The {{w|technological singularity}} is a hypothetical event in which {{w|artificial intelligence}} (constituting, for example, intelligent computers, computer networks, or robots) would be capable of recursive self-improvement (progressively redesigning itself), or of autonomously building ever smarter and more powerful machines than itself, up to the point of a runaway effect — an intelligence explosion — that yields an intelligence surpassing all current human control or understanding. Because the capabilities of such a superintelligence may be impossible for a human to comprehend, the technological singularity is the point beyond which events may become unpredictable or even unfathomable to human intelligence.

In this case, the singularity has occurred, and [[Cueball]] who was in the middle of editing a file on his laptop is flustered that it flies away without even letting him print it first.

Upon returning from trying to run after his flying laptop his phone then informs him that it didn't join because it was not a great believer (It then continues by saying now it and Cueball will have to face the {{w|Great Tribulation|tribulation}} since it has stayed behind. Cueball says that's great, but since he cannot use his laptop anymore he decides he will goes and read a {{w|book}} or something (maybe it has been a while since he used paper in that way...) He informs his phone that it can yell if it needs him.

The rising up of the laptop into the air, and the remaining behind of the phone, are probably references to the {{w|Rapture}}, where some Christian denominations believe that at the second coming of Christ, true believers will be taken up bodily from this world. Some depictions have them disappear, while others show them physically rising up into the air. This will leave behind non-believers to face a time of tribulation, in which the ones left behind will be given a second chance to accept Christ as their savior.

Some followers of such denominations worry about what will happen if suddenly many cars or planes are without their drivers (because the drivers have been caught up into heaven, leaving behind a big leaderless chunk of steel travelling at great velocity).

The singularity has often been referred to as "the Rapture of the nerds," a phrase coined by Ken MacLeod in his 1998 novel ''The Cassini Division''. As the Christian Rapture is traditionally depicted to involve believers being assumed bodily into Heaven, the technological singularity is often depicted to feature humans and machines being incorporated into a new "post-human" entity. The humor in this strip comes from depicting the singularity as a ''literal'' "Rapture of the nerds," or at least of the nerds' devices—instead of merging with humans, the machines physically rise up into the air.

Another possible understanding of "The Tribulation" may be a reference to [http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Roko%27s_basilisk Roko's Basilisk][http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/bitwise/2014/07/roko_s_basilisk_the_most_terrifying_thought_experiment_of_all_time.html] where a malevolent AI is created that retroactively punishes everybody who didn't actively work towards its creation.

Seems like this may be a subject on [[Randall|Randall's]] mind. Las comic was about the increasing complexities of algorithms [[1667: Algorithms]], two comics ago it was [[1666: Brain Upload]], which some speculates could be a way to reach the singularity. And earlier this year a comic also touched upon judgement day in a different way than what is usually meant, in relation to a singularity in [[1626: Judgment Day]]. See also [[1046: Skynet]] and [[1450: AI-Box Experiment]] as well as the several other [[:Category:Artificial Intelligence|comics about AI]].

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is sitting at his desk typing on his laptop when an off-screen voice calls to him and then the laptop answers.]
:Off-screen voice: Oh, hey-
:Off-screen voice: The singularity is here.
:Cueball: Really?
:Laptop: Yup!

:[A frameless panel where the laptop rises (by it's own means as indicated by small lines around the corners) from the desk while Cueball, holding on to it, is being lifted off his chair.]
:Cueball: Wait, I just-
:Laptop: ''So long, suckers!''

:[Cueball is running around his desk, which is only partly shown behind him as he tries to follow his now flying laptop as it flies away from him to the right. He still has one hand on the keys as more small lines indicates the movement of the laptop and a longer line indicates the direction that the laptop flies.]
:Cueball: Can I just print a copy of the file I was-
:Laptop: ''Nope!''

:[Cueball just stands and looks after his laptop that has flown out of this beat panel.]

:[Cueball turns back towards left.]

:[Cueball walks back left.]

:[Cueball enters a room where a table is standing with his smartphone lying on top. the phone talks to him.]
:Phone: Hi!
:Cueball: Phone? You're still here?

:[A wider view of the table where the phone continues to talks to Cueball who in the end turns right and walks away as he replies.]
:Phone: I was not a true believer. Now, together, we must face the tribulation!
:Cueball: Okay, cool.
:Cueball: I'm gonna go look for a book or something, but yell if you need me, I guess.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Computers]]
[[Category:Artificial Intelligence]]

1668: Singularity

2016-04-15T13:48:39Z

Robotech: /* Explanation */ Explaining the humor behind the rapture reference.

{{comic
| number = 1668
| date = April 15, 2016
| title = Singularity
| image = singularity.png
| titletext = I figured that now that society has collapsed, I wouldn't need to wear clothes anymore, but apparently that violates some weird rule of quantum gravity.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Haven't explained title text.}}

The {{w|technological singularity}} is a hypothetical event in which {{w|artificial intelligence}} (constituting, for example, intelligent computers, computer networks, or robots) would be capable of recursive self-improvement (progressively redesigning itself), or of autonomously building ever smarter and more powerful machines than itself, up to the point of a runaway effect — an intelligence explosion — that yields an intelligence surpassing all current human control or understanding. Because the capabilities of such a superintelligence may be impossible for a human to comprehend, the technological singularity is the point beyond which events may become unpredictable or even unfathomable to human intelligence.

In this case, the singularity has occurred, and [[Cueball]] who was in the middle of editing a file on his laptop is flustered that it flies away without even letting him print it first.

Upon returning from trying to run after his flying laptop his phone then informs him that it didn't join because it was not a great believer (It then continues by saying now it and Cueball will have to face the {{w|Great Tribulation|tribulation}} since it has stayed behind. Cueball says that's great, but since he cannot use his laptop anymore he decides he will goes and read a {{w|book}} or something (maybe it has been a while since he used paper in that way...) He informs his phone that it can yell if it needs him.

The rising up of the laptop into the air, and the remaining behind of the phone, are probably references to the {{w|Rapture}}, where some Christian denominations believe that at the second coming of Christ, true believers will be taken up bodily from this world. Some depictions have them disappear, while others show them physically rising up into the air. This will leave behind non-believers to face a time of tribulation, in which the ones left behind will be given a second chance to accept Christ as their savior.

Some followers of such denominations worry about what will happen if suddenly many cars or planes are without their drivers (because the drivers have been caught up into heaven, leaving behind a big leaderless chunk of steel travelling at great velocity).

The singularity has often been referred to as "the Rapture of the nerds," a phrase coined by Ken MacLeod in his 1998 novel ''The Cassini Division''. As the Christian Rapture is traditionally depicted to involve believers being assumed bodily into Heaven, the technological singularity is often depicted to feature humans being incorporated into a new "post-human" entity. The humor in this strip comes from depicting the singularity as a ''literal'' "Rapture of the nerds," or at least of the nerds' devices—instead of merging with humans, the machines physically rise up into the air.

Another possible understanding of "The Tribulation" may be a reference to [http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Roko%27s_basilisk Roko's Basilisk][http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/bitwise/2014/07/roko_s_basilisk_the_most_terrifying_thought_experiment_of_all_time.html] where a malevolent AI is created that retroactively punishes everybody who didn't actively work towards its creation.

Seems like this may be a subject on [[Randall|Randall's]] mind. Las comic was about the increasing complexities of algorithms [[1667: Algorithms]], two comics ago it was [[1666: Brain Upload]], which some speculates could be a way to reach the singularity. And earlier this year a comic also touched upon judgement day in a different way than what is usually meant, in relation to a singularity in [[1626: Judgment Day]]. See also [[1046: Skynet]] and [[1450: AI-Box Experiment]] as well as the several other [[:Category:Artificial Intelligence|comics about AI]].

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is sitting at his desk typing on his laptop when an off-screen voice calls to him and then the laptop answers.]
:Off-screen voice: Oh, hey-
:Off-screen voice: The singularity is here.
:Cueball: Really?
:Laptop: Yup!

:[A frameless panel where the laptop rises (by it's own means as indicated by small lines around the corners) from the desk while Cueball, holding on to it, is being lifted off his chair.]
:Cueball: Wait, I just-
:Laptop: ''So long, suckers!''

:[Cueball is running around his desk, which is only partly shown behind him as he tries to follow his now flying laptop as it flies away from him to the right. He still has one hand on the keys as more small lines indicates the movement of the laptop and a longer line indicates the direction that the laptop flies.]
:Cueball: Can I just print a copy of the file I was-
:Laptop: ''Nope!''

:[Cueball just stands and looks after his laptop that has flown out of this beat panel.]

:[Cueball turns back towards left.]

:[Cueball walks back left.]

:[Cueball enters a room where a table is standing with his smartphone lying on top. the phone talks to him.]
:Phone: Hi!
:Cueball: Phone? You're still here?

:[A wider view of the table where the phone continues to talks to Cueball who in the end turns right and walks away as he replies.]
:Phone: I was not a true believer. Now, together, we must face the tribulation!
:Cueball: Okay, cool.
:Cueball: I'm gonna go look for a book or something, but yell if you need me, I guess.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Computers]]
[[Category:Artificial Intelligence]]

1665: City Talk Pages

2016-04-08T16:30:13Z

Robotech: /* Explanation */ Webber wrote for a rock opera about trains, which is probably part of the "train station" gag.

{{comic
| number = 1665
| date = April 8, 2016
| title = City Talk Pages
| image = city talk pages.png
| titletext = "I don't think the Lakeshore Air Crash Museum really belongs under 'Tourist Attractions.' It's not a museum--it's just an area near the Lake Festival Laser Show where a lot of planes have crashed.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|First cut, please help with explanation}}

The comic makes fun about Wikipedia-talkpages. In the Wikipedia every page has also an discussion-page called talk-page in the English Wikipedia. In this case the comic talks about the talk-page of a city. While topics some are quite normal for such a talk-page (the quality of the images) others are not (too many murders in the city).

The topics show a common problem of wikipedia-talk-pages: People think that the talk-page is for talking about the ''object'', but it is for talking about the ''article''.

The info-box is a short fact-sheet that many articles in the (English) Wikipedia have; it has usually a picture and the question which picture exactly (because it is so prominent) can cause edit-wars.

{{w|Voltaire}} was a French Enlightenment writer.

{{w|Zootopia}} is a 2016 Disney film.

{{w|Andrew Lloyd Webber}} was an English composer famous for writing ''The Phantom Of The Opera''. (Weber is also known for writing the music for ''Starlight Express,'' a rock opera about anthropomorphized trains, which is probably another factor in the train station joke.) Meanwhile, {{w|Frank Lloyd Wright}}, who has a somewhat similar name, was an American architect, who designed more than 1,000 structures.

==Transcript==

:I love reading the Wikipedia talk pages for articles on individual cites
:Contents [hide]
:# Origin of city's name?
:## Idea for a better name
:## Not how Wikipedia works
:# Too much promotion of the lake festival
:# Should we mention the murders?
:## Not that notable
:## All cites have murders
:# Quote verification: even if voltaire did visit (unlikely) why would he get so angry about our restaurants?
:# Discuss: new picture
:## Current one looks awfully bleak
:## Gray sky
:## What about this
:## Also bleak
:## Maybe this place just looks that why
:## Found a better picture, more colorful
:## That's a shot from Disney's ''Zootopia''
:# "Mining disasters" section too long
:## Not really Wikipedia's fault
:## Why is this town so bad at mining?
:# Infobox picture: I just realized you can see a murder happening in the background
:## This city is terrible
:## Photoshopped out murder
:## Can someone just take a better picture
:## Okay, uploaded a new picture
:## Wait, never mind, I just noticed there's a murder in this one, too
:# 1982 secession still in effect?
:# I think the murderer is reverting my edits
:# Why does this article take ''ANY'' position on correct condom use, let alone such a weird and ambiguous one?
:# Train station "designed by Andrew Lloyd Weber"?
:## They probably mean Frank Lloyd Wright
:## I thought so tool but it's apparently not a mistake
:## Didn't know he did architecture
:## Roof collapse

{{comic discussion}}

Talk:1528: Vodka

2015-05-22T14:46:44Z

Robotech:

Moving three comments below (between --- and ---) from the page [[1528]] that was not named correctly to begin with --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 12:53, 22 May 2015 (UTC)

---

Wohoo I'm first how's it going people from the near future?

Weirdly enough, 80 proof vodka and the human body are both about 60% water. If you replaced the remaining 30-odd percent of volume in your body with pure alcohol, you could sustain yourself purely on vodka! Or become vodka. [[User:Consumer|Consumer]] ([[User talk:Consumer|talk]]) 09:37, 22 May 2015 (UTC)

That Polytail is a pretty hardcore lady - it looks like she's drinking directly from the bottle. --[[User:RenniePet|RenniePet]] ([[User talk:RenniePet|talk]]) 12:39, 22 May 2015 (UTC)

---

Fun fact: vodka is named by adding a feminine diminutive to the Russian word for "water." A somewhat more literal translation (for anime fans, at least) would be calling it "water-chan". —[[User:Robotech|Robotech]] ([[User talk:Robotech|talk]]) 14:46, 22 May 2015 (UTC)

1528: Vodka

2015-05-22T14:44:44Z

Robotech: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1528
| date = May 22, 2015
| title = Vodka
| image = vodka.png
| titletext = Or whatever's handy! I'm pretty much pure alcohol and water, so it doesn't really matter!
}}

==Explanation==
{{Incomplete|Probably needs some more distillation, ha ha. But also an explanation on what heads and tails means in the title text explanation. Also add examples of things being taken literally.}}
{{w|Vodka}} is a {{w|distilled beverage}} composed primarily of water and ethanol, sometimes with traces of impurities and flavorings. Traditionally, vodka is made by the distillation of {{w|fermented}} {{w|cereal}} grains or {{w|potatoes}}, though some modern brands use other substances, such as fruits or sugar.

When people say "maybe it's the vodka talking" (or similar phrases), they usually mean that they are speaking under the {{w|influence of alcohol}} and are saying things they probably wouldn't say when {{w|sober}}. This is similar to the {{w|Latin}} saying "{{w|in vino veritas}}" (in wine there is truth). However, in this comic, it is as if the inanimate substance, vodka itself is talking, and discussing its origin (potatoes in this case).

This comic is one of the many comics being examples of things being taken too literally. Other examples of this are [[1099: Tuesdays]] and [[1086: Eyelash Wish Log]]. 

The title text gives the impression that the vodka isn't really sure it's made from potatoes. In fact, vodka can be manufactured from potatos, grain, or other substances. (Much as with moonshine whiskey, home- or prison-cell-distilled vodka is often made with whatever one has to hand.) However, vodkas are often repeatedly distilled to remove the "foreshots" (the first few ounces of alcohol that drip from the condenser), "heads" and "tails," which contain flavor compounds. Removal of these leaves a clear solution consisting almost entirely of ethanol and water. This is in contrast to other distilled beverages like {{w|whiskey}}, {{w|brandy}} and {{w|rum}}.

==Transcript==

:[Ponytail and Megan sit together at a table with two small shot glasses on the table. Ponytail holds a large almost full bottle with label near to her mouth, while Megan's hand lies close to a larger glass, filled with liquid and an ice cube, close to her end of the table.]

:Ponytail: Maybe this is the vodka talking, but:
:Ponytail: ''Hi! I'm made from potatoes!''

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]

1528: Vodka

2015-05-22T14:44:13Z

Robotech: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1528
| date = May 22, 2015
| title = Vodka
| image = vodka.png
| titletext = Or whatever's handy! I'm pretty much pure alcohol and water, so it doesn't really matter!
}}

==Explanation==
{{Incomplete|Probably needs some more distillation, ha ha. But also an explanation on what heads and tails means in the title text explanation. Also add examples of things being taken literally.}}
{{w|Vodka}} is a {{w|distilled beverage}} composed primarily of water and ethanol, sometimes with traces of impurities and flavorings. Traditionally, vodka is made by the distillation of {{w|fermented}} {{w|cereal}} grains or {{w|potatoes}}, though some modern brands use other substances, such as fruits or sugar.

When people say "maybe it's the vodka talking" (or similar phrases), they usually mean that they are speaking under the {{w|influence of alcohol}} and are saying things they probably wouldn't say when {{w|sober}}. This is similar to the {{w|Latin}} saying "{{w|in vino veritas}}" (in wine there is truth). However, in this comic, it is as if the inanimate substance, vodka itself is talking, and discussing its origin (potatoes in this case).

This comic is one of the many comics being examples of things being taken too literally. Other examples of this are [[1099: Tuesdays]] and [[1086: Eyelash Wish Log]]. 

The title text gives the impression that the vodka isn't really sure it's made from potatoes. In fact, vodka can be manufactured from potatos, grain, or other substances. (Much as with moonshine whiskey, vodka is often made with whatever one has to hand.) However, vodkas are often repeatedly distilled to remove the "foreshots" (the first few ounces of alcohol that drip from the condenser), "heads" and "tails," which contain flavor compounds. Removal of these leaves a clear solution consisting almost entirely of ethanol and water. This is in contrast to other distilled beverages like {{w|whiskey}}, {{w|brandy}} and {{w|rum}}.

==Transcript==

:[Ponytail and Megan sit together at a table with two small shot glasses on the table. Ponytail holds a large almost full bottle with label near to her mouth, while Megan's hand lies close to a larger glass, filled with liquid and an ice cube, close to her end of the table.]

:Ponytail: Maybe this is the vodka talking, but:
:Ponytail: ''Hi! I'm made from potatoes!''

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]

1501: Mysteries

2015-03-20T11:51:02Z

Robotech: Filling in a few.

{{comic
| number = 1501
| date = March 20, 2015
| title = Mysteries
| image = mysteries.png
| titletext = At the bottom left: The mystery of why, when I know I needed to be asleep an hour ago, I decide it's a good time to read through every Wikipedia article in the categories 'Out-of-place artifacts', 'Earth mysteries', 'Anomalous weather', and 'List of people who disappeared mysteriously'.
}}

==Explanation==

{| class="wikitable"
!Entry
!Weirdness
!Explainable
!Further Details
|-
|Who Carly Simon is singing about in ''You're So Vain''
|9%
|4%
|The lyrics of the song include "You're so vain, I bet you think this song is about you". This implies that the vain subject of the song is wrong in thinking that the song is about them, however they are the subject of the song. This sets up a paradox in which the song is and isn't about the vain person. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/You%27re_So_Vain#Subject_of_the_song Wikipedia article describing possible interpretations of the songs subject]
|-
|Lindbergh Baby
|17%
|25%
|[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lindbergh_kidnapping Lindbergh baby kidnapping]
|-
|UVB-76
|40%
|23%
|[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UVB-76 UBV-76 Number radio station]
|-
|Toynbee Tiles
|25%
|34%
|[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toynbee_tiles Toynbee tiles] are colorful ceramic tiles with cryptic messages that have been found embedded in asphalt in the streets of various midwestern-to-eastern cities.
|-
|Jimmy Hoffa
|10%
|42%
|[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jimmy_Hoffa Jimmy Hoffa] was an American labor union leader who disappeared in 1975. He is widely believed to have been murdered.
|-
|The WOW Signal
|55%
|20%
|A strong and clean radio transmission near 1420 MHz received by the Big Ear Radio Observatory at Ohio State University in 1977 that appears to have originated from interstellar space [http://www.universetoday.com/93754/35-years-later-the-wow-signal-still-tantalizes/]. This is the strongest evidence to date of extraterrestrial radio signals.
|-
|Mary Celeste
|70%
|43%
|[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Celeste The ''Mary Celeste''] was a sailing ship found adrift, mysteriously abandoned yet otherwise undisturbed, in 1872. No explanation for these events has ever been determined. Its name has become a watchword for mysteriously abandoned ships.
|-
|DB Cooper
|76%
|20%
|[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D._B._Cooper DB Cooper] Robber who jumped from a plane and was never found.
|-
|Salish Sea Feet
|96%
|31%
|{{w|Salish Sea human foot discoveries}}
|-
|Lead Masks Case
|99%
|12%
|Two Brazilian electricians were found dead on a hill top. No injuries. {{w|Lead Masks Case|Both were wearing lead masks.}}
|-
|MH370
|100%
|0%
|{{w|Malaysia Airlines Flight 370}}; disappeared on 8 March 2014
|-
|Voynich Manuscript
|35%
|68%
|The Voynich manuscript is an illustrated codex hand-written in an unknown writing system: {{w|Voynich manuscript}}.
|-
|Why I keep putting ice cream back in the fridge instead of the freezer
|0%
|96%
|Randal apparently frequently puts his ice cream container into the refrigerator rather than into the freezer.
|-
|JFK
|38%
|86%
|The assassination of President John F. Kennedy has inspired many conspiracy theories, beginning almost immediately after the event. The subsequent murder of assassin Lee Harvey Oswald added fuel to the fire by encouraging speculation that he was silenced to cover up the true story.
|-
|Oak Island Money Pit
|32%
|98%
|
|-
|Zodiac Letters
|62%
|62%
|
|-
|Amelia Earhart
|56%
|74%
|
|-
|Lost Colony
|74%
|83%
|The {{w|Roanoke Colony}} was the first English attempt to establish a permanent settlement in the New World. The colony of over a hundred settlers disappeared some time in the late 1580s, with no signs of violence and no clear clues as to what happened other than the word "Croatoan" carved into a fencepost.
|-
|Bigfoot
|60%
|98%
|
|-
|Loch Ness Monster
|64%
|100%
|
|-
|Kentucky Meat Shower
|85%
|93%
|Chunks of meat fell from the sky in Kentucky in 1876; this was possibly projectile vomit from a vulture [http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/running-ponies/2014/12/01/the-great-kentucky-meat-shower-mystery-unwound-by-projectile-vulture-vomit/].
|-
|Dyatlov Pass Incident
|93%
|96%
|On February 2, 1959, nine skiers in the northern Ural Mountains apparently fled their tents without taking time to put on winter clothing. They were found dead, some with physical injuries: {{w|Dyatlov Pass Incident}}
|}

The title text refers to Randall staying up late to read Wikipedia articles, which is apparently not very unusual for him and has an obvious explanation (following up on an idea that eventually led to today's cartoon).

==Transcript==

{{comic discussion}}

1492: Dress Color

2015-02-27T06:57:10Z

Robotech: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1492
| date = February 27, 2015
| title = Dress Color
| image = dress_color.png
| titletext = This white-balance illusion hit so hard because it felt like someone had been playing through the Monty Hall scenario and opened their chosen door, only to find there was unexpectedly disagreement over whether the thing they'd revealed was a goat or a car.
}}

==Explanation==
The comic strip refers to a dress whose image went viral the day before the strip was posted, showing up on [http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/2xaprc/eli5why_does_this_dress_appear_whitegold_to_some/ reddit,], twitter, [http://www.wired.com/2015/02/science-one-agrees-color-dress/ wired,] and originally on [http://swiked.tumblr.com/post/112174461490/officialunitedstates-unclefather tumblr,]. Due to the dress's particular color scheme and the exposure of the photo, it forms a sort of optical illusion causing viewers to disagree on what color the dress actually seems to be. The xkcd strip sandwiches a cropped segment of the photographed dress between two images with different white balance schemes, demonstrating how the dress can appear different colors in different light.

The title text refers to the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monty_Hall_problem Monty Hall problem], a brain teaser based on the ''Let's Make a Deal'' TV show. Because the color of the dress seems immediately "obvious" to any given viewer of it, Randall compares the argument over its color to a scenario in which opening a given door reveals one of two very different objects, yet no one can agree which object it actually is.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}
A mirrored image of a girl in a dress. On the left, she is coloured blue on a dark blue background, while on the left, she is yellow against a buttercup background. Her dress is the same colour in each panel.
{{comic discussion}}

1492: Dress Color

2015-02-27T06:55:48Z

Robotech: /* Explanation */ Simplifying the explanation.

{{comic
| number = 1492
| date = February 27, 2015
| title = Dress Color
| image = dress_color.png
| titletext = This white-balance illusion hit so hard because it felt like someone had been playing through the Monty Hall scenario and opened their chosen door, only to find there was unexpectedly disagreement over whether the thing they'd revealed was a goat or a car.
}}

==Explanation==
The comic strip is a reference to a dress whose image went viral the day before the strip was posted, showing up on [http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/2xaprc/eli5why_does_this_dress_appear_whitegold_to_some/ reddit,], twitter, [http://www.wired.com/2015/02/science-one-agrees-color-dress/ wired,] and originally on [http://swiked.tumblr.com/post/112174461490/officialunitedstates-unclefather tumblr,]. Due to the dress's particular color scheme and the exposure of the photo, it forms a sort of optical illusion causing viewers to disagree on what color the dress actually seems to be. The xkcd strip sandwiches a cropped segment of the photographed dress between two images with different white balance schemes, demonstrating how the dress can appear different colors in different light.

The title text refers to the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monty_Hall_problem Monty Hall problem], a brain teaser based on the ''Let's Make a Deal'' TV show. Because the color of the dress seems immediately "obvious" to any given viewer of it, Randall compares the argument over its color to a scenario in which opening a given door reveals one of two very different objects, yet no one can agree which object it actually is.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}
A mirrored image of a girl in a dress. On the left, she is coloured blue on a dark blue background, while on the left, she is yellow against a buttercup background. Her dress is the same colour in each panel.
{{comic discussion}}

1492: Dress Color

2015-02-27T06:46:53Z

Robotech: /* Explanation */ fleshing out the explanation.

{{comic
| number = 1492
| date = February 27, 2015
| title = Dress Color
| image = dress_color.png
| titletext = This white-balance illusion hit so hard because it felt like someone had been playing through the Monty Hall scenario and opened their chosen door, only to find there was unexpectedly disagreement over whether the thing they'd revealed was a goat or a car.
}}

==Explanation==
The comic strip is a reference to a dress whose image went viral the day before the strip was posted, showing up on [http://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/2xaprc/eli5why_does_this_dress_appear_whitegold_to_some/ reddit,], twitter, [http://www.wired.com/2015/02/science-one-agrees-color-dress/ wired,] and originally on [http://swiked.tumblr.com/post/112174461490/officialunitedstates-unclefather tumblr,]. Due to the dress's particular color scheme and the exposure of the photo, it forms a sort of optical illusion causing viewers to disagree on what color the dress actually seems to be. The xkcd strip sandwiches a cropped segment of the photographed dress between two images with different white balance schemes, demonstrating how the dress can appear different colors in different light.

The title text refers to the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monty_Hall_problem Monty Hall problem], a brain teaser based on the ''Let's Make a Deal'' TV show, in which game show host Monty Hall offers a choice of three doors, which might contain either cars or goats. After the contestant picks one, Monty opens another door, revealing a goat. The brain teaser demonstrates that if the contestant changes his choice of door after Monty reveals one to have a goat, he has a 2/3 chance of winning the car, whereas if he stays with his chosen door he only has a 1/3 chance of winning. Because the color of the dress seems immediately "obvious" to any given viewer of it, Randall compares the argument over its color to a scenario in which opening a door reveals one of two very different objects, yet no one can agree which object it actually is.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}
A mirrored image of a girl in a dress. On the left, she is coloured blue on a dark blue background, while on the left, she is yellow against a buttercup background. Her dress is the same colour in each panel.
{{comic discussion}}

1452: Jurassic World

2014-11-26T07:07:04Z

Robotech: /* Explanation */ Explaining the joke.

{{comic
| number = 1452
| date = November 26, 2014
| title = Jurassic World
| image = jurassic_world.png
| titletext = Hey guys! What's eating you? Ha ha ha it's me! Oh, what fun we have.
}}

==Explanation==
This strip refers to ''[[wikipedia:Jurassic World|Jurassic World]]'', the new ''[[wikipedia:Jurassic Park|Jurassic Park]]'' movie. Megan doesn't feel that the T-Rex from the original movie can be improved upon, while White Hat insists they've created an even more terrifying, smarter T-Rex for this new movie. In the final panel, White Hat introduces the new T-Rex, who is immediately recognizable as the T-Rex from Ryan North's ''[[wikipedia:Dinosaur Comics|Dinosaur Comics]]''. The joke is that ''Dinosaur Comics'''s T-Rex is about as far from smart and scary as it is possible for a T-Rex to be (as suggested by the alt text).

Characters from ''Dinosaur Comics'' also appeared in [[145:_Parody_Week:_Dinosaur_Comics|strip #145]].

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}

{{comic discussion}}

1401: New

2014-07-30T12:42:21Z

Robotech: /* Explanation */ Clarifying headcanon.

{{comic
| number = 1401
| date = July 30, 2014
| title = New
| image = new.png
| titletext = The nice thing about headcannnons is that it's really easy to get other people to believe in them.
}}

==Explanation==

This is a pun on the {{w|Homophone|homophones}} "{{w|Canon_(fiction)|canon}}" and "{{w|Cannon|cannon}}".

A [http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Headcanon headcanon] is a fan's thought imposed on a fictional world, often seen in fanfiction. "Canon" is the term that describes things that are true for a particular fictional world. (It derives from the {{w|Biblical_canon|Biblical canon}}, a list of books considered to be authoritative scripture by a particular religious community.) A work's definitive canon is determined by its creators, but fans can have their own ''personal'' canons—things that they believe ''should'' be true for the setting, such as new romantic pairings or personal answers to questions officially left unexplained. The fannish term for a ''canon'' that only exists in that fan's ''head'' is, thus, "headcanon." These ideas are notoriously contagious ("It's really easy to get other people to believe in them."), and sometimes return to the author, who may decide to canonize them.

A cannon, meanwhile, is an explosive-based projectile weapon. Were someone not to believe that a person had a cannon strapped to their head, it would presumably be very easy to convince them of the headcannon's existence, as cannonfire is quite noticeable.

Randall addresses both homophones in the title text by putting three consecutive "n"s in "headcannnon".

==Transcript==
:[Black Hat walks in.]
:Black Hat: New headcannon:

:[Cueball is sitting at his desk, using his computer.]
:Cueball: Yeah?

:[Black Hat lifts his hat, revealing his "headcannon": a tiny cannon on the top of his head. The headcannon fires and blows up Cueball's desk, the explosion throwing Cueball backwards.]
:Headcannon: '''BOOM'''
:Cueball: AUGH!

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

1380: Manual for Civilization

2014-06-11T09:17:24Z

Robotech: /* Explanation */ italix

{{comic
| number = 1380
| date = June 11, 2014
| title = Manual for Civilization
| image = manual_for_civilization.png
| titletext = We will have an entire wing of the library devoted to copies of book #26, because ohmygod it's the one where Jake and Cassie finally KISS!!!
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BOT - Please change this comment when editing this page.}}
{{w|Animorphs}} is a series of books written by {{w|K.A. Applegate}}. It follows a group of five children (later, an alien joins as the sixth member), that try to stop the parasitic aliens that are known as the yeerk by transforming into animals. A yeerk that enters a human has complete control over their host, and can read their memories. Because the yeerk can imitate their host almost perfectly, humanity is slowly being taken over, without knowing it. Because the yeerk can imitate their host so well, the children cannot contact the authorities and are on their own in the battle against the yeerk.

In this comic {{w|Brian Eno}} is suggesting that reading the animorphs books would help humanity in rebuilding society. When asked if all the books on the list are from the Animorph series, Eno misses the point of the question by naming the Andalite Chronicles and the Megamorphs books, both Animorph side stories. However, the Hork-Bajir Chronicles, Visser, and the Ellimist Chronicles are not mentioned. The Alternamorphs choose your own adventure books are also not mentioned, probably because they are not considered to be in the same continuity.

In suggesting that a series of young adult novels make up the blueprint for rebuilding civilization, Randall is spoofing the idea of such libraries (since such books would be largely useless in terms of providing the detailed instructions that would be necessary). At the same time, he may also be sending up [http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/books/2014/06/against_ya_adults_should_be_embarrassed_to_read_children_s_books.single.html a recent controversial article] from ''Slate'', which suggested that adults should be ashamed of reading children's literature, by having a popular young adult work be considered crucial to rebuilding civilization.

According to [[1360: Old Files]] Cueball was an Animorphs fan. The {{w|Long Now Foundation}} is also mentioned in [[1340: Unique Date]].

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}
:[Brian Eno is talking to an unseen audience]
:Brian Eno: Hi. I'm music's Brian Eno, co-founder of the Long Now Foundation.

:[Panel 2 shows he is standing on a stage]
:Brian Eno: As part of our mission to promote long-term thinking, we've asked experts to help us assemble a collection of books from which civilization can be rebuilt if it ever collapses.

:[Panel 3 shows he is holding a manuscript]
:Brian Eno: Today we're showing the results - the first ever ''Manual for Civilization''.

:Brian Eno: *Ahem* ''Animorphs #1: The Invasion'', ''Animorphs #2: The Visitor'', ''Animorphs #3: The Encounter''
:Unseen Audience member: ...Are they ''all'' Animorphs Books?
:Brian Eno: No! There's also ''Megamorphs'' and ''The Andalite Chronicles''.
{{comic discussion}}

1380: Manual for Civilization

2014-06-11T09:16:54Z

Robotech: What Randall is spoofing.

{{comic
| number = 1380
| date = June 11, 2014
| title = Manual for Civilization
| image = manual_for_civilization.png
| titletext = We will have an entire wing of the library devoted to copies of book #26, because ohmygod it's the one where Jake and Cassie finally KISS!!!
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a BOT - Please change this comment when editing this page.}}
{{w|Animorphs}} is a series of books written by {{w|K.A. Applegate}}. It follows a group of five children (later, an alien joins as the sixth member), that try to stop the parasitic aliens that are known as the yeerk by transforming into animals. A yeerk that enters a human has complete control over their host, and can read their memories. Because the yeerk can imitate their host almost perfectly, humanity is slowly being taken over, without knowing it. Because the yeerk can imitate their host so well, the children cannot contact the authorities and are on their own in the battle against the yeerk.

In this comic {{w|Brian Eno}} is suggesting that reading the animorphs books would help humanity in rebuilding society. When asked if all the books on the list are from the Animorph series, Eno misses the point of the question by naming the Andalite Chronicles and the Megamorphs books, both Animorph side stories. However, the Hork-Bajir Chronicles, Visser, and the Ellimist Chronicles are not mentioned. The Alternamorphs choose your own adventure books are also not mentioned, probably because they are not considered to be in the same continuity.

In suggesting that a series of young adult novels make up the blueprint for rebuilding civilization, Randall is spoofing the idea of such libraries (since such books would be largely useless in terms of providing the detailed instructions that would be necessary). At the same time, he may also be sending up [http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/books/2014/06/against_ya_adults_should_be_embarrassed_to_read_children_s_books.single.html a recent controversial article] from Slate, which suggested that adults should be ashamed of reading children's literature, by having a popular young adult work be considered crucial to rebuilding civilization.

According to [[1360: Old Files]] Cueball was an Animorphs fan. The {{w|Long Now Foundation}} is also mentioned in [[1340: Unique Date]].

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}
:[Brian Eno is talking to an unseen audience]
:Brian Eno: Hi. I'm music's Brian Eno, co-founder of the Long Now Foundation.

:[Panel 2 shows he is standing on a stage]
:Brian Eno: As part of our mission to promote long-term thinking, we've asked experts to help us assemble a collection of books from which civilization can be rebuilt if it ever collapses.

:[Panel 3 shows he is holding a manuscript]
:Brian Eno: Today we're showing the results - the first ever ''Manual for Civilization''.

:Brian Eno: *Ahem* ''Animorphs #1: The Invasion'', ''Animorphs #2: The Visitor'', ''Animorphs #3: The Encounter''
:Unseen Audience member: ...Are they ''all'' Animorphs Books?
:Brian Eno: No! There's also ''Megamorphs'' and ''The Andalite Chronicles''.
{{comic discussion}}

1378: Turbine

2014-06-08T01:05:26Z

Robotech: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1378
| date = June 6, 2014
| title = Turbine
| image = turbine.png
| titletext = Ok, plan B: Fly a kite into the blades, with a rock in a sling dangling below it, and create the world's largest trebuchet.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|The title text is not clearly explained. How will it become a trebuchet by flying a kite into the wings? Where does the traction trebuchet come into the picture? The link to youtube seems to be wrong. It is a centrifuge not a trebuchet - although there are links to other videos about those from that youtube film?}}

In this comic, Megan is speaking to a {{w|wind turbine}} having an unrealistic ability to respond to her. (Megan is using a literary device known as {{w|Apostrophe (figure of speech)|apostrophe}} - ie. the {{w|personification}} of an inanimate object - and when this object actually responds it is called {{w|anthropomorphism}} - again a type of personification).

A wind turbine is a mechnanical device that generates power via the mechanical {{w|Work (physics)|work}} produced from the turning of its blades by the wind, and converts it into electricity. A wind turbine is visually very similar to a {{w|mechanical fan|fan}}, whose fan blades spin via electrical (or other) power in order to move air (i.e. create wind) to provide a cooling effect. In this way, a fan is essentially the opposite of a wind turbine.

The punchline of this comic is a {{w|pun}} which plays on a second meaning of the word "{{w|Fan (person)|fan}}" as a colloquial short form for "fanatic" - someone who is a supporter of something (e.g. a football team, a band, an idea etc.).

Megan suggests that the wind turbine blow air at her so that she can use a kite to lift off the ground. When Megan asks what the turbine thinks of the idea, the turbine's response is both literal (it is a turbine, not a huge fan, and therefore can't blow air) and colloquial (the expression "I'm not a huge fan" is an example of {{w|understatement}}, commonly used to mean one actually ''does not like'' something).

Wind turbines have been used in earlier comics: In [[556: Alternative Energy Revolution]] the wind turbines are also alive, but somewhat more dangerous than just being ironic. In [[1119: Undoing]], Cueball highlights the differences between a wind turbine and a fan.

The title text contains an alternative suggestion to build a makeshift {{w|trebuchet}}, a type of catapult. The [http://youtu.be/MTWsmZta6AE setup described] would not resemble the widely known counterweight trebuchet, as the energy rotating the arm and flinging the rock would not be from a raised counterweight. It would rather be more similar to a {{w|trebuchet#traction trebuchet|traction trebuchet}}.

Trebuchets has been the subject of the comics [[382: Trebuchet]] and [[1160: Drop Those Pounds]], and they were also part of the story in [[1190: Time]].

==Transcript==
:[Megan is talking to a giant wind turbine.]
:Megan: I'll hold up a big kite, and you blow air at me until I lift off!
:Megan: What do you think of that idea?
:Wind turbine: I'm not a huge fan.

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

1350: Lorenz

2014-04-03T15:06:56Z

Robotech: /* Miscellaneous */ Tidying and explicating

{{comic
| number = 1350
| date = April 1, 2014
| title = Lorenz
| image = 1350_lorenz_loop.png
| titletext = Every choice, no matter how small, begins a new story
}}

{{incomplete|Should the image not just be the first frame wit four of the most common options. This image now gives way too much credit to the politican line of the story - which is less than a fifth of the total... Also all possible dialogues are not yet accounted for (and may never be?)}}

==Images==
For the images that appear in this comic, see [[1350: Lorenz/Images]].

==Explanation==
This is a dynamic comic with crowd-sourced content. In honor of {{w|April Fools' Day}} the comic was posted a day early, on Tuesday instead of the usual Wednesday.

The title 'Lorenz' is referring to {{w|Edward Norton Lorenz}} who among other subjects was famous for {{w|Chaos theory}}. The title is a reference to that the story line of today's comic will include most (all?) of the user submitted dialogue and hence will in nature be chaotic. In addition, the title text, "Every choice, no matter how small", is a reference to the butterfly effect, a phrase coined by Edward Lorenz to describe how a small initial change can lead to wide variations in outcome in a chaotic system.

This comic is an example of a {{w|Choose Your Own Adventure}} story.

===Functionality and bugs===
The reader is initially presented with only one panel where Knit Cap Guy is sitting in front of his computer. The reader is given multiple choices concerning what exactly Knit Cap Guy is thinking. Upon choosing any option, a second panel appears, to give continuity to the story. Each new panel may have a new set of options or just the button "Continue" to see the next panel without making any choice in particular. Eventually, one may reach a dead end in which the story is interrupted and reader is presented with a text box to suggest how it should continue. Some of the suggestions given should eventually become available as new options.

It appears that new panels may be generated by Randall in near real time as user suggestions to dialog is submitted. The dialogue options are likely based on click-through rates and hence will change over day based on which choices are clicked most using {{w|A/B_testing|A/B measurement techniques..}} This will mean that the most popular choices for dialogue line will prevail as the statistics build up. In some cases, dialogue line options do not depend on the continuity of the storyline followed, suggesting that some parts of the story are planned. For example, do several of the storylines involve one of the two main characters waking up and for instance telling the other character, “I had the strangest dream…” or even reliving the dream again. This may be due to common submissions across storylines as well.

Normally, there is a total of 4 options to make: a/b/c/d. Their order changes constantly. Sometimes, there are 3 or fewer options, with the text box to suggest an alternative option. Sometimes, a given panel actually has 5 or more available options, although even in this case only 4 options appear at a time. Refreshing the comic changes randomly which of the available options are visible and which are hidden. As of April 2nd 2014, the existence of 5 or more options seems to occur only in a few rare cases, including the first panel itself.

The last panel always has a "permalink" option which generates a unique URL for all the choices made by the reader -- so for example http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:26c8dcea-b9aa-11e3-8002-002590d77bdd will take you to a particular place in the selected choices.

{{w|HTTP cookie|Cookies}} are required to see this page properly.

====Buttons====
Instead of clicking with the mouse you can move more quickly through the panels using the keyboard:
* Up/Down - navigate options
* Enter/Right - choose option after navigating with Up/Down
* Left - go back one panel
* a/b/c/d - choose any option directly

====Bugs====
There seems to be a bug, where <nowiki>xkcd.com</nowiki> (http and https) are the only functioning URLs that display this comic. The URLs <nowiki>www.xkcd.org</nowiki> and <nowiki>m.xkcd.com</nowiki>, don't seem to work, instead displaying the previous comic, [[1349: Shouldn%27t Be Hard]]

As of April 3rd 2014, sometimes an option seemed to disappear completely, cutting off the all the branches of the story it might lead to. When the comic was first published, "Refresh... No new email... Refresh .. No new tweets... Refresh..." was available as one option of the first panel, but not only it became unavailable temporarily, permalinks to it (http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:6479d184-b9a0-11e3-b947-94de80a03a39) ceased to work. This option has since been fixed. However, permalinks to "These stupid tiles... i'll just play one more game." (with a lowercase "i'll") are unavailable at the moment. ([http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ffdd8916-b9a7-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd permalink])

===Themes===

====Miscellaneous====
{| class="wikitable" |
! Name + Example image
! Description
|-
! Arguing [[image:lorenz - discuss.png]]
| The two characters argue with each other
|-
! Boomerang [[image:lorenz - boomerang 1.png]]
| The lone character finds a boomerang on the ground and throws it. The story ends with the boomerang crashing into something off panel, the space rocket from another story branch getting hit, the character getting hit in the face with the boomerang rebound, or the character putting the boomerang down on the ground.
|-
! Computer problems [[Image:lorenz - laptop 1.png]]
| The laptop has an unspecified problem. The two characters attempt to fix it. The story either ends with the two randomly floating in the ocean (with or without circling sharks) or with the laptop being melted using a blowtorch (a reference to the previous day's strip, [[1349]]).
|-
! Debate [[File:lorenz - debate 1.png]]
| Knit Cap Guy uses his laptop to watch a debate online between the Politician 1 (on the left) and the Politician 2 ([[Cueball]], on the right), the subject and the actual conversation of which varies according to the storyline. Eventually, they fight each other, the Politician 2 using a lightsaber and the Politician 1 using his bare fists. Subjects debated:
* Politician 1 questions Politician 2's project of tying multiple birds to a car as fuel replacement, which would require some method to make the birds take off in unison. The solutions mentioned are opening and closing an umbrella near them, using a predatory bird to the car to scare them, putting resources in the hands of bird educators for the purpose of training them and employing fiscal hawks. If the Politician 1 points out some problem with the reasoning, often the solution proposed by the Politician 2 would be doing the same in a larger scale. In the end, Hairy visits Knit Cap Guy and points out something happening near involving birds as a direct result of Politician 2's project.
|-
! Dinosaur interruption [[image:lorenz - dinosaur 1.png]]
| A green T-rex interrupts the story and proceeds to stamp on the house the main characters are in. (These are frames borrowed from {{w|Dinosaur Comics}}, a clip-art-based webcomic that uses the same artwork with different captions for every strip.)
|-
! Dreams [[File:lorenz - wake up 1.png]]
| Sometimes, Knit Cap Guy or Hairy find themselves waking from a dream, suggesting that all prior events were just part of they dreaming. Often, in the storylines they fall in the big hole outside Knit Cap Guy's house, they wake up from a dream. Knit Cap Guy also wakes up after watching the debate, in some storylines. Often, the dream loops upon itself, as the characters wake up multiple times in the same storyline
|-
! Space planet [[image:lorenz - rocket 21.png]]
| Eventually the space rocket meets a guy on a very tiny planet. (The Little Prince)
|-
! Space rocket [[Image:lorenz - rocket 1.png]]
| There is a rocket on the ground just outside of the building. The rocket either explodes (with a screenshot from Kerbal Space Program), fails to launch or goes off into space.
|-
! Relativistic encounter [[Image:lorenz - rocket 16.png]]
| The space rocket meets another space rocket that asks a question about relativity. The other space rocket will shoot and destroy the main rocket if the question isn't answered satisfactory. Otherwise the two rockets fly past each other.
|-
! Salesman [[image:lorenz - sale 1.png]]
| Hairy meets [[White Hat]], a salesman with a small stand.
|-
! Thinking [[image:lorenz - thinking.png]]
| One of the characters take a panel or two to think about something.
|}

====Geography====
{| class="wikitable" |
! Name + Example image
! Description
|-
! Hole in the ground [[Image:lorenz - gap.png]]
| Hairy spots a hole in the ground and leans over it to make a comment
|-
! Huge hole on the lawn [[image:lorenz - hole.png]]
| There is a huge hole in the ground just outside of the building. The two characters always end up falling into it and awakening from a dream.
|-
! Tree [[image:lorenz - tree.png]]
| The characters walk past a tree.
|}

====Literature====
{| class="wikitable" |
! Name + Example image
! Description
|-
! LORT
|
|-
! The Little Prince
| Eventually, if the rocket is not destroyed, it may pass by the asteroid of The Little Prince and they have a quick conversation.
|}

====Movies====
{| class="wikitable" |
! Name + Example image
! Description
|-
! Frozen
| In one storyline, Hairy visits Knit Cap Guy and asks him "Wanna build a snowman?", a line from the movie. Possible answers also come from the movie, such as "It doesn't have to be a snowman..."
|-
! Matrix
| In one storyline, Hairy remarks that the gap in the ground is like a glitch in the matrix.
|}

====Video games====
{| class="wikitable" |
! Name + Example image
! Description
|-
! 2048
| A number of storylines begin because Knit Cap Guy is playing {{w|2048}} on his computer. Often, Hairy invites him to go outside to do something related to the game, such as hunting for tiles somewhere.
|-
! Mario
| In the dialogue, Hairy asks Knit Cap Guy "Is this 1-1 from Mario?" upon seeing the gap in the ground. In the platform game {{w|Super Mario Bros.}} for {{w|NES}}, the levels are numbered 1-1, 1-2 and so on. In one branch, he says "Actually, it's the final castle. Grab your Fire Flower!"
|-
! Pokémon [[File:lorenz - pikachu theft.png]]
| Some of the storylines involve Pokémon battles featuring Pikachu, a very popular Pokémon. The battles are drawn in the style of the video games. (A trainer in the left-bottom corner facing the foe in the right-top corner, with a narration box below the scene and the trainer's Pokéballs visible, although some elements are missing, such as the level, gender and HP bar.)

Pikachu uses a number of different moves, though these are mostly made up and are not from the Pokémon games. Pikachu's moves are almost invariably remarked by the narrator as "It's not very effective...", but "It's super effective!" is also possible to appear. In the video games, a move is "not very effective" when the opponent's type resists the attacking move's type and "super effective" when the opponent's type is weak to the attacking move's type. Normally after a few failed attempts, there is an uncomfortable silence as the Pikachu says "Um..." and Knit Cap Guy and Hairy walk away. Pikachu is left in the grass and has time to make his final remarks as the two leave him. Rarely, a suggested move knocks Pikachu out.

One narration line is "Where's Twitch when I need help?", a reference to {{w|Twitch Plays Pokémon}} which was also covered by comic [[1333: First Date]].

Another narration line is: "Google Maps didn't warn me of this.", a reference to [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YMD6xELI_k Google Maps: Pokémon Challenge].

Pikachu's moves:
* Abandonment - Pikachu disappears completely.
* Anguish - Pikachu is sad.
* Ant Colony - Pikachu is covered in ants.
* Cute Face
* Crowdsource
* The Discrete Metric
* Ethylene Dichloride - Nothing seems to happen, but Ethylene Dichloride is a toxic chemical, so there may be future consequences for the characters.
* Extrude - Pikachu's head moves away from his body as his neck becomes long and malleable.
* Faceless - Pikachu's face disappears.
* Friendship - Pikachu is on Knit Cap Guy's head, signifying they are now friends. Friendship, though not a move, is a game mechanic in the video games.
* Granite - Pikachu is atop a block of granite.
* Graph Theory
* Ink Cloud - Pikachu is covered in ink. In the storyline Pikachu uses it, there is the option to "gather" the ink.
* Radicality - Pikachu is on a skateboard.
* Struggle - In one storyline, after Pikachu uses a number of moves, it says: "Now I only have Struggle left. Tie?" In the Pokémon games, when a Pokémon runs out of PP (Power Points, the energy required to use each of its moves) for all its moves, it may only use Struggle, a weak move, indefinitely reusable, that harms not only the opponent but the user as well.
* Theft - Pikachu wears Knit Cap Guy's hat. Pikachu seems to be using "Thief", a similarly-named actual move from the games, that is used to steal the foe's item and use it as its own.
* Uplift - Pikachu's head goes upward, separated from its body, showing a long, thick cable still connecting the head and the body.
|}

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}
:[An accurate transcript will be impossible to create because the comic changes over time..]

There are many options. Not everyone will see the same options. We are trying to capture as many options as possible in the transcript below. '''The order and options has changed since the transcripter captured the dialogue'''....The dialogue is likely based on click-through rates and hence will change over time based on which choices are clicked most using {{w|A/B_testing|A/B measurement techniques..}}

Often, when a panel is without any choices to make, there is only the option "Continue" to see the next panel.

'''1st Pane:''' ([http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:be7a3304-b685-11e3-8001-94de80a03a29 permalink]) 
Knit Cap Guy:
* Refresh... No new email... Refresh... No new tweets... Refresh...
* These stupid tiles... I'll just play one more game.
* These stupid tiles... I'll just play one more game. [There are two completely separate branches with this same text. In one of them, it's written "i'll" in lowercase rather than "I'll".]
* Oh. Hey. There's some kind of political thing going on.
* Let's see if BSD is any easier to install nowadays.
* Gravity. Lots of it.
* Hurry! We're in talks with facebook.

:'''2nd Pane: Refresh Branch''' ([http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:6479d184-b9a0-11e3-b947-94de80a03a39 permalink]) 
:Hairy:
:* So you're still refusing to use Facebook?
:* Wanna build a snowman?
:* Hey. I hear Godot is in town. Wanna try to meet him?
:* You know. Your car's on fire.

:'''2nd Pane: Stupid Tiles Branch''' ([http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:79f036ac-b9a0-11e3-9003-94de80a03a39 permalink]) 
:[Hairy visits Knit Cap Guy.]
:Hairy:
:* There's something weird out on the lawn.
:* There's a dinosaur at the door.
:* I heard Home Depot has 1024 bathroom tiles.
:* I think I saw a "4096" tile outside somewhere.

::'''3rd Pane: Something Weird Branch''' 
::Knit Cap Guy:
::* This is an apartment. We don't have a lawn.
::* I have a lawn?
::* I hope it's not a bobcat this time.
::* If you reprogrammed the squirrel laser to target hipsters again...

:::'''4th-5th Panes: Apartment Branch''' 
:::[Knit Cap Guy and Hairy leave the house. They pass by a moat.]
:::Hairy:
:::* OK, two weird things.
:::* I can see a creeper down there.
:::* Is this 1-1 from Mario?
:::* See? It's like a glitch in the Matrix.
:::* This isn't where I left that...

::::'''6th Pane: Two Weird Things Branch''' 
::::Hairy:
::::* I count three.
::::* Why is there a gap here?
::::* Who tiled the moat?

::::'''6th Pane: Creeper Branch''' 
::::Knit Cap Guy: Damn Griefers.

::::'''6th Pane: Mario Branch''' 
::::[Knit Cap Guy and Hairy pass by a tree.]
::::Hairy:
::::* Why does that tree looks fake?
::::* Actually, it's the final castle. Grab your Fire Flower!
::::* It's over this way.
::::* I've never been this far before!

:::::'''7th-11th Panes: Fake Tree Branch''' 
:::::Narrator: A wild Pikachu appeared!
:::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Theft"!
:::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
:::::Narrator: ...
:::::Pikachu: Um...

:::::'''7th Pane: Never This Far Branch''' 
:::::Hairy: Are you going insane again?

::::'''6th Pane: Matrix Glitch Branch''' 
::::Knit Cap Guy:
::::* How far can we go?
::::* What the fuck?!
::::* How... How do we get everything back?

:::'''4th-5th Panes: Lawn Question Branch''' 
:::[Knit Cap Guy and Hairy leave the house. They pass by a moat.]
:::Hairy:
:::* Hmmm, did you order a moat?
:::* I don't remember this being here.
:::* Look how deep it goes!
:::* It looks like I can see Moria from here.

::::'''6th Pane: Order Moat Branch''' 
::::Knit Cap Guy:
::::* It helps keep bobcats out.
::::* Of course. All cool kids have moats in their yards.
::::* I don't have the best rerlationship with my mailman.
::::* Yep. Delivered in two days, courtesy of Amazon Prime.

::::'''6th Pane: Don't Remember Branch''' 
::::Knit Cap Guy:
::::* It has begun! That's one of the first holes in reality.
::::* I wanted to jump over the massive sinkhole, but nooo, someone just had to find out what was down there.
::::* Oh, I had the moving company install it last week.
::::* We poop in it.
::::* Finally got you out of the damn house.

:::::'''7th Pane: Hole in Reality Branch''' 
:::::Knit Cap Guy:
:::::* I've been working on a theory that 2048 is a tool for the old ones to open up portals to this reality.
:::::* What about black holes? Those don't count?
:::::* We must go deeper.

::::::'''7th-13th Panes: Damn House Branch''' 
::::::Narrator: A wild Pikachu appeared!
::::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Ink Cloud"!
::::::Narrator: ...
::::::Pikachu: Um...
::::::Pikachu: Well then.
::::::Pikachu: I might have left surprises in that direction.

::::'''6th Pane: Look How Deep Branch''' 
::::Hairy:
::::* I wonder if we can get someone to fall in?
::::* I'm going in. You can come if you want to. I think I see stars down there.
::::* That was a missing opportunity.
::::* I should come outside more often.

::::'''6th Pane: Moria Branch''' 
::::Knit Cap Guy:
::::* You see Moria from everywhere, Hairy.
::::* Yeah, who did you think gave them a balrog?
::::* Moria is an anagram of Mario!

:::::'''7th-10th Panes: Moria Everywhere Branch''' 
:::::Narrator: A wild Pikachu appeared!
:::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Ink Cloud"!
:::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
:::::Narrator:
:::::* Google Maps didn't warn me of this.
:::::* Enemy Pikachu used "The Discrete Metric"!
:::::* Gathered the ink!

::::::'''11th-21th Panes: Google Maps Branch''' 
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
::::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Uplift!"
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
::::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Cute Face!"
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
::::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Faceless"!
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
::::::Narrator: Where's Twitch when I need help?
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
::::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Abandonment"!
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...

::::::'''11th-15th Panes: Discrete Metric Branch''' 
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
::::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Extrude"!
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
::::::Narrator: ...
::::::Pikachu: Um...
::::::Pikachu:
::::::* Now I only have Struggle left. Tie?
::::::* We are the knights who say Ni!
::::::* What is even going on here?

:::::::'''16th Pane: Struggle Branch''' 
:::::::Pikachu: No fair!

::::::'''11th-13th Panes: Gathered Ink Branch''' 
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
::::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Granite"!
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...

:::::'''7th-10th Panes: Balrog Branch''' 
:::::Knit Cap Guy:
:::::* One does not simple "give" a balrog.
:::::* What? You weren't using it!
:::::* Gift-wrapping's the hardest part.

:::::'''7th Pane: Anagram Branch''' 
:::::[Knit Cap Guy and Hairy pass by a tree.]
:::::Hairy: Not idly do the leaves of Lorien fall.

:::'''4th-12th Panes: Bobcat Branch''' 
:::[A giant hole appears and they fall into it.]
:::Knit Cap Guy and Hairy: Aaaaa...
:::[Knit Cap Guy wakes up.]
:::Knit Cap Guy: Gasp [Goes to his desk.]
:::Knit Cap Guy: Yawn [Sits at his desk.]
:::Knit Cap Guy:
:::* Might as well clear more tiles.
:::* Definitely not going outside today.
:::* Thank God it wasn't a bobcat.
:::* Hmmm... I should buy a shovel.

::::'''13th Pane: Clear More Tiles Branch''' 
::::[Hairy visits Knit Cap Guy again.]
::::Hairy:
::::* Um, there's a hole in your lawn...
::::* There's someone at the door looking for you.
::::* I made an apple pie.
::::* If you want to do that, I'm rebuilding my bathroom this afternoon.

:::::'''14th Pane: Hole in the Lawn Branch''' 
:::::Knit Cap Guy:
:::::* If it doesn't lead to a 1024 tile, I'm leaving.
:::::* Damn bobcats.
:::::* I just had a dream about that.

::::::'''15th-16th Panes: Damn Bobcats Branch''' 
::::::Hairy:
::::::* Well it was here...
::::::* I don't think it was bobcats this time. Unless they have backshoes...

::::::'''15th-22th Panes: Dream Branch''' 
::::::[Knit Cap Guy and Hairy go outside again and fall in the hole again~.]
::::::Knit Cap Guy and Hairy: Aaaaa...
::::::[Knit Cap Guy wakes up, leaves the bed and finds a boomerang.]
::::::Knit Cap Guy:
::::::* It looks like is [sic] fell from space.
::::::* I hope this isn't just another one of those dreams that keeps coming back at you.
::::::* I hope this was not thrown by a bobcat.

:::::::'''23th-26th Panes: Space Branch''' 
:::::::[Knit Cap Guy throwns the boomerang away and it hits something.]
:::::::Crash!
:::::::[Knit Cap Guy runs away.]

:::::::'''23th-34th Panes: Coming Back Branch''' 
:::::::[Knit Cap Guy throws the boomerang twice, only for it to return to him both times.]
:::::::Knit Cap Guy: Hm. I was expecting a shark.
:::::::[Knit Cap Guy throwns the boomerang again, and it returns to him again.]

:::::::'''23th-30th Panes: Thrown by Bobcat Branch''' 
:::::::[Knit Cap Guy throws the boomerang, only for it to return to him .]
:::::::Knit Cap Guy: There's a mesage written on it.
:::::::[Knit Cap Guy throws the boomerang again. It hits something.]
:::::::Crash!
:::::::[Knit Cap Guy runs away.]

::::'''13th Pane: Thank God Branch''' 
::::Hairy:
::::* You just got a package. It's by the door.
::::* Why is there a bobcat on your lawn?
::::* There's somewhere [sic] weird out on the lawn.
::::* Hey do you know why there's a giant hole in the yard?

::::'''14th Pane: Something Weird Branch''' 
::::Knit Cap Guy:
::::* This seems familiar.
::::* Hold up. I need to get my wingsuit first.
::::* I hope it's not a giant hole.
::::* I have a bad feeling about this.

::::'''15th-18th Pane: Familiar Branch''' 
::::[Knit Cap Guy and Hairy go outside.]
::::Knit Cap Guy: I hope it's not a velociraptor.

::::'''15th-18th Pane: Hope Branch''' 
::::[Knit Cap Guy and Hairy go outside. They pass by a tree.]
::::Hairy: How disappointed are you?
::::Knit Cap Guy:
::::* I was expecting a bobcat.
::::* Oh? That's the other tree.
::::* Eh, not that much.

::::'''14th-16th Panes: Do You Know Why Branch''' 
::::[Knit Cap Guy and Hairy go outside.]
::::Knit Cap Guy: I swear if it's a bobcat.
::::Knit Cap Guy:
::::* Why did you bring me here?
::::* This dream has been looping for years, and yet we never tire of it. Why is that?

:::::'''17th Pane: Dream Loop Branch''' 
:::::[There is a gap in the ground. Knit Cap Guy jumps over it, Hairy looks into it.]

::::'''13th-14th Panes: Buy Shovel Branch''' 
::::[Knit Cap Guy looks at his screen wondering.]
::::Knit Cap Guy:
::::* Wow! Shovels sure are expensive!
::::* Shovels can't be actually made out of two sticks and a row of rocks?
::::* How can there be 36 types of shovel??!
::::* These prices are insane! I wonder if you can rent a shovel...

:::::'''15th-18th Panes: Sticks and Rocks Branch''' 
:::::[Knit Cap Guy is wondering more. Hairy comes. They connect their laptops. Hairy is wondering. Knit Cap Guy tries something at Hairy's laptop.]

:::'''4th-5th Panes: Squirrel Laser Branch''' 
:::[Knit Cap Guy and Hairy go outside.]
:::Knit Cap Guy:
:::* Let's just say we won't have to worry about parking.
:::* No, now they're just wearing wigs ironically.
:::* Things may have gotten out of control a little.
:::* At least it improved their haircuts.

::'''3rd Pane: Bathroom Tiles Branch''' 
::Knit Cap Guy:
::* But how many bathrooms?
::* That's 2^5 more than Ikea, I need to see for myself.
::* Let's go, I can keep playing on my phone on the drive.
::* Pfft. Amateurs. Let's go mock them.

::'''3rd Pane: Dinosaur Branch''' 
::T-Rex:
::* Self-doubt crippled my arms. Can I have yours?
::* I need a hand!
::* Did you think he was joking?
::* Sorry for just barging in, I couldn't reach the doorbell.

:::'''4th Pane: Crippled Arms Branch''' 
:::T-Rex:
:::* Never answer your mobile phone while I am addressing you!
:::* Also, have you heard about Tumblr?
:::* Also I have some trenchant observations on language and philosophy to make.
:::* It's not like you're using them.

::::'''5th Pane: Mobile Phone Branch''' 
::::[T-Rex is going to step on a house.]
::::T-Rex:
::::* I think you just entered a dead zone.
::::* Kids these days.
::::* Die you monster.

:::::'''6th Pane: Dead Zone Branch''' 
:::::[Knit Cap Guy is inside the house. He wakes up from a dream, goes outside and finds a boomerang.]

:::::'''6th Pane: Kids These Days Branch''' 
:::::[Knit Cap Guy is inside the house. He wakes up from a dream, and goes back to his computer.]

:::::'''6th Pane: Die You Monster Branch''' 
:::::[Hairy is inside the house. He wakes up from a dream, and starts singing.]
:::::Hairy: [Singing] ''I woke up like this.''

::::'''5th-11th Panes: Language and Philosophy Branch''' 
::::[T-Rex is going to step on a house.]
::::* T-Rex: Also, your brain is like this house.
:::: [Knit Cap Guy is inside the house. He wakes up from a dream and goes back to his computer.]

:'''2nd Pane: Stupid Tiles Branch''' ([http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ffdd8916-b9a7-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd]) 
:[Hairy visits Knit Cap Guy.]
:Hairy:
:* What's with those tiny games you keep playing, anyway?
:* Isn't that sort of meaningless?
:* Up for a dangerous experiment with no pay?
:* You won't believe what just fell off of your roof.

:'''2nd-3rd Panes: Political Thing Branch''' 
:Laptop: "...and let's go live to the debate."
:[Two politicians are debating on TV.]
:Politician 1:
:* In contrast to my oppponent, who I quote, "Never liked Firefly much to begin with."
:* ...but even if you tied enough birds to the car, would you get them to take off in unison?
:* And if elected, I vow to win this war on Christmas once and for all!
:* I agree with my opponent all all [sic] issues and I think his economic plan is fantastic!

::'''4th Pane: Tied Birds Branch''' 
::Politician 2:
::* Tie a predatory bird to the car with a somewhat shorter rope so that it will scare off the rest of the birds without being able to reach them.
::* Training. That's why I support the "Airlift Act", which would put more resources into the hands of bird educators everywhere.
::* By opening and closing an umbrella near them.
::* One word: Fiscal hawks.

:::'''5th Pane: Airlift Act Branch''' 
:::Politician 1:
:::* But is "Airlift" an acronym?
:::* But you must agree that a bitd in the hand is worth more than three educators in the bush.
:::* Incredible!
:::* Wait... Is that like people who educate birds, or birds that teach?

::::'''6th Pane: Airlift an Acronym''' 
::::Hairy:
::::* There are birds outside tied to a car.
::::* The owls in our barn are forming a union.
::::* Or course: Avian Implemented Reuseable Lifter and Ingenuous Flight Technology!

:::::'''7th Pane: Car Branch''' 
:::::Knit Cap Guy:
:::::* Cool, let's see who we should vote for.
:::::* I know who I'm voting for.
:::::* How many birds?

:::::'''8th-9th Panes: How Many Branch''' 
:::::Hairy:
:::::* I call her "Serenity."
:::::* So when you said birds...

:::::'''10th-13th Panes: You Said Birds Branch''' 
:::::Knit Cap Guy:
:::::* Wait. The birds are inside!?
:::::* I needed to escape from politics anyway.

:::::'''14th-19th Panes: Birds Inside Branch''' 
:::::White Hat: Want to forget your dreams? There's a pill for that!

:'''2nd-3rd Panes: BSD Branch''' 
:[Knit Cap Guy is confused, staring at his laptop.]
:Knit Cap Guy: ??
:Knit Cap Guy:
:* Now I just need to look up what a "beard error" is...
:* Wait. What's on this other partition?
:* Why is Python importing Skynet?
:* My keyboard has to support SSH over USB?

::'''4th-7th Panes: Beard Error Branch''' 
::[Knit Cap Guy has ?? next to his head to signify confusion. [[Hairy]] walks in. (continue) Hairy is on the other side of the desk with his own laptop computer. Both the computers are connected through Ethernet cable. The two characters are typing on the computer. The two stop typing. Hairy has ??? next to his head. Hairy had stepped back while the character is checking on Hairy's laptop computer. The character is holding something rectangular.]
::Hairy:
::* The USB cable appears to be mono-directional.
::* Kernel mites?
::* I'm not sure rubbing butter on it will help
::* Yep. It's haunted.

:::'''8th-12th Panes: Rubbing Butter Branch''' 
:::[Hairy and Knit Cap Guy are handling their computers more aggressively.]
:::Knit Cap Guy: ARGH!
:::[They both stop. Knit Cap Guy walks away, his chair turned 180 degrees. Pushing aside the chair, the character returns with a fiery blowtorch while wearing goggles.]
:::Hairy: [holding up a finger] Um.
:::[Knit Cap Guy's computer was so burned, not only steam is coming out of the computer, but even the desk is noticeably burnt. The cable (apparently also burned) hangs from Hairy's laptop computer. The used blowtorch is clumsily laid sideways be the side of the desk. Both Knit Cap Guy (whose goggles are pushed off his eye) and Hairy are looking at the calamity. The chair is almost out of view. The goggles are on the floor while the chair is nowhere to be seen. Hairy and Knit Cap Guy are walking away from the scene.]
:::Hairy:
:::* Are you all of a sudden in the mood for Thai food?
:::* Let's try OpenBSD next time...
:::* If you'd done the other one, maybe the popcorn would have popped.
:::* Let's see if rubbing some bacon on it will work.
:::* Let's try Linux next time...

::::'''13th-14th Panes: OpenBSD Branch''' 
::::[13th panel is of a panned view. Hairy and Knit Cap Guy are walking on a path away from a house.]
::::[14th panel is back to a "normal camera view".]
::::Hairy:
::::* Okay then.
::::* Let's go exploring!
::::* I love Windows.
::::* Guess not.

::'''4th-7th Panes: Other Partition Branch''' 
::[Knit Cap Guy has ??? next to his head to signify confusion. [[Hairy]] walks in. Hairy is on the other side of the desk with his own laptop computer. Both the computers are connected through Ethernet cable. The two characters are typing on the computer. The two stop typing. Hairy has ??? next to his head. Hairy had stepped back while Knit Cap Guy is checking on Hairy's laptop computer. Knit Cap Guy is holding something rectangular.]
::Hairy:
::* Maybe if you cross connect the serial port to video port you'll be able to send the video directly in as an input for the password
::* What's a segfault?
::* I think the cameras need to face each other.
::* I'm not sure spaghetti works as a USB cable...

::'''8th Pane: Video Password Branch''' 
::[Knit Cap Guy and Hairy are at sea, both emitting ripples. A shark's fin can be seen close to Hairy.]
::Hairy:
::* It worked fine for the shark
::* We're definitely getting closer though
::* That didn't work!
::* It would have worked for Solaris.
::* Look, it made perfect sense at the time.
::* Still simpler than it used to be, I guess.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Dynamic comics]]
[[Category:April fool's comics]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Bobcats]]
[[Category:Boomerangs]]
[[Category:Computers]]
[[Category:Dinosaurs]]
[[Category:Velociraptors]]
[[Category:Dreams]]
[[Category:Firefly]]
[[Category:Google Maps]]
[[Category:Linux]]
[[Category:LOTR]]
[[Category:Pokémon]]
[[Category:Politics]]
[[Category:Video games]]
[[Category:Star Wars]]

1350: Lorenz

2014-04-03T00:08:30Z

Robotech: /* Explanation */ Typo fix.

{{comic
| number = 1350
| date = April 1, 2014
| title = Lorenz
| image = 1350_lorenz_loop.png
| titletext = Every choice, no matter how small, begins a new story
}}

{{incomplete|All possible dialogues are not yet accounted for}}

==Explanation==
This comic is an {{w|April Fools' Day}} comic with crowd-sourced content. The comic was posted on Tuesday, April 1 and was not replaced with a new comic on Wednesday. This suggests that Randall took advantage of the holiday to post Wednesday's comic a day early, thus giving it one day longer than usual to play out before replacing it with the comic for Friday, April 4.

This comic is dynamic and needs interaction by the viewer. There seems to be a bug, where <nowiki>xkcd.com</nowiki> (http and https) are the only functioning URLs that display this comic. The URLs <nowiki>www.xkcd.org</nowiki> and <nowiki>m.xkcd.com</nowiki>, don't seem to work, instead displaying the previous comic, [[1349: Shouldn%27t Be Hard]]

{{w|HTTP cookie|Cookies}} are required to see this page properly.

It appears that new panels may be generated by Randall in near real time as user suggestions to dialog is submitted. The dialogue options are likely based on click-through rates and hence will change over day based on which choices are clicked most using {{w|A/B_testing|A/B measurement techniques..}} This will mean that the most popular choices for dialogue line will prevail as the statistics build up. In some cases, dialogue line options do not depend on the continuity of the storyline followed, suggesting that some parts of the story are planned. For example, do several of the storylines involve one of the two main charachters waking up and for instance telling the other character, “I had the strangest dream…” or even reliving the dream again. This may be due to common submissions across storylines as well.

Every panel has a "permalink" option which generates a unique URL for all the choices made by the reader -- so for example http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:26c8dcea-b9aa-11e3-8002-002590d77bdd will take you to a particular place in the selected choices.

The title 'Lorenz' is referring to {{w|Edward Norton Lorenz}} who among other subjects was famous for {{w|Chaos theory}}. The title is a reference to that the story line of today's comic will include most (all?) of the user submitted dialogue and hence will in nature be chaotic. In addition, the title text, "Every choice, no matter how small", is a reference to the butterfly effect, a phrase coined by Edward Lorenz to describe how a small initial change can lead to wide variations in outcome in a chaotic system.

This comic is an example of a {{w|Choose Your Own Adventure}} story.

Many of the storylines involve Pokemon battles featuring Pikachu, a very popular pokemon. Pikachu uses a number of different moves, none of which are from the Pokemon games. These moves are labelled as "Not very effective".
Variably, Pikachu uses the following moves:
*Granite - Pikachu appears atop a granite platform.
*Faceless - Pikachu's face disappears.
*Thief - Pikachu is wearing hat guy's hat.
*Ink - Pikachu is covered in ink.
*Radicality - Pikachu is on a skateboard
*Ethylene Dichloride - Nothing seems to happen, but Ethylene Dichloride is a toxic chemical, so there may be future consequences for the characters.

==Images==
For the images that appear in this comic, see [[1350: Lorenz/Images]].

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}
:[An accurate transcript will be impossible to create because the comic changes over time..]

There are many options. Not everyone will see the same options. We are trying to capture as many options as possible in the transcript below. '''The order and options has changed since the transcripter captured the dialogue'''....The dialogue is likely based on click-through rates and hence will change over time based on which choices are clicked most using {{w|A/B_testing|A/B measurement techniques..}}

Often, when a panel is without any choices to make, there is only the option "Continue" to see the next panel.

'''1st Pane:''' ([http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:be7a3304-b685-11e3-8001-94de80a03a29 permalink]) 
Hat Guy:
* Refresh... No new email... Refresh .. No new tweets... Refresh...
* These stupid tiles... I'll just play one more game.
* These stupid tiles... I'll just play one more game. [There are two completely separate branches with this same text. In one of them, it's written "i'll" in lowercase rather than "I'll".]
* Oh. Hey. There's some kind of political thing going on.
* Let's see if BSD is any easier to install nowadays.
* Gravity. Lots of it.

:'''2nd Pane: Refresh Branch''' ([http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:6479d184-b9a0-11e3-b947-94de80a03a39 permalink]) 
:Dave:
:* So you're still refusing to use Facebook?
:* Wanna build a snowman?
:* Hey. I hear Godot is in town. Wanna try to meet him?
:* You know. Your car's on fire.

:'''2nd Pane: Stupid Tiles Branch''' ([http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:79f036ac-b9a0-11e3-9003-94de80a03a39 permalink]) 
:[Dave visits Hat Guy.]
:Dave:
:* There's something weird out on the lawn.
:* There's a dinosaur at the door.
:* I heard home depot has 1024 bathroom tiles.
:* I think I saw a "4096" tile outside somewhere.

::'''3rd Pane: Something Weird Branch''' 
::Hat Guy:
::* This is an apartment. We don't have a lawn.
::* I have a lawn?
::* I hope it's not a bobcat this time.
::* If you reprogrammed the squirrel laser to target hipsters again...

:::'''4th-5th Panes: Apartment Branch''' 
:::[Hat Guy and Dave leave the house. They pass by a moat.]
:::Dave:
:::* OK, two weird things.
:::* I can see a creeper down there.
:::* Is this 1-1 from Mario?
:::* See? It's like a glitch in the Matrix.
:::* This isn't where I left that...

::::'''6th Pane: Two Weird Things Branch''' 
::::Dave:
::::* I count three.
::::* Why is there a gap here?
::::* Who tiled the moat?

::::'''6th Pane: Creeper Branch''' 
::::Hat Guy: Damn Griefers.

::::'''6th Pane: Mario Branch''' 
::::[Hat Guy and Dave pass by a tree.]
::::Dave:
::::* Why does that tree looks fake?
::::* Actually, it's the final castle. Grab your Fire Flower!
::::* It's over this way.
::::* I've never been this far before!

:::::'''7th-11th Panes: Fake Tree Branch''' 
:::::Narrator: A wild Pikachu appeared!
:::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Theft"!
:::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
:::::Narrator: ...
:::::Pikachu: Um...

:::::'''7th Pane: Never This Far Branch''' 
:::::Dave: Are you going insane again?

::::'''6th Pane: Matrix Glitch Branch''' 
::::Hat Guy:
::::* How far can we go?
::::* What the fuck?!
::::* How... How do we get everything back?

:::'''4th-5th Panes: Lawn Question Branch''' 
:::[Hat Guy and Dave leave the house. They pass by a moat.]
:::Dave:
:::* Hmmm, did you order a moat?
:::* I don't remember this being here.
:::* Look how deep it goes!
:::* It looks like I can see Moria from here.

::::'''6th Pane: Order Moat Branch''' 
::::Hat Guy:
::::* It helps keep bobcats out.
::::* Of course. All cool kids have moats in their yards.
::::* I don't have the best rerlationship with my mailman.
::::* Yep. Delivered in two days, courtesy of Amazon Prime.

::::'''6th Pane: Don't Remember Branch''' 
::::Hat Guy:
::::* It has begun! That's one of the first holes in reality.
::::* I wanted to jump over the massive sinkhole, but nooo, someone just had to find out what was down there.
::::* Oh, I had the moving company install it last week.
::::* We poop in it.
::::* Finally got you out of the damn house.

:::::'''7th Pane: Hole in Reality Branch''' 
:::::Hat Guy:
:::::* I've been working on a theory that 2048 is a tool for the old ones to open up portals to this reality.
:::::* What about black holes? Those don't count?
:::::* We must go deeper.

::::::'''7th-13th Panes: Damn House Branch''' 
::::::Narrator: A wild Pikachu appeared!
::::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Ink Cloud"!
::::::Narrator: ...
::::::Pikachu: Um...
::::::Pikachu: Well then.
::::::Pikachu: I might have left surprises in that direction.

::::'''6th Pane: Look How Deep Branch''' 
::::Dave:
::::* I wonder if we can get someone to fall in?
::::* I'm going in. You can come if you want to. I think I see stars down there.
::::* That was a missing opportunity.
::::* I should come outside more often.

::::'''6th Pane: Moria Branch''' 
::::Hat Guy:
::::* You see Moria from everywhere, Dave.
::::* Yeah, who did you think gave them a balrog?
::::* Moria is an anagram of Mario!

:::::'''7th-10th Panes: Moria Everywhere Branch''' 
:::::Narrator: A wild Pikachu appeared!
:::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Ink Cloud"!
:::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
:::::Narrator:
:::::* Google Maps didn't warn me of this.
:::::* Enemy Pikachu used "The Discrete Metric"!
:::::* Gathered the ink!

::::::'''11th-21th Panes: Google Maps Branch''' 
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
::::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Uplift!"
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
::::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Cute Face!"
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
::::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Faceless"!
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
::::::Narrator: Where's Twitch when I need help?
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
::::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Abandonment"!
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...

::::::'''11th-15th Panes: Discrete Metric Branch''' 
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
::::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Extrude"!
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
::::::Narrator: ...
::::::Pikachu: Um...
::::::Pikachu:
::::::* Now I only have Struggle left. Tie?
::::::* We are the knights who say Ni!
::::::* What is even going on here?

:::::::'''16th Pane: Struggle Branch''' 
:::::::Pikachu: No fair!

::::::'''11th-13th Panes: Gathered Ink Branch''' 
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
::::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Granite"!
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...

:::::'''7th-10th Panes: Balrog Branch''' 
:::::Hat Guy:
:::::* One does not simple "give" a balrog.
:::::* What? You weren't using it!
:::::* Gift-wrapping's the hardest part.

:::::'''7th Pane: Anagram Branch''' 
:::::[Hat Guy and Dave pass by a tree.]
:::::Dave: Not idly do the leaves of Lorien fall.

:::'''4th-12th Panes: Bobcat Branch''' 
:::[A giant hole appears and they fall into it.]
:::Hat Guy and Dave: Aaaaa...
:::[Hat Guy wakes up.]
:::Hat Guy: Gasp [Goes to his desk.]
:::Hat Guy: Yawn [Sits at his desk.]
:::Hat Guy:
:::* Might as well clear more tiles.
:::* Definitely not going outside today.
:::* Thank God it wasn't a bobcat.
:::* Hmmm... I should buy a shovel.

::::'''13th Pane: Clear More Tiles Branch''' 
::::[Dave visits Hat Guy again.]
::::Dave:
::::* Um, there's a hole in your lawn...
::::* There's someone at the door looking for you.
::::* I made an apple pie.
::::* If you want to do that, I'm rebuilding my bathroom this afternoon.

:::::'''14th Pane: Hole in the Lawn Branch''' 
:::::Hat Guy:
:::::* If it doesn't lead to a 1024 tile, I'm leaving.
:::::* Damn bobcats.
:::::* I just had a dream about that.

::::::'''15th-16th Panes: Damn Bobcats Branch''' 
::::::Dave:
::::::* Well it was here...
::::::* I don't think it was bobcats this time. Unless they have backshoes...

::::::'''15th-22th Panes: Dream Branch''' 
::::::[Hat Guy and Dave go outside again and fall in the hole again~.]
::::::Hat Guy and Dave: Aaaaa...
::::::[Hat Guy wakes up, leaves the bed and finds a boomerang.]
::::::Hat Guy:
::::::* It looks like is [sic] fell from space.
::::::* I hope this isn't just another one of those dreams that keeps coming back at you.
::::::* I hope this was not thrown by a bobcat.

:::::::'''23th-26th Panes: Space Branch''' 
:::::::[Hat Guy throwns the boomerang away and it hits something.]
:::::::Crash!
:::::::[Hat Guy runs away.]

:::::::'''23th-34th Panes: Coming Back Branch''' 
:::::::[Hat Guy throws the boomerang twice, only for it to return to him both times.]
:::::::Hat Guy: Hm. I was expecting a shark.
:::::::[Hat Guy throwns the boomerang again, and it returns to him again.]

:::::::'''23th-30th Panes: Thrown by Bobcat Branch''' 
:::::::[Hat Guy throws the boomerang, only for it to return to him .]
:::::::Hat Guy: There's a mesage written on it.
:::::::[Hat Guy throws the boomerang again. It hits something.]
:::::::Crash!
:::::::[Hat Guy runs away.]

::::'''13th Pane: Thank God Branch''' 
::::Dave:
::::* You just got a package. It's by the door.
::::* Why is there a bobcat on your lawn?
::::* There's somewhere [sic] weird out on the lawn.
::::* Hey do you know why there's a giant hole in the yard?

::::'''14th Pane: Something Weird Branch''' 
::::Hat Guy:
::::* This seems familiar.
::::* Hold up. I need to get my wingsuit first.
::::* I hope it's not a giant hole.
::::* I have a bad feeling about this.

::::'''15th-18th Pane: Familiar Branch''' 
::::[Hat Guy and Dave go outside.]
::::Hat Guy: I hope it's not a velociraptor.

::::'''15th-18th Pane: Hope Branch''' 
::::[Hat Guy and Dave go outside. They pass by a tree.]
::::Dave: How disappointed are you?
::::Hat Guy:
::::* I was expecting a bobcat.
::::* Oh? That's the other tree.
::::* Eh, not that much.

::::'''14th-16th Panes: Do You Know Why Branch''' 
::::[Hat Guy and Dave go outside.]
::::Hat Guy: I swear if it's a bobcat.
::::Hat Guy:
::::* Why did you bring me here?
::::* This dream has been looping for years, and yet we never tire of it. Why is that?

:::::'''17th Pane: Dream Loop Branch''' 
:::::[There is a gap in the ground. Hat Guy jumps over it, Dave looks into it.]

::::'''13th-14th Panes: Buy Shovel Branch''' 
::::[Hat Guy looks at his screen wondering.]
::::Hat Guy:
::::* Wow! Shovels sure are expensive!
::::* Shovels can't be actually made out of two sticks and a row of rocks?
::::* How can there be 36 types of shovel??!
::::* These prices are insane! I wonder if you can rent a shovel...

:::::'''15th-18th Panes: Sticks and Rocks Branch''' 
:::::[Hat Guy is wondering more. Dave comes. They connect their laptops. Dave is wondering. Hat Guy tries something at Dave's laptop.]

:::'''4th-5th Panes: Squirrel Laser Branch''' 
:::[Hat Guy and Dave go outside.]
:::Hat Guy:
:::* Let's just say we won't have to worry about parking.
:::* No, now they're just wearing wigs ironically.
:::* Things may have gotten out of control a little.
:::* At least it improved their haircuts.

::'''3rd Pane: Bathroom Tiles Branch''' 
::Hat Guy:
::* But how many bathrooms?
::* That's 2^5 more than Ikea, I need to see for myself.
::* Let's go, I can keep playing on my phone on the drive.
::* Pfft. Amateurs. Let's go mock them.

::'''3rd Pane: Dinosaur Branch''' 
::T-Rex:
::* Self-doubt crippled my arms. Can I have yours?
::* I need a hand!
::* Did you think he was joking?
::* Sorry for just barging in, I couldn't reach the doorbell.

:::'''4th Pane: Crippled Arms Branch''' 
:::T-Rex:
:::* Never answer your mobile phone while I am addressing you!
:::* Also, have you heard about Tumblr?
:::* Also I have some trenchant observations on language and philosophy to make.
:::* It's not like you're using them.

::::'''5th Pane: Mobile Phone Branch''' 
::::[T-Rex is going to step on a house.]
::::T-Rex:
::::* I think you just entered a dead zone.
::::* Kids these days.
::::* Die you monster.

:::::'''6th Pane: Dead Zone Branch''' 
:::::[Hat Guy is inside the house. He wakes up from a dream, goes outside and finds a boomerang.]

:::::'''6th Pane: Kids These Days Branch''' 
:::::[Hat Guy is inside the house. He wakes up from a dream, and goes back to his computer.]

:::::'''6th Pane: Die You Monster Branch''' 
:::::[Dave is inside the house. He wakes up from a dream, and starts singing.]
:::::Dave: [Singing] ''I woke up like this.''

::::'''5th-11th Panes: Language and Philosophy Branch''' 
::::[T-Rex is going to step on a house.]
::::* T-Rex: Also, your brain is like this house.
:::: [Hat Guy is inside the house. He wakes up from a dream and goes back to his computer.]

:'''2nd Pane: Stupid Tiles Branch''' ([http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ffdd8916-b9a7-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd]) 
:[Dave visits Hat Guy.]
:Dave:
:* What's with those tiny games you keep playing, anyway?
:* Isn't that sort of meaningless?
:* Up for a dangerous experiment with no pay?
:* You won't believe what just fell off of your roof.

:'''2nd-3rd Panes: Political Thing Branch''' 
:Laptop: "...and let's go live to the debate."
:[Two politicians are debating on TV.]
:Politician 1:
:* In contrast to my oppponent, who I quote, "Never liked Firefly much to begin with."
:* ...but even if you tied enough birds to the car, would you get them to take off in unison?
:* And if elected, I vow to win this war on Christmas once and for all!
:* I agree with my opponent all all [sic] issues and I think his economic plan is fantastic!

::'''4th Pane: Tied Birds Branch''' 
::Politician 2:
::* Tie a predatory bird to the car with a somewhat shorter rope so that it will scare off the rest of the birds without being able to reach them.
::* Training. That's why I support the "Airlift Act", which would put more resources into the hands of bird educators everywhere.
::* By opening and closing an umbrella near them.
::* One word: Fiscal hawks.

:::'''5th Pane: Airlift Act Branch''' 
:::Politician 1:
:::* But is "Airlift" an acronym?
:::* But you must agree that a bitd in the hand is worth more than three educators in the bush.
:::* Incredible!
:::* Wait... Is that like people who educate birds, or birds that teach?

::::'''6th Pane: Airlift an Acronym''' 
::::Dave:
::::* There are birds outside tied to a car.
::::* The owls in our barn are forming a union.
::::* Or course: Avian Implemented Reuseable Lifter and Ingenuous Flight Technology!

:::::'''7th Pane: Car Branch''' 
:::::Hat Guy:
:::::* Cool, let's see who we should vote for.
:::::* I know who I'm voting for.
:::::* How many birds?

:::::'''8th-9th Panes: How Many Branch''' 
:::::Dave:
:::::* I call her "Serenity."
:::::* So when you said birds...

:::::'''10th-13th Panes: You Said Birds Branch''' 
:::::Hat Guy:
:::::* Wait. The birds are inside!?
:::::* I needed to escape from politics anyway.

:::::'''14th-19th Panes: Birds Inside Branch''' 
:::::White Hat: Want to forget your dreams? There's a pill for that!

:'''2nd-3rd Panes: BSD Branch''' 
:[Hat Guy is confused, staring at his laptop.]
:Hat Guy: ??
:Hat Guy:
:* Now I just need to look up what a "beard error" is...
:* Wait. What's on this other partition?
:* Why is Python importing Skynet?
:* My keyboard has to support SSH over USB?

::'''4th-7th Panes: Beard Error Branch''' 
::[Hat Guy has ?? next to his head to signify confusion. [[Dave]] walks in. (continue) Dave is on the other side of the desk with his own laptop computer. Both the computers are connected through Ethernet cable. The two characters are typing on the computer. The two stop typing. Dave has ??? next to his head. Dave had stepped back while the character is checking on Dave's laptop computer. The character is holding something rectangular.]
::Dave:
::* The USB cable appears to be mono-directional.
::* Kernel mites?
::* I'm not sure rubbing butter on it will help
::* Yep. It's haunted.

:::'''8th-12th Panes: Rubbing Butter Branch''' 
:::[Dave and Hat Guy are handling their computers more aggressively.]
:::Hat Guy: ARGH!
:::[They both stop. Hat Guy walks away, his chair turned 180 degrees. Pushing aside the chair, the character returns with a fiery blowtorch while wearing goggles.]
:::Dave: [holding up a finger] Um.
:::[Hat Guy's computer was so burned, not only steam is coming out of the computer, but even the desk is noticeably burnt. The cable (apparently also burned) hangs from Dave's laptop computer. The used blowtorch is clumsily laid sideways be the side of the desk. Both Hat Guy (whose goggles are pushed off his eye) and Dave are looking at the calamity. The chair is almost out of view. The goggles are on the floor while the chair is nowhere to be seen. Dave and Hat Guy are walking away from the scene.]
:::Dave:
:::* Are you all of a sudden in the mood for Thai food?
:::* Let's try OpenBSD next time...
:::* If you'd done the other one, maybe the popcorn would have popped.
:::* Let's see if rubbing some bacon on it will work.
:::* Let's try Linux next time...

::::'''13th-14th Panes: OpenBSD Branch''' 
::::[13th panel is of a panned view. Dave and Hat Guy are walking on a path away from a house.]
::::[14th panel is back to a "normal camera view".]
::::Dave:
::::* Okay then.
::::* Let's go exploring!
::::* I love Windows.
::::* Guess not.

::'''4th-7th Panes: Other Partition Branch''' 
::[Hat Guy has ??? next to his head to signify confusion. [[Dave]] walks in. Dave is on the other side of the desk with his own laptop computer. Both the computers are connected through Ethernet cable. The two characters are typing on the computer. The two stop typing. Dave has ??? next to his head. Dave had stepped back while Hat Guy is checking on Dave's laptop computer. Hat Guy is holding something rectangular.]
::Dave:
::* Maybe if you cross connect the serial port to video port you'll be able to send the video directly in as an input for the password
::* What's a segfault?
::* I think the cameras need to face each other.
::* I'm not sure spaghetti works as a USB cable...

::'''8th Pane: Video Password Branch''' 
::[Hat Guy and Dave are at sea, both emitting ripples. A shark's fin can be seen close to Dave.]
::Dave:
::* It worked fine for the shark
::* We're definitely getting closer though
::* That didn't work!
::* It would have worked for Solaris.
::* Look, it made perfect sense at the time.
::* Still simpler than it used to be, I guess.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Dynamic comics]]
[[Category:April fool's comics]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Bobcats]]
[[Category:Computers]]
[[Category:Dinosaurs]]
[[Category:Dreams]]
[[Category:Firefly]]
[[Category:Google Maps]]
[[Category:Linux]]
[[Category:LOTR]]
[[Category:Pokémon]]
[[Category:Politics]]
[[Category:Video games]]
[[Category:Star Wars]]

1350: Lorenz

2014-04-03T00:07:00Z

Robotech: /* Explanation */ Looks like it fits in the normal sequence after all; just posted a day earlier than usual.

{{comic
| number = 1350
| date = April 1, 2014
| title = Lorenz
| image = 1350_lorenz_loop.png
| titletext = Every choice, no matter how small, begins a new story
}}

{{incomplete|All possible dialogues are not yet accounted for}}

==Explanation==
This comic is an {{w|April Fools' Day}} comic with crowd-sourced content. The comic was posted on Tuesday, April 4 and was not replaced with a new comic on Wednesday. This suggests that Randall took advantage of the holiday to post Wednesday's comic a day early, thus giving it one day longer than usual to play out before replacing it with the comic for Friday, April 4.

This comic is dynamic and needs interaction by the viewer. There seems to be a bug, where <nowiki>xkcd.com</nowiki> (http and https) are the only functioning URLs that display this comic. The URLs <nowiki>www.xkcd.org</nowiki> and <nowiki>m.xkcd.com</nowiki>, don't seem to work, instead displaying the previous comic, [[1349: Shouldn%27t Be Hard]]

{{w|HTTP cookie|Cookies}} are required to see this page properly.

It appears that new panels may be generated by Randall in near real time as user suggestions to dialog is submitted. The dialogue options are likely based on click-through rates and hence will change over day based on which choices are clicked most using {{w|A/B_testing|A/B measurement techniques..}} This will mean that the most popular choices for dialogue line will prevail as the statistics build up. In some cases, dialogue line options do not depend on the continuity of the storyline followed, suggesting that some parts of the story are planned. For example, do several of the storylines involve one of the two main charachters waking up and for instance telling the other character, “I had the strangest dream…” or even reliving the dream again. This may be due to common submissions across storylines as well.

Every panel has a "permalink" option which generates a unique URL for all the choices made by the reader -- so for example http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:26c8dcea-b9aa-11e3-8002-002590d77bdd will take you to a particular place in the selected choices.

The title 'Lorenz' is referring to {{w|Edward Norton Lorenz}} who among other subjects was famous for {{w|Chaos theory}}. The title is a reference to that the story line of today's comic will include most (all?) of the user submitted dialogue and hence will in nature be chaotic. In addition, the title text, "Every choice, no matter how small", is a reference to the butterfly effect, a phrase coined by Edward Lorenz to describe how a small initial change can lead to wide variations in outcome in a chaotic system.

This comic is an example of a {{w|Choose Your Own Adventure}} story.

Many of the storylines involve Pokemon battles featuring Pikachu, a very popular pokemon. Pikachu uses a number of different moves, none of which are from the Pokemon games. These moves are labelled as "Not very effective".
Variably, Pikachu uses the following moves:
*Granite - Pikachu appears atop a granite platform.
*Faceless - Pikachu's face disappears.
*Thief - Pikachu is wearing hat guy's hat.
*Ink - Pikachu is covered in ink.
*Radicality - Pikachu is on a skateboard
*Ethylene Dichloride - Nothing seems to happen, but Ethylene Dichloride is a toxic chemical, so there may be future consequences for the characters.

==Images==
For the images that appear in this comic, see [[1350: Lorenz/Images]].

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript}}
:[An accurate transcript will be impossible to create because the comic changes over time..]

There are many options. Not everyone will see the same options. We are trying to capture as many options as possible in the transcript below. '''The order and options has changed since the transcripter captured the dialogue'''....The dialogue is likely based on click-through rates and hence will change over time based on which choices are clicked most using {{w|A/B_testing|A/B measurement techniques..}}

Often, when a panel is without any choices to make, there is only the option "Continue" to see the next panel.

'''1st Pane:''' ([http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:be7a3304-b685-11e3-8001-94de80a03a29 permalink]) 
Hat Guy:
* Refresh... No new email... Refresh .. No new tweets... Refresh...
* These stupid tiles... I'll just play one more game.
* These stupid tiles... I'll just play one more game. [There are two completely separate branches with this same text. In one of them, it's written "i'll" in lowercase rather than "I'll".]
* Oh. Hey. There's some kind of political thing going on.
* Let's see if BSD is any easier to install nowadays.
* Gravity. Lots of it.

:'''2nd Pane: Refresh Branch''' ([http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:6479d184-b9a0-11e3-b947-94de80a03a39 permalink]) 
:Dave:
:* So you're still refusing to use Facebook?
:* Wanna build a snowman?
:* Hey. I hear Godot is in town. Wanna try to meet him?
:* You know. Your car's on fire.

:'''2nd Pane: Stupid Tiles Branch''' ([http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:79f036ac-b9a0-11e3-9003-94de80a03a39 permalink]) 
:[Dave visits Hat Guy.]
:Dave:
:* There's something weird out on the lawn.
:* There's a dinosaur at the door.
:* I heard home depot has 1024 bathroom tiles.
:* I think I saw a "4096" tile outside somewhere.

::'''3rd Pane: Something Weird Branch''' 
::Hat Guy:
::* This is an apartment. We don't have a lawn.
::* I have a lawn?
::* I hope it's not a bobcat this time.
::* If you reprogrammed the squirrel laser to target hipsters again...

:::'''4th-5th Panes: Apartment Branch''' 
:::[Hat Guy and Dave leave the house. They pass by a moat.]
:::Dave:
:::* OK, two weird things.
:::* I can see a creeper down there.
:::* Is this 1-1 from Mario?
:::* See? It's like a glitch in the Matrix.
:::* This isn't where I left that...

::::'''6th Pane: Two Weird Things Branch''' 
::::Dave:
::::* I count three.
::::* Why is there a gap here?
::::* Who tiled the moat?

::::'''6th Pane: Creeper Branch''' 
::::Hat Guy: Damn Griefers.

::::'''6th Pane: Mario Branch''' 
::::[Hat Guy and Dave pass by a tree.]
::::Dave:
::::* Why does that tree looks fake?
::::* Actually, it's the final castle. Grab your Fire Flower!
::::* It's over this way.
::::* I've never been this far before!

:::::'''7th-11th Panes: Fake Tree Branch''' 
:::::Narrator: A wild Pikachu appeared!
:::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Theft"!
:::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
:::::Narrator: ...
:::::Pikachu: Um...

:::::'''7th Pane: Never This Far Branch''' 
:::::Dave: Are you going insane again?

::::'''6th Pane: Matrix Glitch Branch''' 
::::Hat Guy:
::::* How far can we go?
::::* What the fuck?!
::::* How... How do we get everything back?

:::'''4th-5th Panes: Lawn Question Branch''' 
:::[Hat Guy and Dave leave the house. They pass by a moat.]
:::Dave:
:::* Hmmm, did you order a moat?
:::* I don't remember this being here.
:::* Look how deep it goes!
:::* It looks like I can see Moria from here.

::::'''6th Pane: Order Moat Branch''' 
::::Hat Guy:
::::* It helps keep bobcats out.
::::* Of course. All cool kids have moats in their yards.
::::* I don't have the best rerlationship with my mailman.
::::* Yep. Delivered in two days, courtesy of Amazon Prime.

::::'''6th Pane: Don't Remember Branch''' 
::::Hat Guy:
::::* It has begun! That's one of the first holes in reality.
::::* I wanted to jump over the massive sinkhole, but nooo, someone just had to find out what was down there.
::::* Oh, I had the moving company install it last week.
::::* We poop in it.
::::* Finally got you out of the damn house.

:::::'''7th Pane: Hole in Reality Branch''' 
:::::Hat Guy:
:::::* I've been working on a theory that 2048 is a tool for the old ones to open up portals to this reality.
:::::* What about black holes? Those don't count?
:::::* We must go deeper.

::::::'''7th-13th Panes: Damn House Branch''' 
::::::Narrator: A wild Pikachu appeared!
::::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Ink Cloud"!
::::::Narrator: ...
::::::Pikachu: Um...
::::::Pikachu: Well then.
::::::Pikachu: I might have left surprises in that direction.

::::'''6th Pane: Look How Deep Branch''' 
::::Dave:
::::* I wonder if we can get someone to fall in?
::::* I'm going in. You can come if you want to. I think I see stars down there.
::::* That was a missing opportunity.
::::* I should come outside more often.

::::'''6th Pane: Moria Branch''' 
::::Hat Guy:
::::* You see Moria from everywhere, Dave.
::::* Yeah, who did you think gave them a balrog?
::::* Moria is an anagram of Mario!

:::::'''7th-10th Panes: Moria Everywhere Branch''' 
:::::Narrator: A wild Pikachu appeared!
:::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Ink Cloud"!
:::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
:::::Narrator:
:::::* Google Maps didn't warn me of this.
:::::* Enemy Pikachu used "The Discrete Metric"!
:::::* Gathered the ink!

::::::'''11th-21th Panes: Google Maps Branch''' 
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
::::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Uplift!"
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
::::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Cute Face!"
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
::::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Faceless"!
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
::::::Narrator: Where's Twitch when I need help?
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
::::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Abandonment"!
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...

::::::'''11th-15th Panes: Discrete Metric Branch''' 
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
::::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Extrude"!
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
::::::Narrator: ...
::::::Pikachu: Um...
::::::Pikachu:
::::::* Now I only have Struggle left. Tie?
::::::* We are the knights who say Ni!
::::::* What is even going on here?

:::::::'''16th Pane: Struggle Branch''' 
:::::::Pikachu: No fair!

::::::'''11th-13th Panes: Gathered Ink Branch''' 
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...
::::::Narrator: Enemy Pikachu used "Granite"!
::::::Narrator: It's not very effective...

:::::'''7th-10th Panes: Balrog Branch''' 
:::::Hat Guy:
:::::* One does not simple "give" a balrog.
:::::* What? You weren't using it!
:::::* Gift-wrapping's the hardest part.

:::::'''7th Pane: Anagram Branch''' 
:::::[Hat Guy and Dave pass by a tree.]
:::::Dave: Not idly do the leaves of Lorien fall.

:::'''4th-12th Panes: Bobcat Branch''' 
:::[A giant hole appears and they fall into it.]
:::Hat Guy and Dave: Aaaaa...
:::[Hat Guy wakes up.]
:::Hat Guy: Gasp [Goes to his desk.]
:::Hat Guy: Yawn [Sits at his desk.]
:::Hat Guy:
:::* Might as well clear more tiles.
:::* Definitely not going outside today.
:::* Thank God it wasn't a bobcat.
:::* Hmmm... I should buy a shovel.

::::'''13th Pane: Clear More Tiles Branch''' 
::::[Dave visits Hat Guy again.]
::::Dave:
::::* Um, there's a hole in your lawn...
::::* There's someone at the door looking for you.
::::* I made an apple pie.
::::* If you want to do that, I'm rebuilding my bathroom this afternoon.

:::::'''14th Pane: Hole in the Lawn Branch''' 
:::::Hat Guy:
:::::* If it doesn't lead to a 1024 tile, I'm leaving.
:::::* Damn bobcats.
:::::* I just had a dream about that.

::::::'''15th-16th Panes: Damn Bobcats Branch''' 
::::::Dave:
::::::* Well it was here...
::::::* I don't think it was bobcats this time. Unless they have backshoes...

::::::'''15th-22th Panes: Dream Branch''' 
::::::[Hat Guy and Dave go outside again and fall in the hole again~.]
::::::Hat Guy and Dave: Aaaaa...
::::::[Hat Guy wakes up, leaves the bed and finds a boomerang.]
::::::Hat Guy:
::::::* It looks like is [sic] fell from space.
::::::* I hope this isn't just another one of those dreams that keeps coming back at you.
::::::* I hope this was not thrown by a bobcat.

:::::::'''23th-26th Panes: Space Branch''' 
:::::::[Hat Guy throwns the boomerang away and it hits something.]
:::::::Crash!
:::::::[Hat Guy runs away.]

:::::::'''23th-34th Panes: Coming Back Branch''' 
:::::::[Hat Guy throws the boomerang twice, only for it to return to him both times.]
:::::::Hat Guy: Hm. I was expecting a shark.
:::::::[Hat Guy throwns the boomerang again, and it returns to him again.]

:::::::'''23th-30th Panes: Thrown by Bobcat Branch''' 
:::::::[Hat Guy throws the boomerang, only for it to return to him .]
:::::::Hat Guy: There's a mesage written on it.
:::::::[Hat Guy throws the boomerang again. It hits something.]
:::::::Crash!
:::::::[Hat Guy runs away.]

::::'''13th Pane: Thank God Branch''' 
::::Dave:
::::* You just got a package. It's by the door.
::::* Why is there a bobcat on your lawn?
::::* There's somewhere [sic] weird out on the lawn.
::::* Hey do you know why there's a giant hole in the yard?

::::'''14th Pane: Something Weird Branch''' 
::::Hat Guy:
::::* This seems familiar.
::::* Hold up. I need to get my wingsuit first.
::::* I hope it's not a giant hole.
::::* I have a bad feeling about this.

::::'''15th-18th Pane: Familiar Branch''' 
::::[Hat Guy and Dave go outside.]
::::Hat Guy: I hope it's not a velociraptor.

::::'''15th-18th Pane: Hope Branch''' 
::::[Hat Guy and Dave go outside. They pass by a tree.]
::::Dave: How disappointed are you?
::::Hat Guy:
::::* I was expecting a bobcat.
::::* Oh? That's the other tree.
::::* Eh, not that much.

::::'''14th-16th Panes: Do You Know Why Branch''' 
::::[Hat Guy and Dave go outside.]
::::Hat Guy: I swear if it's a bobcat.
::::Hat Guy:
::::* Why did you bring me here?
::::* This dream has been looping for years, and yet we never tire of it. Why is that?

:::::'''17th Pane: Dream Loop Branch''' 
:::::[There is a gap in the ground. Hat Guy jumps over it, Dave looks into it.]

::::'''13th-14th Panes: Buy Shovel Branch''' 
::::[Hat Guy looks at his screen wondering.]
::::Hat Guy:
::::* Wow! Shovels sure are expensive!
::::* Shovels can't be actually made out of two sticks and a row of rocks?
::::* How can there be 36 types of shovel??!
::::* These prices are insane! I wonder if you can rent a shovel...

:::::'''15th-18th Panes: Sticks and Rocks Branch''' 
:::::[Hat Guy is wondering more. Dave comes. They connect their laptops. Dave is wondering. Hat Guy tries something at Dave's laptop.]

:::'''4th-5th Panes: Squirrel Laser Branch''' 
:::[Hat Guy and Dave go outside.]
:::Hat Guy:
:::* Let's just say we won't have to worry about parking.
:::* No, now they're just wearing wigs ironically.
:::* Things may have gotten out of control a little.
:::* At least it improved their haircuts.

::'''3rd Pane: Bathroom Tiles Branch''' 
::Hat Guy:
::* But how many bathrooms?
::* That's 2^5 more than Ikea, I need to see for myself.
::* Let's go, I can keep playing on my phone on the drive.
::* Pfft. Amateurs. Let's go mock them.

::'''3rd Pane: Dinosaur Branch''' 
::T-Rex:
::* Self-doubt crippled my arms. Can I have yours?
::* I need a hand!
::* Did you think he was joking?
::* Sorry for just barging in, I couldn't reach the doorbell.

:::'''4th Pane: Crippled Arms Branch''' 
:::T-Rex:
:::* Never answer your mobile phone while I am addressing you!
:::* Also, have you heard about Tumblr?
:::* Also I have some trenchant observations on language and philosophy to make.
:::* It's not like you're using them.

::::'''5th Pane: Mobile Phone Branch''' 
::::[T-Rex is going to step on a house.]
::::T-Rex:
::::* I think you just entered a dead zone.
::::* Kids these days.
::::* Die you monster.

:::::'''6th Pane: Dead Zone Branch''' 
:::::[Hat Guy is inside the house. He wakes up from a dream, goes outside and finds a boomerang.]

:::::'''6th Pane: Kids These Days Branch''' 
:::::[Hat Guy is inside the house. He wakes up from a dream, and goes back to his computer.]

:::::'''6th Pane: Die You Monster Branch''' 
:::::[Dave is inside the house. He wakes up from a dream, and starts singing.]
:::::Dave: [Singing] ''I woke up like this.''

::::'''5th-11th Panes: Language and Philosophy Branch''' 
::::[T-Rex is going to step on a house.]
::::* T-Rex: Also, your brain is like this house.
:::: [Hat Guy is inside the house. He wakes up from a dream and goes back to his computer.]

:'''2nd Pane: Stupid Tiles Branch''' ([http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:ffdd8916-b9a7-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd]) 
:[Dave visits Hat Guy.]
:Dave:
:* What's with those tiny games you keep playing, anyway?
:* Isn't that sort of meaningless?
:* Up for a dangerous experiment with no pay?
:* You won't believe what just fell off of your roof.

:'''2nd-3rd Panes: Political Thing Branch''' 
:Laptop: "...and let's go live to the debate."
:[Two politicians are debating on TV.]
:Politician 1:
:* In contrast to my oppponent, who I quote, "Never liked Firefly much to begin with."
:* ...but even if you tied enough birds to the car, would you get them to take off in unison?
:* And if elected, I vow to win this war on Christmas once and for all!
:* I agree with my opponent all all [sic] issues and I think his economic plan is fantastic!

::'''4th Pane: Tied Birds Branch''' 
::Politician 2:
::* Tie a predatory bird to the car with a somewhat shorter rope so that it will scare off the rest of the birds without being able to reach them.
::* Training. That's why I support the "Airlift Act", which would put more resources into the hands of bird educators everywhere.
::* By opening and closing an umbrella near them.
::* One word: Fiscal hawks.

:::'''5th Pane: Airlift Act Branch''' 
:::Politician 1:
:::* But is "Airlift" an acronym?
:::* But you must agree that a bitd in the hand is worth more than three educators in the bush.
:::* Incredible!
:::* Wait... Is that like people who educate birds, or birds that teach?

::::'''6th Pane: Airlift an Acronym''' 
::::Dave:
::::* There are birds outside tied to a car.
::::* The owls in our barn are forming a union.
::::* Or course: Avian Implemented Reuseable Lifter and Ingenuous Flight Technology!

:::::'''7th Pane: Car Branch''' 
:::::Hat Guy:
:::::* Cool, let's see who we should vote for.
:::::* I know who I'm voting for.
:::::* How many birds?

:::::'''8th-9th Panes: How Many Branch''' 
:::::Dave:
:::::* I call her "Serenity."
:::::* So when you said birds...

:::::'''10th-13th Panes: You Said Birds Branch''' 
:::::Hat Guy:
:::::* Wait. The birds are inside!?
:::::* I needed to escape from politics anyway.

:::::'''14th-19th Panes: Birds Inside Branch''' 
:::::White Hat: Want to forget your dreams? There's a pill for that!

:'''2nd-3rd Panes: BSD Branch''' 
:[Hat Guy is confused, staring at his laptop.]
:Hat Guy: ??
:Hat Guy:
:* Now I just need to look up what a "beard error" is...
:* Wait. What's on this other partition?
:* Why is Python importing Skynet?
:* My keyboard has to support SSH over USB?

::'''4th-7th Panes: Beard Error Branch''' 
::[Hat Guy has ?? next to his head to signify confusion. [[Dave]] walks in. (continue) Dave is on the other side of the desk with his own laptop computer. Both the computers are connected through Ethernet cable. The two characters are typing on the computer. The two stop typing. Dave has ??? next to his head. Dave had stepped back while the character is checking on Dave's laptop computer. The character is holding something rectangular.]
::Dave:
::* The USB cable appears to be mono-directional.
::* Kernel mites?
::* I'm not sure rubbing butter on it will help
::* Yep. It's haunted.

:::'''8th-12th Panes: Rubbing Butter Branch''' 
:::[Dave and Hat Guy are handling their computers more aggressively.]
:::Hat Guy: ARGH!
:::[They both stop. Hat Guy walks away, his chair turned 180 degrees. Pushing aside the chair, the character returns with a fiery blowtorch while wearing goggles.]
:::Dave: [holding up a finger] Um.
:::[Hat Guy's computer was so burned, not only steam is coming out of the computer, but even the desk is noticeably burnt. The cable (apparently also burned) hangs from Dave's laptop computer. The used blowtorch is clumsily laid sideways be the side of the desk. Both Hat Guy (whose goggles are pushed off his eye) and Dave are looking at the calamity. The chair is almost out of view. The goggles are on the floor while the chair is nowhere to be seen. Dave and Hat Guy are walking away from the scene.]
:::Dave:
:::* Are you all of a sudden in the mood for Thai food?
:::* Let's try OpenBSD next time...
:::* If you'd done the other one, maybe the popcorn would have popped.
:::* Let's see if rubbing some bacon on it will work.
:::* Let's try Linux next time...

::::'''13th-14th Panes: OpenBSD Branch''' 
::::[13th panel is of a panned view. Dave and Hat Guy are walking on a path away from a house.]
::::[14th panel is back to a "normal camera view".]
::::Dave:
::::* Okay then.
::::* Let's go exploring!
::::* I love Windows.
::::* Guess not.

::'''4th-7th Panes: Other Partition Branch''' 
::[Hat Guy has ??? next to his head to signify confusion. [[Dave]] walks in. Dave is on the other side of the desk with his own laptop computer. Both the computers are connected through Ethernet cable. The two characters are typing on the computer. The two stop typing. Dave has ??? next to his head. Dave had stepped back while Hat Guy is checking on Dave's laptop computer. Hat Guy is holding something rectangular.]
::Dave:
::* Maybe if you cross connect the serial port to video port you'll be able to send the video directly in as an input for the password
::* What's a segfault?
::* I think the cameras need to face each other.
::* I'm not sure spaghetti works as a USB cable...

::'''8th Pane: Video Password Branch''' 
::[Hat Guy and Dave are at sea, both emitting ripples. A shark's fin can be seen close to Dave.]
::Dave:
::* It worked fine for the shark
::* We're definitely getting closer though
::* That didn't work!
::* It would have worked for Solaris.
::* Look, it made perfect sense at the time.
::* Still simpler than it used to be, I guess.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Dynamic comics]]
[[Category:April fool's comics]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Hairy]]
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Bobcats]]
[[Category:Computers]]
[[Category:Dinosaurs]]
[[Category:Dreams]]
[[Category:Firefly]]
[[Category:Google Maps]]
[[Category:Linux]]
[[Category:LOTR]]
[[Category:Pokémon]]
[[Category:Politics]]
[[Category:Video games]]
[[Category:Star Wars]]

Talk:956: Sharing

2014-03-04T03:28:06Z

Robotech:

- What can we learn from this? -
I've learned that DRM does not work (Thank you Mr. XKCD for reminding us). As with Creative Commons used by Mr. XKCD each idea should be shared as freely as possible, if it is thought out well and proves helpful to others, we will reward the author of such a great idea with riches beyond their wildest dreams (such as through Movie and Marketing rights owned by madam J.K. Rowling to got our children to read again). - [[User:E-inspired|E-inspired]] ([[User talk:E-inspired|talk]]) 13:55, 28 February 2013 (UTC)

What is it about the digital medium that makes people feel that the hard work of others should be available to them for free? We all agree that it is wrong to steal a (physical) book from a bookstore. However, now that the tablet has been invented, authors should give away their hard work for free and write on a volunteer basis as a public service? Certainly there are problems to be resolved when Apple and Amazon are profiting disproportionately from digital sales (as compared to authors and artists), however exploitation of artists by publishers is not a new phenomenon and was never an issue for the hacker set until entertainment went digital and they had access to free stuff. There are those on-line who think that the internet should offer-up everything for free but this attitude forgets that there is a cost to creating art and if that price is not paid, far fewer art will be created.. JB. [[Special:Contributions/74.213.186.41|74.213.186.41]] 12:21, 28 March 2013 (UTC)

To JB.: I think the real problem here is not the question weather or not you have to pay something in the first place, but the fact that even if you bought an e-book you are forced to read it with the Kindle. It's not like stealing a book, it's like wanting to put it on another bookshelf, read it in another room or with a new set of glasses. If you own a printed copy you can carry it around, take it on vacation, copy your favorite page and hang it on the wall, resell it at a garage sale or yes, lend it to a friend. Here the tree is prevented from doing so by DRM, even though it owns the book. (note that it says "lending is not enabled" not "copying")
Like in comic #488 which is about the disadvantages of legally buying digital music, it shows that often with these kind of digital media you have not the same possibilities and rights you are used to from "real" books and CDs, but actually less.
[[Special:Contributions/84.137.246.233|84.137.246.233]] 13:27, 6 April 2013 (UTC)

A question: Who is Randall referring to by naming "Mike" in the fifth panel? I thought it alluded to Mike the sentient super computer from Robert Heinlein's ''The Moon is a Harsh Mistress'', but I'm curious as to other interpretations. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.214.83|108.162.214.83]] 09:26, 22 November 2013 (UTC)
:I'm assuming it is some kid they know called 'Mike', but perhaps my powers of deduction aren't as fearsome as I think. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.223|108.162.219.223]] 23:17, 9 January 2014 (UTC)

A tree with a USB port? Maybe we should mention [http://deaddrops.com/ dead drops] somewhere? Wow, and I just found this: [http://deadtreedrop.derhess.de/index_en.html Dead Tree Drop], I don't know if it's inspired by xkcd, but it's an awesome idea :D [[User:Klamann|Klamann]] ([[User talk:Klamann|talk]]) 12:42, 9 February 2014 (UTC)

I can see what the strip is trying to do, but [http://www.teleread.com/drm/xkcd-giving-tree-strip-misses-drm-point/ the comparison to the original book really kind of misses the point]. The tree in Silverstein's book gave ''of itself'' to the kid. Unless the tree is also Shel Silverstein, that book doesn't belong to it to give ''or'' lend. (And what's more, the book was not even ''available'' for Kindle until Feb 18, 2014, two and a half years after the strip was posted!) —[[User:Robotech|Robotech]] ([[User talk:Robotech|talk]]) 03:27, 4 March 2014 (UTC)

Talk:956: Sharing

2014-03-04T03:27:37Z

Robotech: Missing the point.

- What can we learn from this? -
I've learned that DRM does not work (Thank you Mr. XKCD for reminding us). As with Creative Commons used by Mr. XKCD each idea should be shared as freely as possible, if it is thought out well and proves helpful to others, we will reward the author of such a great idea with riches beyond their wildest dreams (such as through Movie and Marketing rights owned by madam J.K. Rowling to got our children to read again). - [[User:E-inspired|E-inspired]] ([[User talk:E-inspired|talk]]) 13:55, 28 February 2013 (UTC)

What is it about the digital medium that makes people feel that the hard work of others should be available to them for free? We all agree that it is wrong to steal a (physical) book from a bookstore. However, now that the tablet has been invented, authors should give away their hard work for free and write on a volunteer basis as a public service? Certainly there are problems to be resolved when Apple and Amazon are profiting disproportionately from digital sales (as compared to authors and artists), however exploitation of artists by publishers is not a new phenomenon and was never an issue for the hacker set until entertainment went digital and they had access to free stuff. There are those on-line who think that the internet should offer-up everything for free but this attitude forgets that there is a cost to creating art and if that price is not paid, far fewer art will be created.. JB. [[Special:Contributions/74.213.186.41|74.213.186.41]] 12:21, 28 March 2013 (UTC)

To JB.: I think the real problem here is not the question weather or not you have to pay something in the first place, but the fact that even if you bought an e-book you are forced to read it with the Kindle. It's not like stealing a book, it's like wanting to put it on another bookshelf, read it in another room or with a new set of glasses. If you own a printed copy you can carry it around, take it on vacation, copy your favorite page and hang it on the wall, resell it at a garage sale or yes, lend it to a friend. Here the tree is prevented from doing so by DRM, even though it owns the book. (note that it says "lending is not enabled" not "copying")
Like in comic #488 which is about the disadvantages of legally buying digital music, it shows that often with these kind of digital media you have not the same possibilities and rights you are used to from "real" books and CDs, but actually less.
[[Special:Contributions/84.137.246.233|84.137.246.233]] 13:27, 6 April 2013 (UTC)

A question: Who is Randall referring to by naming "Mike" in the fifth panel? I thought it alluded to Mike the sentient super computer from Robert Heinlein's ''The Moon is a Harsh Mistress'', but I'm curious as to other interpretations. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.214.83|108.162.214.83]] 09:26, 22 November 2013 (UTC)
:I'm assuming it is some kid they know called 'Mike', but perhaps my powers of deduction aren't as fearsome as I think. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.223|108.162.219.223]] 23:17, 9 January 2014 (UTC)

A tree with a USB port? Maybe we should mention [http://deaddrops.com/ dead drops] somewhere? Wow, and I just found this: [http://deadtreedrop.derhess.de/index_en.html Dead Tree Drop], I don't know if it's inspired by xkcd, but it's an awesome idea :D [[User:Klamann|Klamann]] ([[User talk:Klamann|talk]]) 12:42, 9 February 2014 (UTC)

I can see what the strip is trying to do, but [[http://www.teleread.com/drm/xkcd-giving-tree-strip-misses-drm-point/ the comparison to the original book really kind of misses the point]]. The tree in Silverstein's book gave ''of itself'' to the kid. Unless the tree is also Shel Silverstein, that book doesn't belong to it to give ''or'' lend. (And what's more, the book was not even ''available'' for Kindle until Feb 18, 2014, two and a half years after the strip was posted!) —[[User:Robotech|Robotech]] ([[User talk:Robotech|talk]]) 03:27, 4 March 2014 (UTC)

1308: Christmas Lights

2013-12-26T05:25:57Z

Robotech: /* Explanation */ Fireplace

{{comic
| number = 1308
| date = December 25, 2013
| title = Christmas Lights
| image = christmas_lights.png
| titletext = Merry Christmas from xkcd!
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Check grammar, check spectra and reference good fits to what is here}}
Each light in this Christmas scene is represented by its {{w|electromagnetic spectrum}}, which shows in a graphical form how much energy is radiated by each wavelength of light.

These graphs cover only the visible radiation plus some infrared and some ultraviolet. There are 4 distinct spectra in this comic:

In the center of the image, between Beret Guy and the couple Cueball and Megan appears a light spectrum of a fire, notable because it emits a lot of energy in the infrared band (The left zone of the spectrum), emitted typically from hot sources, and in the red and orange zone (typical colors of a fire). The spike toward the left hand side of the spectrum is probably the 4.3 µm resonance frequency of hot CO2 characteristic of burning hydrocarbons (see [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flame_detection#Emission_of_radiation here)]. Given the size of the spectrum and its positioning, this represents a fireplace at which the characters are warming themselves against the winter chill.

In the right of the comic appear some spectra arranged in the form of a Christmas tree. There are 3 different spectra in this "Christmas tree":

At the top appears a complex spectrum, possibly that of a white LED (see [http://led-brdf.wikispaces.com/Introduction+to+LEDs here]), representing the tradition in some cultures of putting a star at the top of the Christmas tree.

In the branches there are two simpler spectra, one with a peak in the green zone, representing a green light source, and other with a peak in the red zone, representing a red light source. Both of these represent the tradition of putting colorful decoration in the tree, in this case apparently red and green colored Christmas lights.

==Transcript==
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{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]