explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:3208: SNEWS

2026-03-01T19:09:01Z

Velocifyer:

The title text SNEWS is a reference to {{w|SuperNova_Early_Warning_System}}. {{unsigned ip|2a09:bac2:3656:ebe::178:123}} 21:58, 16 February 2026 (UTC)
: No, you're wrong. It stands for Southeast, North East West South, since those are the directions where it can detect them. - [[Special:Contributions/45.178.1.151|45.178.1.151]] 01:41, 17 February 2026 (UTC)

F1RST! also i posted this when there was no explanation. please fix this {{unsigned ip|2605:59c8:22e3:3e14:95a1:c5da:4c49:c384|22:55, 16 February 2026 (UTC)}}

Is this my mediocre non-native English, or should the title text read "setting off fireworks indoors"? (Trivia?) --[[Special:Contributions/2001:A62:5F7:FB01:538E:3F07:C9F0:F0C0|2001:A62:5F7:FB01:538E:3F07:C9F0:F0C0]] 23:06, 16 February 2026 (UTC)
:Yeah, 'setting of fireworks indoors, ...' would mean setting them up (i.e., placing them) and not 'setting off', lighting or detonating the fireworks. [[User:Sameldacamel34|Sameldacamel34]] ([[User talk:Sameldacamel34|talk]]) 23:22, 16 February 2026 (UTC)
:You can talk of setting explosives (the setting of them, as passively ready, to make them ready for later "setting them off"), so I expect the "setting of fireworks" is pretty much the same thing, much as with the setting of an alarm clock.
:Though also sounds like a possible americanism, like "lit it on fire" (c.f. my own prefered "set light to it"), if only because the former seem tautilogical; and/or strangely long-winded, such as with "to burglarize" vs. just "to burgle" (both being what a burglar does upon his burglary). But it's not one of those many funny transatlantic dialect things I've noticed previously, so I could be overexplaining what actually ''is'' merely a typo. [[Special:Contributions/82.132.239.3|82.132.239.3]] 01:33, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
::I could see it as a missing word "setting off of fireworks indoors" seems OK in American to me, though then I'd want a the: "The setting off of fireworks indoors"[[User:Lordpishky|Lord Pishky]] ([[User talk:Lordpishky|talk]]) 05:57, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
::A burglar does not burgle any more than a mother moths or water wats. "Burglar" existed before the verb "to burgle" was mistakenly back-formed by those who thought that the "-ar" ending necessarily indicated that it was an agent noun. A burglar needs a word to describe what they do, so burglarize makes reasonable sense. It could simply be "to burglar", like "to father". We don't say that anyone "fatherizes" a child, but it would make more sense than saying someone "faths" a child. Burglarize is more valid than burgle. [[User:Yorkshire Pudding|Yorkshire Pudding]] ([[User talk:Yorkshire Pudding|talk]]) 22:48, 18 February 2026 (UTC)

It snew [[User:Yaokuan ITB|Yaokuan ITB]] ([[User talk:Yaokuan ITB|talk]]) 23:28, 16 February 2026 (UTC)
:Exactly my thoughts, Yaokuan [[Special:Contributions/216.25.182.141|216.25.182.141]] 23:58, 16 February 2026 (UTC)
:Gesundheit! [[User:Logalex8369|Logalex8369]] ([[User talk:Logalex8369|talk]]) 01:35, 17 February 2026 (UTC)

Sorry, it somehow escaped me when editing the explanation that neutrinos have mass!! (even though we've known about this for decades). Does this mean that if the supernova is far away enough, the photons will arrive before the neutrinos? Or is that threshold too far to matter? [[User:Sameldacamel34|Sameldacamel34]] ([[User talk:Sameldacamel34|talk]]) 01:21, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
: Yes, but the threshold is too far away to have happened yet. Supernova neutrinos have [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supernova_neutrinos 10^10 to 10^20 MeV]. Judging by the table at the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Measurements_of_neutrino_speed Overview on neutrino speed], assuming we are about right about the mass of a neutrino, neutrinos that energetic would be traveling within a factor of 10-42 of ''c'', so they would need to have traveled for "a few"×1042 light hours, or a few 1038 years for the photons to catch up. Since the universe is less than 1.4×1010 years old, it'll be another few 1038 years until that happens. [[User:DoSnews|DoSnews]] ([[User talk:DoSnews|talk]]) 03:46, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
::Ah, interesting. And at that distance, the supernova would have to be unimaginably big to even notice/detect? Also, wouldn't it have to be far away enough that it would have traveled for so long the light gets redshifted into oblivion? [[User:Sameldacamel34|Sameldacamel34]] ([[User talk:Sameldacamel34|talk]]) 04:17, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
:::Since SN neutrino detections are tens of neutrinos an increase of even a few times the distances currently detected would render the neutrino pulse undetectable. And the optical event is stretched by time for the photons to migrate to the surface as well as glow from material heated by the explosion and decay heat from ejected material. If we consider only those photons from the explosion "lucky" enough to manage not to hit anything on the way out of the star/remnant they should arrive first by an undetectable time. Also, the explosion itself once triggered has to propagate across millions of miles of the stellar core so the explosion event is at least several seconds long.[[User:Lordpishky|Lord Pishky]] ([[User talk:Lordpishky|talk]]) 05:47, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
::Not 1010–1020, but 10–20. [[Special:Contributions/84.2.109.134|84.2.109.134]] 06:30, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
my first edit in almost 5 months i think lol [[User:Psychoticpotato|P?sych??otic?pot??at???o ]] ([[User talk:Psychoticpotato|talk]]) 01:45, 17 February 2026 (UTC)

One of the firework launchers on the device is aimed directly at the bed. [[User:Xkdvd|Xkdvd]] ([[User talk:Xkdvd|talk]]) 03:06, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
:Is it? Hard to tell in a 2d drawing... --[[User:Lupo|Lupo]] ([[User talk:Lupo|talk]]) 07:11, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
::By that logic, its also hard to tell if hairy is pointing at the device or not. [[User:Xkdvd|Xkdvd]] ([[User talk:Xkdvd|talk]]) 23:20, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
::: It's hard to tell if it even ''is'' Hairy, and not a cardboard cutout Ponytail happens to keep around the place. [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33|82.13.184.33]] 09:41, 18 February 2026 (UTC)

"Ponytail is showing Hairy her bedroom." is the most hilariously euphemistic explanation of what's going on. [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33|82.13.184.33]] 09:24, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
:What is actually going on?[[Special:Contributions/2603:7000:6100:F725:5D4:A938:8CD0:F809|2603:7000:6100:F725:5D4:A938:8CD0:F809]] 19:05, 18 February 2026 (UTC)
::Probably nothing, given the distant possibility of random fireworks from the ceiling possibly spoiling the intended result of random fireworks from under the bedcovers. [[Special:Contributions/81.179.199.253|81.179.199.253]] 20:19, 18 February 2026 (UTC)

Contrary to the current explanation, a foe is *exactly* equal to 10^44 joules, by definition. 1 erg is 10^-7 J and 1 foe is 10^51 erg. Also, I feel there is a [Citation required] somewhere in the section about the dangers of indoor fireworks. (Not happy about having to run Google's Javascript and helping train their image recognition algorithms on unfamiliar foreign street scenes in order to post here.) [[Special:Contributions/78.33.10.10|78.33.10.10]] 11:22, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
:I took it as being that while a foe is exactly that many joules (being a cm/g/s system derivative, not a m/kg/s one), neither a foe nor the equivalent value in joules are exactly the size of that which we might call a 'foe event', for which it was coined. But might have needed rewriting, as with the whole page (loads of little paragraphs and additions to paragaphs, now, at least needs more sensible reordering/grouping of facts and conjectures). [[Special:Contributions/82.132.239.216|82.132.239.216]] 11:58, 17 February 2026 (UTC)

I'll take the slightly disturbing take that Ponytail would rather die than miss a supernova, hence the fireworks [[User:SevenTheGamingKitty|SevenTheGamingKitty]] ([[User talk:SevenTheGamingKitty|talk]]) 19:46, 17 February 2026 (UTC)

The combustion number for sucrose is wrong. Heat of combustion is 1350kCal/mole, mass per mole is 342g, so you'd need about 2.5kg of sugar, not 0.6 grams. [[User:Dkfenger|Dkfenger]] ([[User talk:Dkfenger|talk]]) 21:11, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
:Also wrong. 10 kJ divided by 5400kJ/kg ("explosion enthalpy" of nitrocellulose) or 5640 kJ/kg (combustion of sucrose) are both a little under 2 grams. The numbers are pretty close because trinitrocelulose leaves behind 3 equivalents of carbon monoxide on decomposition/explosion. CO has a small formation enthalpy of just -120kJ/mol, CO2 close to -400 kJ/mol. This more than makes up for the explosiveness, so to say. --[[Special:Contributions/2001:16B8:CC24:6500:8006:4640:EF9:BBDD|2001:16B8:CC24:6500:8006:4640:EF9:BBDD]] 00:07, 19 February 2026 (UTC)
::No. Sucrose is 342.30 g/mol; std enthalpy of combustion 5,647 kJ/mol per https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sucrose. 10 kJ * 342.3 g/mol * 1 mol/5647 kJ = 0.6 g. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/07370652.2023.2175393 shows decomposition energy of nitrocellulose ranging from 1.1 kJ/g to 1.9 kJ/g . 10 kJ * 1 g / 1.1 kJ = 9.1 g. 10 kJ * 1 g / 1.9 kJ = 5.3 g. I see that https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cellulosenitrat#Physikalische_Eigenschaften gives the nitrocellulose decomposition energy as 5400kJ/kg but I trust a paper published in Journal of Energetic Materials more than I trust what's in W'pedia. [[User:BunsenH|BunsenH]] ([[User talk:BunsenH|talk]]) 00:43, 20 February 2026 (UTC)
::Also, I'm dubious about the assertion that "A single firework rocket contains about 10 g of gunpowder". There's a ''wide'' range between small "consumer" fireworks and the largest rockets available (which consumers ''shouldn't'' have access to, but that shouldn't be assumed for XKCD personnel). [[User:BunsenH|BunsenH]] ([[User talk:BunsenH|talk]]) 00:53, 20 February 2026 (UTC)

I'm half tempted to mention that it ''might'' not be advantageous to go outside and watch a supernova flare up. It ''shouldn't'' be a problem, as none of the likely candidates are anywhere near close enough to us, but I'm thinking of the story setup for The Day Of Triffids... "Hey, everyone, look up there, where there'll suddenly be a bright light!" ''could'' end up to be not ideal. ;) [[Special:Contributions/81.179.199.253|81.179.199.253]] 21:55, 17 February 2026 (UTC)

Since a supernova, or pretty much any other astronomical phenomenon, will not be seen on Earth until several light-years after it has happened, wouldn't it be correct to remind Ponytail that she HAS already slept through it, and what she and the others are actually seeing is a sort of taoe-delayed broadcast of the event? [[Special:Contributions/96.61.125.76|96.61.125.76]] 17:32, 19 February 2026 (UTC)
:"Light-years" is a distance, not an elapsed time (unless you're in some sort {{w|Inverted World|strange sci-f scenario}}), just like {{w|Millennium Falcon#Kessel Run|parsecs}}. And it's even arguable about whether it's even an {{w|Time dilation|elapsed time}} for the light (or anything else) that went across that distance, with it ever happening 'now' being a {{w|Relativity of simultaneity|troublesome concept}} anyway. [[Special:Contributions/81.179.199.253|81.179.199.253]] 19:55, 19 February 2026 (UTC)

:This has been discussed countless times, and no, it is customary to NOT speak about something that happens elsewhere in the past tense until light could have travelled the distance. Locality etc. Time's an illusion, lunchtime doublish so. --[[Special:Contributions/2001:16B8:CC31:8A00:4965:59FD:4204:21D7|2001:16B8:CC31:8A00:4965:59FD:4204:21D7]] 23:57, 19 February 2026 (UTC)

I wonder why not a single German-speaking reader of XKCD has shown up here yet to point y'all at:
* https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ich_mu%C3%9F_immer_das_letzte_Wort_haben
* https://webarchive.ars.electronica.art/de/archiv_files/19911/1991_221.pdf
[[Special:Contributions/84.57.184.66|84.57.184.66]] 16:07, 22 February 2026 (UTC)

== Why is some text in qoutation marks? ==

I noticed that in the article “showing Hairy her bedroom'” has quotation marks — Why is that?

Talk:3208: SNEWS

2026-03-01T19:08:32Z

Velocifyer: /* Why is some text in qoutation marks. */ new section

The title text SNEWS is a reference to {{w|SuperNova_Early_Warning_System}}. {{unsigned ip|2a09:bac2:3656:ebe::178:123}} 21:58, 16 February 2026 (UTC)
: No, you're wrong. It stands for Southeast, North East West South, since those are the directions where it can detect them. - [[Special:Contributions/45.178.1.151|45.178.1.151]] 01:41, 17 February 2026 (UTC)

F1RST! also i posted this when there was no explanation. please fix this {{unsigned ip|2605:59c8:22e3:3e14:95a1:c5da:4c49:c384|22:55, 16 February 2026 (UTC)}}

Is this my mediocre non-native English, or should the title text read "setting off fireworks indoors"? (Trivia?) --[[Special:Contributions/2001:A62:5F7:FB01:538E:3F07:C9F0:F0C0|2001:A62:5F7:FB01:538E:3F07:C9F0:F0C0]] 23:06, 16 February 2026 (UTC)
:Yeah, 'setting of fireworks indoors, ...' would mean setting them up (i.e., placing them) and not 'setting off', lighting or detonating the fireworks. [[User:Sameldacamel34|Sameldacamel34]] ([[User talk:Sameldacamel34|talk]]) 23:22, 16 February 2026 (UTC)
:You can talk of setting explosives (the setting of them, as passively ready, to make them ready for later "setting them off"), so I expect the "setting of fireworks" is pretty much the same thing, much as with the setting of an alarm clock.
:Though also sounds like a possible americanism, like "lit it on fire" (c.f. my own prefered "set light to it"), if only because the former seem tautilogical; and/or strangely long-winded, such as with "to burglarize" vs. just "to burgle" (both being what a burglar does upon his burglary). But it's not one of those many funny transatlantic dialect things I've noticed previously, so I could be overexplaining what actually ''is'' merely a typo. [[Special:Contributions/82.132.239.3|82.132.239.3]] 01:33, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
::I could see it as a missing word "setting off of fireworks indoors" seems OK in American to me, though then I'd want a the: "The setting off of fireworks indoors"[[User:Lordpishky|Lord Pishky]] ([[User talk:Lordpishky|talk]]) 05:57, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
::A burglar does not burgle any more than a mother moths or water wats. "Burglar" existed before the verb "to burgle" was mistakenly back-formed by those who thought that the "-ar" ending necessarily indicated that it was an agent noun. A burglar needs a word to describe what they do, so burglarize makes reasonable sense. It could simply be "to burglar", like "to father". We don't say that anyone "fatherizes" a child, but it would make more sense than saying someone "faths" a child. Burglarize is more valid than burgle. [[User:Yorkshire Pudding|Yorkshire Pudding]] ([[User talk:Yorkshire Pudding|talk]]) 22:48, 18 February 2026 (UTC)

It snew [[User:Yaokuan ITB|Yaokuan ITB]] ([[User talk:Yaokuan ITB|talk]]) 23:28, 16 February 2026 (UTC)
:Exactly my thoughts, Yaokuan [[Special:Contributions/216.25.182.141|216.25.182.141]] 23:58, 16 February 2026 (UTC)
:Gesundheit! [[User:Logalex8369|Logalex8369]] ([[User talk:Logalex8369|talk]]) 01:35, 17 February 2026 (UTC)

Sorry, it somehow escaped me when editing the explanation that neutrinos have mass!! (even though we've known about this for decades). Does this mean that if the supernova is far away enough, the photons will arrive before the neutrinos? Or is that threshold too far to matter? [[User:Sameldacamel34|Sameldacamel34]] ([[User talk:Sameldacamel34|talk]]) 01:21, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
: Yes, but the threshold is too far away to have happened yet. Supernova neutrinos have [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supernova_neutrinos 10^10 to 10^20 MeV]. Judging by the table at the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Measurements_of_neutrino_speed Overview on neutrino speed], assuming we are about right about the mass of a neutrino, neutrinos that energetic would be traveling within a factor of 10-42 of ''c'', so they would need to have traveled for "a few"×1042 light hours, or a few 1038 years for the photons to catch up. Since the universe is less than 1.4×1010 years old, it'll be another few 1038 years until that happens. [[User:DoSnews|DoSnews]] ([[User talk:DoSnews|talk]]) 03:46, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
::Ah, interesting. And at that distance, the supernova would have to be unimaginably big to even notice/detect? Also, wouldn't it have to be far away enough that it would have traveled for so long the light gets redshifted into oblivion? [[User:Sameldacamel34|Sameldacamel34]] ([[User talk:Sameldacamel34|talk]]) 04:17, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
:::Since SN neutrino detections are tens of neutrinos an increase of even a few times the distances currently detected would render the neutrino pulse undetectable. And the optical event is stretched by time for the photons to migrate to the surface as well as glow from material heated by the explosion and decay heat from ejected material. If we consider only those photons from the explosion "lucky" enough to manage not to hit anything on the way out of the star/remnant they should arrive first by an undetectable time. Also, the explosion itself once triggered has to propagate across millions of miles of the stellar core so the explosion event is at least several seconds long.[[User:Lordpishky|Lord Pishky]] ([[User talk:Lordpishky|talk]]) 05:47, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
::Not 1010–1020, but 10–20. [[Special:Contributions/84.2.109.134|84.2.109.134]] 06:30, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
my first edit in almost 5 months i think lol [[User:Psychoticpotato|P?sych??otic?pot??at???o ]] ([[User talk:Psychoticpotato|talk]]) 01:45, 17 February 2026 (UTC)

One of the firework launchers on the device is aimed directly at the bed. [[User:Xkdvd|Xkdvd]] ([[User talk:Xkdvd|talk]]) 03:06, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
:Is it? Hard to tell in a 2d drawing... --[[User:Lupo|Lupo]] ([[User talk:Lupo|talk]]) 07:11, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
::By that logic, its also hard to tell if hairy is pointing at the device or not. [[User:Xkdvd|Xkdvd]] ([[User talk:Xkdvd|talk]]) 23:20, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
::: It's hard to tell if it even ''is'' Hairy, and not a cardboard cutout Ponytail happens to keep around the place. [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33|82.13.184.33]] 09:41, 18 February 2026 (UTC)

"Ponytail is showing Hairy her bedroom." is the most hilariously euphemistic explanation of what's going on. [[Special:Contributions/82.13.184.33|82.13.184.33]] 09:24, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
:What is actually going on?[[Special:Contributions/2603:7000:6100:F725:5D4:A938:8CD0:F809|2603:7000:6100:F725:5D4:A938:8CD0:F809]] 19:05, 18 February 2026 (UTC)
::Probably nothing, given the distant possibility of random fireworks from the ceiling possibly spoiling the intended result of random fireworks from under the bedcovers. [[Special:Contributions/81.179.199.253|81.179.199.253]] 20:19, 18 February 2026 (UTC)

Contrary to the current explanation, a foe is *exactly* equal to 10^44 joules, by definition. 1 erg is 10^-7 J and 1 foe is 10^51 erg. Also, I feel there is a [Citation required] somewhere in the section about the dangers of indoor fireworks. (Not happy about having to run Google's Javascript and helping train their image recognition algorithms on unfamiliar foreign street scenes in order to post here.) [[Special:Contributions/78.33.10.10|78.33.10.10]] 11:22, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
:I took it as being that while a foe is exactly that many joules (being a cm/g/s system derivative, not a m/kg/s one), neither a foe nor the equivalent value in joules are exactly the size of that which we might call a 'foe event', for which it was coined. But might have needed rewriting, as with the whole page (loads of little paragraphs and additions to paragaphs, now, at least needs more sensible reordering/grouping of facts and conjectures). [[Special:Contributions/82.132.239.216|82.132.239.216]] 11:58, 17 February 2026 (UTC)

I'll take the slightly disturbing take that Ponytail would rather die than miss a supernova, hence the fireworks [[User:SevenTheGamingKitty|SevenTheGamingKitty]] ([[User talk:SevenTheGamingKitty|talk]]) 19:46, 17 February 2026 (UTC)

The combustion number for sucrose is wrong. Heat of combustion is 1350kCal/mole, mass per mole is 342g, so you'd need about 2.5kg of sugar, not 0.6 grams. [[User:Dkfenger|Dkfenger]] ([[User talk:Dkfenger|talk]]) 21:11, 17 February 2026 (UTC)
:Also wrong. 10 kJ divided by 5400kJ/kg ("explosion enthalpy" of nitrocellulose) or 5640 kJ/kg (combustion of sucrose) are both a little under 2 grams. The numbers are pretty close because trinitrocelulose leaves behind 3 equivalents of carbon monoxide on decomposition/explosion. CO has a small formation enthalpy of just -120kJ/mol, CO2 close to -400 kJ/mol. This more than makes up for the explosiveness, so to say. --[[Special:Contributions/2001:16B8:CC24:6500:8006:4640:EF9:BBDD|2001:16B8:CC24:6500:8006:4640:EF9:BBDD]] 00:07, 19 February 2026 (UTC)
::No. Sucrose is 342.30 g/mol; std enthalpy of combustion 5,647 kJ/mol per https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sucrose. 10 kJ * 342.3 g/mol * 1 mol/5647 kJ = 0.6 g. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/07370652.2023.2175393 shows decomposition energy of nitrocellulose ranging from 1.1 kJ/g to 1.9 kJ/g . 10 kJ * 1 g / 1.1 kJ = 9.1 g. 10 kJ * 1 g / 1.9 kJ = 5.3 g. I see that https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cellulosenitrat#Physikalische_Eigenschaften gives the nitrocellulose decomposition energy as 5400kJ/kg but I trust a paper published in Journal of Energetic Materials more than I trust what's in W'pedia. [[User:BunsenH|BunsenH]] ([[User talk:BunsenH|talk]]) 00:43, 20 February 2026 (UTC)
::Also, I'm dubious about the assertion that "A single firework rocket contains about 10 g of gunpowder". There's a ''wide'' range between small "consumer" fireworks and the largest rockets available (which consumers ''shouldn't'' have access to, but that shouldn't be assumed for XKCD personnel). [[User:BunsenH|BunsenH]] ([[User talk:BunsenH|talk]]) 00:53, 20 February 2026 (UTC)

I'm half tempted to mention that it ''might'' not be advantageous to go outside and watch a supernova flare up. It ''shouldn't'' be a problem, as none of the likely candidates are anywhere near close enough to us, but I'm thinking of the story setup for The Day Of Triffids... "Hey, everyone, look up there, where there'll suddenly be a bright light!" ''could'' end up to be not ideal. ;) [[Special:Contributions/81.179.199.253|81.179.199.253]] 21:55, 17 February 2026 (UTC)

Since a supernova, or pretty much any other astronomical phenomenon, will not be seen on Earth until several light-years after it has happened, wouldn't it be correct to remind Ponytail that she HAS already slept through it, and what she and the others are actually seeing is a sort of taoe-delayed broadcast of the event? [[Special:Contributions/96.61.125.76|96.61.125.76]] 17:32, 19 February 2026 (UTC)
:"Light-years" is a distance, not an elapsed time (unless you're in some sort {{w|Inverted World|strange sci-f scenario}}), just like {{w|Millennium Falcon#Kessel Run|parsecs}}. And it's even arguable about whether it's even an {{w|Time dilation|elapsed time}} for the light (or anything else) that went across that distance, with it ever happening 'now' being a {{w|Relativity of simultaneity|troublesome concept}} anyway. [[Special:Contributions/81.179.199.253|81.179.199.253]] 19:55, 19 February 2026 (UTC)

:This has been discussed countless times, and no, it is customary to NOT speak about something that happens elsewhere in the past tense until light could have travelled the distance. Locality etc. Time's an illusion, lunchtime doublish so. --[[Special:Contributions/2001:16B8:CC31:8A00:4965:59FD:4204:21D7|2001:16B8:CC31:8A00:4965:59FD:4204:21D7]] 23:57, 19 February 2026 (UTC)

I wonder why not a single German-speaking reader of XKCD has shown up here yet to point y'all at:
* https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ich_mu%C3%9F_immer_das_letzte_Wort_haben
* https://webarchive.ars.electronica.art/de/archiv_files/19911/1991_221.pdf
[[Special:Contributions/84.57.184.66|84.57.184.66]] 16:07, 22 February 2026 (UTC)

== Why is some text in qoutation marks. ==

I noticed that in the article “showing Hairy her bedroom'” has quotation marks — Why is that?

Talk:3074: Push Notifications

2025-06-28T13:41:52Z

Velocifyer: /* Not working */ new section

__NOTOC__
So...this is the April Fool's comic, if I'm not mistaken... Oh ye of little faith! [[Special:Contributions/172.71.26.106|172.71.26.106]] 20:00, 9 April 2025 (UTC)

I turned this on thinking it would just be a few every so often but I quickly realized how this is xkcd and it doesn't "joke". I had to turn this off because it disrupted my schoolwork by popping up every fricking 5 minutes{{unsigned|Moss|20:22, 9 April 2025 (UTC)}}
: Personally, I'm disappointed by how long I have to wait between notifications. [[Special:Contributions/172.71.178.32|172.71.178.32]] 15:39, 10 April 2025 (UTC)

Apparently my employer (or ublock) is keeping me from experiencing the full effect of any notifications. All I get is "An *actual* error has occurred. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.91.173|162.158.91.173]] 20:52, 9 April 2025 (UTC)
:Yeah, I'm confused too. I've tried Chrome and got nothing. I've tried Edge and got effectively nothing. I progressed one message further, but nothing showed up. No notifications, popups, or whatever. And I have never installed an add-on for Edge. Edge did give me access to the game over screen by disabling notifications, but when I tried to re-enable them, nothing happened.
:Is this a mobile-only thing? [[User:EebstertheGreat|EebstertheGreat]] ([[User talk:EebstertheGreat|talk]]) 02:51, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
:I'm having the same issue. Firefox doesn't work, which I understand, but neither does Safari. I haven't gotten a single notification. [[User:Mushrooms|Mushrooms]] ([[User talk:Mushrooms|talk]]) 06:57, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
::Problem solved! Turns out I *was* getting notifications, I just wasn't seeing them. --[[User:Mushrooms|Mushrooms]] ([[User talk:Mushrooms|talk]]) 07:07, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
::: Where were you getting them? [[Special:Contributions/172.70.207.212|172.70.207.212]] 17:08, 20 April 2025 (UTC)

What the heck are the "Zoom Notification" ones, with just a pair of numbers? Now that I've been sitting with this for a little bit, they're by far the most common notifications, and the most mysterious. What is "zoom"ing or should be zoomed-in-on or whatever, and what do the two numbers signify? [[Special:Contributions/172.68.22.75|172.68.22.75]] 20:35, 9 April 2025 (UTC)
:I think they're coordinates. So far (x,y) has had x from 4 fo 73 (that I've seen) and y from 2 to 28. That gives a tad over 2000 possible combinations, but omething tells me there won't be more than 500 or so in total. Quite a few y=24 (not yet adjacent by x), and any given x has 0 to 3 different y partners (so far). They ''do'' repeat (I'm not recording how many times, but I'm scatterplotting what I get). The ones prefixed with "oh look!" are tightly clustered in x=6..13 and y=4..11, so far, with no non-"oh look!" ones there, so I'm plotting them in a different marker. I ''suspect'', after many many more Zoom Notifications, I'll be left with (enough of) a pixelated image's pixels (of two types, background colour excluded), or else I'm doing it wrong and I should be drawing lines between the dots, but I never managed to grab them all, so I'm relying on it being a random "spraygun droplets" sort of image-reveal. (Still some way to go...) [[Special:Contributions/172.71.241.66|172.71.241.66]] 23:08, 9 April 2025 (UTC)
: Also, Zoom is a video chat app, if you didn't know that. That's the joke. [[User:EebstertheGreat|EebstertheGreat]] ([[User talk:EebstertheGreat|talk]]) 02:53, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
:"They're by far the most common" - not for me - I got a couple early on, and nothing since. All I'm getting now (apart from cat ones when I click a cat) is constant 'comment and subscribe' ones.[[Special:Contributions/172.71.178.28|172.71.178.28]] 16:07, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
::Last night, right from the start (well, as soon as I got around to going through the process, after I started this Talk page off), Zoom stuff was ''the'' most common. The messages would change as I was documenting them, they were more frequent than the "you have clicked N times" ones. This morning, on reconnecting (exactly how much "Push" there is to the Push Notifications, I don't know, I suspect it's more long-polling in the end), I have had zero new Zoom messages, the "clicked N times" had promoted itself to "click Nth away, N+1th pops up immediately" most of the time, with Constants and Leave A Message On This Random Wikitalk and Old Comic Published essentially, tying for next most frequent, except for when the occasional Cat Facts splurge gets mixed in (all this without re-viewing the comic-page's tab).
::Anyway, my "spraygun coordinates" list hasn't been expanded all today. I was wondering if its frequency had been reduced, server-side, ''because'' it was turning out to be the most polled (and/or pushed) bit of information... And that happened while I was asleep anyway.
::Whilst writing this, I only actually got three alerts... Old Comic, Erroneous Error and Have You Seen My Cat? No... now four, just had a Constant Reminder. Earlier today, I'd have had twice as many in merely a few seconds, at times. So maybe (effective) throttling back has happened across the board, one way or another. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.43.171|172.69.43.171]] 21:16, 10 April 2025 (UTC)

I got multiple "At the tone, your favorite number will be 14", and I don't lnow what to do with that... Is 14 a reference? {{unsigned ip|172.68.234.180|10:00, 24 April 2025}}

; Table of notification
Made a new page called [[3074: Push Notifications/Table of Notifications]], much like [[1506: xkcloud/List of Permalinks]]. I’m hoping that we can put all of the possible notifications into the table, along with any possible images that go along with it and an explanation (if necessary). '''[[User:42.book.addict|42.book.addict]][[User talk:42.book.addict|Talk to me!]]''' 21:26, 9 April 2025 (UTC)
:I think it might be a good idea to make the table something more like source/name/notification, because there are chains of notifications where the name changes, like the How Many Times Can You Click This? notification. --[[User:Magicalus|Magicalus]] ([[User talk:Magicalus|talk]]) 23:19, 9 April 2025 (UTC)
::Might even want to track the URL that the notification leads to in the cases where it opens a new tab. [[Special:Contributions/172.71.142.57|172.71.142.57]]
:Did you mean a page much like [[1506:_xkcloud/List_of_Permalinks]]? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.175.171|162.158.175.171]] 01:25, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
:: Weird, someone changed that. I just reverted it. --[[User:Jacky720|Jack]] ([[User talk:Jacky720|t]]|[[Special:Contributions/Jacky720|c]]) 02:07, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
:Yes, the user {{diff|371988|behind this change}} appears to have a keyboard->leopard sort of autochanger active (for cloud->butt) (unless they're deliberately doing it alongside deliberate changes to try to get it under the radar?)... I reverted something else they did, with the intention to check everything else (in Right Click's explanation) and unreverting the actually good changes. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.162.160|172.70.162.160]] 08:39, 10 April 2025 (UTC)

It's like herding LOLcats... anyone else remembering the Secretary arc about now? [[Special:Contributions/172.71.142.2|172.71.142.2]] 16:12, 10 April 2025 (UTC)

I clicked on the silence notifications at a cost button a lot and it set Cueball's PC on fire?
; Code source
I found what is presumably the source code (?) of the comic through the transcript. It’s all JS pages. No idea what they mean (I’m not good with code), but I’m sure that there are some on here that can help dissect it. '''[[User:42.book.addict|42.book.addict]][[User talk:42.book.addict|Talk to me!]]''' 21:50, 9 April 2025 (UTC)
:https://xkcd.com/3074/marconi/manifest.json
:https://xkcd.com/3074/marconi/static/js/42.4f5b21b3.js
:https://xkcd.com/3074/marconi/static/js/index.js?v=1

: I found this list of states in there, saved to the "iU" variable: intro, wordgame, gameover, biglaptop, boat, default, floating, longdesk, missing, nekotree, nekotree2, nekowater, nodesk, onfire, peek, shark, spinning, squirrel, squirreldesk, squirrelplant, standing, sword, tallchair, tentacle, water, wizard, bigplant, catchair, catonhead, compiling, floor, plant, reverse. Presumably, this is all the images we're looking for. I'll get back to you if I identify what chooses them or all their actual filepaths. --[[User:Jacky720|Jack]] ([[User talk:Jacky720|t]]|[[Special:Contributions/Jacky720|c]]) 00:43, 10 April 2025 (UTC)

: I found more urls:
:https://xkcd.com/3074/marconi/static/js/async/marconi-sw.e9d36d05.js
:https://xkcd.com/3074/marconi/static/js/async/491.7b4e7556.js
:https://xkcd.com/3074/marconi/static/js/async/491.7b4e7556.js --[[Special:Contributions/172.69.23.45|172.69.23.45]] 03:11, 10 April 2025 (UTC)

I have a sneaking suspicion the Zoom Notifications are sketching out an image of some sort
(Update: after plotting like 60 of them no apparent pattern is to be found) [[User:SkiesShaper|SkiesShaper]] ([[User talk:SkiesShaper|talk]]) 22:24, 9 April 2025 (UTC)
: I've plotted 397 and it seems to be forming some kind of animal. Maybe a cat, given the comic theme? [[Special:Contributions/172.68.35.119|172.68.35.119]] 23:24, 9 April 2025 (UTC)
:That could make sense yeah - there is definitely an organic sort of pattern emerging from the points I've been plotting out [[User:SkiesShaper|SkiesShaper]] ([[User talk:SkiesShaper|talk]]) 00:35, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
: I'm pretty sure it's a turtle. I have 311 points so far and while it isn't clear, it looks like a turtle. [[User:IMW|IMW]] ([[User talk:IMW|talk]]) 01:51, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
:: After plotting more I think the "Oh look" coordinates help with drawing out a butterfly sitting on the left side of the turtle. [[User:IMW|IMW]] ([[User talk:IMW|talk]]) 03:36, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
:: I also am seeing a turtle after graphing the non-“Oh look” ones (and flipping the image vertically). Could the “Zoom notifications” be a reference to [[1416: Pixels]], which is about “zooming” in on turtles? [[Special:Contributions/172.68.12.119|172.68.12.119]] 12:54, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
::: Is it fractal? If you zoom in, is it turtles all the way down? [[Special:Contributions/172.68.186.43|172.68.186.43]] 14:15, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
:: Once we have enough coordinates, someone should plot them and upload the image. [[Special:Contributions/172.71.142.56|172.71.142.56]] 23:07, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
: when the image is saved, it appears to have a hex code as a file name. could be some other thing though [[User:Pncak|Pncak]] ([[User talk:Pncak|talk]]) 04:07, 10 April 2025 (UTC)

Apparently one of the notifications is: "The Earth is spinning at a rate of 1 rpd" This is true if you round it, but not exact. The time it takes to rotate is called a sidereal day, and there's one extra sidereal day a year. Basically, there's one solar day removed in a year, because the Earth's motion around the sun cancels it out. Think of it with a tidally locked planet. It spins around once a year, but the sun never moves. Really there's 1.0027379 rotations per day. [[User:DanielLC|DanielLC]] ([[User talk:DanielLC|talk]]) 23:02, 9 April 2025 (UTC)
: then it is rotating at 1 revolution per ''sidereal'' day, which could still be written as 1 rpd [[User:Firestar233|guess who]] ([[User talk:Firestar233|if you desire conversing]] | [[Special:Contributions/Firestar233|what i have done]]) 05:23, 10 April 2025 (UTC)

This is the most chaotic comic I've seen in a while. Part of me wants to keep notifications on to see what happens, and part of me wants to turn it all off and throw my phone in a lake [[User:Alcatraz ii|Alcatraz ii]] ([[User talk:Alcatraz ii|talk]]) 00:40, 10 April 2025 (UTC)

Should we start uploading different images? [[User:Firestar233|guess who]] ([[User talk:Firestar233|if you desire conversing]] | [[Special:Contributions/Firestar233|what i have done]]) 03:48, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
: And should we create a new page for the images or put them all on the same page, like with umwelt. [[User:Firestar233|guess who]] ([[User talk:Firestar233|if you desire conversing]] | [[Special:Contributions/Firestar233|what i have done]]) 03:49, 10 April 2025 (UTC)

Underneath the "Silence Notifications at a Cost" button, it says "Temporarily pause your notifications at the cost of notifying two random people". Does anyone know how for how long notifications stay silenced, or if there is a way to "unsilence" notifications? Also, when I click on the cats they just disappear. [[User:PDesbeginner|PDesbeginner]] ([[User talk:PDesbeginner|talk]]) 04:09, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
: When I click on the cats I get a push notification with a cat fact.[[Special:Contributions/172.70.127.58|172.70.127.58]] 05:35, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
Just like any other button, you can click it really fast by clicking the button and then holding "enter" or spacebar. [[User:Firestar233|guess who]] ([[User talk:Firestar233|if you desire conversing]] | [[Special:Contributions/Firestar233|what i have done]]) 04:35, 10 April 2025 (UTC)

Someone should probably comment on "April 1st (observed)". I assume it's a reference to the fact that the comic is late? --[[User:Mushrooms|Mushrooms]] ([[User talk:Mushrooms|talk]]) 07:53, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
:Aye, as in: {{wiktionary|observed}} #2 [[Special:Contributions/172.71.26.43|172.71.26.43]] 08:02, 10 April 2025 (UTC)

Is it morally wrong to spam the temporary silence button, just because I want to give other people notifications? [[User:Broseph|Broseph]] ([[User talk:Broseph|talk]]) 08:01, 10 April 2025 (UTC)

Notifications are so 2024. Ever since Trump imposed the penguin tariffs, <tt>dmesg</tt> is where it's at. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.91.126|162.158.91.126]] 09:07, 10 April 2025 (UTC)

Finally yay!! [[User:Aprilfoolsupdate!|Aprilfoolsupdate!]] ([[User talk:Aprilfoolsupdate!|talk]]) 10:28, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
:Where have ''you'' been? ;) [[Special:Contributions/172.71.178.160|172.71.178.160]] 10:39, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
:Good, we don't have to hear you whine like a baby anymore [[Special:Contributions/172.70.100.202|172.70.100.202]] 18:54, 10 April 2025 (UTC)

I got the file for "Cueball sitting at his desk, with a cat in the foreground near the point of view.", what do I do to add it :⁾ [[User:Toby|Toby]] ([[User talk:Toby|talk]]) 13:24, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
:upload it if you can (with the exact file name from imgs.xkcd.com), or copy paste the link here and someone else with uploading rights can upload it. the upload button should be under tools in the left side, under related changes and above special changes. or, you can click this [[Special:Upload|link]] '''[[User:42.book.addict|42.book.addict]][[User talk:42.book.addict|Talk to me!]]''' 16:29, 10 April 2025 (UTC)

If you refresh the screen when a clickable cat is on it, it moves. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.62.173|162.158.62.173]] 14:49, 10 April 2025 (UTC)

; Zoom notification coordinates
I am making a sheet with the cordinates: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/133jGfOM6EVuEco4j2NumOAOv6pEealyZpbDoMkESXvs/edit?usp=sharing [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.81|108.162.216.81]] 01:31, 10 April 2025 (UTC)

I plotted about 1000 turtle points and about 100 "oh look" points, including all the points I could identify from previous images posted on this page, but I am new to the wiki and it says I don't have permission to upload my picture. Do I need to do more contributing first? By the way, the "oh look" points seem to be forming a squirrel! --[[User:SapphireHarmony|SapphireHarmony]] 19:03, 1 May 2025 (UTC)
:There is a threshold for directly uploading, yes. Easiest/quickest thing to do is to put it on some imgur-like site, give the link to it here and then rely on a friendly neighbourhood uploader to scrape it off there and into here. I assume it's a bit more complete than the image already on the comic page? Or would you care to take ''that'' data (and/or all the recoded points in the appropriate sub-page table) and merge it with what you have, to make something that's potentially got more points in it than any of the other collections? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.74.109|162.158.74.109]] 00:27, 2 May 2025 (UTC)
:: Here's the link to my current image: https://imgur.com/a/R09e5wt. And yes I already added as many points as I could identify from the previously posted images, thank you to the people who posted those (that's how I was able to get enough to identify the squirrel)! --[[User:SapphireHarmony|SapphireHarmony]] 20:23, 2 May 2025 (UTC)
:::Thanks! I updated the image. --[[User:FaviFake|FaviFake]] ([[User talk:FaviFake|talk]]) 09:16, 3 May 2025 (UTC)
:::I also collected some coordinates a while ago: https://pastebin.com/7G34nwAK. It's not as comprehensive, but it fills some of the holes in SapphireHarmony's [https://imgur.com/a/R09e5wt picture]. [https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/archive/4/4a/20250503090605%21zoom_turtle.png This image] and [[3074:_Push_Notifications/Table_of_Notifications#Zoom_notifications|this list]] also seem to fill in some gaps, so it would be great to merge these 4 sources into a single picture. Do we have the data from the two images available in text format? [[User:DarkMatter|DarkMatter]] ([[User talk:DarkMatter|talk]]) 10:45, 3 May 2025 (UTC)
::::That's great! SapphireHarmony said their image was also based on the old black-and-white images, so I think we can mark them as included, unless you found some empty points in the new one that were already included in the previous images. I guess we only need to fill in the gap using the spreadsheet at the top of this topic, by the IP contrinbutor, and your own Pastebin list! It would be great if you could insert any of the coordinates you find in the spreadsheet or your list into [[3074:_Push_Notifications/Table_of_Notifications#Zoom_notifications|this wiki's table]], so we have a single source we can use that contain everything. --[[User:FaviFake|FaviFake]] ([[User talk:FaviFake|talk]]) 12:32, 3 May 2025 (UTC)
::::I was using Desmos to create the graph, here's a link to the graph if you want to make a copy off it and add more points, or see the list of points I was using https://www.desmos.com/calculator/nzc9jfdvyq. The x1 and x2 lists are the points I personally collected, and x3 and x4 are the ones I didn't already have that I scraped from other sources (though I may have cross-contaminated a few points between lists). I copied as many points from the black-and-white one as I could, but it's possible I missed some. Yes please add more points if you have some! --[[User:SapphireHarmony|SapphireHarmony]] 15:30, 3 May 2025 (UTC)
::::: Thanks for the Desmos link! I've exported your x1 and x2 coordinates and merged them with the data from the other 4 sources. I didn't include your x3 and x4 since those are meant to be duplicates - but I did notice two pixels from there, (73, 21) and (35, 14), that didn't appear in any of the 4 datasets (google doc, wiki's table, wiki's old picture, my pastebin). Did you use another source for those, or might they be typos? I've also uploaded a new image and updated the wiki's table with the combined data. There are still about 15 pixels missing from the turtle, but the squirrel now looks like it might be complete! [[User:DarkMatter|DarkMatter]] ([[User talk:DarkMatter|talk]]) 07:13, 4 May 2025 (UTC)
::::::Like I said, I may have cross-contaminated a few points between lists, since I was keeping an eye on notifications to add new points while also copying over old points. Thanks for making the new picture! --[[User:SapphireHarmony|SapphireHarmony]] 13:51, 10 May 2025 (UTC)

; Notification typos
I revieved two typos in two different notifications:
"Or" is "r" in a message saying that it's confused whether is is fhe server or the client.
"Ratio" is "ration" in the message "At the tone, the Golden Ratio will be equal to one half of 1 plus SQRT(5)".
Does everyone get those typos? [[Special:Contributions/172.70.34.16|172.70.34.16]]
:I don't know if they're typos or part of the humor. Enjoy your golden ration. :) [[Special:Contributions/162.158.63.41|162.158.63.41]] 16:33, 10 April 2025 (UTC)

I am not getting any notifications. I have three questions: 1) Does anyone know how long the "temporary silence" button lasts? 2) Does its effect last after you press the emergency stop button and re-subscribe to the nonsense? And 3) Is there just a problem with using Chrome? Thanks, [[User:Xnerkcd|Xnerkcd]] ([[User talk:Xnerkcd|talk]]) 17:49, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
:Update, the clickable cats are showing up but not doing anything
::They just sit there unless you refresh the screen. Then they can change where they are.[[Special:Contributions/162.158.62.108|162.158.62.108]] 17:52, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
::The problem's fixed; my computer had notifications disabled :) [[User:Xnerkcd|Xnerkcd]] ([[User talk:Xnerkcd|talk]]) 17:56, 10 April 2025 (UTC)

Hi, I was able to get one of the currently placeholder images but just made this account to add it, looks like i'm to new to upload it. Is there a good way to get the file to the community? Namely it's the flooded one with the Shark Fin.--[[User:ItemCrafting|ItemCrafting]] ([[User talk:ItemCrafting|talk]]) 19:40, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
:Links to both the Shark https://xkcd.com/3074/marconi/static/a592ca.png and the Foreground Cat https://xkcd.com/3074/marconi/static/cb0653.png .--[[User:ItemCrafting|ItemCrafting]] ([[User talk:ItemCrafting|talk]]) 20:23, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
:: Also Found: https://xkcd.com/3074/marconi/static/3b9830.png Large Tree, Current version looks to be a broken link. --[[User:ItemCrafting|ItemCrafting]] ([[User talk:ItemCrafting|talk]]) 20:39, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
::: thanks [[User:Firestar233|guess who]] ([[User talk:Firestar233|if you desire conversing]] | [[Special:Contributions/Firestar233|what i have done]]) 21:20, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
::: Here's the cat version of the tree: https://xkcd.com/3074/marconi/static/8eeb55.png [[User:Rerere284|Rerere284]] ([[User talk:Rerere284|talk]]) 01:10, 11 April 2025 (UTC)

April fools comic!!! LETS GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO - [[User:Bb777|me, hi]] ([[User talk:Bb777|talk]]) 21:27, 10 April 2025 (UTC)

;Cat reference

The cat image itself and the concept of cats appearing after leaving the page idle for some time are a reference to Neko Atsume --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.103.82|162.158.103.82]] 21:52, 10 April 2025 (UTC)

I don't seem to ever get more than 2 clickable cats at a time.[[Special:Contributions/104.23.190.37|104.23.190.37]] 18:57, 11 April 2025 (UTC)

;Not working
The page doesn't work for me in Chrome on Google Plxel. I just get a image missing symbol. :( [[Special:Contributions/172.71.98.245|172.71.98.245]] 22:54, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
:Same here -- the image loads initially and then real quickly it's replaced by the broken image. This happens using m.xkcd.com, but not the "desktop" site version. Chromebook with ChromeOS: Version 134.0.6998.183 (Official Build) (64-bit); also broken on Pixel 8 Pro, Android 15. [[User:Elizium23|Elizium23]] ([[User talk:Elizium23|talk]]) 23:10, 10 April 2025 (UTC)

;Push Notifications disabled in browser

My browser config doesn't allow sites to request push notifications, and the result is that once I reach the point of enabling them, the laptop immediately blows up. Is this worth mentioning in the summary? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.164.163|162.158.164.163]] 23:37, 10 April 2025 (UTC)
:did your laptop blow up or the one in the comic? --[[Special:Contributions/172.71.114.7|172.71.114.7]] 10:52, 11 April 2025 (UTC)

Near the bottom of the current Transcript is the line, '[...something appeared then dissappeared...]'. I saw this too, and on the third time through the game, I did a screen recording. Two messages briefly appeared. [text and background in shades of red, all caps] "Error Sending Push Notifications" and [text in black, background grey, all caps] "OK, You Win. Setting Up Push Notifications. [2nd line] Just Remember, we tried to warn you." [[User:Nekoninda|Nekoninda]] ([[User talk:Nekoninda|talk]])Nekoninda

My word is "battery", I'm sure there are also lots of people who chose "horse" or "staple". Correct? --[[Special:Contributions/172.69.68.91|172.69.68.91]] 14:27, 11 April 2025 (UTC)
:Bird is the word, man.[[Special:Contributions/104.23.190.37|104.23.190.37]] 18:57, 11 April 2025 (UTC)
::I ''was'' going to try "Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch", but accidentally submitted a blank word (it looks like others have too... well, the second part of my situation, I'm still not sure if the first bit even would have been accepted/enterable, never mind how many others would have tried it). [[Special:Contributions/172.68.205.134|172.68.205.134]] 21:12, 11 April 2025 (UTC)
:::cat --[[User:Bb777|me, hi]] ([[User talk:Bb777|talk]]) 00:37, 12 April 2025 (UTC)

; Mobile / Desktop behaviour depends on browser

I'm on Firefox for Android, and I got the signup behaviour described for the desktop version (no adfing to home screen; asks for Notification permission.) [[Special:Contributions/172.71.95.57|172.71.95.57]] 08:17, 11 April 2025 (UTC)

I made a phone background using an image from this one! https://file.garden/ZXYYgWMYuz15fq8l/export202504102005490721.png [[User:JokinglyEvil|JokinglyEvil]] ([[User talk:JokinglyEvil|talk]]) 11:08, 11 April 2025 (UTC)

; Picture list
Pictures are prefixed by https://xkcd.com/3074/marconi/static/??????.png, from the list :
*Misc : static/ead1d8.png static/59b30d.png static/388e5b.png
*Bkground : static/4ad340.png static/3b9830.png static/2c83c1.png static/9e4fd6.png static/9d658f.png static/83824a.png static/220211.png static/a0314e.png static/e2eca2.png static/d56a28.png static/20b757.png static/226279.png static/1f2fee.png static/0bfd44.png static/20be4a.png static/cb0653.png static/313380.png static/31a492.png static/11a4b5.png static/a592ca.png static/1450b1.png static/e0f706.png static/fa52d2.png static/69af58.png static/a7d30d.png static/3e33fd.png static/da85bd.png static/303e90.png static/6f48dd.png static/342f4d.png
*Messages: static/fc9dfd.png static/8d9c55.png static/aa973f.png static/923036.png static/9141a2.png static/5f9f66.png static/6af293.png static/935279.png static/b286f5.png static/67da67.png static/b9fc1b.png static/7abdee.png static/c2e227.png static/8bdac7.png static/7e02cf.png static/b07329.png static/c6de0e.png static/a464c9.png static/7f6e55.png static/a96735.png static/ff6357.png static/876854.png static/cb5124.png static/2235f1.png static/e01a73.png static/a75f92.png static/f41766.png static/456b99.png static/d3e6db.png static/da4d83.png static/f3de11.png static/867baf.png static/6b2d69.png static/2705b9.png static/bedb72.png static/f9b33d.png static/3e269d.png static/b034f4.png static/eea7ff.png static/e83fd7.png static/8ebf3f.png static/c6ac3d.png static/a9779a.png static/eddb3b.png

There is another list with the same pictures but twice as large (same order) :

"static/0890d4.png static/198d53.png static/bb9aa1.png static/4ad340.png static/cbe58c.png static/b5a217.png static/618dcc.png static/323351.png static/17d10b.png static/6c8053.png static/0690ec.png static/8576c0.png static/2b79e1.png static/a80810.png static/41143b.png static/8eeb55.png static/99bb67.png static/b84fdf.png static/f0de4f.png static/b0cec1.png static/a4158d.png static/dbc071.png static/c969b2.png static/f3b793.png static/0cd47d.png static/8a5b95.png static/2a2199.png static/63ed1d.png static/2a67b6.png static/7ec02f.png static/8e981d.png static/77a1d5.png static/e49d32.png static/fe60e1.png static/dd3fd2.png static/2b8643.png static/017e3a.png static/e46fe0.png static/6ad951.png static/ef2e76.png static/7d6018.png static/905794.png static/52870c.png static/a17724.png static/aa18ad.png static/1094f5.png static/39bffe.png static/8635c4.png static/d63451.png static/f2c3df.png static/5fa4ed.png static/00050e.png static/026b2f.png static/bcd4f8.png static/f777a4.png static/713981.png static/ed794b.png static/b3696b.png static/a2fc4c.png static/f468fd.png static/bc9195.png static/2ef6f1.png static/1682f4.png static/6a6479.png static/9dd25c.png static/a2e92d.png static/442a18.png static/2139a1.png static/5378fa.png static/8edfa4.png static/25c931.png static/91b6d9.png static/eb016f.png static/519d53.png static/554084.png static/301dc6.png static/4bfe91.png static/7b89ac.png"
--{{unsigned|Biem|14:59, 11 April 2025 (UTC)}}
:Hey Biem, could you perhaps use <code>*</code> to make your message into a list? Thanks. '''[[User:42.book.addict|42.book.addict]][[User talk:42.book.addict|Talk to me!]]''' 15:08, 11 April 2025 (UTC)
::I certainly could, but it would take page space with no added value... [[User:Biem|Biem]] ([[User talk:Biem|talk]]) 15:54, 11 April 2025 (UTC)
:::It would (in my humble opinion) make it more readable and easier to copy paste into a url. '''[[User:42.book.addict|42.book.addict]][[User talk:42.book.addict|Talk to me!]]''' 22:01, 11 April 2025 (UTC)

I enabled notifications, and no more appeared. Maybe it just doesn't work with my browser? Cats keep appearing, but that's all. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.212.132|162.158.212.132]] 16:39, 14 April 2025 (UTC)
:Came back a while later and the chair was floating, so stuff is happening, but I don't know why it's not saying anything. I hope I don't just have browser notifications shut off completely... [[Special:Contributions/162.158.137.163|162.158.137.163]] 20:54, 14 April 2025 (UTC)

I got multiple "At the tone, your favorite number will be 14", and I don't lnow what to do with that... Is 14 a reference? {{unsigned ip|172.68.234.180|09:59, 24 April 2025}}

; Finishing

- How does the experience conclude if you subscribe and do nothing?

- How do you abort and escape?

- How do you remove traces from your device?

--[[User:Evanwolf|Evanwolf]] ([[User talk:Evanwolf|talk]]) 17:20, 12 May 2025 (UTC)

== Not working ==

On Firefox desktop and Fennec F-Droid (fork of firefox mobile) and android chrome i get ERROR SEDNING PUSH NOTIFICATIONS. [[User:Velocifyer|Velocifyer]] ([[User talk:Velocifyer|talk]])

1892: USB Cables

2025-06-14T22:39:19Z

Velocifyer: Fix spelling and i also meant to use USB-PD

{{comic
| number = 1892
| date = September 20, 2017
| title = USB Cables
| image = usb_cables.png
| titletext = Tag yourself, I'm "frayed."
}}

==Explanation==
In this comic, [[Randall]] states the 'Law of {{w|USB}} cables': You will never have more than one which has no problems, no matter how many you get. Now that most devices charge off USB, having a cable (specifically, USB-A (the big end) to Micro-B or USB-C (the small end)) is essential. However, most USB cables are cheaply made, and carrying them around quickly damages them. This comic lists some common (and not so common) problems with USB cables.

* '''Carry power but not data''' - USB cables have separate data and power lines. To save money (and sometimes for security reasons), the data lines can be omitted. This means it can be used for charging, but not data transfer. Two cables are shown with this problem.
* '''Carries data but not power''' - Not typically done, but it could happen if the wires or pins get damaged. While such a cable is theoretically possible, if used with standards-compliant devices, it would appear [https://electronics.stackexchange.com/questions/313955/does-usb-host-always-supply-power-on-vbus completely broken].
* '''Too short''' - Another money saving wheeze, some devices ship with pathetically short cables.
* '''Charges phone slowly''' - More likely a problem with the charger than the cable, but may happen if the wires are damaged or if it does not have a E-marker chip (if USB-C). Refers to some chargers not delivering more than half an ampere. Could also be caused by thin or very long wires which lead to a significant voltage drop, thereby reducing charging speed. This is also a typical user experience for cables that carry power but not data, as charging current/voltage negotiation typically happens over the data lines.
* '''Won't auto-activate portable charger''' - Most portable chargers (basically big batteries) should activate when the device is plugged in. Something about the cable (possibly the way the data lines are shorted) is interfering with this mechanism.
* '''Has annoying ferrite lumps''' - {{w|Ferrite bead}}s are used to filter out interference from the cable. High-performance applications need these, but on a phone charger you're just adding unnecessary weight and bulk. Two cables are shown with this problem.
* '''Heavy and not very flexible''' - Either a heavy-duty USB cable, with thicker insulation, or a shielded one with a metal sheath inside to keep out interference.
* '''Frayed''' - Cables with improper strain relief experience a lot of bending force at the ends, near the connectors, and these can easily burst the insulation as shown here. Two cables are shown with this problem.
* '''Plug doesn't fit through case''' - Manufacturers don't always follow the standard for what the plastic housing around the USB connector should look like, and sometimes these are molded so they don't quite fit in the phone socket or through the charging port of an external case.
* '''Needs to be twisted to keep working''' - The wires inside are damaged, and only connect when held in just the right way. One step away from total breakage.
* '''Weird shape''' - A normal USB cable but [https://web.archive.org/web/20201112023959/http://read.pudn.com/downloads114/doc/comm/476505/usb_20_040908/usb_20/Micro-USB_final/Micro-USB_1_01.pdf the connector is molded with a 90 degree turn (which is actually specified in the MicroUSB Specification, see pages 28-31)] for no apparent reason and might be not convenient in some situations.
* '''The good one''' - This is the one that really works out of the 15 shown, with 11 different problems. The funny thing is that it looks more or less exactly like at least 6 of the other 14. So it will take some time to find this cable.

The title text refers to the popular meme "[http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/tag-yourself Tag yourself, I'm...]" which is used with pictures containing lots of strange objects, phrases or other elements. The phrase prompts people to identify individual elements from the image that they personally feels matches their own identity, usually self-deprecatingly. (The meme stems from Facebook, where people can place tags identifying themselves in photos, but has spread to other websites without an actual tagging system.) Here, Randall suggests that, like a USB cable, he's frayed. "I'm frayed" is also a pun on the sentence "I'm afraid" that is commonly added to the end of a comment which the speaker believes may leave a negative impression on the listener.

==Transcript==
:[15 USB cables are shown lying in a column. They are mostly very similar, with small differences. To the right of the cables there are 12 labels, as three of the labels belongs to three sets of two cables.]
:[2 cables] Carry power but not data
:Carries data but not power
:Too short
:Charges phone slowly
:Won't auto-activate portable charger
:[2 cables] Has annoying ferrite lumps
:Heavy and not very flexible
:[2 cables] Frayed
:Plug doesn't fit through case
:Needs to be twisted to keep working
:Weird shape
:The good one

:[Caption below the panel:]
:The law of USB cables: No matter how many you get, you only ever have one good one.

{{comic discussion}}

1892: USB Cables

2025-06-14T22:37:28Z

Velocifyer: /* Explanation */ USB-C needs a special chip to transfer data

{{comic
| number = 1892
| date = September 20, 2017
| title = USB Cables
| image = usb_cables.png
| titletext = Tag yourself, I'm "frayed."
}}

==Explanation==
In this comic, [[Randall]] states the 'Law of {{w|USB}} cables': You will never have more than one which has no problems, no matter how many you get. Now that most devices charge off USB, having a cable (specifically, USB-A (the big end) to Micro-B or USB-C (the small end)) is essential. However, most USB cables are cheaply made, and carrying them around quickly damages them. This comic lists some common (and not so common) problems with USB cables.

* '''Carry power but not data''' - USB cables have separate data and power lines. To save money (and sometimes for security reasons), the data lines can be omitted. This means it can be used for charging, but not data transfer. Two cables are shown with this problem.
* '''Carries data but not power''' - Not typically done, but it could happen if the wires or pins get damaged. While such a cable is theoretically possible, if used with standards-compliant devices, it would appear [https://electronics.stackexchange.com/questions/313955/does-usb-host-always-supply-power-on-vbus completely broken].
* '''Too short''' - Another money saving wheeze, some devices ship with pathetically short cables.
* '''Charges phone slowly''' - More likely a problem with the charger than the cable, but may happen if the wires are damaged or if it does not have a emarker chip (if USB-C). Refers to some chargers not delivering more than half an ampere. Could also be caused by thin or very long wires which lead to a significant voltage drop, thereby reducing charging speed. This is also a typical user experience for cables that carry power but not data, as charging current/voltage negotiation typically happens over the data lines.
* '''Won't auto-activate portable charger''' - Most portable chargers (basically big batteries) should activate when the device is plugged in. Something about the cable (possibly the way the data lines are shorted) is interfering with this mechanism.
* '''Has annoying ferrite lumps''' - {{w|Ferrite bead}}s are used to filter out interference from the cable. High-performance applications need these, but on a phone charger you're just adding unnecessary weight and bulk. Two cables are shown with this problem.
* '''Heavy and not very flexible''' - Either a heavy-duty USB cable, with thicker insulation, or a shielded one with a metal sheath inside to keep out interference.
* '''Frayed''' - Cables with improper strain relief experience a lot of bending force at the ends, near the connectors, and these can easily burst the insulation as shown here. Two cables are shown with this problem.
* '''Plug doesn't fit through case''' - Manufacturers don't always follow the standard for what the plastic housing around the USB connector should look like, and sometimes these are molded so they don't quite fit in the phone socket or through the charging port of an external case.
* '''Needs to be twisted to keep working''' - The wires inside are damaged, and only connect when held in just the right way. One step away from total breakage.
* '''Weird shape''' - A normal USB cable but [https://web.archive.org/web/20201112023959/http://read.pudn.com/downloads114/doc/comm/476505/usb_20_040908/usb_20/Micro-USB_final/Micro-USB_1_01.pdf the connector is molded with a 90 degree turn (which is actually specified in the MicroUSB Specification, see pages 28-31)] for no apparent reason and might be not convenient in some situations.
* '''The good one''' - This is the one that really works out of the 15 shown, with 11 different problems. The funny thing is that it looks more or less exactly like at least 6 of the other 14. So it will take some time to find this cable.

The title text refers to the popular meme "[http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/tag-yourself Tag yourself, I'm...]" which is used with pictures containing lots of strange objects, phrases or other elements. The phrase prompts people to identify individual elements from the image that they personally feels matches their own identity, usually self-deprecatingly. (The meme stems from Facebook, where people can place tags identifying themselves in photos, but has spread to other websites without an actual tagging system.) Here, Randall suggests that, like a USB cable, he's frayed. "I'm frayed" is also a pun on the sentence "I'm afraid" that is commonly added to the end of a comment which the speaker believes may leave a negative impression on the listener.

==Transcript==
:[15 USB cables are shown lying in a column. They are mostly very similar, with small differences. To the right of the cables there are 12 labels, as three of the labels belongs to three sets of two cables.]
:[2 cables] Carry power but not data
:Carries data but not power
:Too short
:Charges phone slowly
:Won't auto-activate portable charger
:[2 cables] Has annoying ferrite lumps
:Heavy and not very flexible
:[2 cables] Frayed
:Plug doesn't fit through case
:Needs to be twisted to keep working
:Weird shape
:The good one

:[Caption below the panel:]
:The law of USB cables: No matter how many you get, you only ever have one good one.

{{comic discussion}}