https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/api.php?action=feedcontributions&user=108.162.215.118&feedformat=atomexplain xkcd - User contributions [en]2024-03-29T10:33:54ZUser contributionsMediaWiki 1.30.0https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:2296:_Sourdough_Starter&diff=191054Talk:2296: Sourdough Starter2020-04-21T22:42:06Z<p>108.162.215.118: </p>
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<div><!--Please sign your posts with ~~~~ and don't delete this text. New comments should be added at the bottom.--><br />
Symbiosis is good for the species involved in that relationship, but it may still be harmful to other organisms. What Randall is suggesting is that humans are collateral damage. [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 21:37, 20 April 2020 (UTC)<br />
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Is there controversy around covid-19 coming from cave bats rarely visited by humans, or would the bats be part of the convoluted lifecycle? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.74.211|162.158.74.211]] 22:02, 20 April 2020 (UTC)<br />
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Is this comic suggesting the yeast would allow the virus to survive without a human host, and when we later swap sourdough starters the virus could then find a new human host to infect? [[User:Ianrbibtitlht|Ianrbibtitlht]] ([[User talk:Ianrbibtitlht|talk]]) 01:05, 21 April 2020 (UTC)<br />
:The virus and yeast can have working symbiosis without ever coming into physical contact. It's just that the lockdown probably ends before the virus will be actually eradicated, so large meetings just after end of lockdown is not good idea. -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 22:19, 21 April 2020 (UTC)<br />
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That is not a theory in the caption. It has no evidence and makes no testable predictions, at least as far as I can tell. It is just a hypothesis. [[User:Nutster|Nutster]] ([[User talk:Nutster|talk]]) 01:56, 21 April 2020 (UTC)<br />
:Maybe not a theory in the real world, but this isn't the real world. Perhaps in the world of this comic there is evidence and there were predictions that have been tested, making it a theory to Cueball. [[User:Ianrbibtitlht|Ianrbibtitlht]] ([[User talk:Ianrbibtitlht|talk]]) 02:17, 21 April 2020 (UTC)<br />
:With a bit of reading online, I've discovered that your definition of "theory" is but one of many different definitions of the word. In some contexts, theory is synonymous with hypothesis, according to Merriam-Webster. [[User:Ianrbibtitlht|Ianrbibtitlht]] ([[User talk:Ianrbibtitlht|talk]]) 02:31, 21 April 2020 (UTC)<br />
: Theory: This comic is the same category as "My hobby". Aka: It's a joke. [[User:Elektrizikekswerk|Elektrizikekswerk]] ([[User talk:Elektrizikekswerk|talk]]) 07:21, 21 April 2020 (UTC)<br />
: "theory - noun - an idea used to account for a situation or justify a course of action" - that seems to describe how Randall used the word [[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 14:03, 21 April 2020 (UTC)<br />
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In the UK at least, it's been too successful. You can't get flour in the shops most times. Apparently, most flour goes into big sacks for bakeries and the like. The mills haven't been able to gear up their production of small bags for domestic use. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.159.56|162.158.159.56]] 09:24, 21 April 2020 (UTC)<br />
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My pet theory, before Boris Johnson got a bit better and ''didn't'' relax measures, was that COVID had deliberately infected half the Cabinet in order to gain the authority to infect everyone else, like common Pod People tropes would have happen. (That didn't happen, but maybe it's just being more clever. Like causing the PPE supply chains to break under the strain.) [[Special:Contributions/162.158.34.210|162.158.34.210]] 10:46, 21 April 2020 (UTC)<br />
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Isn't "swapping starters" a Pokemon reference? You know, getting together and trading starter Pokemon until everyone has all 3. [[User:Daevin|Daevin]] ([[User talk:Daevin|talk]]) 14:53, 21 April 2020 (UTC)<br />
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I assumed this was a continuation of the previous comic: precise number + garbage = garbage; perfectly good flour + sourdough starter = garbage that tastes so bad not even microbes want to eat it.</div>108.162.215.118https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1809:_xkcd_Phone_5&diff=1370161809: xkcd Phone 52017-03-11T21:50:40Z<p>108.162.215.118: /* Table of features */ "tinny"</p>
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<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1809<br />
| date = March 10, 2017<br />
| title = xkcd Phone 5<br />
| image = xkcd_phone_5.png<br />
| titletext = The phone will be collected by the toll operators and mailed back to you within 4-6 weeks.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|Seems almost complete now!}}<br />
This is the fifth entry in the ongoing [[:Category:xkcd Phones|xkcd Phone series]], and once again, the comic plays with many standard tech buzzwords and horribly misuses all of them, to create a phone that sounds impressive but self-evidently isn't to even the most ignorant customer. The previous comic in the series [[1707: xkcd Phone 4]] was released almost 8 months before this one.<br />
<br />
The features is explained individually in the [[#Table of features|table]] below.<br />
<br />
The slogan beneath the phone, "We're trying to catch up to Apple but refuse to skip numbers", is a reference to inconsistent product numbering, such as {{w|Samsung}} releasing the {{w|Note 7}} after the {{w|Note 5}}, likely in an attempt to catch up to the numbering of either the {{w|iPhone}} or {{w|Galaxy S}} series, both of which were already at 7. Similarly, there was also no official ''iPhone 2''. But there is an [[xkcd Phone 2]] available. The trademark sign behind the word "numbers" probably indicates a reference to the Apple spreadsheet app with the same name.<br />
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The title text that says that the phone will be returned to you by the toll operators is a reference to E-ZPass partnership feature, see explanation in the table regarding that feature.<br />
<br />
===Table of features===<br />
{| class="wikitable"<br />
!Feature<br />
!Explanation<br />
|-<br />
|'''Hook shot'''<br />
| In ''{{w|The Legend of Zelda}}'' the [http://zelda.gamepedia.com/Hookshot Hookshot] is a recurring weapon/tool. It is a machine consisting of a chain and hook. When used, the chain extends and sends then hook which is attached to it. It is used to bring items to {{w|Link (The Legend of Zelda)|Link}} or bring Link closer to a goal (''Link'' is the name shared by the main protagonists, each possessing the Spirit of the Hero). Likely a reference to new video game ''{{w|The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild}}'', which was released a week prior to this comic. In the comic the hook shot is shown as a small add on to the phones top.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Bluetooth speaker'''<br />
| {{w|Bluetooth}} speakers are often used to play audio from a smartphone wirelessly, usually with more volume and better quality than the phone's small built-in speaker can provide. Embedding a bluetooth speaker into the phone would allow the phone to play audio from outside sources through its built-in speaker, which could be useful if no better speakers were available but would generally be avoided given the previously noted limitations of phone speakers. This is perhaps a jab at the current trend of playing music or Internet content audibly in public through the tiny, tiny speaker embedded in most phones. The Bluetooth speaker is located in the normal place for a phones speaker.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Stained-glass display'''<br />
| {{w|Stained glass}} is colored glass, traditionally used for decorative windows in buildings most often churches. It is generally much thicker and because of the color much less transparent, especially for some colors, than the glass types normally used for touch-screens, making the phone difficult to use as it would remove some of the colors shown on the screen below the glass. A typical feature noticed about the glass for real phones would be its strength, as in work phones for construction workers.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Gallium chassis remains solid up to 85&deg;F'''<br />
| Many high-end electronic devices have chassis made of alloys of light metals such as {{w|magnesium}} or {{w|titanium}} rather than {{w|steel}} or {{w|plastic}}. Besides being lightweight and of superior quality and durability than ordinary sheet steel or cheap plastic, these are often perceived as bragging points by the users, boasting about 'rare' metal chassis.<br />
<br />
{{w|Gallium}}, however, is an uncommon metal with a very low melting point of 85&nbsp;°F (or 29.8&nbsp;°C), making it one of only four metals (along with {{w|Mercury (element)|mercury}}, {{w|rubidium}} and {{w|caesium}}) that can be liquid around room temperature. Because the melting point is lower than the average {{w|human body temperature}} of 98.6&nbsp;°F (37&nbsp;°C) a gallium smartphone chassis would melt in the user's bare hand, assuming it hadn't already done so due to heat produced by its internal components. Even if the electronics had good heat management, cooling in smartphones is normally accomplished by distributing heat to the case, not exhausting it. <br />
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A similar real advertisement regarding the chassis would be that it was {{w|waterproof}} down to some depth (say 85 feet or 25 meters). See also the feature below regarding this.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Soundproof'''<br />
| A {{w|Soundproof}} chassis could result in the unwanted effect that the speakers and microphone may not work as no sound may enter or leave the phones chassis. A more likely feature would be waterproof see above point.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Can feel pain'''<br />
| Possibly a reference to {{w|intelligent personal assistant|intelligent personal assistants}} like {{w|Siri}}, {{w|Cortana (software)|Cortana}} or {{w|Amazon Alexa|Alexa}} gaining consciousness (see [[1807: Listening]] for the latter). Such {{w|artificial intelligence}} references is a [[:Category:Artificial Intelligence|recurring subject]] on xkcd. <br />
<br />
This could mean that either the phone feels pain for damages inflicted upon it or it feels the user's pain level (regarding either physical and/or emotional pain). The meaning would quickly become apparent for the user if the chassis melts on contact with exposed skin leaving the phone with "open wounds". <br />
<br />
This could be seen as a similar feature of the first xkcd phone, [[1363: xkcd Phone]], where the title text notices (among many other things) that the ''phone will drown'' if submerge in water. A similar thing is also mentioned for [[1549: XKCD Phone 3]]. That phone is ''waterproof but can drown''. Since this phone is soundproof but not waterproof, see the two points above, the drowning issue may still be relevant. The second phone, [[1465: xkcd Phone 2]], ''cries when lost'' a similar display of emotions/feelings. That phone also mentions waterproofing, but here it is only the interior, and although it is washable, it is only a one time feature (like the fold-ability of this one, see two points below). Finally also [[1707: xkcd Phone 4]] mentiones it is waterproof, but not between 30-50 m down...<br />
|-<br />
|'''E-ZPass partnership: Phone can be dropped into coin basket to pay tolls'''<br />
|{{w|E-ZPass}} is an electronic toll collection system. The vehicle drives through the toll lane without stopping, and sensors detect the pass and deduct the appropriate amount from the user's account. The phone's integration with E-ZPass is absurd since the phone needs to be dropped into a coin basket to work. Not only would you have to stop in order to throw the phone into the coin basket, which defies the idea of E-ZPass, but you would also lose your phone.<br />
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In the '''title text''', however, it says that the phone will be returned by the toll operators and returned by mail within 4–6 weeks. So this mitigates the problem of losing the phone slightly, but there would be about a month where the phone could not be used.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Foldable (once)'''<br />
|Almost anything long and slim can be "folded" by simply snapping it in half. But as it says this can only be done once because the phone cannot be unsnapped and will not work anymore once it has been folded. <br />
<br />
This is a reference to the [http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/samsung-foldable-smartphone-news/ rumors of the new Samsung Galaxy X] that is really foldable like a pice of rubber. See [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fro_CNjxYwM this video].<br />
<br />
It could also refer to the fact that a version of iPhone had a weak spot that lead it to easily folding and breaking. And it could be reference to the type of cellphones which [https://www.doro.dk/doro-phoneeasy-624.html are designed] so they can be opened and closed by hinges.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Screen transfers images to skin'''<br />
| Transferring images to the skin sounds like either real {{w|tattoos}} or the water tattoos used by children or other kinds of {{w|temporary tattoos}}. Likely it should be understood that it would be possible to transfer the image displayed on the screen to your skin, hopefully when activating the feature rather than by accident. And preferably also none permanent. This may also be a reference to the experimental Cicret Bracelet's ability to project images onto your arm: [http://www.snopes.com/photos/technology/cicret.asp]<br />
|-<br />
|'''Retina storage'''<br />
| This is a play on the name of Apple's prized "{{w|Retina Display}}". The joke may be in reference to Apple's possession of a trademark for the word "retina" in regards to computer equipment, which is made to seem absurd by the unusual use. It is not made clear whose retinas are meant to be stored. Could also be a reference to retinally implanted computers. The retina storage is a slot at the bottom of the phone right of the charging port.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Background task automatically catches and eats Pokémon'''<br />
| A reference to {{w|Pokémon Go}}, an augmented reality game where the goal to go to specific locations and play a mini-game in order to catch virtual creatures called {{w|Pokémon}} (see [[1705: Pokémon Go]]). This phone apparently catches Pokémon automatically, similar to the external device {{w|Pokémon_Go#Pok.C3.A9mon_Go_Plus|Pokémon Go Plus}}. However, this feature also eats them, which is something that is not part of the game and wouldn't be desirable, as it is about collection and storing as many different Pokémon as possible. It could be a coincidence, but it seems funny that the label for this background feature is the only one that point at the back of the phone. <br />
|-<br />
|'''Supercuts partnership: Trims hair fed into charging port'''<br />
| {{w|Supercuts}} is an American hair salon chain that provides hair cuts and styling. The implication here is that the user can get a haircut by Supercuts by sticking hair into the charging slot. This is not only impractical and would only work for hair long enough to be fed into the port, but it would most likely result in a bad haircut. Also the slot would soon be filled with hair. The charging slot is otherwise placed in the normal spot and looks like a regular charging port.<br />
<br />
This feature could actually be quite dangerous if the hair is not removed from the charging slot afterwards because the hair could melt or catch fire inside the phone. <br />
|-<br />
|'''Squelch knob'''<br />
|{{w|Squelch}} is a feature of two-way radios (CB, ham, etc) which quiets background noise when no signal is present. For a smartphone, perhaps this knob could control the "signal-to-noise" ratio of your Facebook feed or other social media platforms. It takes the place of the headphone jack, replacing the normal hole with a small knob.<br />
|-<br />
|'''IBM buckling-spring Home button'''<br />
|{{w|IBM}}{{w|Buckling spring|buckling-spring}} keyboards are favorites of geeks for the feeling of quality and auditory feedback (keys click loudly when pressed) they provide. Real smartphone's home button, typically located exactly as in this image, provides little to no such satisfaction when pressed.<br />
|-<br />
|'''Cot-caught merger switch'''<br />
| This is a reference to the {{w|cot–caught merger}}, a linguistic change happening among English speakers, particularly in some parts of North America and the British Isles, which causes caught (previously pronounced "kawt") to be pronounced the same as cot (pronounced "kot"). The switch is clearly visible on the side of the phone. There is no typical feature similar to this one most smartphones, although it could look a bit like a volume control, although that would not usually be a sliding switch.<br />
|-<br />
|'''60x optical zoom camera'''<br />
|A powerful optical {{w|zoom lens}} is usually a desirable feature for cameras. However, as shown in the comic, it results in very bulky lens. If 60x zoom should be achieved the lens needs to be as big as shown on the backside of the phone, and the whole idea of being able to carry the smartphone easily in a pocket would be defied.<br />
<br />
For that reason, such lenses are never used in smartphones, although rarely some devices, like the {{w|Samsung Galaxy Camera}}, use a smaller lens with a similar design. But this is no longer a smartphone. <br />
<br />
This feature would seem to be a jab at the variety of add-on devices, including close-up lenses, handles and external flashes, that are currently in use to enhance the phone's ability to function like a camera (and the {{w|selfie stick}}). <br />
<br />
Some phones might instead mention their {{w|digital zoom}} level instated. But that is not a popular feature among photo enthusiasts, as it makes no difference to the image quality if you zoom like this or just zoon in on a normal picture taken without zoom, as no optical resolution is gained in the process of digital zooming. Randall has made several comics about cameras before; see for instance [[1719: Superzoom]] and other comics linked via this.<br />
|-<br />
|'''LORAN navigation'''<br />
| {{w|LORAN}} (Long Range Navigation) was a precursor to modern {{W|Global Positioning System|GPS}} navigation, using land-based transmitters. Once developed for sea shipping, it is accurate to about 300 meters (1,000 feet). The joke, of course, is that all modern smartphones have integrated GPS navigation which is far more accurate. Due to the much lower frequencies involved, reception of LORAN signals though is much better in areas with obstructed view of the sky. However {{w|LORAN#Commercial_use.2C_decommissioning|LORAN has been decommissioned}} more or less completely since before 2000.<br />
<br />
Incidentally, some receivers of the {{w|Decca Navigator System}} (which operates on a similar principle as LORAN) featured moving map displays, something we associate with modern GPS devices. <br />
|-<br />
|'''28-factor authentication'''<br />
| An {{w|Authentication#Factors and identity|authentication factor}} is a way of proving one's identity. There are [http://www.nikacp.com/images/10.1.1.200.3888.pdf 3 generally recognized forms]: something you know, something you have, and something you are. It can be a password, a fingerprint, a physical key, etc.... Secure applications may include two or more factors; a common example is the "PIN and chip" system used with credit cards, where you need both the card and secret code to authorize a transaction. Many online services now provide two-factor authentication to protect against password-based attacks. 28-factor authentication would likely be very secure in theory but also so impractical that it would be unusable.<br />
|}<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[An image of a smartphone with a common optical camera lens attached on its back is shown. Over the entire length the case is slightly rounded. There are several features visible as bottom like features at the top and bottom of the front as well a microphone like slit at the top. A sliding switch is visible on the side, and at the bottom there is a knob, a connector port and a small slit. Clockwise starting from the top left all the labels read:]<br />
:Hook shot<br />
:Bluetooth speaker<br />
:Stained-glass display<br />
:Gallium chassis remains solid up to 85&deg;F<br />
:Soundproof<br />
:Can feel pain<br />
:E-ZPass partnership: Phone can be dropped into coin basket to pay tolls<br />
:Foldable (once)<br />
:Screen transfers images to skin<br />
:Retina storage<br />
:Background task automatically catches and eats Pokémon<br />
:Supercuts partnership: Trims hair fed into charging port<br />
:Squelch knob<br />
:IBM buckling-spring home button<br />
:Cot-caught merger switch<br />
:60x optical zoom camera<br />
:''LORAN'' navigation<br />
:28-factor authentication<br />
<br />
:[Below the phone:]<br />
:Introducing<br />
:<big>The</big> <big><big>xkcd Phone 5</big></big><br />
:''We're trying to catch up to Apple but refuse to skip numbers<sup>®TM</sup>''<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:xkcd Phones]]<br />
[[Category:Pokémon]]</div>108.162.215.118https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1045:_Constraints&diff=1362031045: Constraints2017-03-01T06:54:28Z<p>108.162.215.118: /* Transcript */</p>
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<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1045<br />
| date = April 20, 2012<br />
| title = Constraints<br />
| image = constraints.png<br />
| titletext = [title-text similarly alphabetized]<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
An {{w|epigram}} is a brief, interesting, usually memorable and sometimes surprising or satirical statement. {{w|Constrained writing}} is an age-old literary phenomenon, where writers impose rules or patterns in their works. {{w|Haiku}} is a well known example of this.<br />
<br />
{{w|Twitter}} is a short message social network and communication service. All messages (known as tweets) on the service need to be under 140 characters. Until August 2015 even private messages had that restriction. Twitter is frequently used by well-known comedians as a place to make interesting jokes and observations.<br />
<br />
All the words spoken by [[Megan]], from "Yeah" to "alphabetization", are in reverse alphabetical order. Here are the starting letters (with extra letter when more than one word in a row begins with the same letter): <br />
:Y, Wr, Wo, U, T, R, P, N, M, L, F, Ex, Ep, Em, B, A.<br />
<br />
It both answers [[Cueball]]'s question and exemplifies with an ingenious {{w|self-reference}}, while being short enough (133 characters) to be a valid tweet — hence the "whoa."<br />
<br />
The title text, "title-text similarly alphabetized", is also backwards-alphabetized and self-referential. Starting letters:<br />
:Ti, Te, S, A.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball sits in an office chair at his computer desk, motioning toward the screen with a hand as Megan stands behind him.]<br />
:Cueball: I don't get why authors and comedians spend so much energy trying to be clever on Twitter. Couldn't they put that creativity into more books and scripts? <br />
:Cueball: Is there something they ''like'' about the 140-character format?<br />
<br />
:[Same picture but in a frame-less panel, except Cueball has taken his arm down.]<br />
:Megan: Yeah. Writers working under tight restrictions produce novel material—like, for example, epigrams employing backward alphabetization.<br />
<br />
:[A slim panel with only Cueball at his computer desk shown.]<br />
:Cueball: ...Whoa.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Language]]<br />
[[Category:Social networking]]<br />
[[Category:Self-reference]]</div>108.162.215.118https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=688:_Self-Description&diff=136202688: Self-Description2017-03-01T06:50:40Z<p>108.162.215.118: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 688<br />
| date = January 13, 2010<br />
| title = Self-Description<br />
| image = self_description.png<br />
| titletext = The contents of any one panel are dependent on the contents of every panel including itself. The graph of panel dependencies is complete and bidirectional, and each node has a loop. The mouseover text has two hundred and forty-two characters.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
This comic is {{w|Self-reference|self-referential}}, because every graph is dependent on the whole comic. If you were to change anything in the comic, you would change the ink distribution, and would therefore have to update all three graphs. This would result in further changes that would have to be considered.<br />
<br />
In the first panel's {{w|pie chart}}, "this image" refers to the entire comic image, the one that can be downloaded from xkcd (and the entire comic as displayed here above). This is a little confusing as it would be easy to misunderstand this meaning, and believe that the first panel only refers to itself. The title text though makes it clear that it is the entire comic that is called image here. The image size is 740x180 or 133200 pixels. Out of those, 14228 pixels are black (gray pixels are accounted based on their brightness). Ratio of black pixels to the size of the image is 0.1068, so the pie chart segment describing black part should be about 38.5 degrees wide, which is indeed true for the pie chart in the image.<br />
<br />
In the second panel the amount of black used in each panel is displayed in a {{w|bar chart}}. This actually makes this panel the one that uses most black. First panel (including the border) has 4944 black pixels, second 6180 and the third 3103. First bar is about 70 pixels high, second about 87 and the third about 43, which roughly checks out. It is hard to measure exact height of the bars as the axis and bars themselves are not straight.<br />
<br />
The third panel features a {{w|scatter plot}} labeled "Location of black ink in this image." It is the first {{w|Quadrant (plane geometry)|quadrant}} of a {{w|Cartesian coordinate system|cartesian plane}} with the zeroes marked. The graph is the whole comic scaled proportionally to fit the axes, so the last panel also has to contain an image of it self having an image of itself ad infinitum thus displaying the {{w|Droste effect}}, a type of visual {{w|recursion}}.<br />
<br />
The title text refers to the comic's own self-reference, but it is also self-referencing because of the character count in it. That it contains {{w|Phrases_from_The_Hitchhiker's_Guide_to_the_Galaxy#Answer_to_the_Ultimate_Question_of_Life.2C_the_Universe.2C_and_Everything_.2842.29|the number 42}}, (although here as 242), could be a reference to {{w|The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy}}. It would be difficult to write this sentence, as just one more character would not be solved by writing 243, as three has two more than two, and four has only one more...<br />
<br />
"The graph of panel dependencies is complete and bidirectional, and every node has a loop." This means that if we draw a dot corresponding to each panel, and then we draw arrows connecting the dots to indicate dependencies, the resulting {{w|graph}} is {{w|complete graph|complete}} (meaning that all the points are connected to one another) and bidirectional (meaning that if point A has an arrow to point B, then point B also has an arrow to point A). "Every node has a loop" means that each point also has an arrow connecting to itself.<br />
<br />
This is an observation of the interdependent relationship between description and creation that pertains to all things perceived by humans, including the concept of "Self".<br />
<br />
Self-reference was used very early for instance in [[33: Self-reference]], but never so famously as here. See [[:Category:Self-reference|other self-references here]].<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[A pie chart which is mainly white with a black slice of about 30 degree towards the bottom left. The two sections are labeled with a line going from the label to the sections. The line going into the black section turns white in in this last part.]<br />
:Fraction of this image which is white<br />
:Fraction of this image which is black<br />
<br />
:[A bar graph labeled with a label over the Y-axis. There are three black bars with a label below each bar. Bar 1 is of medium height, bar 2 highest and bar 3 the lowest.]<br />
:Amount of black ink by panel:<br />
:1 2 3<br />
<br />
:[A scatter-plot with a label over the Y-axis. In the bottom left corner of the graph, the two axis has a tick just away from the origo, and these are labeled with zeros. The graph shows the whole comic scaled proportionally to fit the axes. The scale is too small to actually read any of the text in this representation, which would of course be the same as that noted here for the two previous panel and for this panel here below:]<br />
:Location of black ink in this image:<br />
:0<br />
:0<br />
<br />
==Trivia==<br />
*This is one of the [[:Category:Footer comics|five footer comics]] linked at the bottom part of the {{xkcd}} website.<br />
*This is one of the comics available as signed prints at the xkcd store<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Pie charts]]<br />
[[Category:Bar chart]]<br />
[[Category:Scatter plots]]<br />
[[Category:Math]]<br />
[[Category:Footer comics]]<br />
[[Category:Self-reference]]</div>108.162.215.118https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1797:_Stardew_Valley&diff=1350591797: Stardew Valley2017-02-10T14:47:32Z<p>108.162.215.118: He wasn't trying to freak out the cat</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1797<br />
| date = February 10, 2017<br />
| title = Stardew Valley<br />
| image = stardew_valley.png<br />
| titletext = I have accidentally watered virtually every person and object in Pelican Town.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
== Explanation ==<br />
''{{w|Stardew Valley}}'' is an indie farming simulation role-playing video game published by Chucklefish Games. Pelican Town is where the player moves to at the start of the game, located in Stardew Valley. Pelican Town is where most of the villagers live, work, and socialize. In a similar fashion to games such as {{w|Farmville}} or {{w|Harvest Moon (series)|Harvest Moon}}, the game is a farming simulator where you take the role of a farmer and perform everyday tasks such as watering plants, growing food, and running a farm.<br />
<br />
One common task in Stardew Valley is to water your plants. Due to how the controls work, it is quite common to accidentally use the watering can on other objects - such as a cat. This comic explains the "morning routine" of an average citizen in Pelican Town, where it's as simple as walking to plants and pressing the "water" button. However, the farmer (who appears to be Cueball) accidentally uses the watering can on the cat instead of interacting with it, causing the cat to wake up and freak out. Cueball responds with a typical "Dammit", possibly referring to the fact that this has happened before. The title text refers to this, as it is implied that this also has happened multiple times to other objects, not just the cat..<br />
<br />
Stardew Valley was also mentioned two weeks prior in [[1790: Sad]].<br />
<br />
== Transcript ==<br />
Stardew Valley morning routine<br />
<br />
[Cueball wakes up]<br />
<br />
Cueball: YAWN<br />
<br />
[Cueball walks toward right side of the panel with watering can]<br />
<br />
[Cueball waters some flowers]<br />
<br />
SPLISH<br />
<br />
[Cueball walks toward left side of the panel with watering can]<br />
<br />
[Cueball sees a sleeping cat]<br />
<br />
Cat: Z<br />
<br />
[Cueball waters the cat]<br />
<br />
SPLISH<br />
<br />
Cat: MROWL!!<br />
<br />
Cueball: -DAMMIT.<br />
<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>108.162.215.118https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:919:_Tween_Bromance&diff=126115Talk:919: Tween Bromance2016-09-03T03:49:00Z<p>108.162.215.118: </p>
<hr />
<div>Language elitist. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|purple|David}}<font color=green size=3px>y</font></u><font color=indigo size=4px>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 09:26, 9 March 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I think this needs an incomplete flag: the explanation needs more contextual detail, about colloquial portmanteaus like 'frenemy' and the common disapproval of 'words' like 'irregardless'. --[[User:Mynotoar|Mynotoar]] ([[User talk:Mynotoar|talk]]) 08:59, 9 February 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
GAH! He's not DICTATING, the title is another joke! Tween? Bromance? Come on fellas and ladies. They are the first two portmanteaus! Cueball is essentially spitting out a sentence with an endless stream of irritating, inane, infintilisms, in an incredibly insensitive, lol, effort to drive Megan to the brink of insanity! Couldn't resist that last one. Yiffed made me giggle, the rest, connected to it, made my abs hurt from laughing, especially after Megan's reaction. He deserves a medal. Oh goodness. No profile so please don't use my IP address to violate me via the Internetz, if that is possible to do with an IP address. I would not know. Grazie. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.55.84|173.245.55.84]] 09:32, 22 February 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I'm not anybody here, I was just passing by and enjoying the annotations on these xkcd comics, but it seems to me like no explanation of this comic would be complete without talking about word aversion, sometimes called "the moist panties phenomenon", if someone wants to be funny. Basically, he is listing words that make people (or Randall himself?) uncomfortable. This page --- http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/004835.html -- talks about word aversion in relation to the more common "word rage" that some neologisms and words that began as errors provoke. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.237.192|108.162.237.192]] 08:52, 22 August 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
The back of the chair is missing in the first frame. Probably just a mistake but didn't see it mentioned. {{unsigned ip|108.162.216.33}}<br />
<br />
Just a question: tween really is PRE-adolescent?? I always thought it was the equivalent of ten -> teen for twenty, so someone out of their teens, but in their (presumably early) twenties. I definitely have seen it used as such on different occasions, but it might have been by non-native speakers, as I am not living in an english-speaking country. Also, in my opinion, the rest of the comic has more of a twenty-somethings-who-never-came-out-of-puberty ring to it than a child's. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.85.69|162.158.85.69]] 19:41, 30 August 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
By my understanding, a "tween" is someone aged (roughly) 10-12, i.e. somewhere "between" early childhood and teenager-hood.</div>108.162.215.118https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1663:_Garden&diff=1167581663: Garden2016-04-07T01:30:36Z<p>108.162.215.118: /* Bugs */ davean davean davean</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1663<br />
| date = April 4, 2016<br />
| title = Garden<br />
| image = garden.png <!--This is the starting point and should be used here. Other images need to go in the explanation --><br />
| titletext = Relax. <br />
}}<br />
<div class="toclimit-3" style="float:right; margin-left: 10px;">__TOC__</div><br />
*'''Note''' this is an interactive comic. Go to xkcd to try it out.<br />
*Currently there are links to '''images of items that can appear in the comic''' here: [[1663: Garden/Images]]! In time it could be the actual images as well.<br />
*'''Post screen shots of your garden''' (or others gardens and other images) on this page [[1663: Garden/Screen-shots]]!<br />
*'''Post links to your own garden''' on this page [[1663: Garden/Users gardens]] to let other users see what you have created!<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|Include a table with all possible items as [[1663: Garden/Images#Images of items|listed here]] with image, links to image on xkcd, explanations and link to a screenshot/download of a garden where each item "grows". Only screen shots are useful for the real explanation [[1663: Garden/Screen-shots|post them here]], as content of urls change with time. More on how color of light and lamp position etc. affect growth as well as different positions in image develop different plant and items.}}<br />
<br />
This comics represents the [[:Category:April fools' comics|April fools' comic]] of 2016, and it is [[Randall|Randall's]] celebration of {{w|April Fools' Day}} Friday, April 1, 2016. <br />
<br />
Due to technical problems (or to make [[#April Fool's header text|fools of his fans?]]) the comic did not go live until Sunday evening (after midnight, so technically first on Monday April 4th) so there was no Friday release in the week before, and the Wednesday comic [[1662: Jack and Jill]] got a lot more attention than it would usually have had. <br />
<br />
This comic thus turned in to the Monday release instead, as no other comic was released later that Monday (which would have taken attention away from this very special comic), even though it was called the ''April 1st comic '' and later ''Friday comic'' in the [[#April Fool's header text|header text]] displayed at the top of xkcd to explain why there was no Friday comic. This stayed, but changed from April 1st and during the weekend until the late release past midnight Sunday in the US. (It was even past midnight {{w|Pacific Time}}, but not yet on Hawaii...) There were thus only two comics released in the week before this Monday, which may be the first time since xkcd went live on {{xkcd||xkcd.com}} in 2006.<br />
<br />
The comic begins with a [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/f1/Garden_Loading_collage.png loading screen] with a revolving tree and the text "loading..." This is because the first time a computer loads this dynamic comic it can take a while. <br />
<br />
Once it is loaded it displays "your '''Garden'''" being the barren landscape with a lamp as shown at the top of the explanation here. But if you leave the lights on and wait (or "relax", as the reader is told to do by the title text), then plants and other items will start to appear. The reason it is correct to call it "your garden" is that every time this comic is loaded from scratch, a new garden will be created with a unique url-address. By saving this link (making a bookmark for it), the user will be able to return to their garden again and again. As the garden only develops very slowly this is important. (If users wish to share their garden they can do it in the table on the page for '''[[1663: Garden/Users gardens|Users gardens]]''').<br />
<br />
Plants appear one at a time, and sometimes it takes a long time. Only a few of the plants actually grow. For instance there are some large trees that begins as [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/27/1663_garden_Fast_growing_tree_-_leafless.png a large trunk] and from there [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/67/1663_garden_Fast_growing_tree_-_lots_of_leaves.png grows branches and leaves]. This can sometimes happen quite fast. Most other plants just appear. Most of the plants sway in the breeze. Also animals and characters including [[Cueball]], [[Megan]] and [[Beret Guy]] (see [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6b/1663_garden_Megan_with_sword%2C_trees_octopuses_with_Cueball_bunny_ducklings.png Megan and Cueball] and [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/77/1663_garden_Beret_guy_and_cat_and_much_more.png and Beret Guy's torso]) may appear as well as buildings and other items (see [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/15/1663_garden_Megan_Monolith_Animals_and_more.png Monolith and birdbath] and in the above a gate, [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/de/1663_garden_Cueball_hand_in_deer_two_rovers_office_furniture_two_Cueballs_on_top.png and here] a couple of [[:Category:Mars rovers|Mars rovers]]). See all the possible items images here [[1663: Garden/Images]] and real examples from users gardens here [[1663: Garden/Screen-shots]].<br />
<br />
Every so often the image will refresh. You can change the number of lamps, their position, direction, beam width and the color temperature which always begins somewhere between white and yellow, but can change all the way from red to blue (See this [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/b8/Garden_Three_Lamp_screen_shot.png example] with one lamp selected and three colors of light). Other colors than those four may appear where two lamps light cone of different colored light overlap. <br />
<br />
How much the color affects the growth is too early to say, but there is definitely some correlation that comes most clear with pure red (desert theme with [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/98/1663_garden_Desert_with_red_light_only.png cactus and turtles] (on cactus)) and pure blue (aquatic theme with [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/23/1663_garden_Octopus_garden_with_Cueball_hand_up_and_a_black_hat_octopus.png lots of octopuses] that may wear a [[Black Hat]]!) For the most interesting gardens the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/15/1663_garden_Megan_Monolith_Animals_and_more.png light colors should be mixed], see more below under [[#Effect of light|Effect of light]]. <br />
<br />
If this comic is scientifically accurate, that correlation will be based on {{w|photosynthetically active radiation}}. <br />
<br />
The title text "Relax" is self-explaining but there are actually two other title texts as well. And although they are also self-explanatory they should be mentioned. They are explanations for what the two icons in the top right corner does and appear when the cursor hovers over them. They are ''Create new light'' and ''Remove selected (delete key)'', the last explaining that the delete key can also be used.<br />
<br />
===Functionality===<br />
====Lamps====<br />
*The position of the lamp can be moved by clicking and dragging the lamp.<br />
*The angle of the lamp can be rotated by clicking the lamp to reveal the red control triangle, and dragging it left or right, rotating it around the lamp.<br />
*The area of the lamp can be adjusted from a narrow beam to a wide flood by clicking the lamp to reveal the red control triangle, and dragging it towards (wider) or away from (narrower) relative to the lamp.<br />
*The light's color can be changed by clicking the lamp to reveal the red control dot, and by rotating the dot around the lamp. From the Center position (Light Yellow) the dot can be rotated Right (Yellow/Orange/Red) or Left (White/Cyan/Blue). <br />
**Up to nine different colors can be achieved with [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/50/1663_garden_Single_colors.png a single lamp].<br />
**Many more when two or three colors overlap from [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/90/1663_garden_Three_colors.png three lamps].<br />
***See more details about about this under how these [[1663:_Garden/Screen-shots#Color_maps|color maps]] have been made.<br />
*Additional lamps (up to three total) can be added by clicking the black plus lamp icon along the right of the window.<br />
*Lamps can be removed by clicking the lamp, then clicking the red X icon along the right of the window, or pressing the Delete key on the keyboard.<br />
<br />
====Effect of light====<br />
*How much the color affects the growth is too early to say, but there is definitely some correlation. <br />
**For instance areas under lights set to the blue end of the spectrum develop an [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/23/1663_garden_Octopus_garden_with_Cueball_hand_up_and_a_black_hat_octopus.png aquatic theme] with lots of octopuses and maybe a Cueball. <br />
**Areas under lights set to the red end of the spectrum develop a [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/98/1663_garden_Desert_with_red_light_only.png desert theme] with cactus and turtles. <br />
**Light yellow (starting light) seems great for [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/39/1663_garden_Yellow_plant_and_Megan_world.png plants and animals] and also birdbath and Megan likes it.<br />
**Mixed light seems to be able to do the same but also much more.<br />
**What happens if using other than the two outer points red and blue and the starting light yellow color has not been explored in depth yet.<br />
*Nothing seems to be able to grow under several conditions:<br />
**If no lamps are pointing towards the ground for instance because:<br />
***All [http://xkcd.com/1663/#21374f9e-fbbd-11e5-8001-42010a8e0015 lamps are deleted].<br />
***The [http://xkcd.com/1663/#4896b678-fbbe-11e5-8001-42010a8e0011 beam is laser thin.]<br />
***The lamps points towards the sky without [http://www.xkcd.com/1663/#6a6a7be0-fbbe-11e5-800d-42010a8e0008 touching the ground.]<br />
***The lamps are [http://xkcd.com/1663/#c75991f6-fbbe-11e5-8001-42010a8e0011 below the ground pointing down].<br />
****On the other hand if the lamps are below the ground but pointing up it can result in growth well enough as shown in this [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/7c/1663_garden_Different_light_from_below_the_ground.png example] and this [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/3a/1663_garden_Yellow_light_from_below_the_ground.png example].<br />
**It was believed that if the lamps where very close to the ground pointing straight down there would be no growth. <br />
***However this can be because only a very small area is illuminated<br />
****In this [http://www.xkcd.com/#9733dff4-fbbe-11e5-8001-42010a8e0012 example] there are turtles under the red light although it is not higher up than the yellow or blue.<br />
****Similar in this [http://xkcd.com/1663/#357a48d8-fbbf-11e5-8019-42010a8e0006 example] there are a deer and a cactus from even lower lamps.<br />
****Of course the lamp has to be so high as not to be underground as mentioned above.<br />
**Also if lamps point towards the ground there can still only grow something from the ground [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/3e/1663_garden_Two_light_on_small_area_nothing_outside_the_light.png where the light touches]. The growth can move outside the light cones up in the air, but the base has to be within and area with light.<br />
***Of course lights can be moved and changed without destroying what has already grown there (or so it seems). So a particular garden cannot be used to determine this.<br />
***This is why some [[1663:_Garden/Users_gardens#Experimental_gardens|Experimental gardens]] have been set up, and for those with bold text there will be no changes ever. <br />
***Examples from above has mainly been taken from this, or from the other gardens there. But then screen shots are preferable as the gardens change.<br />
<br />
====Grown Items====<br />
*Grown items may be highlighted by clicking on them.Selected grown items will be highlighted with a red circle, and appear slightly lighter then other items.<br />
*Grown items may be "pruned" by the red X icon along the right of the window, or pressing the Delete key on the keyboard.<br />
*Some items (such as the large tree) can be deleted in minor parts by selecting a branch or smaller set of leaves without deleting the entire tree.<br />
<br />
====Saving images====<br />
*In Edge, Firefox and Chrome, the image plus light cones but minus lamps and icons elements, can be saved by right clicking in the image.<br />
**They do not always save in the same way as some browsers saves the part of the background without any light cones as white, and other save it as no background, in which case it may render black, basically hiding any black items outside the light. <br />
***For those images it depends on which viewer is used to see the image, if everything can be seen or only that in the light cones. (Example will follow later).<br />
*An image of the whole screen can be captured, by pressing the PrtScn (Print Screen) key on the keyboard & then pasting the content into a blank image in an image-editing program.<br />
<br />
====Saving garden with url====<br />
*There is no [[1350#Permalink|permalink button]] as in the last two years' April Fool's comics.<br />
*The URL is different for every garden that is loaded, but stays the same. It links to a server-side copy of the scene, which then changes depending on what the users does with their gardens.<br />
**Sharing a URL will connect a new browser to the same garden session, but only the original browser will be allowed to edit.<br />
**The user can always return to change the garden with the link, but only from the same browser on the same computer.<br />
*The garden itself will thus continue to develop further from the time when the url was copied, and events will happen from now on even though the garden is not opened in any browser.<br />
**If the user doesn't keep it, it will become infested with weeds.<br />
**So most likely the garden is serverside, as all browsers are allowed to see the development of this garden, but users following the url are not allowed to edit anything.<br />
*Here is an example garden [http://www.xkcd.com/1663/#0d11a2c8-fa8f-11e5-8001-42010a8e000e linked by ID] versus the same garden:<br />
**In the original [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/7f/1663_garden_tree_turtle_birdbath.png screenshot from April 4th] from when the url was created<br />
**In a [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/7c/1663_garden_Flying_birds_deer_gate_with_cactus_turtles_snake_etc.png screenshot from April 5th] the day after.<br />
**Here [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/5a/1663_garden_Pruned_garden_with_birds_deer_gate_cactus_turtles_snake_gate.png example] after the user pruned the garden in the examples.<br />
*Starting two browser windows or tabs pointing to the same URL will allow you to edit from either window.<br />
**linden.xkcd.com holds all the data; the UUID just corresponds to your access key, held in your browser's local storage.<br />
<br />
===Bugs===<br />
*There have been several bugs mentioned already after the first day. Please include any spotted here:<br />
**Also some problems that may now be fixed.<br />
*May not run on some tablets or smart phones (i.e. touch-screen only devices).<br />
*There are some browser versions of Chrome and Firefox where it doesn't run.<br />
*The lamps may be invisible for a few seconds after loading.<br />
*The whole page used to refresh at random intervals and lose the whole progress.<br />
**It still does on April 5th.<br />
**Sometimes (in some browsers?) the garden is reloaded when refreshing.<br />
***This may though be because of the url which is a [[#Saving garden with url|link to a given garden]]. <br />
***See examples of this [[1663: Garden/Users gardens|here]].<br />
***Seems to be dependent on the browser type.<br />
*Some lamps jumped back to their starting position after a few minutes, without the whole page reloading.<br />
*For a few hours after its apparition, the loading didn't seem to stop for some people, making them think that the rotating tree was the whole joke, with people expected to "relax" while looking at it.<br />
*Occasionally invisible objects are added. They can be deleted, and they have bounding boxes in the debugger. [http://xkcd.com/1663/?debug#d12a0932-faaa-11e5-8012-42010a8e0006]<br />
*Doesn't work over https, you have to use http instead.<br />
*It is possible to save the image in Chrome and in Firefox, but not in Explorer.<br />
**It is possible to save the visible portion of the image (in any browser) by pressing the Print-Screen key to perform a screen capture.<br />
**But in Chrome the image is black where there is no light.<br />
**In Firefox everything is visible, wth the light cones (in color) shown.<br />
*Appears to have a memory leak at least in some Windows/Firefox versions, as keeping the page open for a long time will cause Windows to kill Firefox for insufficient memory.<br />
**On the forum, Weeks tries to summon davean! [http://forums.xkcd.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=114415&start=320#p3951923]<br />
*Does not work in many Linux versions.<br />
*Tree trunks will sometimes grow endlessly without leaves depending on the lights hitting them.<br />
*If you are dragging a light, the arrow, or the color slider when a refresh happens, the refresh will enter an infinite loop.<br />
**This seems to cause corruption of the garden because refreshing the whole page will result in a loop that never loads the page.<br />
**Clearing your local data for xkcd.com solves the issue but also makes you unable to edit your garden.<br />
*On April 6, gardens viewed from [http://xkcd.com/1663/#7877bdfc-fc03-11e5-8001-42010a8e000c http://xkcd.com/1663/] links began to include double-size objects, while they appeared <s>normally</s> with different objects enlarged when viewed from [http://linden.xkcd.com/#7877bdfc-fc03-11e5-8001-42010a8e000c http://linden.xkcd.com/].<br />
**Apparently some of the server's art files have been <s>misdirected to the larger versions</s> replaced with new large images. [http://linden.xkcd.com/art/rover.png] [http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-rover.png]<br />
**New giant objects are still placed according to their original sizes. [http://forums.xkcd.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=114415&start=320#p3951908]<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[After a '''loading image''' with a rotating tree in the middle and the text "Loading..." with the three dots appearing one at a time, and then disappear when all three have been there the image shown above in the explanation will appear:]<br />
<br />
:['''Description of the image above''': A piece of bare landscape is shown. At the edges there are some rocks or stones raising the level from the general level through the center of the panel. Above the middle, a little more than halfway to the to of the panel, is a light bulb sitting inside a lamp that reminds of the desk lamp from the movie Luxo Jr. The lamp shines a yellow light down on the landscape in a broad cone that jus reaches the first rock to the left, but not those to the right. The lamp just hovers in the air. In the top right corner are two gray icons. The top one has a black frame and shows an image of a lamp, tilted left as opposed to the straight position of the lamp in the image. There is a + sign below in the left corner. The second icon without a frame has a large white cross in the middle.]<br />
<br />
:[This turns out to be a '''web applet''' and using the "+ lamp" icon two more lamps can be added getting up to three. They are all adjustable both regarding position, direction, color of light and beam width. When selecting a lamp a red circle appear around it with a small circle on top that can be used to control the light color from blue to the left to red to the right. In front is a red arrow that can turn the lamp and it can also be used to change the beam width by pulling it away from the lamp or pushing it back. The lamps can be moved by just clicking on it and moving it. The other icon with a X can be used to remove the lamps (and later any object that appear in the garden). When any object is selected there is a red circle around it. When this is done the gray cross icon becomes red and can the be used to delete the selected item. When no item is selected (either because it is deleted, or by clicking in a part of the screen with no items), then the cross icon turns gray again. When all three lamps are on, then the "+ lamp" icon is faded out.]<br />
<br />
:['''If you wait''' (or relax, as in the title text), then a plant will grow or animals, humans and other items may appear. This could be birds, snakes, octopuses or turtles, Megan or Cueball or a birdbath, a monolith or a tall gate just as a few examples. Most of the items appear in one go, but at least the largest trees grow up with a big stem first and then adds parts later with leaves or empty branches. Also one item may appear on top of another item and for instance birds may fly in the air.]<br />
<br />
==Trivia==<br />
===April Fool's header text===<br />
*There is some debate as to whether this comic is an April Fool's comic or not. And if instead the April fool's joke was the text written above the comic in the header of xkcd.<br />
**This continued at least until the next comic after this was released Wednesday.<br />
**Here below is the different header text with info on when it appeared.<br />
***Links are given when possible to a [[1663:_Garden/Screen-shots#Screen-shots_of_header_text|screen shots]] on the word ''message'' and to a webarchive in another link when both are available.<br />
*On Friday, April 1st, 2016, the xkcd website changed to a new [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/81/1663_garden_April_1st_comic_is_currently_experiencing_technical_difficulties.png message] where the standard message "XKCD updates every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday." usually is, and [http://web.archive.org/web/20160401204749/https://xkcd.com/ began displaying] this instead:<br />
::The xkcd April 1st comic is currently experiencing technical difficulties. <br />
::Please stand by! <br />
*Early Saturday April 2nd the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e0/1663_garden_Calendar_systems_in_which_Saturday_is_April_1st.png message] was [http://web.archive.org/web/20160402050932/http://xkcd.com updated]:<br />
::The xkcd April 1st comic is currently experiencing technical difficulties.<br />
::Status update: Please stand by.<br />
::Status update: This is fine. Everything is fine.<br />
::Status update: Everything is on fire.<br />
::Status update: Searching for calendar systems in which Saturday is April 1st.<br />
*Later on Saturday the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/06/1663_garden_Delayed_until_Sunday_night.png message] was again [http://web.archive.org/web/20160402175822/http://www.xkcd.com changed] to:<br />
::The Friday xkcd comic is currently experiencing technical difficulties<br />
::[Editor's note: Everything is on fire] and has been delayed until Sunday night.<br />
*The comic did not come out until past midnight in the entire North America (coming out just before midnight in Hawaii).<br />
*It was finally released very early on Monday April 4th, and the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/53/Garden_Loading_screen_shot.png message] then [http://web.archive.org/web/20160404123555/http://xkcd.com/ returned] to the old standard text for xkcd for a short while: <br />
::XKCD updates every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.<br />
*During April 4th, the message then changed to display a [[:Category:Protip|Protip]]:<br />
::'''Protip:''' If you don't like how your garden is growing, you can click to prune it.<br />
*And then later on April 4th, the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a2/1663_garden_Protip_and_url_hint.png message] was again [http://web.archive.org/web/20160404185353/http://www.xkcd.com/#5dbfbb82-fc20-11e5-8001-42010a8e000d changed] to:<br />
::'''Protip:''' If you don't like how your garden is growing, you can click to prune it.<br />
::You can copy the URL to share your garden. From other browsers, it will be view-only. <br />
*When the next comic came out, the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/61/1663_garden_Note_if_seeing_todays_comic.png message] then changed to<br />
::'''Protip:''' If you don't like how your garden is growing, you can click to prune it.<br />
::You can copy the URL to share your garden. From other browsers, it will be view-only.<br />
<br><br />
::Note: If you're seeing today's comic in place of your garden, change the URL from xkcd.com/#<your code> to xkcd.com/1663/#<your code>.<br />
*Several things can be deduced from the above:<br />
**It is clear that this comic did actually come out as promised, at least as promised in the third message about release on Sunday night.<br />
**It is also clear that it is regarded as the Friday comic, even in the last update before the release.<br />
**It is also clear that this was a very complex comic, and it is realistic that Randall did have problems with making it work. Even on day two there still seems to be several minor bugs, so he may even still be working on it. <br />
*Both of the last two April Fool's comics, [[1350: Lorenz]] and [[1506: xkcloud]], have had no real meaning or joke in the comic. The jokes appeared from user input, and here from waiting. <br />
**This makes people who spend too much time on them April Fools (or if they rather wish to be called a nerd than a fool, then they have been victim of [[356: Nerd Sniping|nerd sniping]]).<br />
**So, even if Randall ''did'' play a joke on people who [[Talk:1662: Jack and Jill#What happened to Friday's comic|eagerly awaited the comic]], then he did deliver as promised a spectacular comic Sunday night. <br />
*There are other reasons for believing that Randall would have preferred the comic to get out on Friday April 1st.<br />
**Apart from it being a time consuming comic that in it self is April Fool's comic material, then by getting it out Friday this special comic that he must have used lots of time to prepare, would have had one more day as the first comic.<br />
**Getting it out before a weekend would have let many more users spend time looking at their garden. Now many would not spend enough time to appreciate the comic, as it came out right when the new work week began.<br />
**And before next weekend two more comics will (presumably) have been released taking some of the focus away from this one.<br />
**Randall lives of his fans goodwill and to deliberately make a pun on them like this would probably not seem like a good bossiness proposal, apart from the fact that the comic now gets less attention than by coming out before the weekend.<br />
<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]<br />
[[Category:Dynamic comics]]<br />
[[Category:Interactive comics]]<br />
[[Category:Comics with animation]] <!-- The trees and plants wave in the breeze --><br />
[[Category:April fools' comics]] <!-- This was delayed but if not directly an April fool's comic then the comments leading up to it was, and this is the only comic to list as April fools' this year --><br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]] <!-- Only include characters if you an back it up with an image. So please only include Ponytail when finding her in a garden and posting a screen shot. Megan is already shown in a screen shots. --><br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]] <!-- There is now an image with Cueball in the image section --><br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]] <!-- There is now an image with BEret Guys from torso and up in the image section --><br />
[[Category:Animals]] <!-- Several --><br />
[[Category:Mars rovers]] <!-- There are now and image of a garden with two rovers --><br />
[[Category:Protip]] <!-- The tip given in the header of xkcd as a reaction to the comic. Maybe that will not be permanent, but it will be mentioned in the explanation here and should stay--></div>108.162.215.118https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1663:_Garden&diff=1167571663: Garden2016-04-07T01:06:18Z<p>108.162.215.118: /* Bugs */ not disastrous for new growh</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1663<br />
| date = April 4, 2016<br />
| title = Garden<br />
| image = garden.png <!--This is the starting point and should be used here. Other images need to go in the explanation --><br />
| titletext = Relax. <br />
}}<br />
<div class="toclimit-3" style="float:right; margin-left: 10px;">__TOC__</div><br />
*'''Note''' this is an interactive comic. Go to xkcd to try it out.<br />
*Currently there are links to '''images of items that can appear in the comic''' here: [[1663: Garden/Images]]! In time it could be the actual images as well.<br />
*'''Post screen shots of your garden''' (or others gardens and other images) on this page [[1663: Garden/Screen-shots]]!<br />
*'''Post links to your own garden''' on this page [[1663: Garden/Users gardens]] to let other users see what you have created!<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|Include a table with all possible items as [[1663: Garden/Images#Images of items|listed here]] with image, links to image on xkcd, explanations and link to a screenshot/download of a garden where each item "grows". Only screen shots are useful for the real explanation [[1663: Garden/Screen-shots|post them here]], as content of urls change with time. More on how color of light and lamp position etc. affect growth as well as different positions in image develop different plant and items.}}<br />
<br />
This comics represents the [[:Category:April fools' comics|April fools' comic]] of 2016, and it is [[Randall|Randall's]] celebration of {{w|April Fools' Day}} Friday, April 1, 2016. <br />
<br />
Due to technical problems (or to make [[#April Fool's header text|fools of his fans?]]) the comic did not go live until Sunday evening (after midnight, so technically first on Monday April 4th) so there was no Friday release in the week before, and the Wednesday comic [[1662: Jack and Jill]] got a lot more attention than it would usually have had. <br />
<br />
This comic thus turned in to the Monday release instead, as no other comic was released later that Monday (which would have taken attention away from this very special comic), even though it was called the ''April 1st comic '' and later ''Friday comic'' in the [[#April Fool's header text|header text]] displayed at the top of xkcd to explain why there was no Friday comic. This stayed, but changed from April 1st and during the weekend until the late release past midnight Sunday in the US. (It was even past midnight {{w|Pacific Time}}, but not yet on Hawaii...) There were thus only two comics released in the week before this Monday, which may be the first time since xkcd went live on {{xkcd||xkcd.com}} in 2006.<br />
<br />
The comic begins with a [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/f/f1/Garden_Loading_collage.png loading screen] with a revolving tree and the text "loading..." This is because the first time a computer loads this dynamic comic it can take a while. <br />
<br />
Once it is loaded it displays "your '''Garden'''" being the barren landscape with a lamp as shown at the top of the explanation here. But if you leave the lights on and wait (or "relax", as the reader is told to do by the title text), then plants and other items will start to appear. The reason it is correct to call it "your garden" is that every time this comic is loaded from scratch, a new garden will be created with a unique url-address. By saving this link (making a bookmark for it), the user will be able to return to their garden again and again. As the garden only develops very slowly this is important. (If users wish to share their garden they can do it in the table on the page for '''[[1663: Garden/Users gardens|Users gardens]]''').<br />
<br />
Plants appear one at a time, and sometimes it takes a long time. Only a few of the plants actually grow. For instance there are some large trees that begins as [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/27/1663_garden_Fast_growing_tree_-_leafless.png a large trunk] and from there [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/67/1663_garden_Fast_growing_tree_-_lots_of_leaves.png grows branches and leaves]. This can sometimes happen quite fast. Most other plants just appear. Most of the plants sway in the breeze. Also animals and characters including [[Cueball]], [[Megan]] and [[Beret Guy]] (see [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/6b/1663_garden_Megan_with_sword%2C_trees_octopuses_with_Cueball_bunny_ducklings.png Megan and Cueball] and [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/77/1663_garden_Beret_guy_and_cat_and_much_more.png and Beret Guy's torso]) may appear as well as buildings and other items (see [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/15/1663_garden_Megan_Monolith_Animals_and_more.png Monolith and birdbath] and in the above a gate, [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/d/de/1663_garden_Cueball_hand_in_deer_two_rovers_office_furniture_two_Cueballs_on_top.png and here] a couple of [[:Category:Mars rovers|Mars rovers]]). See all the possible items images here [[1663: Garden/Images]] and real examples from users gardens here [[1663: Garden/Screen-shots]].<br />
<br />
Every so often the image will refresh. You can change the number of lamps, their position, direction, beam width and the color temperature which always begins somewhere between white and yellow, but can change all the way from red to blue (See this [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/b/b8/Garden_Three_Lamp_screen_shot.png example] with one lamp selected and three colors of light). Other colors than those four may appear where two lamps light cone of different colored light overlap. <br />
<br />
How much the color affects the growth is too early to say, but there is definitely some correlation that comes most clear with pure red (desert theme with [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/98/1663_garden_Desert_with_red_light_only.png cactus and turtles] (on cactus)) and pure blue (aquatic theme with [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/23/1663_garden_Octopus_garden_with_Cueball_hand_up_and_a_black_hat_octopus.png lots of octopuses] that may wear a [[Black Hat]]!) For the most interesting gardens the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/1/15/1663_garden_Megan_Monolith_Animals_and_more.png light colors should be mixed], see more below under [[#Effect of light|Effect of light]]. <br />
<br />
If this comic is scientifically accurate, that correlation will be based on {{w|photosynthetically active radiation}}. <br />
<br />
The title text "Relax" is self-explaining but there are actually two other title texts as well. And although they are also self-explanatory they should be mentioned. They are explanations for what the two icons in the top right corner does and appear when the cursor hovers over them. They are ''Create new light'' and ''Remove selected (delete key)'', the last explaining that the delete key can also be used.<br />
<br />
===Functionality===<br />
====Lamps====<br />
*The position of the lamp can be moved by clicking and dragging the lamp.<br />
*The angle of the lamp can be rotated by clicking the lamp to reveal the red control triangle, and dragging it left or right, rotating it around the lamp.<br />
*The area of the lamp can be adjusted from a narrow beam to a wide flood by clicking the lamp to reveal the red control triangle, and dragging it towards (wider) or away from (narrower) relative to the lamp.<br />
*The light's color can be changed by clicking the lamp to reveal the red control dot, and by rotating the dot around the lamp. From the Center position (Light Yellow) the dot can be rotated Right (Yellow/Orange/Red) or Left (White/Cyan/Blue). <br />
**Up to nine different colors can be achieved with [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/50/1663_garden_Single_colors.png a single lamp].<br />
**Many more when two or three colors overlap from [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/90/1663_garden_Three_colors.png three lamps].<br />
***See more details about about this under how these [[1663:_Garden/Screen-shots#Color_maps|color maps]] have been made.<br />
*Additional lamps (up to three total) can be added by clicking the black plus lamp icon along the right of the window.<br />
*Lamps can be removed by clicking the lamp, then clicking the red X icon along the right of the window, or pressing the Delete key on the keyboard.<br />
<br />
====Effect of light====<br />
*How much the color affects the growth is too early to say, but there is definitely some correlation. <br />
**For instance areas under lights set to the blue end of the spectrum develop an [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/2/23/1663_garden_Octopus_garden_with_Cueball_hand_up_and_a_black_hat_octopus.png aquatic theme] with lots of octopuses and maybe a Cueball. <br />
**Areas under lights set to the red end of the spectrum develop a [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/9/98/1663_garden_Desert_with_red_light_only.png desert theme] with cactus and turtles. <br />
**Light yellow (starting light) seems great for [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/39/1663_garden_Yellow_plant_and_Megan_world.png plants and animals] and also birdbath and Megan likes it.<br />
**Mixed light seems to be able to do the same but also much more.<br />
**What happens if using other than the two outer points red and blue and the starting light yellow color has not been explored in depth yet.<br />
*Nothing seems to be able to grow under several conditions:<br />
**If no lamps are pointing towards the ground for instance because:<br />
***All [http://xkcd.com/1663/#21374f9e-fbbd-11e5-8001-42010a8e0015 lamps are deleted].<br />
***The [http://xkcd.com/1663/#4896b678-fbbe-11e5-8001-42010a8e0011 beam is laser thin.]<br />
***The lamps points towards the sky without [http://www.xkcd.com/1663/#6a6a7be0-fbbe-11e5-800d-42010a8e0008 touching the ground.]<br />
***The lamps are [http://xkcd.com/1663/#c75991f6-fbbe-11e5-8001-42010a8e0011 below the ground pointing down].<br />
****On the other hand if the lamps are below the ground but pointing up it can result in growth well enough as shown in this [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/7c/1663_garden_Different_light_from_below_the_ground.png example] and this [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/3a/1663_garden_Yellow_light_from_below_the_ground.png example].<br />
**It was believed that if the lamps where very close to the ground pointing straight down there would be no growth. <br />
***However this can be because only a very small area is illuminated<br />
****In this [http://www.xkcd.com/#9733dff4-fbbe-11e5-8001-42010a8e0012 example] there are turtles under the red light although it is not higher up than the yellow or blue.<br />
****Similar in this [http://xkcd.com/1663/#357a48d8-fbbf-11e5-8019-42010a8e0006 example] there are a deer and a cactus from even lower lamps.<br />
****Of course the lamp has to be so high as not to be underground as mentioned above.<br />
**Also if lamps point towards the ground there can still only grow something from the ground [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/3/3e/1663_garden_Two_light_on_small_area_nothing_outside_the_light.png where the light touches]. The growth can move outside the light cones up in the air, but the base has to be within and area with light.<br />
***Of course lights can be moved and changed without destroying what has already grown there (or so it seems). So a particular garden cannot be used to determine this.<br />
***This is why some [[1663:_Garden/Users_gardens#Experimental_gardens|Experimental gardens]] have been set up, and for those with bold text there will be no changes ever. <br />
***Examples from above has mainly been taken from this, or from the other gardens there. But then screen shots are preferable as the gardens change.<br />
<br />
====Grown Items====<br />
*Grown items may be highlighted by clicking on them.Selected grown items will be highlighted with a red circle, and appear slightly lighter then other items.<br />
*Grown items may be "pruned" by the red X icon along the right of the window, or pressing the Delete key on the keyboard.<br />
*Some items (such as the large tree) can be deleted in minor parts by selecting a branch or smaller set of leaves without deleting the entire tree.<br />
<br />
====Saving images====<br />
*In Edge, Firefox and Chrome, the image plus light cones but minus lamps and icons elements, can be saved by right clicking in the image.<br />
**They do not always save in the same way as some browsers saves the part of the background without any light cones as white, and other save it as no background, in which case it may render black, basically hiding any black items outside the light. <br />
***For those images it depends on which viewer is used to see the image, if everything can be seen or only that in the light cones. (Example will follow later).<br />
*An image of the whole screen can be captured, by pressing the PrtScn (Print Screen) key on the keyboard & then pasting the content into a blank image in an image-editing program.<br />
<br />
====Saving garden with url====<br />
*There is no [[1350#Permalink|permalink button]] as in the last two years' April Fool's comics.<br />
*The URL is different for every garden that is loaded, but stays the same. It links to a server-side copy of the scene, which then changes depending on what the users does with their gardens.<br />
**Sharing a URL will connect a new browser to the same garden session, but only the original browser will be allowed to edit.<br />
**The user can always return to change the garden with the link, but only from the same browser on the same computer.<br />
*The garden itself will thus continue to develop further from the time when the url was copied, and events will happen from now on even though the garden is not opened in any browser.<br />
**If the user doesn't keep it, it will become infested with weeds.<br />
**So most likely the garden is serverside, as all browsers are allowed to see the development of this garden, but users following the url are not allowed to edit anything.<br />
*Here is an example garden [http://www.xkcd.com/1663/#0d11a2c8-fa8f-11e5-8001-42010a8e000e linked by ID] versus the same garden:<br />
**In the original [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/7f/1663_garden_tree_turtle_birdbath.png screenshot from April 4th] from when the url was created<br />
**In a [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/7/7c/1663_garden_Flying_birds_deer_gate_with_cactus_turtles_snake_etc.png screenshot from April 5th] the day after.<br />
**Here [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/5a/1663_garden_Pruned_garden_with_birds_deer_gate_cactus_turtles_snake_gate.png example] after the user pruned the garden in the examples.<br />
*Starting two browser windows or tabs pointing to the same URL will allow you to edit from either window.<br />
**linden.xkcd.com holds all the data; the UUID just corresponds to your access key, held in your browser's local storage.<br />
<br />
===Bugs===<br />
*There have been several bugs mentioned already after the first day. Please include any spotted here:<br />
**Also some problems that may now be fixed.<br />
*May not run on some tablets or smart phones (i.e. touch-screen only devices).<br />
*There are some browser versions of Chrome and Firefox where it doesn't run.<br />
*The lamps may be invisible for a few seconds after loading.<br />
*The whole page used to refresh at random intervals and lose the whole progress.<br />
**It still does on April 5th.<br />
**Sometimes (in some browsers?) the garden is reloaded when refreshing.<br />
***This may though be because of the url which is a [[#Saving garden with url|link to a given garden]]. <br />
***See examples of this [[1663: Garden/Users gardens|here]].<br />
***Seems to be dependent on the browser type.<br />
*Some lamps jumped back to their starting position after a few minutes, without the whole page reloading.<br />
*For a few hours after its apparition, the loading didn't seem to stop for some people, making them think that the rotating tree was the whole joke, with people expected to "relax" while looking at it.<br />
*Occasionally invisible objects are added. They can be deleted, and they have bounding boxes in the debugger. [http://xkcd.com/1663/?debug#d12a0932-faaa-11e5-8012-42010a8e0006]<br />
*Doesn't work over https, you have to use http instead.<br />
*It is possible to save the image in Chrome and in Firefox, but not in Explorer.<br />
**It is possible to save the visible portion of the image (in any browser) by pressing the Print-Screen key to perform a screen capture.<br />
**But in Chrome the image is black where there is no light.<br />
**In Firefox everything is visible, wth the light cones (in color) shown.<br />
*Appears to have a memory leak at least in some Windows/Firefox versions, as keeping the page open for a long time will cause Windows to kill Firefox for insufficient memory.<br />
*Does not work in many Linux versions.<br />
*Tree trunks will sometimes grow endlessly without leaves depending on the lights hitting them.<br />
*If you are dragging a light, the arrow, or the color slider when a refresh happens, the refresh will enter an infinite loop.<br />
**This seems to cause corruption of the garden because refreshing the whole page will result in a loop that never loads the page.<br />
**Clearing your local data for xkcd.com solves the issue but also makes you unable to edit your garden.<br />
*On April 6, gardens viewed from [http://xkcd.com/1663/#7877bdfc-fc03-11e5-8001-42010a8e000c http://xkcd.com/1663/] links began to include double-size objects, while they appeared <s>normally</s> with different objects enlarged when viewed from [http://linden.xkcd.com/#7877bdfc-fc03-11e5-8001-42010a8e000c http://linden.xkcd.com/].<br />
**Apparently some of the server's art files have been <s>misdirected to the larger versions</s> replaced with new large images. [http://linden.xkcd.com/art/rover.png] [http://linden.xkcd.com/art/2x-rover.png]<br />
**New giant objects are still placed according to their original sizes. [http://forums.xkcd.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=114415&start=320#p3951908]<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[After a '''loading image''' with a rotating tree in the middle and the text "Loading..." with the three dots appearing one at a time, and then disappear when all three have been there the image shown above in the explanation will appear:]<br />
<br />
:['''Description of the image above''': A piece of bare landscape is shown. At the edges there are some rocks or stones raising the level from the general level through the center of the panel. Above the middle, a little more than halfway to the to of the panel, is a light bulb sitting inside a lamp that reminds of the desk lamp from the movie Luxo Jr. The lamp shines a yellow light down on the landscape in a broad cone that jus reaches the first rock to the left, but not those to the right. The lamp just hovers in the air. In the top right corner are two gray icons. The top one has a black frame and shows an image of a lamp, tilted left as opposed to the straight position of the lamp in the image. There is a + sign below in the left corner. The second icon without a frame has a large white cross in the middle.]<br />
<br />
:[This turns out to be a '''web applet''' and using the "+ lamp" icon two more lamps can be added getting up to three. They are all adjustable both regarding position, direction, color of light and beam width. When selecting a lamp a red circle appear around it with a small circle on top that can be used to control the light color from blue to the left to red to the right. In front is a red arrow that can turn the lamp and it can also be used to change the beam width by pulling it away from the lamp or pushing it back. The lamps can be moved by just clicking on it and moving it. The other icon with a X can be used to remove the lamps (and later any object that appear in the garden). When any object is selected there is a red circle around it. When this is done the gray cross icon becomes red and can the be used to delete the selected item. When no item is selected (either because it is deleted, or by clicking in a part of the screen with no items), then the cross icon turns gray again. When all three lamps are on, then the "+ lamp" icon is faded out.]<br />
<br />
:['''If you wait''' (or relax, as in the title text), then a plant will grow or animals, humans and other items may appear. This could be birds, snakes, octopuses or turtles, Megan or Cueball or a birdbath, a monolith or a tall gate just as a few examples. Most of the items appear in one go, but at least the largest trees grow up with a big stem first and then adds parts later with leaves or empty branches. Also one item may appear on top of another item and for instance birds may fly in the air.]<br />
<br />
==Trivia==<br />
===April Fool's header text===<br />
*There is some debate as to whether this comic is an April Fool's comic or not. And if instead the April fool's joke was the text written above the comic in the header of xkcd.<br />
**This continued at least until the next comic after this was released Wednesday.<br />
**Here below is the different header text with info on when it appeared.<br />
***Links are given when possible to a [[1663:_Garden/Screen-shots#Screen-shots_of_header_text|screen shots]] on the word ''message'' and to a webarchive in another link when both are available.<br />
*On Friday, April 1st, 2016, the xkcd website changed to a new [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/8/81/1663_garden_April_1st_comic_is_currently_experiencing_technical_difficulties.png message] where the standard message "XKCD updates every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday." usually is, and [http://web.archive.org/web/20160401204749/https://xkcd.com/ began displaying] this instead:<br />
::The xkcd April 1st comic is currently experiencing technical difficulties. <br />
::Please stand by! <br />
*Early Saturday April 2nd the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/e/e0/1663_garden_Calendar_systems_in_which_Saturday_is_April_1st.png message] was [http://web.archive.org/web/20160402050932/http://xkcd.com updated]:<br />
::The xkcd April 1st comic is currently experiencing technical difficulties.<br />
::Status update: Please stand by.<br />
::Status update: This is fine. Everything is fine.<br />
::Status update: Everything is on fire.<br />
::Status update: Searching for calendar systems in which Saturday is April 1st.<br />
*Later on Saturday the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/0/06/1663_garden_Delayed_until_Sunday_night.png message] was again [http://web.archive.org/web/20160402175822/http://www.xkcd.com changed] to:<br />
::The Friday xkcd comic is currently experiencing technical difficulties<br />
::[Editor's note: Everything is on fire] and has been delayed until Sunday night.<br />
*The comic did not come out until past midnight in the entire North America (coming out just before midnight in Hawaii).<br />
*It was finally released very early on Monday April 4th, and the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/5/53/Garden_Loading_screen_shot.png message] then [http://web.archive.org/web/20160404123555/http://xkcd.com/ returned] to the old standard text for xkcd for a short while: <br />
::XKCD updates every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.<br />
*During April 4th, the message then changed to display a [[:Category:Protip|Protip]]:<br />
::'''Protip:''' If you don't like how your garden is growing, you can click to prune it.<br />
*And then later on April 4th, the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a2/1663_garden_Protip_and_url_hint.png message] was again [http://web.archive.org/web/20160404185353/http://www.xkcd.com/#5dbfbb82-fc20-11e5-8001-42010a8e000d changed] to:<br />
::'''Protip:''' If you don't like how your garden is growing, you can click to prune it.<br />
::You can copy the URL to share your garden. From other browsers, it will be view-only. <br />
*When the next comic came out, the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/6/61/1663_garden_Note_if_seeing_todays_comic.png message] then changed to<br />
::'''Protip:''' If you don't like how your garden is growing, you can click to prune it.<br />
::You can copy the URL to share your garden. From other browsers, it will be view-only.<br />
<br><br />
::Note: If you're seeing today's comic in place of your garden, change the URL from xkcd.com/#<your code> to xkcd.com/1663/#<your code>.<br />
*Several things can be deduced from the above:<br />
**It is clear that this comic did actually come out as promised, at least as promised in the third message about release on Sunday night.<br />
**It is also clear that it is regarded as the Friday comic, even in the last update before the release.<br />
**It is also clear that this was a very complex comic, and it is realistic that Randall did have problems with making it work. Even on day two there still seems to be several minor bugs, so he may even still be working on it. <br />
*Both of the last two April Fool's comics, [[1350: Lorenz]] and [[1506: xkcloud]], have had no real meaning or joke in the comic. The jokes appeared from user input, and here from waiting. <br />
**This makes people who spend too much time on them April Fools (or if they rather wish to be called a nerd than a fool, then they have been victim of [[356: Nerd Sniping|nerd sniping]]).<br />
**So, even if Randall ''did'' play a joke on people who [[Talk:1662: Jack and Jill#What happened to Friday's comic|eagerly awaited the comic]], then he did deliver as promised a spectacular comic Sunday night. <br />
*There are other reasons for believing that Randall would have preferred the comic to get out on Friday April 1st.<br />
**Apart from it being a time consuming comic that in it self is April Fool's comic material, then by getting it out Friday this special comic that he must have used lots of time to prepare, would have had one more day as the first comic.<br />
**Getting it out before a weekend would have let many more users spend time looking at their garden. Now many would not spend enough time to appreciate the comic, as it came out right when the new work week began.<br />
**And before next weekend two more comics will (presumably) have been released taking some of the focus away from this one.<br />
**Randall lives of his fans goodwill and to deliberately make a pun on them like this would probably not seem like a good bossiness proposal, apart from the fact that the comic now gets less attention than by coming out before the weekend.<br />
<br />
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{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics with color]]<br />
[[Category:Dynamic comics]]<br />
[[Category:Interactive comics]]<br />
[[Category:Comics with animation]] <!-- The trees and plants wave in the breeze --><br />
[[Category:April fools' comics]] <!-- This was delayed but if not directly an April fool's comic then the comments leading up to it was, and this is the only comic to list as April fools' this year --><br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]] <!-- Only include characters if you an back it up with an image. So please only include Ponytail when finding her in a garden and posting a screen shot. Megan is already shown in a screen shots. --><br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]] <!-- There is now an image with Cueball in the image section --><br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Beret Guy]] <!-- There is now an image with BEret Guys from torso and up in the image section --><br />
[[Category:Animals]] <!-- Several --><br />
[[Category:Mars rovers]] <!-- There are now and image of a garden with two rovers --><br />
[[Category:Protip]] <!-- The tip given in the header of xkcd as a reaction to the comic. Maybe that will not be permanent, but it will be mentioned in the explanation here and should stay--></div>108.162.215.118https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1527:_Humans&diff=93711Talk:1527: Humans2015-05-20T10:51:47Z<p>108.162.215.118: </p>
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<div>Yes! Preach it, Randall! [[Special:Contributions/188.114.106.23|188.114.106.23]] 08:23, 20 May 2015 (UTC)<br />
:Everyone knows they're more akin to big cows, anyway. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.106.143|141.101.106.143]] 09:33, 20 May 2015 (UTC)<br />
::Big ''spherical'' cows. --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 10:22, 20 May 2015 (UTC)<br />
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Robots complaining about science is like humans complaining about evolution. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.231.60|108.162.231.60]] 09:49, 20 May 2015 (UTC)<br />
:Great line :) --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.215.118|108.162.215.118]] 10:51, 20 May 2015 (UTC)</div>108.162.215.118https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:811:_Starlight&diff=72991Talk:811: Starlight2014-08-06T00:50:13Z<p>108.162.215.118: </p>
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<div>I thought that was a picture frame, a mirror makes more sense. [[Special:Contributions/184.66.160.91|184.66.160.91]] 08:40, 17 July 2013 (UTC)<br />
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From the light's point of view, EVERYTHING is in the same place. The whole universe in one point. {{unsigned ip|108.162.238.114}}<br />
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I still think it's a picture frame. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.215.118|108.162.215.118]] 00:50, 6 August 2014 (UTC)</div>108.162.215.118