https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/api.php?action=feedcontributions&user=Spongebog&feedformat=atomexplain xkcd - User contributions [en]2024-03-28T12:13:55ZUser contributionsMediaWiki 1.30.0https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=User_talk:Spongebog&diff=216189User talk:Spongebog2021-08-07T18:44:01Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
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<div>Hi<br />
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hey! do u remember what comic you put the first citation needed tag on? just curious. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.63.139|172.69.63.139]] 21:13, 1 August 2021 (UTC)bumpf<br />
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@bumpf - sorry, no</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:2177:_Gastroenterology&diff=176840Talk:2177: Gastroenterology2019-07-18T15:17:05Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
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I hope they are not eating italian, you never know what might happen if pasta and antipasta meet. [[User:Arachrah|Arachrah]] ([[User talk:Arachrah|talk]]) 16:23, 17 July 2019 (UTC)<br />
: Yea I figure this is a matter / anti-matter joke. [[User:Cgrimes85|Cgrimes85]] ([[User talk:Cgrimes85|talk]]) 16:55, 17 July 2019 (UTC)<br />
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: This antimatter explanation lacks the usual "punch" that I would expect from XKCD on a science joke. It's unsatisfying because the comic lacks any (other) reference to physics or space. My best guess is that it's a pun based on an alternate interpretation of the word "gastroenterology." Could some part of the word be re-used (or commonly used) in another, more explosive context? Could the explosion refer to methane production by the body? Or is it somehow a joke about a movie, or the general movie trope of making scientists into action heros? [[User:Jpaugh|Jpaugh]] ([[User talk:Jpaugh|talk]]) 14:41, 18 July 2019 (UTC)<br />
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Current transcript says "Cueball" is the second character in the first and fifth panels. I don't think that's usually how it's done for a character wearing a hat, so I was thinking he should instead be named something like "Beanie Guy" or similar. [[User:Ianrbibtitlht|Ianrbibtitlht]] ([[User talk:Ianrbibtitlht|talk]]) 17:21, 17 July 2019 (UTC)<br />
: I think the hat looks like a surgical scrub cap[https://www.allheart.com/men-scrub-caps-and-hats/c/597/]. [[User:Rtanenbaum|Rtanenbaum]] ([[User talk:Rtanenbaum|talk]]) 22:45, 17 July 2019 (UTC)<br />
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Saying the final panel is a lie is just one possibility. The 5th panel below can potentially mean the "reality", as opposed to the 4 panels above that's a fantasy/joke. Almost all jobs have this "what people think I do" and "what I really do" gap.<br />
Another possibility: I thought I saw in old cop/secret agent movies a common joke is when a character gets into a lot of action - and thus cause a lot of trouble - that person will need to write a lot of paperwork for the damage caused. Then the character will say "this job is boring. Lots of paperwork." Sorry I can't find an example right now but I seemed to remember seeing the joke multiple times.<br />
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It's hard to appreciate gastroenterology jokes if you've ever had a colonoscopy.[[User:Barmar|Barmar]] ([[User talk:Barmar|talk]]) 17:44, 17 July 2019 (UTC)<br />
:I disagree, & I'm holding back a bunch of bad puns about it. [[User:ProphetZarquon|ProphetZarquon]] ([[User talk:ProphetZarquon|talk]]) 18:02, 17 July 2019 (UTC)<br />
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I see a thematic connection with the comic about appendicitis treatment, although this could be about an unrelated ailment. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.78.100|162.158.78.100]] 18:01, 17 July 2019 (UTC)<br />
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Current explanation says 'over-coughing'. What's that? a kid one table over, coughed.[[Special:Contributions/172.68.144.175|172.68.144.175]] 10:22, 18 July 2019 (UTC)<br />
: Fixed! ([https://www.xkcd.com/699/| Did you know they just] ''hand out'' [https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Special:CreateAccount&returnto=Main+Page| logins]?) [[User:Jpaugh|Jpaugh]] ([[User talk:Jpaugh|talk]]) 14:53, 18 July 2019 (UTC)<br />
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"Another possibility is that the sequence refers to a reaction between an acid and a base," WHAT? No. They're specifically labeled! Where did "acid and base" even come from? Why not "Yin and Yang" or "White meat and dark meat"?? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.214.136|162.158.214.136]] 10:46, 18 July 2019 (UTC)<br />
:I think the editor meant that the sequence is comically pretending that the mixing of probiotics and antibiotics gives a similar explosive effect to an acid/base reaction (or a matter/antimatter reaction) - they're not saying that that's literally what's happening. They're explaining the possible inspiration behind the cartoon logic. [[User:Hawthorn|Hawthorn]] ([[User talk:Hawthorn|talk]])<br />
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Any take on the meaning of the abundance of white space in the lower left part of the comic? [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:17, 18 July 2019 (UTC)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1992:_SafetySat&diff=156974Talk:1992: SafetySat2018-05-12T04:29:06Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
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I was excited that I might be the first to give an explanation (because the comic was so late in being posted), but when it finally arrived, I had no way to interpret it. It was just a gigantic Γ shape (though with a rounded corner).<br />
Now that the real comic{{Citation needed}} has been posted, I find that I'm ''still'' not very qualified to explain it. (I can guess at some of the references, but not the important ones.)<br />
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I guess my only constructive comment here is encouragement to have a section (trivia?) talking about the initial failed comic image. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.22.104|172.69.22.104]] 19:38, 11 May 2018 (UTC)<br />
:There was a broken image a xkcd and uploaded by the BOT. It's now fixed at xkcd and here too. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 19:48, 11 May 2018 (UTC)<br />
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Someone should point out how much damage the "extends spikes in all directions" safety measure could do. And I note SpaceX scrubbed a satellite launch with 1 minute to go yesterday because of some anomaly. Maybe the impetus for this cartoon? [[User:Yngvadottir|Yngvadottir]] ([[User talk:Yngvadottir|talk]]) 20:23, 11 May 2018 (UTC)<br />
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I figured today's comic was in reference to this picosat launch from India, which was denied launch in the US for being below minimum size ("too hard to track if they go offline") & thus in violation of the requisite cubesat specs: <br />
https://spectrum.ieee.org/tech-talk/aerospace/satellites/fcc-accuses-stealthy-startup-of-launching-rogue-satellites <br />
Personally I'm in favor of these sub-cubesat launches; My concern is with liability, not safety, per-se.<br />
[[User:ProphetZarquon|ProphetZarquon]] ([[User talk:ProphetZarquon|talk]]) 20:47, 11 May 2018 (UTC)<br />
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:I would be concerned with safety as well, if not for the radar reflector ... seriously, this looks more like FCC wanting to destroy the company for being innovative than trying to ensure the visibility. -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 23:01, 11 May 2018 (UTC)<br />
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Considering that it says the solar panel was "found", I think that implies that perhaps it was stolen? Or just literally found on the side of the road. Either way, it seems kinda shady. [[User:Carrera|Carrera]] ([[User talk:Carrera|talk]]) 22:20, 11 May 2018 (UTC)<br />
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Are there any rules regarding solar panels on spacecraft? Seeing that Randall "found" it, I'm wondering if this would be a violation of any rules. [[User:Herobrine|Herobrine]] ([[User talk:Herobrine|talk]]) 23:41, 11 May 2018 (UTC)<br />
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What would happen to wet sand if put in a cubesat and then released? Water released into space boils and then desublimates into a cloud of ice crystals. But what would the temperature and pressure be as the cubesat was launched? Starting from wet sand at one atmosphere and whatever ambient temperature, would it cool down fast enough for the water to freeze before it was dispensed? (Release a gritty snowball.) If the dispenser is not kept at atmospheric pressure, would the water boil as the satellite was ascending to orbit? I wish Randall was still doing what-if. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.255.22|162.158.255.22]] 01:22, 12 May 2018 (UTC)<br />
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> quality of the solar panel and the power it produces<br />
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Quality of the power ? Isn't all solar power clean and green quality ? [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 04:28, 12 May 2018 (UTC)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1992:_SafetySat&diff=156973Talk:1992: SafetySat2018-05-12T04:28:47Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
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I was excited that I might be the first to give an explanation (because the comic was so late in being posted), but when it finally arrived, I had no way to interpret it. It was just a gigantic Γ shape (though with a rounded corner).<br />
Now that the real comic{{Citation needed}} has been posted, I find that I'm ''still'' not very qualified to explain it. (I can guess at some of the references, but not the important ones.)<br />
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I guess my only constructive comment here is encouragement to have a section (trivia?) talking about the initial failed comic image. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.22.104|172.69.22.104]] 19:38, 11 May 2018 (UTC)<br />
:There was a broken image a xkcd and uploaded by the BOT. It's now fixed at xkcd and here too. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 19:48, 11 May 2018 (UTC)<br />
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Someone should point out how much damage the "extends spikes in all directions" safety measure could do. And I note SpaceX scrubbed a satellite launch with 1 minute to go yesterday because of some anomaly. Maybe the impetus for this cartoon? [[User:Yngvadottir|Yngvadottir]] ([[User talk:Yngvadottir|talk]]) 20:23, 11 May 2018 (UTC)<br />
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I figured today's comic was in reference to this picosat launch from India, which was denied launch in the US for being below minimum size ("too hard to track if they go offline") & thus in violation of the requisite cubesat specs: <br />
https://spectrum.ieee.org/tech-talk/aerospace/satellites/fcc-accuses-stealthy-startup-of-launching-rogue-satellites <br />
Personally I'm in favor of these sub-cubesat launches; My concern is with liability, not safety, per-se.<br />
[[User:ProphetZarquon|ProphetZarquon]] ([[User talk:ProphetZarquon|talk]]) 20:47, 11 May 2018 (UTC)<br />
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:I would be concerned with safety as well, if not for the radar reflector ... seriously, this looks more like FCC wanting to destroy the company for being innovative than trying to ensure the visibility. -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 23:01, 11 May 2018 (UTC)<br />
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Considering that it says the solar panel was "found", I think that implies that perhaps it was stolen? Or just literally found on the side of the road. Either way, it seems kinda shady. [[User:Carrera|Carrera]] ([[User talk:Carrera|talk]]) 22:20, 11 May 2018 (UTC)<br />
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Are there any rules regarding solar panels on spacecraft? Seeing that Randall "found" it, I'm wondering if this would be a violation of any rules. [[User:Herobrine|Herobrine]] ([[User talk:Herobrine|talk]]) 23:41, 11 May 2018 (UTC)<br />
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What would happen to wet sand if put in a cubesat and then released? Water released into space boils and then desublimates into a cloud of ice crystals. But what would the temperature and pressure be as the cubesat was launched? Starting from wet sand at one atmosphere and whatever ambient temperature, would it cool down fast enough for the water to freeze before it was dispensed? (Release a gritty snowball.) If the dispenser is not kept at atmospheric pressure, would the water boil as the satellite was ascending to orbit? I wish Randall was still doing what-if. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.255.22|162.158.255.22]] 01:22, 12 May 2018 (UTC)<br />
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> quality of the solar panel and the power it produces<br />
Quality of the power ? Isn't all solar power clean and green quality ? [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 04:28, 12 May 2018 (UTC)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1918:_NEXUS&diff=148146Talk:1918: NEXUS2017-11-21T04:44:47Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
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My first idea -- this is so draft I'm not even going to submit it into the Explanation: Could Cueball be associating NEXUS with the FernGully villain Hexxus? And the Cisco company/brand of IT products with Commander/Captain Benjamin Sisko from ''ST:DS9'' and Crisco vegetable shortening? I don't have time to look into the other things referenced, and I don't immediately recognize them, but feel free to build on this if you want. Or don't; I don't have time to care right now. '''--BigMal''' // 13:00, 20 November 2017 (UTC)<br />
: ...and yet you had time to leave this comment [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 04:44, 21 November 2017 (UTC)<br />
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But Sisko saved Deep Space Nine! [[Special:Contributions/141.101.105.18|141.101.105.18]] 13:02, 20 November 2017 (UTC)<br />
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Wouldn't the reference be to Jake Sisko, rather than his father? The Captain was an important character. Jake was just an even worse "Wesley Crusher" and appeared in less than half of the episodes.[[Special:Contributions/162.158.122.36|162.158.122.36]] 01:43, 21 November 2017 (UTC)<br />
:Unlikely. I don't think your opinion is that widespread (my circles like him), and Jake is normally 'Jake'. If you talk about Sisko, it's usually Ben (who the Prophets even call 'The Sisko').[[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.64|108.162.219.64]] 02:46, 21 November 2017 (UTC) <br />
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Ciscoes are a whitefish in the Salmonid family --13:08, 20 November 2017 (UTC)<br />
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The "Thong Song" is sang by an artist named "Sisqo". And ''The Caballero's Way'' written by O.Henry features a character named "the Cisco Kid". [[Special:Contributions/162.158.150.82|162.158.150.82]] 13:14, 20 November 2017 (UTC)<br />
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Cisco Kid went on to feature in Comics, films and a Deep Purple Song<br />
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Cisco Kid also a Sublime song. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.154|108.162.216.154]] 15:52, 20 November 2017 (UTC)<br />
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What is interesting: Cueball does not refuse all that food and cultural phenomena, because of their association with Cisco, but the other way round! So it is by sheer chance that Cueball hates similar sounding things. Sebastian --[[Special:Contributions/172.68.110.64|172.68.110.64]] 17:05, 20 November 2017 (UTC)<br />
:Their *supposed* association with Cisco systems? I mean, so far as I'm aware, Cisco there is no *actual* connection between the food items mentioned & Cisco's networking & electronics products. Unless... (see my fifth comment, below)<br />
:comment 1 of 5 by [[Special:Contributions/162.158.75.130|162.158.75.130]] 21:20, 20 November 2017 (UTC)<br />
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Is this poking fun at the backlash to EA right now? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.75.232|162.158.75.232]] 17:51, 20 November 2017 (UTC)<br />
:Is there name confusion involved? You're talking about backlash to the method of unlocking heroes in EA's recent Battlefront II (re-)release? I'm not aware of the backlash affecting any products/companies with a similar sounding name... Is there a link you could point to?<br />
:(One potential point of confusion, though not related in any way to the backlash: Battlefront II was arguably one of the best games released for PS2. It has now been re-designed & re-released for PS4. The backlash is due to the new version having released with the most famous heroes locked in a manner intended to goad players into micro-purchases to unlock them; this has since been changed.)<br />
:comment 2 of 5 by [[Special:Contributions/162.158.75.130|162.158.75.130]] 21:20, 20 November 2017 (UTC)<br />
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Wait, wait... Brak had a brother!? [[Special:Contributions/173.245.51.107|173.245.51.107]] 00:33, 21 November 2017 (UTC)<br />
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== a few more ==<br />
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o henry:<br />
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cisco_Kid<br />
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fish<br />
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cisco_(fish)<br />
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incan<br />
http://emperorsnew.wikia.com/wiki/Kuzco<br />
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brak<br />
http://brak.wikia.com/wiki/Sisto<br />
[[Special:Contributions/141.101.76.202|141.101.76.202]] 13:14, 20 November 2017 (UTC)<br />
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I was really looking forward to coming over to ExplainXKCD.com and seeing the explanation "We don't get it, either." Disappointed again! [[User:Jpd|Jpd]] ([[User talk:Jpd|talk]]) 14:15, 20 November 2017 (UTC)<br />
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== Other Nexuses ==<br />
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I'm surprised Cueball didn't also refer to [http://memory-alpha.wikia.com/wiki/Nexus The Nexus] from Star Trek Generations. That's definitely something I wouldn't want to sign up for. Sure, it will speed up your travel, but that assumes you can get out in the first place. [[User:Shamino|Shamino]] ([[User talk:Shamino|talk]]) 14:59, 20 November 2017 (UTC)<br />
:^^ *THIS!* ^^<br />
:comment 3 of 5 by [[Special:Contributions/162.158.75.130|162.158.75.130]] 21:20, 20 November 2017 (UTC)<br />
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Nexi* <br />
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Also - how about the Google Android phone? [[User:Brettpeirce|Brettpeirce]] ([[User talk:Brettpeirce|talk]]) 15:53, 20 November 2017 (UTC)<br />
:But... What fault would you find with a Nexus phone? Aside from it being very old now...<br />
:comment 4 of 5 by [[Special:Contributions/162.158.75.130|162.158.75.130]] 21:20, 20 November 2017 (UTC)<br />
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== Broader context ==<br />
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People sometimes really engage in boycotts because of confusion that's almost that silly. In 2008, some people wanted to boycott [https://www.cbsnews.com/news/boycott-arizona-iced-tea-wait-a-second/|boycott Arizona Iced Tea] over an Arizona immigration law, even though the company is based in New York. [[User:Gmcgath|Gmcgath]] ([[User talk:Gmcgath|talk]]) 16:49, 20 November 2017 (UTC)<br />
:I liked Arizona lemonade -- when I could find it; no longer -- and despite their claims of being an American company, production of said lemonade was in Canada. But I like Canada too, so it was okay. '''--BigMal''' // [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.184|108.162.216.184]] 19:57, 20 November 2017 (UTC)<br />
And the amusement factor of watching the U.S. rename "French Fries" (chips) as "Freedom Fries" as a punishment for the French, for a while there.... The rest of the world couldn't stop telling that joke. The French were delighted, as well. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.250.53|108.162.250.53]] 21:12, 20 November 2017 (UTC)<br />
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I thought there would be a reference to Sysco foods, purveyors of crappy canned veggies, a company which has been publicly chided for leaving raw meat in unrefrigerated sheds for hours at a time, prior to delivery.<br />
comment 5 of 5 by [[Special:Contributions/162.158.75.130|162.158.75.130]] 21:20, 20 November 2017 (UTC)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1904:_Research_Risks&diff=146854Talk:1904: Research Risks2017-10-19T03:34:06Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
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Entymology? Misspelled "entomology" or (more confusingly) "etymology"?<br />
Psychology lower risk than micology? Absolutely hogwash!<br />
:The comic has been updated, so it was just a typo. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.35|141.101.99.35]] 16:05, 18 October 2017 (UTC)<br />
:How do I update picture. Last update always matches first upload for whatever reason --[[User:Trimutius|Trimutius]] ([[User talk:Trimutius|talk]]) 17:24, 18 October 2017 (UTC)<br />
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Molasses storage is misplaced -- should be in the quadrant to its right. See [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Molasses_Flood]. 21 dead and 150 injured. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.52|108.162.219.52]] 14:12, 18 October 2017 (UTC)<br />
Agreed that it did get out and kill people. But only once in something like 200 years and only a few. (Is this where the phrase slower than molasses in January comes from?) <br />
I would not expect that this would be a common danger.<br />
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Ah, but there was another [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honolulu_molasses_spill|spill in 2013 in Honolulu]. (I just learned of it from the "See Also" section of the Wikipedia page on the Great Molasses Flood.) That one didn't kill any people (though it was an ecological disaster) but it speaks to risk. Anyway, the item ''is'' in the right quadrant. Arguably is should be further to the right, but also arguably not, since conducting experiments in the area could lead to more accidents.[[User:Jqavins|Jqavins]] ([[User talk:Jqavins|talk]]) 16:08, 18 October 2017 (UTC)<br />
:Only, even assuming there's such a thing as molasses storage research, it's unlikely that your lab is going to contain life-threatening quantities of molasses. It's not as if a few liters escaping could reproduce and turn into thousands of tons. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.35|141.101.99.35]] 16:27, 18 October 2017 (UTC)<br />
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I think entymology is a reference to [https://xkcd.com/1012 1012]<br />
[[Special:Contributions/162.158.91.95|162.158.91.95]] 14:50, 18 October 2017 (UTC)<br />
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I think the title text may have a somewhat humorous naming scheme derived from the Great Molasses Flood Wikipedia discussion page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Great_Molasses_Flood<br />
There's a lengthy discussion about changing the name from "Boston Molasses Disaster" to "Great Molasses Flood". I noticed that Randall used both approaches to describing the events in the title text, but maybe that was a coincidence.<br />
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I am not impressed. Movie supervillains often use paleontology (dinosaurs), geology (volcano/earthquake) and astronomy (comets). Also, there is a tendency to pair marine biology with laser-optics. And, to actually dominate the world, a real-life villain will probably need to use cunning linguistics at some level or the other. <sub>--[[User:Nialpxe|<span style="color: #000; text-decoration: none;">Nialpxe</span>]], 2017. [[User_talk:Nialpxe|<span style="color: #000; text-decoration: none;">(Arguments welcome)</span>]]</sub><br />
:I had the same initial reaction, but note how Randall didn't write "movie supervillain", but just "supervillain", so you should only take into account what is currently feasible in technology state-of-the-art, or what we can reasonably foresee for the next decade or so. I don't see any madman being able to revive (and control!) dinosaurs, capture a comet or trigger an earthquake in the next 10-20 years. As for shark-mounted lasers, they are cool to show off and inspire fear, but hardly useful to achieve world domination by themselves. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.35|141.101.99.35]] 16:18, 18 October 2017 (UTC)<br />
::When we get into the realm of supervillainy - especially given XKCD's history - we're almost certainly talking fiction. And if we're talking fiction, Randall's forgotten about ''Moonraker'', where astronomy and dentistry both play a significant role in the supervillain's plot, and should thus rate higher on the vertical scale. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.78.16|172.68.78.16]] 02:42, 19 October 2017 (UTC)<br />
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Looks like the "Research Risk" column is just a comment field open for speculation -- can we merge Comments and Research Risk into one column? [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 03:34, 19 October 2017 (UTC)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1784:_Bad_Map_Projection:_Liquid_Resize&diff=1335801784: Bad Map Projection: Liquid Resize2017-01-11T06:36:06Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
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<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1784<br />
| date = January 11, 2017<br />
| title = Bad Map Projection: Liquid Resize<br />
| image = bad_map_projection_liquid_resize.png<br />
| titletext = This map preserves the shapes of Tissot's indicatrices pretty well, as long as you draw them in before running the resize.<br />
}}<br />
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==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|Partial -- explains a few underlying concepts but needs a lead section}}<br />
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South America fits into Africa almost as it did in the era of the super-continent [[wikipedia:Pangaea|Pangaea]].<br />
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[[wikipedia:Tissot's indicatrix|Tissot's indicatrices]] are equally sized small circles overlaid on a globe to show the distortion of a particular map projection.<br />
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==Transcript==<br />
{{incomplete transcript}}<br />
[Caption at the top of the panel:]<br />
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Bad Map Projection #107:<br />
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The LIQUID RESIZE<br />
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A political map compressed using Photoshop's content-aware resizing algorithm to cut down on unused blank space<br />
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[A map of the world divided and colored by political boundaries, with outlines around each continent in black and around each country in dark gray. Antarctica is colored in light gray, bodies of water in white, and countries in pale shades of red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple. The map is heavily distorted, with Africa in the center and the other continents curving around it, approximating the bounds of a square with rounded corners.]<br />
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{{comic discussion}}<br />
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[[Category:Maps]]</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1783:_Emails&diff=1335341783: Emails2017-01-10T03:24:39Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
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<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1783<br />
| date = January 9, 2017<br />
| title = Emails<br />
| image = emails.png<br />
| titletext = Hey Rob, sorry it took me a while to get back to you! Sure, I'd love to see WALL-E opening weekend! Are you still doing that, or...?<br />
}}<br />
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==Explanation==<br />
<br />
[[Megan]] and [[Cueball]] are walking together. Megan asks if Cueball has any {{w|New Year's resolution}}s. New Year's, to most people, is a time for thinking about the year and coming up with resolutions to improve themselves. Cueball replies that he has one. It's to finish reading and replying to his backed up emails from 2008, as it appears that he does not read his email as quickly as it comes in, and now he has to fix the mess he's made.<br />
<br />
A common technique for the ''productive'' members of the world is to batch reply to email instead of replying to each one individually as they come. The principle is that setting aside specific times to reply instead of always being "on call" gives the messages the attention they deserve while avoiding the urge to constantly check your email when you should be doing important work. Such a technique could be to check all your emails once a day, or once a week, for instance and allocating a specific amount of time like one hour every day to do so. It is unlikely that somebody would wait years to start the task of checking emails, so maybe the time reserved per day is too short to get through all emails creating a backlog of emails that will take years to catch up. Another technique for ''productive'' people is ''not'' to answer less important e-mails; if a subject really is important, the sender will send a reminder a few days later. (If he does not, the sender can be presumed to have solved the problem himself, saving lots of time on the receiver's side.) Cueball has possibly used this technique, but became remorseful after eight years.<br />
<br />
The title text is a reply to an email in which [[Rob]] wished to see the movie ''{{w|WALL-E}}'', a film that came out in 2008, with Cueball during its opening weekend. However, the opening weekend is now far in the past, and yet Cueball doesn't realize it and trails off with "are you still doing that, or...?"<br />
<br />
A real (and useful){{Citation needed}} New Year's resolution would involve trying to answer emails in time (instead of spending time on old emails), which would avoid the mess he's currently in.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Megan and Cueball are walking along.]<br />
:Megan: Did you have any New Year's Resolutions?<br />
:Cueball: Gonna finally finish dealing with those emails from 2008.<br />
:Caption: As my email backlog approaches 10 years, I'm starting to have doubts about my approach.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:New Year]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1733:_Solar_Spectrum&diff=1271651733: Solar Spectrum2016-09-16T14:43:59Z<p>Spongebog: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1733<br />
| date = September 15, 2016<br />
| title = Solar Spectrum<br />
| image = solar_spectrum.png<br />
| titletext = I still don't understand why the Sun paid the extra money for Transitions lenses.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|Someone knowing more about the Fraunhofer lines could maybe improve the [[#Table of spectrum|table]] (mainly the comments).}}<br />
This comic's release day was postponed from the scheduled Wednesday release to a [[:Category:Thursday comics|Thursday release]] because {{Citation needed}} of the popularity of the previous Monday comic [[1732: Earth Temperature Timeline]]. [[Randall]] even explained this in the header text, see [[1732#Popularity_of_comic|this trivia item from the previous comic]].<br />
<br />
This comic depicts the {{w|Fraunhofer lines}}, i.e. the {{w|spectral lines}} seen when sunlight is split in a {{w|spectrometer}}. These appear as black gaps in the rainbow of light, caused by light being absorbed by {{w|Chemical element|elements}} in the {{w|Sun}}. The frequencies of light that an atom absorbs depend on the exact arrangement of electron orbitals around it - because each element has a different pattern of orbitals, each one has a distinctive pattern in the absorption spectrum. The chart shows most of the main lines in the visible spectrum and identifies the elements linked to them. <br />
<br />
The image of the Fraunhofer lines from Wikipedia is shown below in the section with a [[#Table of spectrum|table]] of these lines. Here it can be seen that all the lines that are labeled are labeled with element are correctly labeled. Also all lines shown in the part of the spectrum included in the comic are included. Ten of the lines included are not labeled in the picture on Wikipedia (at least not with an element, two of the three "h" labels are not in the table on Wikipedia). Six of these also have no label in the comic. But the other four line's label ''Those giant sunglasses'' constitute the joke of the comic. There seem to be only one clear error in the comic and that is the fifth line labeled Sunglasses, the middle of the lines, which is actually a Hydrogen line (C in the picture below). But the line next to it to the right is one of those not labeled in either pictures and it seems likely that it was this line Randall meant to be a Sunglass line...<br />
<br />
All ten extra lines (including both the labeled and unlabeled ones) seem to correspond to the [http://astro.u-strasbg.fr/~koppen/discharge/silicon.jpg spectrum of silicon], and '''the joke then refers to the {{w|silicon dioxide}} (aka glass)''' used in the lenses of the Sun's sunglasses. Of course, this means that the glasses have been ionized and turned into plasma by the heat of the sun. <br />
<br />
The idea of a sun with sunglasses is a reference to pictures/clipart of the sun wearing sunglasses, often used to denote good weather. But Randall has specifically used this picture in his [[what if?]] ''{{what if|115|Into the Sun}}'' in the fourth image. The title text of that image even references the fact that those sunglasses will block the light to Earth:<br />
:A partial solar eclipse is when the Earth moves across the part of the Sun blocked by its sunglasses.<br />
So this comic is a direct callback to this what if? post.<br />
<br />
There is another joke in drawing a sun with sunglasses because sunglasses are meant to protect your eyes from the sun, so what should they protect the Sun's eye from, Star light...? Also any glasses worn by he sun would they not become sun glasses?<br />
<br />
{{w|Transitions Optical|Transitions}}&reg; is a brand of {{w|Photochromic lens|photochromic lenses}}; however, photochromic lenses are often referred to as "transition lenses", so the title text does not necessarily refer to the brand. Photochromic lenses are a type of plastic lens used in prescription spectacles that allow the lens to turn dark when exposed to UV light such as that found in sunlight. The sun choosing to get transition lens would prove a waste of money as the lenses would be permanently transitioned to be dark, so a pair of ordinary sunglasses would likely have proved more cost effective. (Always assuming they do not turn into plasma when getting close to the sun...)<br />
<br />
===Table of spectrum===<br />
:This is the official image for {{w|Fraunhofer lines}} (solar spectrum) on Wikipedia:<br />
:[[File:Fraunhofer_lines_From_Wikipedia.png]]<br />
:The graph is a typical spectral lines chart, with a long rainbow band (from {{w|ultraviolet}} to the left to {{w|infrared}} on the right both colors appearing black as they are not visible.) The black lines in it, indicating the traces of different elements. Noe that the comic only covers the visible part of this spectrum.<br />
<br />
*In the table below are the official labels from the picture above. If there are no label this is noted with ''none''.<br />
**'''Note that they are labeled from right to left!'''<br />
*Then the element causing the line is mentioned. ''Unlabeled'' is used if the line is not mentioned in the table from Wikipedia.<br />
*Then follows the wavelength. It is given with decimals if it is noted in the table from Wikipedia. Else it has been read of manually from the picture above.<br />
*Then follows the label given in this comic, with unlabeled meaning that it is not labeled in the comic but still shown. <br />
**If the line is not even included in the xkcd comic "N/A" will be used.<br />
**A number will be given after the xkcd label listing which number line on xkcd that has used this label. (Note going from left to right in the numbering).<br />
*Finally a comment can be made on this.<br />
**If the two labels fit, then ''agreement'' is noted.<br />
{| class="wikitable"<br />
!Designation<br />
!Element<br />
!Wavelength ({{w|nanometer|nm}})<br />
!xkcd label<br />
!Comment<br />
|- <br />
|A<br />
|{{w|Oxygen|O<sub>2</sub>}}<br />
|759.370<br />
|N/A<br />
|This line is outside comics range. So are the two unlabeled lines shown in the spectrum in the picture above around 720 and 730 nm. There are also even more oxygen lines further out in the infrared part of the spectrum which is not even included in the picture above.<br />
|-<br />
|None<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|690<br />
|Those giant sunglasses 5<br />
|This is the fifth of the five xkcd sunglass lines. This line is not labeled in the picture above. Wavelength read of manually <br />
|-<br />
|B<br />
|O<sub>2</sub><br />
|686.719<br />
|Oxygen 2<br />
|Agreement <br />
|-<br />
|None<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|577<br />
|Those giant sunglasses 4<br />
|This is the fourth of the five xkcd sunglass lines. This line is not labeled in the picture above. Wavelength read of manually.<br />
|-<br />
|None<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|660<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|This line is not labeled either in the comic or in the picture above. Wavelength read of manually. It seems like this one was supposed to be one of the sunglasses lines, and then by mistake the arrow points to the labeled line C below.<br />
|-<br />
|C<br />
|{{w|Hα}}<br />
|656.281<br />
|Those giant sunglasses 3<br />
|This is the third of the five xkcd sunglass lines. This is actually a labeled line belonging to the {{w|hydrogen}} {{w|Balmer series}}. Seems like a mistake, and more likely it was meant for the arrow to point to the unlabeled line mentioned here above.<br />
|-<br />
|None<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|645<br />
|Those giant sunglasses 2<br />
|This is the second of the five xkcd sunglass lines. This line is not labeled in the picture above. Wavelength read of manually.<br />
|-<br />
|a <br />
|O<sub>2</sub><br />
|627.661<br />
|Oxygen 1<br />
|Agreement<br />
|-<br />
|D<sub>1</sub><br />
|{{w|Sodium|Na}}<br />
|589.592<br />
|Sodium 2<br />
|Agreement. There are only one label (Sodium) in the comic above these two close lines.<br />
|-<br />
|D<sub>2</sub><br />
|Na<br />
|588.995<br />
|Sodium 1<br />
|Agreement. There are only one label (Sodium) in the comic above these two close lines.<br />
|-<br />
|D<sub>3</sub> or d<br />
|{{w|Helium|He}}<br />
|587.5618<br />
|N/A<br />
|This line is so close to the nearest sodium line that only one line is visible, so only one is shown, both in the comic and in the picture above.<br />
|-<br />
|None<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|577<br />
|Those giant sunglasses 1<br />
|This is the first of the five xkcd sunglass lines. This line is not labeled in the picture above. Wavelength read of manually.<br />
|-<br />
|None<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|554<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|Agreement. This line is not labeled either in the comic or in the picture above. Wavelength read of manually.<br />
|-<br />
|None<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|549<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|Agreement. This line is not labeled either in the comic or in the picture above. Wavelength read of manually.<br />
|-<br />
|None<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|537<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|Agreement. This line is not labeled either in the comic or in the picture above. Wavelength read of manually.<br />
|-<br />
|E<sub>2</sub><br />
|{{w|Iron|Fe}}<br />
|527.039<br />
|Iron 5<br />
|Agreement.<br />
|-<br />
|b<sub>1</sub><br />
|{{w|Magnesium|Mg}}<br />
|518.362<br />
|Magnesium 2<br />
|Agreement. See b below. There are only one label (Magnesium) in the comic above these two close lines.<br />
|-<br />
|b<sub>2</sub><br />
|Mg<br />
|517.270<br />
|N/A<br />
|These two magnesium lines are so close that only one is visible in the spectrum, so only one is shown, both in the comic and in the picture above.<br />
|-<br />
|b<sub>3</sub><br />
|Fe<br />
|516.891<br />
|N/A<br />
|This iron line and the next magnesium line are so close that only one is visible in the spectrum, so only one is shown, both in the comic and in the picture above. There is only one label for both visible lines showing them to be magnesium, even though there are four lines one of which (this one is Iron).<br />
|-<br />
|b<sub>4</sub><br />
|Mg<br />
|516.733<br />
|Magnesium 1<br />
|Agreement. See b above. There are only one label (Magnesium) in the comic above these two close lines.<br />
|- <br />
|c<br />
|Fe<br />
|495.761<br />
|Iron 4<br />
|Agreement.<br />
|-<br />
|F<br />
|{{w|Hβ}}<br />
|486.134<br />
|Hydrogen 3<br />
|Agreement.<br />
|-<br />
|h<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|476<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|Agreement. This line is also unlabeled in the table on Wikipedia. "h" is used between H and g below. The wavelength is manually read off from the image.<br />
|-<br />
|d<br />
|Fe<br />
|466.814<br />
|Iron 3<br />
|Agreement.<br />
|-<br />
|e<br />
|Fe<br />
|438.355<br />
|Iron 2<br />
|Agreement.<br />
|-<br />
|f<br />
|{{w|Hγ}}<br />
|434.047<br />
|Hydrogen 2<br />
|Agreement.<br />
|-<br />
|G<br />
|Fe<br />
|430.790<br />
|Iron 1<br />
|Agreement.<br />
|-<br />
|g<br />
|{{w|Calcium|Ca}}<br />
|430.774<br />
|Calcium 3<br />
|Agreement.<br />
|-<br />
|h<br />
|{{w|Hδ}}<br />
|410.175<br />
|Hydrogen 1<br />
|Agreement.<br />
|-<br />
|H<br />
|Ca<sup>+</sup><br />
|396.847<br />
|Calcium 2<br />
|Agreement.<br />
|-<br />
|K<br />
|Ca<sup>+</sup><br />
|393.366<br />
|Calcium 1<br />
|Agreement.<br />
|-<br />
|None<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|389<br />
|N/A<br />
|This is the last line in the picture above. It is not included in the comic. There are even more lines outside the visible spectrum deeper into the ultraviolet which are not even shown in the picture above.<br />
|}<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[A chart shows the visible colored spectrum of the sun from deep violet to deep red. Along the spectrum are shown 28 black spectral lines of different thickness. Above the chart is a caption:]<br />
:The Sun's spectral lines<br />
<br />
:[Above the chart there are four and below the chart there are two labels, each label has one or more arrows pointing to different black lines. The two that has only one arrow points to two close lines marking them both. Only 22 lines are labeled like this, the other 6 are not labeled. The labels in reading order, with the number of arrows noted behind in square brackets:]<br />
:Calcium [3] Iron [5] Sodium [1] Oxygen [2]<br />
:Hydrogen [3] Magnesium [1] Those giant sunglasses [5]<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1733:_Solar_Spectrum&diff=1271631733: Solar Spectrum2016-09-16T14:40:39Z<p>Spongebog: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1733<br />
| date = September 15, 2016<br />
| title = Solar Spectrum<br />
| image = solar_spectrum.png<br />
| titletext = I still don't understand why the Sun paid the extra money for Transitions lenses.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|Someone knowing more about the Fraunhofer lines could maybe improve the [[#Table of spectrum|table]] (mainly the comments).}}<br />
This comic's release day was postponed from the scheduled Wednesday release to a [[:Category:Thursday comics|Thursday release]] because {{Citation needed}} of the popularity of the previous Monday comic [[1732: Earth Temperature Timeline]]. [[Randall]] even explained this in the header text, see [[1732#Popularity_of_comic|this trivia item from the previous comic]].<br />
<br />
This comic depicts the {{w|Fraunhofer lines}}, i.e. the {{w|spectral lines}} seen when sunlight is split in a {{w|spectrometer}}. These appear as black gaps in the rainbow of light, caused by light being absorbed by {{w|Chemical element|elements}} in the {{w|Sun}}. The frequencies of light that an atom absorbs depend on the exact arrangement of electron orbitals around it - because each element has a different pattern of orbitals, each one has a distinctive pattern in the absorption spectrum. The chart shows most of the main lines in the visible spectrum and identifies the elements linked to them. <br />
<br />
The image of the Fraunhofer lines from Wikipedia is shown below in the section with a [[#Table of spectrum|table]] of these lines. Here it can be seen that all the lines that are labeled are labeled with element are correctly labeled. Also all lines shown in the part of the spectrum included in the comic are included. Ten of the lines included are not labeled in the picture on Wikipedia (at least not with an element, two of the three "h" labels are not in the table on Wikipedia). Six of these also have no label in the comic. But the other four line's label ''Those giant sunglasses'' constitute the joke of the comic. There seem to be only one clear error in the comic and that is the fifth line labeled Sunglasses, the middle of the lines, which is actually a Hydrogen line (C in the picture below). But the line next to it to the right is one of those not labeled in either pictures and it seems likely that it was this line Randall meant to be a Sunglass line...<br />
<br />
All ten extra lines (including both the labeled and unlabeled ones) seem to correspond to the [http://astro.u-strasbg.fr/~koppen/discharge/silicon.jpg spectrum of silicon], and the joke then refers to the {{w|silicon dioxide}} (aka glass) used in the lenses of the Sun's sunglasses. Of course, this means that the glasses have been ionized and turned into plasma by the heat of the sun. <br />
<br />
The idea of a sun with sunglasses is a reference to pictures/clipart of the sun wearing sunglasses, often used to denote good weather. But Randall has specifically used this picture in his [[what if?]] ''{{what if|115|Into the Sun}}'' in the fourth image. The title text of that image even references the fact that those sunglasses will block the light to Earth:<br />
:A partial solar eclipse is when the Earth moves across the part of the Sun blocked by its sunglasses.<br />
So this comic is a direct callback to this what if? post.<br />
<br />
There is another joke in drawing a sun with sunglasses because sunglasses are meant to protect your eyes from the sun, so what should they protect the Sun's eye from, Star light...? Also any glasses worn by he sun would they not become sun glasses?<br />
<br />
{{w|Transitions Optical|Transitions}}&reg; is a brand of {{w|Photochromic lens|photochromic lenses}}; however, photochromic lenses are often referred to as "transition lenses", so the title text does not necessarily refer to the brand. Photochromic lenses are a type of plastic lens used in prescription spectacles that allow the lens to turn dark when exposed to UV light such as that found in sunlight. The sun choosing to get transition lens would prove a waste of money as the lenses would be permanently transitioned to be dark, so a pair of ordinary sunglasses would likely have proved more cost effective. (Always assuming they do not turn into plasma when getting close to the sun...)<br />
<br />
===Table of spectrum===<br />
:This is the official image for {{w|Fraunhofer lines}} (solar spectrum) on Wikipedia:<br />
:[[File:Fraunhofer_lines_From_Wikipedia.png]]<br />
:The graph is a typical spectral lines chart, with a long rainbow band (from {{w|ultraviolet}} to the left to {{w|infrared}} on the right both colors appearing black as they are not visible.) The black lines in it, indicating the traces of different elements. Noe that the comic only covers the visible part of this spectrum.<br />
<br />
*In the table below are the official labels from the picture above. If there are no label this is noted with ''none''.<br />
**'''Note that they are labeled from right to left!'''<br />
*Then the element causing the line is mentioned. ''Unlabeled'' is used if the line is not mentioned in the table from Wikipedia.<br />
*Then follows the wavelength. It is given with decimals if it is noted in the table from Wikipedia. Else it has been read of manually from the picture above.<br />
*Then follows the label given in this comic, with unlabeled meaning that it is not labeled in the comic but still shown. <br />
**If the line is not even included in the xkcd comic "N/A" will be used.<br />
**A number will be given after the xkcd label listing which number line on xkcd that has used this label. (Note going from left to right in the numbering).<br />
*Finally a comment can be made on this.<br />
**If the two labels fit, then ''agreement'' is noted.<br />
{| class="wikitable"<br />
!Designation<br />
!Element<br />
!Wavelength ({{w|nanometer|nm}})<br />
!xkcd label<br />
!Comment<br />
|- <br />
|A<br />
|{{w|Oxygen|O<sub>2</sub>}}<br />
|759.370<br />
|N/A<br />
|This line is outside comics range. So are the two unlabeled lines shown in the spectrum in the picture above around 720 and 730 nm. There are also even more oxygen lines further out in the infrared part of the spectrum which is not even included in the picture above.<br />
|-<br />
|None<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|690<br />
|Those giant sunglasses 5<br />
|This is the fifth of the five xkcd sunglass lines. This line is not labeled in the picture above. Wavelength read of manually <br />
|-<br />
|B<br />
|O<sub>2</sub><br />
|686.719<br />
|Oxygen 2<br />
|Agreement <br />
|-<br />
|None<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|577<br />
|Those giant sunglasses 4<br />
|This is the fourth of the five xkcd sunglass lines. This line is not labeled in the picture above. Wavelength read of manually.<br />
|-<br />
|None<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|660<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|This line is not labeled either in the comic or in the picture above. Wavelength read of manually. It seems like this one was supposed to be one of the sunglasses lines, and then by mistake the arrow points to the labeled line C below.<br />
|-<br />
|C<br />
|{{w|Hα}}<br />
|656.281<br />
|Those giant sunglasses 3<br />
|This is the third of the five xkcd sunglass lines. This is actually a labeled line belonging to the {{w|hydrogen}} {{w|Balmer series}}. Seems like a mistake, and more likely it was meant for the arrow to point to the unlabeled line mentioned here above.<br />
|-<br />
|None<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|645<br />
|Those giant sunglasses 2<br />
|This is the second of the five xkcd sunglass lines. This line is not labeled in the picture above. Wavelength read of manually.<br />
|-<br />
|a <br />
|O<sub>2</sub><br />
|627.661<br />
|Oxygen 1<br />
|Agreement<br />
|-<br />
|D<sub>1</sub><br />
|{{w|Sodium|Na}}<br />
|589.592<br />
|Sodium 2<br />
|Agreement. There are only one label (Sodium) in the comic above these two close lines.<br />
|-<br />
|D<sub>2</sub><br />
|Na<br />
|588.995<br />
|Sodium 1<br />
|Agreement. There are only one label (Sodium) in the comic above these two close lines.<br />
|-<br />
|D<sub>3</sub> or d<br />
|{{w|Helium|He}}<br />
|587.5618<br />
|N/A<br />
|This line is so close to the nearest sodium line that only one line is visible, so only one is shown, both in the comic and in the picture above.<br />
|-<br />
|None<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|577<br />
|Those giant sunglasses 1<br />
|This is the first of the five xkcd sunglass lines. This line is not labeled in the picture above. Wavelength read of manually.<br />
|-<br />
|None<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|554<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|Agreement. This line is not labeled either in the comic or in the picture above. Wavelength read of manually.<br />
|-<br />
|None<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|549<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|Agreement. This line is not labeled either in the comic or in the picture above. Wavelength read of manually.<br />
|-<br />
|None<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|537<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|Agreement. This line is not labeled either in the comic or in the picture above. Wavelength read of manually.<br />
|-<br />
|E<sub>2</sub><br />
|{{w|Iron|Fe}}<br />
|527.039<br />
|Iron 5<br />
|Agreement.<br />
|-<br />
|b<sub>1</sub><br />
|{{w|Magnesium|Mg}}<br />
|518.362<br />
|Magnesium 2<br />
|Agreement. See b below. There are only one label (Magnesium) in the comic above these two close lines.<br />
|-<br />
|b<sub>2</sub><br />
|Mg<br />
|517.270<br />
|N/A<br />
|These two magnesium lines are so close that only one is visible in the spectrum, so only one is shown, both in the comic and in the picture above.<br />
|-<br />
|b<sub>3</sub><br />
|Fe<br />
|516.891<br />
|N/A<br />
|This iron line and the next magnesium line are so close that only one is visible in the spectrum, so only one is shown, both in the comic and in the picture above. There is only one label for both visible lines showing them to be magnesium, even though there are four lines one of which (this one is Iron).<br />
|-<br />
|b<sub>4</sub><br />
|Mg<br />
|516.733<br />
|Magnesium 1<br />
|Agreement. See b above. There are only one label (Magnesium) in the comic above these two close lines.<br />
|- <br />
|c<br />
|Fe<br />
|495.761<br />
|Iron 4<br />
|Agreement.<br />
|-<br />
|F<br />
|{{w|Hβ}}<br />
|486.134<br />
|Hydrogen 3<br />
|Agreement.<br />
|-<br />
|h<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|476<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|Agreement. This line is also unlabeled in the table on Wikipedia. "h" is used between H and g below. The wavelength is manually read off from the image.<br />
|-<br />
|d<br />
|Fe<br />
|466.814<br />
|Iron 3<br />
|Agreement.<br />
|-<br />
|e<br />
|Fe<br />
|438.355<br />
|Iron 2<br />
|Agreement.<br />
|-<br />
|f<br />
|{{w|Hγ}}<br />
|434.047<br />
|Hydrogen 2<br />
|Agreement.<br />
|-<br />
|G<br />
|Fe<br />
|430.790<br />
|Iron 1<br />
|Agreement.<br />
|-<br />
|g<br />
|{{w|Calcium|Ca}}<br />
|430.774<br />
|Calcium 3<br />
|Agreement.<br />
|-<br />
|h<br />
|{{w|Hδ}}<br />
|410.175<br />
|Hydrogen 1<br />
|Agreement.<br />
|-<br />
|H<br />
|Ca<sup>+</sup><br />
|396.847<br />
|Calcium 2<br />
|Agreement.<br />
|-<br />
|K<br />
|Ca<sup>+</sup><br />
|393.366<br />
|Calcium 1<br />
|Agreement.<br />
|-<br />
|None<br />
|Unlabeled<br />
|389<br />
|N/A<br />
|This is the last line in the picture above. It is not included in the comic. There are even more lines outside the visible spectrum deeper into the ultraviolet which are not even shown in the picture above.<br />
|}<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[A chart shows the visible colored spectrum of the sun from deep violet to deep red. Along the spectrum are shown 28 black spectral lines of different thickness. Above the chart is a caption:]<br />
:The Sun's spectral lines<br />
<br />
:[Above the chart there are four and below the chart there are two labels, each label has one or more arrows pointing to different black lines. The two that has only one arrow points to two close lines marking them both. Only 22 lines are labeled like this, the other 6 are not labeled. The labels in reading order, with the number of arrows noted behind in square brackets:]<br />
:Calcium [3] Iron [5] Sodium [1] Oxygen [2]<br />
:Hydrogen [3] Magnesium [1] Those giant sunglasses [5]<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1719:_Superzoom&diff=1252181719: Superzoom2016-08-14T13:05:01Z<p>Spongebog: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1719<br />
| date = August 12, 2016<br />
| title = Superzoom<br />
| image = superzoom.png<br />
| titletext = *click* Let him know he's got a stain on his shirt, though.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
This comic is inspired by the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RTJIU0lHhto moon-zoom youtube video]] that made it's rounds on the intenet same week (Aug-2016) of the release of the comic. The camera used in the video is a Nikon p900 with a zoom of x83/x166 equivalent to 2000mm. The video literally show the camera's ability to zoom into details of the moon.<br />
<br />
In this comic, [[Cueball]] is showing off his new {{w|superzoom}} camera to [[White Hat]]. These are cameras with large zoom lenses, often up to 25× or higher magnification. He is very excited and starts by exclaiming how they can take detailed photos of the craters on the {{w|Moon}}, and (on better models) relatively large photos of {{w|Jupiter}} even with a resolution so individual clouds can be seen. (See examples of zoom on these objects [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwLbj0fBvXk here] and [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=de2LjQ5F3HE here] without cloud resolution though, but with Jupiter's {{w|Galilean moons|four large moons}} and {{w|Saturn|Saturn's}} {{w|Rings of Saturn|rings}}.)<br />
<br />
He then spots a bird (which is just a speck in the sky) and uses the superzoom for {{w|birdwatching}}, which is a popular use for these cameras. He can see that it's a {{w|Peregrine falcon}} and that it has been {{w|Bird ringing|banded}} (ringed) and he can even read the number on the band. He then spots an airplane and having taken a picture of it, he can tell that it is a {{w|Boeing 787 Dreamliner|787 Dreamliner}} from {{w|Japan Airlines}}, and he can even make out the registration number. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-0X3xJf-kg All this is possible], with a {{w|Nikon Coolpix P900}}, which may not be much larger than the one Cueball stands with here, with an extremely long lens. Although it still seem unlikely he would be able to make out the number on the birds band... <br />
<br />
Note that before each comment he has taken a picture, presumably zooming further in after each photo of each new object, zooming out again before beginning with the next object.<br />
<br />
Finally, White Hat exclaims that he is sold and states that he also want a superzoom camera like Cueball's. Cueball then points the camera down the street takes a picture and tells White Hat that the shop on ''Union Road'' has these camera in stock, indicating that he can see this inside the store (or in their window). He then takes another image and is able to make out not only the worker Kevin inside, he also recognizes him and (as mentioned in the title text after taking yet a further zoomed in picure) notice a stain on Kevin's shirt. He seems to like Kevin and asks White Hat to tell Kevin about the stain when he goes there to buy a superzoom camera.<br />
<br />
Even with the ability of these cameras, it would be difficult for Cueball to be able to make out a specific worker inside the store, but if he is standing near a window it is not impossible, and if he has a stain on his shirt, it is in the same league as spotting a band on a bird in the air. Of course he has to be in a spot where he can see straight to the front of the shop. <br />
<br />
The last panel and title text is also a remark on how such cameras can be used to spy on people for quite a far distance, which has often been (mis)used by {{w|Paparazzi|paparazzi photographers}} taking pictures of famous people (often while almost naked or in [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tANeyKZLF9s bikini] or other bathing clothes). Now everyman gets this disconcerting possibility to spy on their neighbors and others for just a few hundred dollars.<br />
<br />
There are lenses that can do what Cueball describes about Jupiter's clouds in the comic (e.g., the [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRq18WpQZC0 Canon 5200mm]), but so far not such a small consumer camera as shown in the illustration.<br />
<br />
A couple of other factors that many people may not realize until after they've bought a consumer-level superzoom camera is that a) taking a hand-held picture at maximum zoom is typically rather blurry because the lens is magnifying all vibration and it's impossible to hold the camera steady enough (so a Camera Tripod would be needed), and b) that the lens' aperture at maximum zoom is typically much smaller than at normal focal lengths, with the result that the shutter time must be several times longer to get proper exposure, compounding the vibration / blurry problem. Modern superzoom cameras do have "image stabilization", which can mitigate blurriness due to vibration, but extreme telephoto photography is still more challenging than implied in the comic.<br />
<br />
Also having zoomed so much it is very hard to actually locate a moving plane or bird in the sky while looking at the image shown on the camera. And as shown in the comic the lens is zoomed very much in. Of course this could be done by Cueball after having found the flying object with much less zoom. But still if he loses sight of the bird while fully zoomed in it will be almost impossible to find it again without zooming back out.<br />
<br />
White Hat and Cueball has discussed photography before in [[1314: Photos]].<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[White Hat and Cueball are walking right. Cueball is looking down at a camera with a long lens he is holding in both hands.]<br />
:Cueball: I love these superzoom cameras. For a few hundred dollars you can take pictures of Moon craters and Jupiter's clouds.<br />
<br />
:[They stop, White Hat looks up in the air while Cueball does the same but through the camera he is holding up to his eye while taking pictures. The camera lens is further zoomed out and is clicking.]<br />
:Cueball: And birds! See that speck up there?<br />
:<nowiki>*Click*</nowiki><br />
:Cueball: Peregrine falcon!<br />
:<nowiki>*Click*</nowiki><br />
:Cueball: It's banded, too. Want the number?<br />
<br />
:[White Hat looks even further up as Cueball turns left and point the even further zoomed camera almost straight up while taking photos.]<br />
:Cueball: And see that plane?<br />
:<nowiki>*Click*</nowiki><br />
:Cueball: 787 Dreamliner<br />
:<nowiki>*Click*</nowiki><br />
:Cueball: Japan Airlines.<br />
:<nowiki>*Click*</nowiki><br />
:Cueball: Registration is—<br />
<br />
:[White Hat looks back down on Cueball who has turned to the right holding the fully out-zoomed camera level to the right along the ground.]<br />
:White Hat: OK, I'm sold—I want one.<br />
:<nowiki>*Click*</nowiki><br />
:Cueball: They're in stock at the place on Union Road.<br />
:<nowiki>*Click*</nowiki><br />
:Cueball: Hey, Kevin's working today! He's great.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]<br />
[[Category:Animals]]</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1719:_Superzoom&diff=1252171719: Superzoom2016-08-14T13:00:28Z<p>Spongebog: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1719<br />
| date = August 12, 2016<br />
| title = Superzoom<br />
| image = superzoom.png<br />
| titletext = *click* Let him know he's got a stain on his shirt, though.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
This comic is inspired by the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RTJIU0lHhto moon-zoom youtube video]] that made it's rounds on the intenet same week (Aug-2016) of the release of the comic. The video literally show the camera's ability to zoom into details of the moon.<br />
<br />
In this comic, [[Cueball]] is showing off his new {{w|superzoom}} camera to [[White Hat]]. These are cameras with large zoom lenses, often up to 25× or higher magnification. He is very excited and starts by exclaiming how they can take detailed photos of the craters on the {{w|Moon}}, and (on better models) relatively large photos of {{w|Jupiter}} even with a resolution so individual clouds can be seen. (See examples of zoom on these objects [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwLbj0fBvXk here] and [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=de2LjQ5F3HE here] without cloud resolution though, but with Jupiter's {{w|Galilean moons|four large moons}} and {{w|Saturn|Saturn's}} {{w|Rings of Saturn|rings}}.)<br />
<br />
He then spots a bird (which is just a speck in the sky) and uses the superzoom for {{w|birdwatching}}, which is a popular use for these cameras. He can see that it's a {{w|Peregrine falcon}} and that it has been {{w|Bird ringing|banded}} (ringed) and he can even read the number on the band. He then spots an airplane and having taken a picture of it, he can tell that it is a {{w|Boeing 787 Dreamliner|787 Dreamliner}} from {{w|Japan Airlines}}, and he can even make out the registration number. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-0X3xJf-kg All this is possible], with a {{w|Nikon Coolpix P900}}, which may not be much larger than the one Cueball stands with here, with an extremely long lens. Although it still seem unlikely he would be able to make out the number on the birds band... <br />
<br />
Note that before each comment he has taken a picture, presumably zooming further in after each photo of each new object, zooming out again before beginning with the next object.<br />
<br />
Finally, White Hat exclaims that he is sold and states that he also want a superzoom camera like Cueball's. Cueball then points the camera down the street takes a picture and tells White Hat that the shop on ''Union Road'' has these camera in stock, indicating that he can see this inside the store (or in their window). He then takes another image and is able to make out not only the worker Kevin inside, he also recognizes him and (as mentioned in the title text after taking yet a further zoomed in picure) notice a stain on Kevin's shirt. He seems to like Kevin and asks White Hat to tell Kevin about the stain when he goes there to buy a superzoom camera.<br />
<br />
Even with the ability of these cameras, it would be difficult for Cueball to be able to make out a specific worker inside the store, but if he is standing near a window it is not impossible, and if he has a stain on his shirt, it is in the same league as spotting a band on a bird in the air. Of course he has to be in a spot where he can see straight to the front of the shop. <br />
<br />
The last panel and title text is also a remark on how such cameras can be used to spy on people for quite a far distance, which has often been (mis)used by {{w|Paparazzi|paparazzi photographers}} taking pictures of famous people (often while almost naked or in [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tANeyKZLF9s bikini] or other bathing clothes). Now everyman gets this disconcerting possibility to spy on their neighbors and others for just a few hundred dollars.<br />
<br />
There are lenses that can do what Cueball describes about Jupiter's clouds in the comic (e.g., the [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRq18WpQZC0 Canon 5200mm]), but so far not such a small consumer camera as shown in the illustration.<br />
<br />
A couple of other factors that many people may not realize until after they've bought a consumer-level superzoom camera is that a) taking a hand-held picture at maximum zoom is typically rather blurry because the lens is magnifying all vibration and it's impossible to hold the camera steady enough (so a Camera Tripod would be needed), and b) that the lens' aperture at maximum zoom is typically much smaller than at normal focal lengths, with the result that the shutter time must be several times longer to get proper exposure, compounding the vibration / blurry problem. Modern superzoom cameras do have "image stabilization", which can mitigate blurriness due to vibration, but extreme telephoto photography is still more challenging than implied in the comic.<br />
<br />
Also having zoomed so much it is very hard to actually locate a moving plane or bird in the sky while looking at the image shown on the camera. And as shown in the comic the lens is zoomed very much in. Of course this could be done by Cueball after having found the flying object with much less zoom. But still if he loses sight of the bird while fully zoomed in it will be almost impossible to find it again without zooming back out.<br />
<br />
White Hat and Cueball has discussed photography before in [[1314: Photos]].<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[White Hat and Cueball are walking right. Cueball is looking down at a camera with a long lens he is holding in both hands.]<br />
:Cueball: I love these superzoom cameras. For a few hundred dollars you can take pictures of Moon craters and Jupiter's clouds.<br />
<br />
:[They stop, White Hat looks up in the air while Cueball does the same but through the camera he is holding up to his eye while taking pictures. The camera lens is further zoomed out and is clicking.]<br />
:Cueball: And birds! See that speck up there?<br />
:<nowiki>*Click*</nowiki><br />
:Cueball: Peregrine falcon!<br />
:<nowiki>*Click*</nowiki><br />
:Cueball: It's banded, too. Want the number?<br />
<br />
:[White Hat looks even further up as Cueball turns left and point the even further zoomed camera almost straight up while taking photos.]<br />
:Cueball: And see that plane?<br />
:<nowiki>*Click*</nowiki><br />
:Cueball: 787 Dreamliner<br />
:<nowiki>*Click*</nowiki><br />
:Cueball: Japan Airlines.<br />
:<nowiki>*Click*</nowiki><br />
:Cueball: Registration is—<br />
<br />
:[White Hat looks back down on Cueball who has turned to the right holding the fully out-zoomed camera level to the right along the ground.]<br />
:White Hat: OK, I'm sold—I want one.<br />
:<nowiki>*Click*</nowiki><br />
:Cueball: They're in stock at the place on Union Road.<br />
:<nowiki>*Click*</nowiki><br />
:Cueball: Hey, Kevin's working today! He's great.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]<br />
[[Category:Animals]]</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1716:_Time_Travel_Thesis&diff=1248241716: Time Travel Thesis2016-08-06T03:31:47Z<p>Spongebog: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1716<br />
| date = August 5, 2016<br />
| title = Time Travel Thesis<br />
| image = time_travel_thesis.png<br />
| titletext = 'Hey, what are those futuristic goggles for, anyway?' 'Oh, this is just a broken Google Glass. It was 2010's night at the club.'<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
{{incomplete | Explanation can be scaled back to mention that closed loop and time paradoxes are not real since time travelers can predict outcome of conversation that may never take place}}<br />
<br />
[[Cueball]] has apparently been reading about {{w|time travel}}. He tells [[Megan]] about this, and Megan excitedly remarks that she did her college thesis on time travel which basically means that she is supposed to know a lot more about time travel than a guy who has just been "reading" about it.<br />
<br />
Cueball, however, continues to ask her if she knows basic facts about time travel, like he is investigating if he has discovered facets about it that she would have overlooked while writing a thesis about it, in what could be described as a typical male (non-scientist) behavior against female scientists. Megan keeps trying to say that since she wrote a '''Time Travel Thesis''', (hence the title of the comic), she already knows all of this and much, much more, and she is obviously getting frustrated by Cueball's attempts to impress her with his "knowledge".<br />
<br />
At this point Megan's future-self arrives with a ''Bzzzzt'', having used time travel to arrive at this exact moment in time. It seem she has continued her research and has successfully managed to make a time machine (maybe in a collaboration with others, but with the ability to use it to her own end and needs.) <br />
<br />
The reason she arrives is only to tell her younger self that this conversation with Cueball doesn't go anywhere and isn't important, and so present-Megan can leave and not waste her time anymore. Up till then, Megan was presumably reluctant to break off a conversation on the topic of time travel, since the conversation could potentially have improved, or maybe she was even at first attracted to Cueball and interested because he at least had read about time travel. But once the conversation began to run off track, it came as a relief to know that she could quit without the risk of missing out on anything important. <br />
<br />
And then she just walks away with her future-self leaving Cueball hanging in the last panel, having invented a completely new way to get out of useless/boring conversations.<br />
<br />
Alternatively, future-Megan just makes an excuse to haul present-Megan off in order to prevent the latter from disclosing some details of time travel science to Cueball, which could have unintended consequences. However using very advanced technology, or even violating physics law, for ''very mundane'' ends is a very common in xkcd, so using time travel to prevent useless conversation is not surprising from Megan.<br />
<br />
In either case if future-Megan did not finish the conversation she would not know it was unimportant, thus indicating that she actually did. So by coming back she now changes her own (and Cueball's) future. But maybe she knows this will not change anything, just save her self from wasting time. Of course the general implications of being able to travel like this are enormous, and the {{w|Grandfather paradox|paradoxes arising}} from such a possibility endless. For instance the future Megan could now describe to the present Megan how to make the time machine. But why not have gone even further back making it possible to travel in time even earlier etc. (And of course the whole going back and killing one of parents before they even meet, like the idea in {{w|The Terminator}} movie). Generally time travel is a [[:Category:Time travel|recurring theme]] in xkcd. It is worth noting, however, that the comic does not inherently cause a paradox. Were Megan to actually finish the conversation originally and then travel back in time to interrupt it, so long as the Megan who ''didn't'' finish the conversation stills travels back in time with the ''knowledge'' that the conversation didn't actually go anywhere and still saves her younger self from wasting her time, a time loop can be logically sustained.<br />
<br />
It is possible that [[Randall]] may have had some conversations like this, where after having spend a lot of time getting nothing out of it himself, would have wished his future self had come back to tell him to just leave the conversation now.<br />
<br />
In the title text present-Megan asks future-Megan about her futuristic googles and what they are for, presumably assuming they are needed for the time travel (maybe it is the backpack?) However it turns out it's just some old and broken {{w|Google Glass}}. The only reason future Megan wears these is that she attended a party at the club that had a 2010's night theme.<br />
<br />
This is an indication of how far from the future she has traveled, as Google Glass was first released in the 2010's. It is not clear whether she is wearing Google Glass because it became popular in the 2010's or because it was an esoteric piece of hardware that people would readily associate with the 2010's. Also a 90s party may be thrown today, but not a 2000's party. So it is safe to assume that Megan is at least from the 2030's. Also people attending retro dress-up parties frequently make mistakes and do not dress up exactly in-style, creating some anachronisms, especially if they dress up like they did many years ago.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball is facing Megan, talking to her.]<br />
:Cueball: I've been reading about time travel.<br />
:Megan: Cool! I did my thesis on time travel!<br />
<br />
:[Cueball is now gesturing toward Megan. An electrical charge of some sort is shown occurring outside the panel in the bottom right corner behind Megan.]<br />
:Cueball: Nice! So you know about closed timelike curves?<br />
:Megan: Yup. Thesis.<br />
:Cueball: Apparently wormholes can use exotic matter to–<br />
:Megan: I know. Like I said–<br />
:Charge: <big>''Bzzzt!''</big><br />
<br />
:[Megan has turned away from Cueball to the right. Megan from the future, wearing sunglasses, a headset and a machine strapped to her back has entered the frame from the right where the charge appeared.]<br />
:Future-Megan: You can skip this conversation. It doesn't turn out to be important.<br />
:Megan: Oh, thank God.<br />
<br />
:[Cueball is standing alone, the two Megans have left the panel.]<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Time travel]]</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1716:_Time_Travel_Thesis&diff=1248231716: Time Travel Thesis2016-08-06T03:31:11Z<p>Spongebog: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1716<br />
| date = August 5, 2016<br />
| title = Time Travel Thesis<br />
| image = time_travel_thesis.png<br />
| titletext = 'Hey, what are those futuristic goggles for, anyway?' 'Oh, this is just a broken Google Glass. It was 2010's night at the club.'<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
{{incomplete | Explanation can be scaled back to mention that closed loop and time paradoxes are not real since time travelers can predict outcome of conversation}}<br />
<br />
[[Cueball]] has apparently been reading about {{w|time travel}}. He tells [[Megan]] about this, and Megan excitedly remarks that she did her college thesis on time travel which basically means that she is supposed to know a lot more about time travel than a guy who has just been "reading" about it.<br />
<br />
Cueball, however, continues to ask her if she knows basic facts about time travel, like he is investigating if he has discovered facets about it that she would have overlooked while writing a thesis about it, in what could be described as a typical male (non-scientist) behavior against female scientists. Megan keeps trying to say that since she wrote a '''Time Travel Thesis''', (hence the title of the comic), she already knows all of this and much, much more, and she is obviously getting frustrated by Cueball's attempts to impress her with his "knowledge".<br />
<br />
At this point Megan's future-self arrives with a ''Bzzzzt'', having used time travel to arrive at this exact moment in time. It seem she has continued her research and has successfully managed to make a time machine (maybe in a collaboration with others, but with the ability to use it to her own end and needs.) <br />
<br />
The reason she arrives is only to tell her younger self that this conversation with Cueball doesn't go anywhere and isn't important, and so present-Megan can leave and not waste her time anymore. Up till then, Megan was presumably reluctant to break off a conversation on the topic of time travel, since the conversation could potentially have improved, or maybe she was even at first attracted to Cueball and interested because he at least had read about time travel. But once the conversation began to run off track, it came as a relief to know that she could quit without the risk of missing out on anything important. <br />
<br />
And then she just walks away with her future-self leaving Cueball hanging in the last panel, having invented a completely new way to get out of useless/boring conversations.<br />
<br />
Alternatively, future-Megan just makes an excuse to haul present-Megan off in order to prevent the latter from disclosing some details of time travel science to Cueball, which could have unintended consequences. However using very advanced technology, or even violating physics law, for ''very mundane'' ends is a very common in xkcd, so using time travel to prevent useless conversation is not surprising from Megan.<br />
<br />
In either case if future-Megan did not finish the conversation she would not know it was unimportant, thus indicating that she actually did. So by coming back she now changes her own (and Cueball's) future. But maybe she knows this will not change anything, just save her self from wasting time. Of course the general implications of being able to travel like this are enormous, and the {{w|Grandfather paradox|paradoxes arising}} from such a possibility endless. For instance the future Megan could now describe to the present Megan how to make the time machine. But why not have gone even further back making it possible to travel in time even earlier etc. (And of course the whole going back and killing one of parents before they even meet, like the idea in {{w|The Terminator}} movie). Generally time travel is a [[:Category:Time travel|recurring theme]] in xkcd. It is worth noting, however, that the comic does not inherently cause a paradox. Were Megan to actually finish the conversation originally and then travel back in time to interrupt it, so long as the Megan who ''didn't'' finish the conversation stills travels back in time with the ''knowledge'' that the conversation didn't actually go anywhere and still saves her younger self from wasting her time, a time loop can be logically sustained.<br />
<br />
It is possible that [[Randall]] may have had some conversations like this, where after having spend a lot of time getting nothing out of it himself, would have wished his future self had come back to tell him to just leave the conversation now.<br />
<br />
In the title text present-Megan asks future-Megan about her futuristic googles and what they are for, presumably assuming they are needed for the time travel (maybe it is the backpack?) However it turns out it's just some old and broken {{w|Google Glass}}. The only reason future Megan wears these is that she attended a party at the club that had a 2010's night theme.<br />
<br />
This is an indication of how far from the future she has traveled, as Google Glass was first released in the 2010's. It is not clear whether she is wearing Google Glass because it became popular in the 2010's or because it was an esoteric piece of hardware that people would readily associate with the 2010's. Also a 90s party may be thrown today, but not a 2000's party. So it is safe to assume that Megan is at least from the 2030's. Also people attending retro dress-up parties frequently make mistakes and do not dress up exactly in-style, creating some anachronisms, especially if they dress up like they did many years ago.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball is facing Megan, talking to her.]<br />
:Cueball: I've been reading about time travel.<br />
:Megan: Cool! I did my thesis on time travel!<br />
<br />
:[Cueball is now gesturing toward Megan. An electrical charge of some sort is shown occurring outside the panel in the bottom right corner behind Megan.]<br />
:Cueball: Nice! So you know about closed timelike curves?<br />
:Megan: Yup. Thesis.<br />
:Cueball: Apparently wormholes can use exotic matter to–<br />
:Megan: I know. Like I said–<br />
:Charge: <big>''Bzzzt!''</big><br />
<br />
:[Megan has turned away from Cueball to the right. Megan from the future, wearing sunglasses, a headset and a machine strapped to her back has entered the frame from the right where the charge appeared.]<br />
:Future-Megan: You can skip this conversation. It doesn't turn out to be important.<br />
:Megan: Oh, thank God.<br />
<br />
:[Cueball is standing alone, the two Megans have left the panel.]<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Time travel]]</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1716:_Time_Travel_Thesis&diff=1248221716: Time Travel Thesis2016-08-06T03:26:01Z<p>Spongebog: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1716<br />
| date = August 5, 2016<br />
| title = Time Travel Thesis<br />
| image = time_travel_thesis.png<br />
| titletext = 'Hey, what are those futuristic goggles for, anyway?' 'Oh, this is just a broken Google Glass. It was 2010's night at the club.'<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
{incomplete | Explanation can be scaled back to mention that closed loop and time paradoxes are not real since time travelers can predict outcome of conversation}<br />
<br />
[[Cueball]] has apparently been reading about {{w|time travel}}. He tells [[Megan]] about this, and Megan excitedly remarks that she did her college thesis on time travel which basically means that she is supposed to know a lot more about time travel than a guy who has just been "reading" about it.<br />
<br />
Cueball, however, continues to ask her if she knows basic facts about time travel, like he is investigating if he has discovered facets about it that she would have overlooked while writing a thesis about it, in what could be described as a typical male (non-scientist) behavior against female scientists. Megan keeps trying to say that since she wrote a '''Time Travel Thesis''', (hence the title of the comic), she already knows all of this and much, much more, and she is obviously getting frustrated by Cueball's attempts to impress her with his "knowledge".<br />
<br />
At this point Megan's future-self arrives with a ''Bzzzzt'', having used time travel to arrive at this exact moment in time. It seem she has continued her research and has successfully managed to make a time machine (maybe in a collaboration with others, but with the ability to use it to her own end and needs.) <br />
<br />
The reason she arrives is only to tell her younger self that this conversation with Cueball doesn't go anywhere and isn't important, and so present-Megan can leave and not waste her time anymore. Up till then, Megan was presumably reluctant to break off a conversation on the topic of time travel, since the conversation could potentially have improved, or maybe she was even at first attracted to Cueball and interested because he at least had read about time travel. But once the conversation began to run off track, it came as a relief to know that she could quit without the risk of missing out on anything important. <br />
<br />
And then she just walks away with her future-self leaving Cueball hanging in the last panel, having invented a completely new way to get out of useless/boring conversations.<br />
<br />
Alternatively, future-Megan just makes an excuse to haul present-Megan off in order to prevent the latter from disclosing some details of time travel science to Cueball, which could have unintended consequences. However using very advanced technology, or even violating physics law, for ''very mundane'' ends is a very common in xkcd, so using time travel to prevent useless conversation is not surprising from Megan.<br />
<br />
In either case if future-Megan did not finish the conversation she would not know it was unimportant, thus indicating that she actually did. So by coming back she now changes her own (and Cueball's) future. But maybe she knows this will not change anything, just save her self from wasting time. Of course the general implications of being able to travel like this are enormous, and the {{w|Grandfather paradox|paradoxes arising}} from such a possibility endless. For instance the future Megan could now describe to the present Megan how to make the time machine. But why not have gone even further back making it possible to travel in time even earlier etc. (And of course the whole going back and killing one of parents before they even meet, like the idea in {{w|The Terminator}} movie). Generally time travel is a [[:Category:Time travel|recurring theme]] in xkcd. It is worth noting, however, that the comic does not inherently cause a paradox. Were Megan to actually finish the conversation originally and then travel back in time to interrupt it, so long as the Megan who ''didn't'' finish the conversation stills travels back in time with the ''knowledge'' that the conversation didn't actually go anywhere and still saves her younger self from wasting her time, a time loop can be logically sustained.<br />
<br />
It is possible that [[Randall]] may have had some conversations like this, where after having spend a lot of time getting nothing out of it himself, would have wished his future self had come back to tell him to just leave the conversation now.<br />
<br />
In the title text present-Megan asks future-Megan about her futuristic googles and what they are for, presumably assuming they are needed for the time travel (maybe it is the backpack?) However it turns out it's just some old and broken {{w|Google Glass}}. The only reason future Megan wears these is that she attended a party at the club that had a 2010's night theme.<br />
<br />
This is an indication of how far from the future she has traveled, as Google Glass was first released in the 2010's. It is not clear whether she is wearing Google Glass because it became popular in the 2010's or because it was an esoteric piece of hardware that people would readily associate with the 2010's. Also a 90s party may be thrown today, but not a 2000's party. So it is safe to assume that Megan is at least from the 2030's. Also people attending retro dress-up parties frequently make mistakes and do not dress up exactly in-style, creating some anachronisms, especially if they dress up like they did many years ago.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball is facing Megan, talking to her.]<br />
:Cueball: I've been reading about time travel.<br />
:Megan: Cool! I did my thesis on time travel!<br />
<br />
:[Cueball is now gesturing toward Megan. An electrical charge of some sort is shown occurring outside the panel in the bottom right corner behind Megan.]<br />
:Cueball: Nice! So you know about closed timelike curves?<br />
:Megan: Yup. Thesis.<br />
:Cueball: Apparently wormholes can use exotic matter to–<br />
:Megan: I know. Like I said–<br />
:Charge: <big>''Bzzzt!''</big><br />
<br />
:[Megan has turned away from Cueball to the right. Megan from the future, wearing sunglasses, a headset and a machine strapped to her back has entered the frame from the right where the charge appeared.]<br />
:Future-Megan: You can skip this conversation. It doesn't turn out to be important.<br />
:Megan: Oh, thank God.<br />
<br />
:[Cueball is standing alone, the two Megans have left the panel.]<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Time travel]]</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1700:_New_Bug&diff=1225661700: New Bug2016-06-29T16:26:13Z<p>Spongebog: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1700<br />
| date = June 29, 2016<br />
| title = New Bug<br />
| image = new_bug.png<br />
| titletext = There's also a unicode-handling bug in the URL request library, and we're storing the passwords unsalted ... so if we salt them with emoji, we can close three issues at once!<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|How does salting with emoji fix the unicode-handling bug in the URL request library? Does it really?}}<br />
<br />
[[Cueball]] asks if an off-panel character can look at his bug report. The person asks if it's a "normal one" and not a "horrifying" one which "proves that the whole project is broken beyond repair and should be burnt to the ground". This implies that there have been reports of the "horrifying" variety in the past. <br />
<br />
Cueball promises that it is a normal one but it turns out that the server crashes when a user's password is a resolvable URL, which implies that the server is in some way attempting to resolve passwords as if they were URLs. A resolvable URL is one that is syntactically correct and refers to a find-able and accessible resource on the internet (i.e. does not return a {{w|HTTP_404|404 error}} or equivalent when resolved). This can be because it contains a {{w|Fully_qualified_domain_name|fully qualified domain name}} or a valid ip address, and optionally (in either case) a resource that exists on the destination server.<br />
<br />
Also, Cueball specifically states that the server is crashing, rather than his application. While this could be an example of misused terminology on the part of Cueball or Randall, given Cueball's history his choice of terms is probably accurate. In the context of web services the server refers to either the computer itself or the program that responds to web requests and executes the user's (i.e. Cueball's) application. Cueball would be in charge of building the application. The importance of this distinction is that a typical system has safe guards in place at many levels to prevent a misbehaving application from crashing anything other than itself. So for his application to crash the server (either the computer itself or the server software hosting his application) would require his application to be operating in a way far outside of the norm. Alternatively, the project might include its own server software without the safeguards. <br />
<br />
While there appears to be little reason for the code that processes passwords to attempt to resolve the input string as a URL, then a common function in password programs is the functionality of assessing the strength of a password, using a combinations of heuristic testing for uniqueness, length, good use of mixed characters and dictionary lookups for common words -- this password function have extended the dictionary lookups to using {{w|DNS}} names and URLs, so people choosing a password like "XKCD.com" would be given a low strength score, even that no part of it is a dictionary word and it contain both upper, lower case and special characters. However, accessing the internet in any security function like password creation open up, not only possibility of new bugs like the one mentioned, but also a completely new set of security issues which is not what you want from a critical function handling passwords. Realizing the wealth of new security issues, the off-panel person resigns and decides that burning the project to the ground is the only solution, telling Cueball ''I'll get the {{w|Butane|lighter fluid}}''. <br />
<br />
In the title text another two issues with Cueballs program are mentioned together with a possible solution that would fix all three problems at once. The second problem is unicode-handling bug in the URL request library, and the third is that the passwords are stored unsalted. {{w|Salt (cryptography)|Salting}} passwords increases security in the event that the database is compromised by ensuring that users with the same password will not have the same password hash. This makes some attacks used to decipher hash databases, such as {{w|Rainbow table|rainbow tables}}, effectively impossible.<br />
<br />
The proposed solution is to salt the passwords with {{w|emoji}}, which is claimed to solve all three issues at once.<br />
<br />
When the passwords are salted with emoji, the URL request library will fail to resolve any (salted) passwords because emoji are not valid characters in URLs. Since the server only crashes on ''resolvable'' URLs, this should mean the server won't crash anymore. In addition, the passwords will now be salted. Finally, emoji will often include unicode characters, which means that, if one can effectively salt passwords with emoji, then the passwords should be able to be stored in unicode (although that *probably* doesn't require anything outside the Base Multilingual Plane, so that might not need full unicode support after-all).<br />
<br />
Given that this comic comes only five comics after [[1695: Code Quality 2]] is seems likely that the off-panel person is [[Ponytail]] and as could be seen in the first of those two comics, [[1513: Code Quality]], the perpetrator is indeed Cueball. In the title text of this first one, using emoji in variable names is mentioned.<br />
<br />
In [[1349: Shouldn't Be Hard]] Cueball is also programming and finding it very difficult in-spite that he thinks is should be easy. An off-panel person suggest burning the computer down with a blowtorch much like the off-panel person in this one suggest burning the whole project (including the computer) to the ground with lighter fluid. In the very next comic, the multi storyline [[1350: Lorenz]], one [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:2ed958de-badf-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd story line] results in a computer being [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a6/lorenz_-_laptop_9.png burned with a blow torch].<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball sits at his desk in front of his computer leaning back and turning away from it to speak to a person off-panel.]<br />
:Cueball: Can you take a look at the bug I just opened?<br />
:Off-panel voice: Uh oh.<br />
<br />
:[Zoom out and pan to show only Cueball sitting on his chair facing away from the computer, which is now off-panel. The person speaking to him is still of panel even though this panel is much broader.]<br />
:Off-panel voice: Is this a '''normal''' bug, or one of those horrifying ones that prove your whole project is broken beyond repair and should be burned to the ground?<br />
<br />
:[Zoom in on Cueballs head and upper torso.]<br />
:Cueball: It's a normal one this time, I promise.<br />
:Off-panel voice: OK, what's the bug?<br />
<br />
:[Back to a view similar to the first panel where Cueball has turned towards the computer and points at the screen with one hand.]<br />
:Cueball: The server crashes if a user's password is a resolvable URL.<br />
:Off-panel voice: I'll get the lighter fluid.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Computers]]<br />
[[Category:Programming]]</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1700:_New_Bug&diff=1225651700: New Bug2016-06-29T16:23:18Z<p>Spongebog: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1700<br />
| date = June 29, 2016<br />
| title = New Bug<br />
| image = new_bug.png<br />
| titletext = There's also a unicode-handling bug in the URL request library, and we're storing the passwords unsalted ... so if we salt them with emoji, we can close three issues at once!<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|How does salting with emoji fix the unicode-handling bug in the URL request library? Does it really?}}<br />
<br />
[[Cueball]] asks if an off-panel character can look at his bug report. The person asks if it's a "normal one" and not a "horrifying" one which "proves that the whole project is broken beyond repair and should be burnt to the ground". This implies that there have been reports of the "horrifying" variety in the past. <br />
<br />
Cueball promises that it is a normal one but it turns out that the server crashes when a user's password is a resolvable URL, which implies that the server is in some way attempting to resolve passwords as if they were URLs. A resolvable URL is one that is syntactically correct and refers to a find-able and accessible resource on the internet (i.e. does not return a {{w|HTTP_404|404 error}} or equivalent when resolved). This can be because it contains a {{w|Fully_qualified_domain_name|fully qualified domain name}} or a valid ip address, and optionally (in either case) a resource that exists on the destination server.<br />
<br />
Also, Cueball specifically states that the server is crashing, rather than his application. While this could be an example of misused terminology on the part of Cueball or Randall, given Cueball's history his choice of terms is probably accurate. In the context of web services the server refers to either the computer itself or the program that responds to web requests and executes the user's (i.e. Cueball's) application. Cueball would be in charge of building the application. The importance of this distinction is that a typical system has safe guards in place at many levels to prevent a misbehaving application from crashing anything other than itself. So for his application to crash the server (either the computer itself or the server software hosting his application) would require his application to be operating in a way far outside of the norm. Alternatively, the project might include its own server software without the safeguards. <br />
<br />
While there appears to be little reason for the code that processes passwords to attempt to resolve the input string as a URL, then a common function in password programs is the functionality of accessing the strength of a password, using heuristic combinations of uniqueness, length and dictionary lookups for common words -- this password function have extended the dictionary lookups to the used of {{w|DNS}} names and URLs, so people choosing the password "XKCD.com" would be given a low strength score, even that no part of it is a dictionary word and it contain both upper, lower case and special characters. However, accessing the internet in any security function like password open up , not only possibility of new bugs, but also a completely new set of security issues which is not what you want from a critical function handling passwords. Realizing this, the off-panel person resigns and decides that burning the project to the ground is the only solution, telling Cueball ''I'll get the {{w|Butane|lighter fluid}}''. <br />
<br />
In the title text another two issues with Cueballs program are mentioned together with a possible solution that would fix all three problems at once. The second problem is unicode-handling bug in the URL request library, and the third is that the passwords are stored unsalted. {{w|Salt (cryptography)|Salting}} passwords increases security in the event that the database is compromised by ensuring that users with the same password will not have the same password hash. This makes some attacks used to decipher hash databases, such as {{w|Rainbow table|rainbow tables}}, effectively impossible.<br />
<br />
The proposed solution is to salt the passwords with {{w|emoji}}, which is claimed to solve all three issues at once.<br />
<br />
When the passwords are salted with emoji, the URL request library will fail to resolve any (salted) passwords because emoji are not valid characters in URLs. Since the server only crashes on ''resolvable'' URLs, this should mean the server won't crash anymore. In addition, the passwords will now be salted. Finally, emoji will often include unicode characters, which means that, if one can effectively salt passwords with emoji, then the passwords should be able to be stored in unicode (although that *probably* doesn't require anything outside the Base Multilingual Plane, so that might not need full unicode support after-all).<br />
<br />
Given that this comic comes only five comics after [[1695: Code Quality 2]] is seems likely that the off-panel person is [[Ponytail]] and as could be seen in the first of those two comics, [[1513: Code Quality]], the perpetrator is indeed Cueball. In the title text of this first one, using emoji in variable names is mentioned.<br />
<br />
In [[1349: Shouldn't Be Hard]] Cueball is also programming and finding it very difficult in-spite that he thinks is should be easy. An off-panel person suggest burning the computer down with a blowtorch much like the off-panel person in this one suggest burning the whole project (including the computer) to the ground with lighter fluid. In the very next comic, the multi storyline [[1350: Lorenz]], one [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:2ed958de-badf-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd story line] results in a computer being [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a6/lorenz_-_laptop_9.png burned with a blow torch].<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball sits at his desk in front of his computer leaning back and turning away from it to speak to a person off-panel.]<br />
:Cueball: Can you take a look at the bug I just opened?<br />
:Off-panel voice: Uh oh.<br />
<br />
:[Zoom out and pan to show only Cueball sitting on his chair facing away from the computer, which is now off-panel. The person speaking to him is still of panel even though this panel is much broader.]<br />
:Off-panel voice: Is this a '''normal''' bug, or one of those horrifying ones that prove your whole project is broken beyond repair and should be burned to the ground?<br />
<br />
:[Zoom in on Cueballs head and upper torso.]<br />
:Cueball: It's a normal one this time, I promise.<br />
:Off-panel voice: OK, what's the bug?<br />
<br />
:[Back to a view similar to the first panel where Cueball has turned towards the computer and points at the screen with one hand.]<br />
:Cueball: The server crashes if a user's password is a resolvable URL.<br />
:Off-panel voice: I'll get the lighter fluid.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Computers]]<br />
[[Category:Programming]]</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1700:_New_Bug&diff=122564Talk:1700: New Bug2016-06-29T16:15:46Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
<hr />
<div><!--Please sign your posts with ~~~~--><br />
<br />
I'm new. For the explanation: A bug, as in a computer (programming) bug, can be reported and tracked, and many systems allow collaboration on the reporting and tracking of problems, or bugs, in code, and their solutions. Cueball reported a problem (bug) he found in the code, which presumably caused the server (program)&mdash;which he wrote as part of his project&mdash;to try to read the passwords as URLs before storing them. This exposes serious cross-site scripting attacks and other serious security vulnerabilities, and since handling password and user account information usually requires a lot of programming, this would be difficult to fix, which is why the character off-panel suggests burning the project down, as that would be much easier, and would solve any security problems, much more quickly than fixing the bug would. The comment text refers to Cueball's horrid solution to a horrid problem: Instead of solving the problem that is causing the server to read passwords as URLs, he can instead leverage a known problem in the programme which reads URLs which prevents it from reading a particular way of representing text in binary form, by adding a few characters to the user's password that the URL-reading program can't read. This would also "salt" the user's password, which is a security technique that makes passwords harder to figure out when they are stored properly. Cueball thinks this would solve the original problem, and two other problems at the same time, the second problem being the fact that user's passwords aren't salted (a security problem). The third solved problem is difficult to deduce. &emsp;[[User:Zyzygy|Zyzygy]] 05:40, 29 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: The third bug is the unicode handling, which would need to be solved in order to salt passwords with emoji since these are unicode only character. Although I'm not sure if salting with emoji really increases security since as a rule i'd say nobody uses emoji in their passwords. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.85.123|162.158.85.123]] 06:34, 29 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
::Password: 👍🐎🔋Π [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.131|141.101.98.131]] 10:11, 29 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:Actually, nobody using emoji in their password would be reason salting with emoji is MORE effective. Salting doesn't really increase security of single password, but it does increase security of whole password database, because you can hash some string - like, [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/2016/01/26/most-common-passwords-revealed---and-theyre-ridiculously-easy-to/ 123456] and check whole database for users having that as password. If every password is salted with different emoji, this strategy will not work, because while you KNOW which emoji is used - the salt is stored unhashed with the password hash - it's always different so you need to compute new hash for every line in password database. Hashing takes MUCH more time than just comparing strings. And how it's even more effective? Because someone might actually get multiple databases and search for entries with same salt, hoping there will be enough of them to be worth it. And salt with emoji likely wouldn't be so common ... -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 09:54, 29 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
From 108.162.221.22 (long rant)<br />
:Two comments: first, the explanation on password salting is incorrect. The current version says "Salting passwords increases security by adding random data to the passwords which primarily helps defend against dictionary attacks.". Password salting only protects against particular kinds of (common) attacks in specific situations. Most importantly, it is designed to protect passwords only in the event ofa database breach, when a malicious user has gained direct access to the database itself. Password salting provides no protection when brute force attacks (aka dictionary attacks) are directed at the application itself, as the application automatically takes hashes into account. Instead, proper password salting randomizes the hash for each password, ensuring that if two users have the same password, they will not have the same hash. This makes it much more difficult to guess passwords through attack vectors like lookup tables, reverse lookup tables, and rainbow tables. However, because the salt has to be stored with the password (otherwise the application would not be able to make sense of the hash itself), password salting does not secure passwords against dictionary attacks even in the event that a malicious user has managed to acquire the database itself. I will update the explanation with a brief description of what password salts do.<br />
:Finally, I think there is a big misunderstanding throughout this explanation. In a web services context the "server" (referenced in the comic) is a very different thing than the application that a programmer builds. A server can refer to either the computer itself or the software that is responsible for responding to web requests and executing the actual application. In a professional context, the application (which is what cueball would be building) would never be referred to as the "server". It is possible that this is a mis-use of terminology on the part of cueball or Randall, but I suspect that the term was used properly and intentionally. The reason is because if cueball's application is crashing the *server*, it takes the level of incompetence up to completely new (and unusual) levels, in much the same way that he has done in the past. Normally the programming language used to build the application, the software hosting the application, and the operating system itself have a number of safe guards in place to ensure that if an application misbehaves, the only thing that crashes is the application itself. For cueball's application to break through all those safeguards and crash the server itself (either the operating system or the web server software) would require cueball to have developed a program that operates *well* outside the bounds of normal procedures. Just for reference, as someone who has been building web software for over 15 years, I wouldn't even know where to start to crash the server from within an application. It would probably have to involve either exploiting a previously unknown bug in the programming language or some *very* poorly designed system calls. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.221.22 15:11, 29 June 2016 108.162.221.22]] (Rememeber to sign your comments) <br />
<br />
Explanation says "There is no reason for password handling code to access urls" but that is somewhat wrong -- Password handling code frequently perform heuristics on the password to assess the strength, for example checking if part of the password is a dictionary word -- similar heuristics could be done to check thatthe password is not a URL, such as "xkcd.com" applying DNS and other internet resources as an extention of the concept of "dictionary". [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 16:11, 29 June 2016 (UTC)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1700:_New_Bug&diff=122563Talk:1700: New Bug2016-06-29T16:15:14Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
<hr />
<div><!--Please sign your posts with ~~~~--><br />
<br />
I'm new. For the explanation: A bug, as in a computer (programming) bug, can be reported and tracked, and many systems allow collaboration on the reporting and tracking of problems, or bugs, in code, and their solutions. Cueball reported a problem (bug) he found in the code, which presumably caused the server (program)&mdash;which he wrote as part of his project&mdash;to try to read the passwords as URLs before storing them. This exposes serious cross-site scripting attacks and other serious security vulnerabilities, and since handling password and user account information usually requires a lot of programming, this would be difficult to fix, which is why the character off-panel suggests burning the project down, as that would be much easier, and would solve any security problems, much more quickly than fixing the bug would. The comment text refers to Cueball's horrid solution to a horrid problem: Instead of solving the problem that is causing the server to read passwords as URLs, he can instead leverage a known problem in the programme which reads URLs which prevents it from reading a particular way of representing text in binary form, by adding a few characters to the user's password that the URL-reading program can't read. This would also "salt" the user's password, which is a security technique that makes passwords harder to figure out when they are stored properly. Cueball thinks this would solve the original problem, and two other problems at the same time, the second problem being the fact that user's passwords aren't salted (a security problem). The third solved problem is difficult to deduce. &emsp;[[User:Zyzygy|Zyzygy]] 05:40, 29 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: The third bug is the unicode handling, which would need to be solved in order to salt passwords with emoji since these are unicode only character. Although I'm not sure if salting with emoji really increases security since as a rule i'd say nobody uses emoji in their passwords. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.85.123|162.158.85.123]] 06:34, 29 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
::Password: 👍🐎🔋Π [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.131|141.101.98.131]] 10:11, 29 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:Actually, nobody using emoji in their password would be reason salting with emoji is MORE effective. Salting doesn't really increase security of single password, but it does increase security of whole password database, because you can hash some string - like, [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/2016/01/26/most-common-passwords-revealed---and-theyre-ridiculously-easy-to/ 123456] and check whole database for users having that as password. If every password is salted with different emoji, this strategy will not work, because while you KNOW which emoji is used - the salt is stored unhashed with the password hash - it's always different so you need to compute new hash for every line in password database. Hashing takes MUCH more time than just comparing strings. And how it's even more effective? Because someone might actually get multiple databases and search for entries with same salt, hoping there will be enough of them to be worth it. And salt with emoji likely wouldn't be so common ... -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 09:54, 29 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
From 108.162.221.22 (long rant)<br />
:Two comments: first, the explanation on password salting is incorrect. The current version says "Salting passwords increases security by adding random data to the passwords which primarily helps defend against dictionary attacks.". Password salting only protects against particular kinds of (common) attacks in specific situations. Most importantly, it is designed to protect passwords only in the event ofa database breach, when a malicious user has gained direct access to the database itself. Password salting provides no protection when brute force attacks (aka dictionary attacks) are directed at the application itself, as the application automatically takes hashes into account. Instead, proper password salting randomizes the hash for each password, ensuring that if two users have the same password, they will not have the same hash. This makes it much more difficult to guess passwords through attack vectors like lookup tables, reverse lookup tables, and rainbow tables. However, because the salt has to be stored with the password (otherwise the application would not be able to make sense of the hash itself), password salting does not secure passwords against dictionary attacks even in the event that a malicious user has managed to acquire the database itself. I will update the explanation with a brief description of what password salts do.<br />
:Finally, I think there is a big misunderstanding throughout this explanation. In a web services context the "server" (referenced in the comic) is a very different thing than the application that a programmer builds. A server can refer to either the computer itself or the software that is responsible for responding to web requests and executing the actual application. In a professional context, the application (which is what cueball would be building) would never be referred to as the "server". It is possible that this is a mis-use of terminology on the part of cueball or Randall, but I suspect that the term was used properly and intentionally. The reason is because if cueball's application is crashing the *server*, it takes the level of incompetence up to completely new (and unusual) levels, in much the same way that he has done in the past. Normally the programming language used to build the application, the software hosting the application, and the operating system itself have a number of safe guards in place to ensure that if an application misbehaves, the only thing that crashes is the application itself. For cueball's application to break through all those safeguards and crash the server itself (either the operating system or the web server software) would require cueball to have developed a program that operates *well* outside the bounds of normal procedures. Just for reference, as someone who has been building web software for over 15 years, I wouldn't even know where to start to crash the server from within an application. It would probably have to involve either exploiting a previously unknown bug in the programming language or some *very* poorly designed system calls. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.221.22 15:11, 29 June 2016 108.162.221.22]] (Rememeber to sign your comments) <br />
<br />
Explanation says "There is no reason for password handling code" -- Password handling code frequently perform heuristics on the password to assess the strength, for example checking if part of the password is a dictionary word -- similar heuristics could be done to check thatthe password is not a URL, such as "xkcd.com" applying DNS and other internet resources as an extention of the concept of "dictionary". [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 16:11, 29 June 2016 (UTC)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1700:_New_Bug&diff=122562Talk:1700: New Bug2016-06-29T16:14:20Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
<hr />
<div><!--Please sign your posts with ~~~~--><br />
<br />
I'm new. For the explanation: A bug, as in a computer (programming) bug, can be reported and tracked, and many systems allow collaboration on the reporting and tracking of problems, or bugs, in code, and their solutions. Cueball reported a problem (bug) he found in the code, which presumably caused the server (program)&mdash;which he wrote as part of his project&mdash;to try to read the passwords as URLs before storing them. This exposes serious cross-site scripting attacks and other serious security vulnerabilities, and since handling password and user account information usually requires a lot of programming, this would be difficult to fix, which is why the character off-panel suggests burning the project down, as that would be much easier, and would solve any security problems, much more quickly than fixing the bug would. The comment text refers to Cueball's horrid solution to a horrid problem: Instead of solving the problem that is causing the server to read passwords as URLs, he can instead leverage a known problem in the programme which reads URLs which prevents it from reading a particular way of representing text in binary form, by adding a few characters to the user's password that the URL-reading program can't read. This would also "salt" the user's password, which is a security technique that makes passwords harder to figure out when they are stored properly. Cueball thinks this would solve the original problem, and two other problems at the same time, the second problem being the fact that user's passwords aren't salted (a security problem). The third solved problem is difficult to deduce. &emsp;[[User:Zyzygy|Zyzygy]] 05:40, 29 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
: The third bug is the unicode handling, which would need to be solved in order to salt passwords with emoji since these are unicode only character. Although I'm not sure if salting with emoji really increases security since as a rule i'd say nobody uses emoji in their passwords. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.85.123|162.158.85.123]] 06:34, 29 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
::Password: 👍🐎🔋Π [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.131|141.101.98.131]] 10:11, 29 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:Actually, nobody using emoji in their password would be reason salting with emoji is MORE effective. Salting doesn't really increase security of single password, but it does increase security of whole password database, because you can hash some string - like, [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/2016/01/26/most-common-passwords-revealed---and-theyre-ridiculously-easy-to/ 123456] and check whole database for users having that as password. If every password is salted with different emoji, this strategy will not work, because while you KNOW which emoji is used - the salt is stored unhashed with the password hash - it's always different so you need to compute new hash for every line in password database. Hashing takes MUCH more time than just comparing strings. And how it's even more effective? Because someone might actually get multiple databases and search for entries with same salt, hoping there will be enough of them to be worth it. And salt with emoji likely wouldn't be so common ... -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 09:54, 29 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
From 108.162.221.22 (long rant)<br />
:Two comments: first, the explanation on password salting is incorrect. The current version says "Salting passwords increases security by adding random data to the passwords which primarily helps defend against dictionary attacks.". Password salting only protects against particular kinds of (common) attacks in specific situations. Most importantly, it is designed to protect passwords only in the event ofa database breach, when a malicious user has gained direct access to the database itself. Password salting provides no protection when brute force attacks (aka dictionary attacks) are directed at the application itself, as the application automatically takes hashes into account. Instead, proper password salting randomizes the hash for each password, ensuring that if two users have the same password, they will not have the same hash. This makes it much more difficult to guess passwords through attack vectors like lookup tables, reverse lookup tables, and rainbow tables. However, because the salt has to be stored with the password (otherwise the application would not be able to make sense of the hash itself), password salting does not secure passwords against dictionary attacks even in the event that a malicious user has managed to acquire the database itself. I will update the explanation with a brief description of what password salts do.<br />
<br />
:Finally, I think there is a big misunderstanding throughout this explanation. In a web services context the "server" (referenced in the comic) is a very different thing than the application that a programmer builds. A server can refer to either the computer itself or the software that is responsible for responding to web requests and executing the actual application. In a professional context, the application (which is what cueball would be building) would never be referred to as the "server". It is possible that this is a mis-use of terminology on the part of cueball or Randall, but I suspect that the term was used properly and intentionally. The reason is because if cueball's application is crashing the *server*, it takes the level of incompetence up to completely new (and unusual) levels, in much the same way that he has done in the past. Normally the programming language used to build the application, the software hosting the application, and the operating system itself have a number of safe guards in place to ensure that if an application misbehaves, the only thing that crashes is the application itself. For cueball's application to break through all those safeguards and crash the server itself (either the operating system or the web server software) would require cueball to have developed a program that operates *well* outside the bounds of normal procedures. Just for reference, as someone who has been building web software for over 15 years, I wouldn't even know where to start to crash the server from within an application. It would probably have to involve either exploiting a previously unknown bug in the programming language or some *very* poorly designed system calls. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.221.22 15:11, 29 June 2016 108.162.221.22]] (Rememeber to sign your comments) <br />
<br />
Explanation says "There is no reason for password handling code" -- Password handling code frequently perform heuristics on the password to assess the strength, for example checking if part of the password is a dictionary word -- similar heuristics could be done to check thatthe password is not a URL, such as "xkcd.com" applying DNS and other internet resources as an extention of the concept of "dictionary". [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 16:11, 29 June 2016 (UTC)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1700:_New_Bug&diff=122561Talk:1700: New Bug2016-06-29T16:12:43Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
<hr />
<div><!--Please sign your posts with ~~~~--><br />
I'm new. For the explanation: A bug, as in a computer (programming) bug, can be reported and tracked, and many systems allow collaboration on the reporting and tracking of problems, or bugs, in code, and their solutions. Cueball reported a problem (bug) he found in the code, which presumably caused the server (program)&mdash;which he wrote as part of his project&mdash;to try to read the passwords as URLs before storing them. This exposes serious cross-site scripting attacks and other serious security vulnerabilities, and since handling password and user account information usually requires a lot of programming, this would be difficult to fix, which is why the character off-panel suggests burning the project down, as that would be much easier, and would solve any security problems, much more quickly than fixing the bug would. The comment text refers to Cueball's horrid solution to a horrid problem: Instead of solving the problem that is causing the server to read passwords as URLs, he can instead leverage a known problem in the programme which reads URLs which prevents it from reading a particular way of representing text in binary form, by adding a few characters to the user's password that the URL-reading program can't read. This would also "salt" the user's password, which is a security technique that makes passwords harder to figure out when they are stored properly. Cueball thinks this would solve the original problem, and two other problems at the same time, the second problem being the fact that user's passwords aren't salted (a security problem). The third solved problem is difficult to deduce. &emsp;[[User:Zyzygy|Zyzygy]] 05:40, 29 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
-----> The third bug is the unicode handling, which would need to be solved in order to salt passwords with emoji since these are unicode only character. Although I'm not sure if salting with emoji really increases security since as a rule i'd say nobody uses emoji in their passwords. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.85.123|162.158.85.123]] 06:34, 29 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
::Password: 👍🐎🔋Π [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.131|141.101.98.131]] 10:11, 29 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
:Actually, nobody using emoji in their password would be reason salting with emoji is MORE effective. Salting doesn't really increase security of single password, but it does increase security of whole password database, because you can hash some string - like, [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/2016/01/26/most-common-passwords-revealed---and-theyre-ridiculously-easy-to/ 123456] and check whole database for users having that as password. If every password is salted with different emoji, this strategy will not work, because while you KNOW which emoji is used - the salt is stored unhashed with the password hash - it's always different so you need to compute new hash for every line in password database. Hashing takes MUCH more time than just comparing strings. And how it's even more effective? Because someone might actually get multiple databases and search for entries with same salt, hoping there will be enough of them to be worth it. And salt with emoji likely wouldn't be so common ... -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 09:54, 29 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
From 108.162.221.22 (long rant)<br />
:Two comments: first, the explanation on password salting is incorrect. The current version says "Salting passwords increases security by adding random data to the passwords which primarily helps defend against dictionary attacks.". Password salting only protects against particular kinds of (common) attacks in specific situations. Most importantly, it is designed to protect passwords only in the event ofa database breach, when a malicious user has gained direct access to the database itself. Password salting provides no protection when brute force attacks (aka dictionary attacks) are directed at the application itself, as the application automatically takes hashes into account. Instead, proper password salting randomizes the hash for each password, ensuring that if two users have the same password, they will not have the same hash. This makes it much more difficult to guess passwords through attack vectors like lookup tables, reverse lookup tables, and rainbow tables. However, because the salt has to be stored with the password (otherwise the application would not be able to make sense of the hash itself), password salting does not secure passwords against dictionary attacks even in the event that a malicious user has managed to acquire the database itself. I will update the explanation with a brief description of what password salts do.<br />
<br />
:Finally, I think there is a big misunderstanding throughout this explanation. In a web services context the "server" (referenced in the comic) is a very different thing than the application that a programmer builds. A server can refer to either the computer itself or the software that is responsible for responding to web requests and executing the actual application. In a professional context, the application (which is what cueball would be building) would never be referred to as the "server". It is possible that this is a mis-use of terminology on the part of cueball or Randall, but I suspect that the term was used properly and intentionally. The reason is because if cueball's application is crashing the *server*, it takes the level of incompetence up to completely new (and unusual) levels, in much the same way that he has done in the past. Normally the programming language used to build the application, the software hosting the application, and the operating system itself have a number of safe guards in place to ensure that if an application misbehaves, the only thing that crashes is the application itself. For cueball's application to break through all those safeguards and crash the server itself (either the operating system or the web server software) would require cueball to have developed a program that operates *well* outside the bounds of normal procedures. Just for reference, as someone who has been building web software for over 15 years, I wouldn't even know where to start to crash the server from within an application. It would probably have to involve either exploiting a previously unknown bug in the programming language or some *very* poorly designed system calls. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.221.22 15:11, 29 June 2016 108.162.221.22]] (Rememeber to sign your comments) <br />
<br />
Explanation says "There is no reason for password handling code" -- Password handling code frequently perform heuristics on the password to assess the strength, for example checking if part of the password is a dictionary word -- similar heuristics could be done to check thatthe password is not a URL, such as "xkcd.com" applying DNS and other internet resources as an extention of the concept of "dictionary". [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 16:11, 29 June 2016 (UTC)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1700:_New_Bug&diff=122560Talk:1700: New Bug2016-06-29T16:11:38Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
<hr />
<div><!--Please sign your posts with ~~~~--><br />
I'm new. For the explanation: A bug, as in a computer (programming) bug, can be reported and tracked, and many systems allow collaboration on the reporting and tracking of problems, or bugs, in code, and their solutions. Cueball reported a problem (bug) he found in the code, which presumably caused the server (program)&mdash;which he wrote as part of his project&mdash;to try to read the passwords as URLs before storing them. This exposes serious cross-site scripting attacks and other serious security vulnerabilities, and since handling password and user account information usually requires a lot of programming, this would be difficult to fix, which is why the character off-panel suggests burning the project down, as that would be much easier, and would solve any security problems, much more quickly than fixing the bug would. The comment text refers to Cueball's horrid solution to a horrid problem: Instead of solving the problem that is causing the server to read passwords as URLs, he can instead leverage a known problem in the programme which reads URLs which prevents it from reading a particular way of representing text in binary form, by adding a few characters to the user's password that the URL-reading program can't read. This would also "salt" the user's password, which is a security technique that makes passwords harder to figure out when they are stored properly. Cueball thinks this would solve the original problem, and two other problems at the same time, the second problem being the fact that user's passwords aren't salted (a security problem). The third solved problem is difficult to deduce. &emsp;[[User:Zyzygy|Zyzygy]] 05:40, 29 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
-----> The third bug is the unicode handling, which would need to be solved in order to salt passwords with emoji since these are unicode only character. Although I'm not sure if salting with emoji really increases security since as a rule i'd say nobody uses emoji in their passwords. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.85.123|162.158.85.123]] 06:34, 29 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
::Password: 👍🐎🔋Π [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.131|141.101.98.131]] 10:11, 29 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
:Actually, nobody using emoji in their password would be reason salting with emoji is MORE effective. Salting doesn't really increase security of single password, but it does increase security of whole password database, because you can hash some string - like, [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/2016/01/26/most-common-passwords-revealed---and-theyre-ridiculously-easy-to/ 123456] and check whole database for users having that as password. If every password is salted with different emoji, this strategy will not work, because while you KNOW which emoji is used - the salt is stored unhashed with the password hash - it's always different so you need to compute new hash for every line in password database. Hashing takes MUCH more time than just comparing strings. And how it's even more effective? Because someone might actually get multiple databases and search for entries with same salt, hoping there will be enough of them to be worth it. And salt with emoji likely wouldn't be so common ... -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 09:54, 29 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
From 108.162.221.22 (long rant)<br />
:Two comments: first, the explanation on password salting is incorrect. The current version says "Salting passwords increases security by adding random data to the passwords which primarily helps defend against dictionary attacks.". Password salting only protects against particular kinds of (common) attacks in specific situations. Most importantly, it is designed to protect passwords only in the event ofa database breach, when a malicious user has gained direct access to the database itself. Password salting provides no protection when brute force attacks (aka dictionary attacks) are directed at the application itself, as the application automatically takes hashes into account. Instead, proper password salting randomizes the hash for each password, ensuring that if two users have the same password, they will not have the same hash. This makes it much more difficult to guess passwords through attack vectors like lookup tables, reverse lookup tables, and rainbow tables. However, because the salt has to be stored with the password (otherwise the application would not be able to make sense of the hash itself), password salting does not secure passwords against dictionary attacks even in the event that a malicious user has managed to acquire the database itself. I will update the explanation with a brief description of what password salts do.<br />
<br />
:Finally, I think there is a big misunderstanding throughout this explanation. In a web services context the "server" (referenced in the comic) is a very different thing than the application that a programmer builds. A server can refer to either the computer itself or the software that is responsible for responding to web requests and executing the actual application. In a professional context, the application (which is what cueball would be building) would never be referred to as the "server". It is possible that this is a mis-use of terminology on the part of cueball or Randall, but I suspect that the term was used properly and intentionally. The reason is because if cueball's application is crashing the *server*, it takes the level of incompetence up to completely new (and unusual) levels, in much the same way that he has done in the past. Normally the programming language used to build the application, the software hosting the application, and the operating system itself have a number of safe guards in place to ensure that if an application misbehaves, the only thing that crashes is the application itself. For cueball's application to break through all those safeguards and crash the server itself (either the operating system or the web server software) would require cueball to have developed a program that operates *well* outside the bounds of normal procedures. Just for reference, as someone who has been building web software for over 15 years, I wouldn't even know where to start to crash the server from within an application. It would probably have to involve either exploiting a previously unknown bug in the programming language or some *very* poorly designed system calls. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.221.22 15:11, 29 June 2016 108.162.221.22]] (Rememeber to sign your comments) <br />
<br />
There is no reason for password handling code / Password handling code frequently perform heuristics on the password to assess the strength, for example checking if part of the password is a dictionary word -- similar heuristics could be done to check thatthe password is not a URL, such as "xkcd.com" applying DNS and other internet resources as an extention of the concept of "dictionary". [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 16:11, 29 June 2016 (UTC)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1700:_New_Bug&diff=1225581700: New Bug2016-06-29T16:03:06Z<p>Spongebog: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1700<br />
| date = June 29, 2016<br />
| title = New Bug<br />
| image = new_bug.png<br />
| titletext = There's also a unicode-handling bug in the URL request library, and we're storing the passwords unsalted ... so if we salt them with emoji, we can close three issues at once!<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
{{incomplete|How does salting with emoji fix the unicode-handling bug in the URL request library? Does it really?}}<br />
<br />
[[Cueball]] asks if an off-panel character can look at his bug report. The person asks if it's a "normal one" and not a "horrifying" one which "proves that the whole project is broken beyond repair and should be burnt to the ground". This implies that there have been reports of the "horrifying" variety in the past. <br />
<br />
Cueball promises that it is a normal one but it turns out that the server crashes when a user's password is a resolvable URL, which implies that the server is in some way attempting to resolve passwords as if they were URLs. A resolvable URL is one that is syntactically correct and refers to a find-able and accessible resource on the internet (i.e. does not return a {{w|HTTP_404|404 error}} or equivalent when resolved). This can be because it contains a {{w|Fully_qualified_domain_name|fully qualified domain name}} or a valid ip address, and optionally (in either case) a resource that exists on the destination server.<br />
<br />
Also, Cueball specifically states that the server is crashing, rather than his application. While this could be an example of misused terminology on the part of Cueball or Randall, given Cueball's history his choice of terms is probably accurate. In the context of web services the server refers to either the computer itself or the program that responds to web requests and executes the user's (i.e. Cueball's) application. Cueball would be in charge of building the application. The importance of this distinction is that a typical system has safe guards in place at many levels to prevent a misbehaving application from crashing anything other than itself. So for his application to crash the server (either the computer itself or the server software hosting his application) would require his application to be operating in a way far outside of the norm.<br />
<br />
There is no reason{{Citation needed}} for the code that processes passwords to attempt to resolve the input string as a URL, so any bug provoked by such input suggests a fundamental error in the way the server handles passwords. Realizing this, the off-panel person resigns and decides that burning the project to the ground is the only solution, telling Cueball ''I'll get the {{w|Butane|lighter fluid}}''. <br />
<br />
In the title text another two issues with Cueballs program are mentioned together with a possible solution that would fix all three problems at once. The second problem is unicode-handling bug in the URL request library, and the third is that the passwords are stored unsalted. {{w|Salt (cryptography)|Salting}} passwords increases security in the event that the database is compromised by ensuring that users with the same password will not have the same password hash. This makes some attacks used to decipher hash databases, such as {{w|Rainbow table|rainbow tables}}, effectively impossible.<br />
<br />
The proposed solution is to salt the passwords with {{w|emoji}}, which is claimed to solve all three issues at once.<br />
<br />
When the passwords are salted with emoji, the URL request library will fail to resolve any (salted) passwords because emoji are not valid characters in URLs. Since the server only crashes on ''resolvable'' URLs, this should mean the server won't crash anymore. In addition, the passwords will now be salted. Finally, emoji will often include unicode characters, which means that, if one can effectively salt passwords with emoji, then the passwords should be able to be stored in unicode (although that *probably* doesn't require anything outside the Base Multilingual Plane, so that might not need full unicode support after-all).<br />
<br />
Given that this comic comes only five comics after [[1695: Code Quality 2]] is seems likely that the off-panel person is [[Ponytail]] and as could be seen in the first of those two comics, [[1513: Code Quality]], the perpetrator is indeed Cueball. In the title text of this first one, using emoji in variable names is mentioned.<br />
<br />
In [[1349: Shouldn't Be Hard]] Cueball is also programming and finding it very difficult in-spite that he thinks is should be easy. An off-panel person suggest burning the computer down with a blowtorch much like the off-panel person in this one suggest burning the whole project (including the computer) to the ground with lighter fluid. In the very next comic, the multi storyline [[1350: Lorenz]], one [http://xkcd.com/1350/#p:2ed958de-badf-11e3-8001-002590d77bdd story line] results in a computer being [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/images/a/a6/lorenz_-_laptop_9.png burned with a blow torch].<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball sits at his desk in front of his computer leaning back and turning away from it to speak to a person off-panel.]<br />
:Cueball: Can you take a look at the bug I just opened?<br />
:Off-panel voice: Uh oh.<br />
<br />
:[Zoom out and pan to show only Cueball sitting on his chair facing away from the computer, which is now off-panel. The person speaking to him is still of panel even though this panel is much broader.]<br />
:Off-panel voice: Is this a '''normal''' bug, or one of those horrifying ones that prove your whole project is broken beyond repair and should be burned to the ground?<br />
<br />
:[Zoom in on Cueballs head and upper torso.]<br />
:Cueball: It's a normal one this time, I promise.<br />
:Off-panel voice: OK, what's the bug?<br />
<br />
:[Back to a view similar to the first panel where Cueball has turned towards the computer and points at the screen with one hand.]<br />
:Cueball: The server crashes if a user's password is a resolvable URL.<br />
:Off-panel voice: I'll get the lighter fluid.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Computers]]<br />
[[Category:Programming]]</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1694:_Phishing_License&diff=122093Talk:1694: Phishing License2016-06-17T15:29:45Z<p>Spongebog: /* Things that became legal after they could be taxed */</p>
<hr />
<div><!--Please sign your posts with ~~~~--><br />
Perhaps it should also mention that the need for a license is analog to the need for one when you actually go fishing. {{unsigned ip|162.158.234.221}}<br />
<br />
While exiting the fake/scam jail, Cueball could have also been amazed that he could pay his bail with *Apple gift cards*. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.74|108.162.229.74]] 16:13, 15 June 2016 (UTC)Daniel H<br />
<br />
Do I sense a reference to Monty Python's Fish licence sketch here as well? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.8|141.101.98.8]] 21:57, 15 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
"Clearly, there is no reason why a license would be available for a clear crime like fraud" I think the tax stamps for illegal drugs come very close to being a license for a clear crime.--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.218.59|108.162.218.59]] 05:08, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: I agree, there needs to be further clarification of that statement in the explanation, many times criminal activity becomes legal if the government can find a way to tax it [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:10, 17 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
On the other hand, you used to be able to get a pirating license. The ship attacking one, not the copyright infringement. But then again...--[[User:Henke37|Henke37]] ([[User talk:Henke37|talk]]) 07:31, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: Wasn't that specifically called "privateering?" Or was that something else? [[User:CJB42|CJB42]] ([[User talk:CJB42|talk]]) 18:23, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:: Yes, but changing the name is just a marketing rebranding exercise and it does not change the actual product. [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:08, 17 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
The idea of a Phishing License is '''not as stupid as it sounds,''' many previously illegal activities has been made legal through some framework, like for example {{w|Loan Shark|Loan Sharks}} used to be illegal, but somehow {{w|Payday Loan|Payday Loans}} are now a legit businesses. [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:04, 17 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Things that became legal after they could be taxed ==<br />
<br />
* {{w|Loan Shark}} -> {{w|Payday Loan}}<br />
<br />
* {{w|Marijuana}} (in some states)<br />
<br />
* {{w|piracy|high sea piracy}} -> {{w|privateering}} (historically, no longer accepted practice)<br />
<br />
* Gambling (most states)<br />
<br />
* Bitcoin and other crypto currencies ([http://www.investopedia.com/university/definitive-bitcoin-tax-guide-dont-let-irs-snow-you/ since 2014])</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1694:_Phishing_License&diff=122092Talk:1694: Phishing License2016-06-17T15:29:26Z<p>Spongebog: /* Things that became legal after they could be taxed */</p>
<hr />
<div><!--Please sign your posts with ~~~~--><br />
Perhaps it should also mention that the need for a license is analog to the need for one when you actually go fishing. {{unsigned ip|162.158.234.221}}<br />
<br />
While exiting the fake/scam jail, Cueball could have also been amazed that he could pay his bail with *Apple gift cards*. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.74|108.162.229.74]] 16:13, 15 June 2016 (UTC)Daniel H<br />
<br />
Do I sense a reference to Monty Python's Fish licence sketch here as well? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.8|141.101.98.8]] 21:57, 15 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
"Clearly, there is no reason why a license would be available for a clear crime like fraud" I think the tax stamps for illegal drugs come very close to being a license for a clear crime.--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.218.59|108.162.218.59]] 05:08, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: I agree, there needs to be further clarification of that statement in the explanation, many times criminal activity becomes legal if the government can find a way to tax it [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:10, 17 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
On the other hand, you used to be able to get a pirating license. The ship attacking one, not the copyright infringement. But then again...--[[User:Henke37|Henke37]] ([[User talk:Henke37|talk]]) 07:31, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: Wasn't that specifically called "privateering?" Or was that something else? [[User:CJB42|CJB42]] ([[User talk:CJB42|talk]]) 18:23, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:: Yes, but changing the name is just a marketing rebranding exercise and it does not change the actual product. [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:08, 17 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
The idea of a Phishing License is '''not as stupid as it sounds,''' many previously illegal activities has been made legal through some framework, like for example {{w|Loan Shark|Loan Sharks}} used to be illegal, but somehow {{w|Payday Loan|Payday Loans}} are now a legit businesses. [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:04, 17 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Things that became legal after they could be taxed ==<br />
<br />
* {{w|Loan Shark}} -> {{w|Payday Loan}}<br />
<br />
* {{w|Marijuana}} (in some states)<br />
<br />
* {{w|piracy|high sea piracy}} -> {{w|privateering}} (historically, no longer accepted practice)<br />
<br />
* Gambling (most states)<br />
<br />
* Bitcoin and other crypto currencies [http://www.investopedia.com/university/definitive-bitcoin-tax-guide-dont-let-irs-snow-you/ since 2014]</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1694:_Phishing_License&diff=122090Talk:1694: Phishing License2016-06-17T15:27:07Z<p>Spongebog: /* Things that became legal after they could be taxed */</p>
<hr />
<div><!--Please sign your posts with ~~~~--><br />
Perhaps it should also mention that the need for a license is analog to the need for one when you actually go fishing. {{unsigned ip|162.158.234.221}}<br />
<br />
While exiting the fake/scam jail, Cueball could have also been amazed that he could pay his bail with *Apple gift cards*. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.74|108.162.229.74]] 16:13, 15 June 2016 (UTC)Daniel H<br />
<br />
Do I sense a reference to Monty Python's Fish licence sketch here as well? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.8|141.101.98.8]] 21:57, 15 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
"Clearly, there is no reason why a license would be available for a clear crime like fraud" I think the tax stamps for illegal drugs come very close to being a license for a clear crime.--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.218.59|108.162.218.59]] 05:08, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: I agree, there needs to be further clarification of that statement in the explanation, many times criminal activity becomes legal if the government can find a way to tax it [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:10, 17 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
On the other hand, you used to be able to get a pirating license. The ship attacking one, not the copyright infringement. But then again...--[[User:Henke37|Henke37]] ([[User talk:Henke37|talk]]) 07:31, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: Wasn't that specifically called "privateering?" Or was that something else? [[User:CJB42|CJB42]] ([[User talk:CJB42|talk]]) 18:23, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:: Yes, but changing the name is just a marketing rebranding exercise and it does not change the actual product. [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:08, 17 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
The idea of a Phishing License is '''not as stupid as it sounds,''' many previously illegal activities has been made legal through some framework, like for example {{w|Loan Shark|Loan Sharks}} used to be illegal, but somehow {{w|Payday Loan|Payday Loans}} are now a legit businesses. [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:04, 17 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Things that became legal after they could be taxed ==<br />
<br />
* {{w|Loan Shark}} -> {{w|Payday Loan}}<br />
<br />
* {{w|Marijuana}} (in some states)<br />
<br />
* {{w|piracy|high sea piracy}} -> {{w|privateering}} (historically, no longer accepted practice)<br />
<br />
* Gambling (most states)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1694:_Phishing_License&diff=122089Talk:1694: Phishing License2016-06-17T15:24:42Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
<hr />
<div><!--Please sign your posts with ~~~~--><br />
Perhaps it should also mention that the need for a license is analog to the need for one when you actually go fishing. {{unsigned ip|162.158.234.221}}<br />
<br />
While exiting the fake/scam jail, Cueball could have also been amazed that he could pay his bail with *Apple gift cards*. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.74|108.162.229.74]] 16:13, 15 June 2016 (UTC)Daniel H<br />
<br />
Do I sense a reference to Monty Python's Fish licence sketch here as well? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.8|141.101.98.8]] 21:57, 15 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
"Clearly, there is no reason why a license would be available for a clear crime like fraud" I think the tax stamps for illegal drugs come very close to being a license for a clear crime.--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.218.59|108.162.218.59]] 05:08, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: I agree, there needs to be further clarification of that statement in the explanation, many times criminal activity becomes legal if the government can find a way to tax it [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:10, 17 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
On the other hand, you used to be able to get a pirating license. The ship attacking one, not the copyright infringement. But then again...--[[User:Henke37|Henke37]] ([[User talk:Henke37|talk]]) 07:31, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: Wasn't that specifically called "privateering?" Or was that something else? [[User:CJB42|CJB42]] ([[User talk:CJB42|talk]]) 18:23, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:: Yes, but changing the name is just a marketing rebranding exercise and it does not change the actual product. [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:08, 17 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
The idea of a Phishing License is '''not as stupid as it sounds,''' many previously illegal activities has been made legal through some framework, like for example {{w|Loan Shark|Loan Sharks}} used to be illegal, but somehow {{w|Payday Loan|Payday Loans}} are now a legit businesses. [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:04, 17 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Things that became legal after they could be taxed ==<br />
<br />
* {{w|Loan Shark}} -> {{w|Payday Loan}}<br />
<br />
* {{w|Marijuana}} (in some states)<br />
<br />
* {{w|piracy|high sea piracy}} -> {{w|privateering}} (historically, no longer accepted practice)<br />
<br />
* Gambling</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1694:_Phishing_License&diff=122087Talk:1694: Phishing License2016-06-17T15:21:17Z<p>Spongebog: /* Things that became legal after they could be taxed */</p>
<hr />
<div><!--Please sign your posts with ~~~~--><br />
Perhaps it should also mention that the need for a license is analog to the need for one when you actually go fishing. {{unsigned ip|162.158.234.221}}<br />
<br />
While exiting the fake/scam jail, Cueball could have also been amazed that he could pay his bail with *Apple gift cards*. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.74|108.162.229.74]] 16:13, 15 June 2016 (UTC)Daniel H<br />
<br />
Do I sense a reference to Monty Python's Fish licence sketch here as well? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.8|141.101.98.8]] 21:57, 15 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
"Clearly, there is no reason why a license would be available for a clear crime like fraud" I think the tax stamps for illegal drugs come very close to being a license for a clear crime.--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.218.59|108.162.218.59]] 05:08, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: I agree, there needs to be further clarification of that statement in the explanation, many times criminal activity becomes legal if the government can find a way to tax it [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:10, 17 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
On the other hand, you used to be able to get a pirating license. The ship attacking one, not the copyright infringement. But then again...--[[User:Henke37|Henke37]] ([[User talk:Henke37|talk]]) 07:31, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: Wasn't that specifically called "privateering?" Or was that something else? [[User:CJB42|CJB42]] ([[User talk:CJB42|talk]]) 18:23, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:: Yes, but changing the name is just a marketing rebranding exercise and it does not change the actual product. [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:08, 17 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
The idea of a Phishing License is '''not as stupid as it sounds,''' many previously illegal activities has been made legal through some framework, like for example {{w|Loan Sharks}} used to be illegal, but somehow {{w|Payday Loan}} is now a legit business. [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:04, 17 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Things that became legal after they could be taxed ==<br />
<br />
* {{w|Loan Sharks}} -> {{w|Payday Loan}}<br />
<br />
* {{w|marijuana}} (in some states)<br />
<br />
* {{w|piracy|high sea piracy}} -> {{w|privateering}} (historically, no longer accepted practice)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1694:_Phishing_License&diff=122086Talk:1694: Phishing License2016-06-17T15:19:48Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
<hr />
<div><!--Please sign your posts with ~~~~--><br />
Perhaps it should also mention that the need for a license is analog to the need for one when you actually go fishing. {{unsigned ip|162.158.234.221}}<br />
<br />
While exiting the fake/scam jail, Cueball could have also been amazed that he could pay his bail with *Apple gift cards*. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.74|108.162.229.74]] 16:13, 15 June 2016 (UTC)Daniel H<br />
<br />
Do I sense a reference to Monty Python's Fish licence sketch here as well? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.8|141.101.98.8]] 21:57, 15 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
"Clearly, there is no reason why a license would be available for a clear crime like fraud" I think the tax stamps for illegal drugs come very close to being a license for a clear crime.--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.218.59|108.162.218.59]] 05:08, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: I agree, there needs to be further clarification of that statement in the explanation, many times criminal activity becomes legal if the government can find a way to tax it [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:10, 17 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
On the other hand, you used to be able to get a pirating license. The ship attacking one, not the copyright infringement. But then again...--[[User:Henke37|Henke37]] ([[User talk:Henke37|talk]]) 07:31, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: Wasn't that specifically called "privateering?" Or was that something else? [[User:CJB42|CJB42]] ([[User talk:CJB42|talk]]) 18:23, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:: Yes, but changing the name is just a marketing rebranding exercise and it does not change the actual product. [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:08, 17 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
The idea of a Phishing License is '''not as stupid as it sounds,''' many previously illegal activities has been made legal through some framework, like for example {{w|Loan Sharks}} used to be illegal, but somehow {{w|Payday Loan}} is now a legit business. [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:04, 17 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Things that became legal after they could be taxed ==<br />
<br />
* {{w|Loan Sharks}} -> {{w|Payday Loan}}<br />
<br />
* {{w|marijuana}} (in some states)<br />
<br />
* high sea piracy -> privateering (historically, no longer accepted practice)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1694:_Phishing_License&diff=122085Talk:1694: Phishing License2016-06-17T15:15:38Z<p>Spongebog: /* Things that became legal after they could be taxed */ new section</p>
<hr />
<div><!--Please sign your posts with ~~~~--><br />
Perhaps it should also mention that the need for a license is analog to the need for one when you actually go fishing. {{unsigned ip|162.158.234.221}}<br />
<br />
While exiting the fake/scam jail, Cueball could have also been amazed that he could pay his bail with *Apple gift cards*. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.74|108.162.229.74]] 16:13, 15 June 2016 (UTC)Daniel H<br />
<br />
Do I sense a reference to Monty Python's Fish licence sketch here as well? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.8|141.101.98.8]] 21:57, 15 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
"Clearly, there is no reason why a license would be available for a clear crime like fraud" I think the tax stamps for illegal drugs come very close to being a license for a clear crime.--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.218.59|108.162.218.59]] 05:08, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: I agree, there needs to be further clarification of that statement in the explanation, many times criminal activity becomes legal if the government can find a way to tax it [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:10, 17 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
On the other hand, you used to be able to get a pirating license. The ship attacking one, not the copyright infringement. But then again...--[[User:Henke37|Henke37]] ([[User talk:Henke37|talk]]) 07:31, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: Wasn't that specifically called "privateering?" Or was that something else? [[User:CJB42|CJB42]] ([[User talk:CJB42|talk]]) 18:23, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:: Yes, but changing the name is just a marketing rebranding exercise and it does not change the actual product. [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:08, 17 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
The idea of a Phishing License is '''not as stupid as it sounds,''' many previously illegal activities has been made legal through some framework, like for example {{w|Loan Sharks}} used to be illegal, but somehow {{w|Payday Loan}} is now a legit business. [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:04, 17 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Things that became legal after they could be taxed ==<br />
<br />
xxxx</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1694:_Phishing_License&diff=122084Talk:1694: Phishing License2016-06-17T15:10:27Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
<hr />
<div><!--Please sign your posts with ~~~~--><br />
Perhaps it should also mention that the need for a license is analog to the need for one when you actually go fishing. {{unsigned ip|162.158.234.221}}<br />
<br />
While exiting the fake/scam jail, Cueball could have also been amazed that he could pay his bail with *Apple gift cards*. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.74|108.162.229.74]] 16:13, 15 June 2016 (UTC)Daniel H<br />
<br />
Do I sense a reference to Monty Python's Fish licence sketch here as well? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.8|141.101.98.8]] 21:57, 15 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
"Clearly, there is no reason why a license would be available for a clear crime like fraud" I think the tax stamps for illegal drugs come very close to being a license for a clear crime.--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.218.59|108.162.218.59]] 05:08, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: I agree, there needs to be further clarification of that statement in the explanation, many times criminal activity becomes legal if the government can find a way to tax it [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:10, 17 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
On the other hand, you used to be able to get a pirating license. The ship attacking one, not the copyright infringement. But then again...--[[User:Henke37|Henke37]] ([[User talk:Henke37|talk]]) 07:31, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: Wasn't that specifically called "privateering?" Or was that something else? [[User:CJB42|CJB42]] ([[User talk:CJB42|talk]]) 18:23, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:: Yes, but changing the name is just a marketing rebranding exercise and it does not change the actual product. [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:08, 17 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
The idea of a Phishing License is '''not as stupid as it sounds,''' many previously illegal activities has been made legal through some framework, like for example {{w|Loan Sharks}} used to be illegal, but somehow {{w|Payday Loan}} is now a legit business. [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:04, 17 June 2016 (UTC)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1694:_Phishing_License&diff=122083Talk:1694: Phishing License2016-06-17T15:08:33Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
<hr />
<div><!--Please sign your posts with ~~~~--><br />
Perhaps it should also mention that the need for a license is analog to the need for one when you actually go fishing. {{unsigned ip|162.158.234.221}}<br />
<br />
While exiting the fake/scam jail, Cueball could have also been amazed that he could pay his bail with *Apple gift cards*. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.74|108.162.229.74]] 16:13, 15 June 2016 (UTC)Daniel H<br />
<br />
Do I sense a reference to Monty Python's Fish licence sketch here as well? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.8|141.101.98.8]] 21:57, 15 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
"Clearly, there is no reason why a license would be available for a clear crime like fraud" I think the tax stamps for illegal drugs come very close to being a license for a clear crime.--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.218.59|108.162.218.59]] 05:08, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
On the other hand, you used to be able to get a pirating license. The ship attacking one, not the copyright infringement. But then again...--[[User:Henke37|Henke37]] ([[User talk:Henke37|talk]]) 07:31, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: Wasn't that specifically called "privateering?" Or was that something else? [[User:CJB42|CJB42]] ([[User talk:CJB42|talk]]) 18:23, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:: Yes, but changing the name is just a marketing rebranding exercise and it does not change the actual product. [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:08, 17 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
The idea of a Phishing License is '''not as stupid as it sounds,''' many previously illegal activities has been made legal through some framework, like for example {{w|Loan Sharks}} used to be illegal, but somehow {{w|Payday Loan}} is now a legit business. [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:04, 17 June 2016 (UTC)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1694:_Phishing_License&diff=122082Talk:1694: Phishing License2016-06-17T15:06:04Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
<hr />
<div><!--Please sign your posts with ~~~~--><br />
Perhaps it should also mention that the need for a license is analog to the need for one when you actually go fishing. {{unsigned ip|162.158.234.221}}<br />
<br />
While exiting the fake/scam jail, Cueball could have also been amazed that he could pay his bail with *Apple gift cards*. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.74|108.162.229.74]] 16:13, 15 June 2016 (UTC)Daniel H<br />
<br />
Do I sense a reference to Monty Python's Fish licence sketch here as well? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.8|141.101.98.8]] 21:57, 15 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
"Clearly, there is no reason why a license would be available for a clear crime like fraud" I think the tax stamps for illegal drugs come very close to being a license for a clear crime.--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.218.59|108.162.218.59]] 05:08, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
On the other hand, you used to be able to get a pirating license. The ship attacking one, not the copyright infringement. But then again...--[[User:Henke37|Henke37]] ([[User talk:Henke37|talk]]) 07:31, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Wasn't that specifically called "privateering?" Or was that something else? [[User:CJB42|CJB42]] ([[User talk:CJB42|talk]]) 18:23, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
The idea of a Phishing License is '''not as stupid as it sounds,''' many previously illegal activities has been made legal through some framework, like for example {{w|Loan Sharks}} used to be illegal, but somehow {{w|Payday Loan}} is now a legit business. [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:04, 17 June 2016 (UTC)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1694:_Phishing_License&diff=122081Talk:1694: Phishing License2016-06-17T15:05:35Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
<hr />
<div><!--Please sign your posts with ~~~~--><br />
Perhaps it should also mention that the need for a license is analog to the need for one when you actually go fishing. {{unsigned ip|162.158.234.221}}<br />
<br />
While exiting the fake/scam jail, Cueball could have also been amazed that he could pay his bail with *Apple gift cards*. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.74|108.162.229.74]] 16:13, 15 June 2016 (UTC)Daniel H<br />
<br />
Do I sense a reference to Monty Python's Fish licence sketch here as well? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.8|141.101.98.8]] 21:57, 15 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
"Clearly, there is no reason why a license would be available for a clear crime like fraud" I think the tax stamps for illegal drugs come very close to being a license for a clear crime.--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.218.59|108.162.218.59]] 05:08, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
On the other hand, you used to be able to get a pirating license. The ship attacking one, not the copyright infringement. But then again...--[[User:Henke37|Henke37]] ([[User talk:Henke37|talk]]) 07:31, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Wasn't that specifically called "privateering?" Or was that something else? [[User:CJB42|CJB42]] ([[User talk:CJB42|talk]]) 18:23, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
The idea of a Phishing License is '''not as stupid as it sounds,''' many previously illegal activities has been made legal through some framework, like for example {{w|Loan Sharks}} used to be illegal, but somehow {{w|Payday Loan}} are now a legit business. [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:04, 17 June 2016 (UTC)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1694:_Phishing_License&diff=122080Talk:1694: Phishing License2016-06-17T15:04:59Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
<hr />
<div><!--Please sign your posts with ~~~~--><br />
Perhaps it should also mention that the need for a license is analog to the need for one when you actually go fishing. {{unsigned ip|162.158.234.221}}<br />
<br />
While exiting the fake/scam jail, Cueball could have also been amazed that he could pay his bail with *Apple gift cards*. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.229.74|108.162.229.74]] 16:13, 15 June 2016 (UTC)Daniel H<br />
<br />
Do I sense a reference to Monty Python's Fish licence sketch here as well? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.98.8|141.101.98.8]] 21:57, 15 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
"Clearly, there is no reason why a license would be available for a clear crime like fraud" I think the tax stamps for illegal drugs come very close to being a license for a clear crime.--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.218.59|108.162.218.59]] 05:08, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
On the other hand, you used to be able to get a pirating license. The ship attacking one, not the copyright infringement. But then again...--[[User:Henke37|Henke37]] ([[User talk:Henke37|talk]]) 07:31, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Wasn't that specifically called "privateering?" Or was that something else? [[User:CJB42|CJB42]] ([[User talk:CJB42|talk]]) 18:23, 16 June 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
The idea of a Phishing License is **not as stupid as it sounds,** many previously illegal activities has been made legal through some framework, like for example {{w|Loan Sharks}} used to be illegal, but somehow {{w|Payday Loan}} are now a legit business. [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 15:04, 17 June 2016 (UTC)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=1694:_Phishing_License&diff=1220791694: Phishing License2016-06-17T14:54:00Z<p>Spongebog: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 1694<br />
| date = June 15, 2016<br />
| title = Phishing License<br />
| image = phishing_license.png<br />
| titletext = Later, walking out of jail after posting $10,000 bail: "Wait, this isn't the street the county jail is on."<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
{{w|Phishing}} is a scam where a criminal sends emails or other messages (often large numbers of them) pretending to be from a trusted institution in order to obtain passwords, credit card numbers, or other personal details of victims. The term is a neologism, playing on the term "fishing", because the process is likened to dangling bait and waiting for someone to bite. Phishing is illegal under both traditional fraud laws and modern {{w|cybercrime}} laws.<br />
<br />
A {{w|fishing license}} is a government-issued permit allowing the catching of fish in controlled waters.<br />
<br />
[[Cueball]] saw the sign offering phishing licenses, and was immediately arrested by the receptionist [[Ponytail]] upon applying for one. Clearly, there is no reason why a license would be available for a clear crime like fraud{{Citation needed}}, hence why Cueball should have been more suspicious of the offer. The joke is that the process of offering "phishing licenses" is analogous to the process of phishing itself: they pretend to be a legitimate business and display a sign with a false offer, hoping someone will be fooled into interacting with them. While the ideal phishing attempt is indistinguishable from the real thing, that's generally impossible to attain and there are always some ways to identify it as a scam. But still some people fall into the trap, partly because they don't know what to be on the alert for, and partly because the attempt is often directed at so many people at once that statistically there will be some that will fall for it. Still as Cueball himself states, he should have known it was a scam.<br />
<br />
The title text reveals that Cueball's arrest was itself a scam, not an actual police {{W|Sting operation|sting}}, adding even more "phishing" to the phishing for potential phishers. He has been put in jail, but is allowed to walk out after paying a {{w|bail}} of $10,000, only to find that when he gets back out on the street, it is not the street on which the county jail has its address. So Ponytail is actually not trying to capture people who would be interested in scamming people, she is trying to scam those people instead; although this is illegal, it may be rather clever as such people might not be likely to go to the police. Another joke in the title text is that a way to recognize phishing attempts is to look at the address of the website (or in his false prison sentence, the street address instead of the web address).<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[A sign has an arrow below the text that points toward a sales window in a wall (with glass in front and small semicircular opening at the bottom for transferring money and goods). On each side of the window there are two pieces of paper with illegible text, and there is also one below the window that seems to have some kind of stamp or seal, still illegible). In front of the window [[Cueball]] is addressing [[Ponytail]] who sits behind the window.]<br />
:Sign: <big>Phishing license</big> apply here<br />
:Cueball: Hi, I’d like to apply for a—<br />
:Ponytail: You’re under arrest.<br />
:Cueball: …OK, I should’ve seen that coming.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=User:Spongebog&diff=119068User:Spongebog2016-04-30T13:02:13Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
<hr />
<div>Hi<br />
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==== Claim to fame ... on this site ====<br />
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I created the {{Citation needed}} tag<br />
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<hr />
<div>Hi<br />
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### Claim to fame ... on this site<br />
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I created the {{Citation needed}} tag<br />
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}}</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=User:Spongebog&diff=119066User:Spongebog2016-04-30T13:00:17Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
<hr />
<div>Hi<br />
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=== Claim to fame ... on this site<br />
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I created the {{Citation needed}} tag<br />
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}}</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1654:_Universal_Install_Script&diff=114738Talk:1654: Universal Install Script2016-03-11T22:48:33Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
<hr />
<div><!--Please sign your posts with ~~~~--><br />
<br />
A few comments:<br />
<br />
* curl | sh is still a common way to install things like package managers. Until you have Homebrew, or pip (for older versions of Python that didn't bootstrap it), etc., you can't use a package manager to install it, so they usually give you a one-liner to download and run a shell script that installs the package manager. Of course this isn't an issue for linux distros (which, unlike OS X, come with a built-in package manager).<br />
* Mac users probably only interact with Steam through its GUI, but on linux, running steamcmd is more common. And this command will install a game that's in your library but not downloaded yet.<br />
* I don't know why _only_ apt gets a sudo, but for brew, and for typical installations of Python on a Mac, you don't want or need sudo; they encourage you to leave the relevant directory writable by your normal user account.<br />
* This script only handles the popular package managers on OS X and current popular linux distros. No port for FreeBSD, no Choco for Windows, etc. In fact, if you try it on Windows, you should get an error message telling you that you've ruined the joke by trying to extend it.<br />
<br />
--[[Special:Contributions/162.158.255.82|162.158.255.82]] 10:44, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Also, docker is a deployment tool for deploying isolated, complete applications. For example, instead of just installing the Python scripts to run your web server behind nginx, you'd deploy nginx, Python, the modules you need for each, the appropriate configurations, a variety of tools the server depends on, and your scripts all as one big hunk of stuff. The docker website probably explains it better. :) --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.255.82|162.158.255.82]] 10:50, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
;Errors<br />
<br />
He forgot the .git on the end of the git clone command. <br />
<br />
--[[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.53|173.245.54.53]] 11:16, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: Actually, the command works fine anyway. I don't know whether it's git or GitHub which works around this. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.75.161|141.101.75.161]] 11:46, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:: Really? I've been typing 4 more characters than I needed to all this time. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.10|173.245.54.10]] 16:29, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
::: Yes you have -- and for information, it is git that does the work around [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 22:44, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Also, the TLD in the curl. And, the install script would probably be at /install.sh, and use sh not bash. <br />
<br />
Sh is generally preferred in scripting anyway since it comes on all *nix systems by default. Bash is on a very large number of systems, but not all. <br />
<br />
Apt-get should have the -y flag. <br />
<br />
If installing a program, npm should be given the -g flag to install globally instead of just in this directory. <br />
<br />
Most programs print errors (as would arise if a package did not exist) to the console even if they are run with an & to indicate it should not be attached to the session. In this case, it should be &>/dev/null. <br />
<br />
The program as a whole ignores previous programs and continues anyway. If it was found in one package manager, it would be a a very bad idea to write over it with another package manager's copy. This is part of the point of the comic, as is noted in the title text, but it's still an error. <br />
--[[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.53|173.245.54.53]] 11:38, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
He forgot cpanm. :) [[Special:Contributions/108.162.217.17|108.162.217.17]] 16:02, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
He also left off emerge for Gentoo users. [[Special:Contributions/198.41.235.47|198.41.235.47]] 19:08, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
;Question<br />
<br />
That whooshing sound you heard was the Linux-y stuff going way over my head, but could part of the joke be that he's trying to install money? With all the $1's in the script? [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.53|173.245.54.53]] 15:47, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
:No, all those $ are just part of the scripting language -- the $1's get replaced with the name of the program you're trying to install. There are so many $ simply because he's included so many install commands, each one of which needs the name of the program.[[User:N0lqu|-boB]] ([[User talk:N0lqu|talk]]) 16:00, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
::On that note, would any of these fail or would it not just be easier to use `$@`? [[User:Xerxesbeat|xerxesbeat]] ([[User talk:Xerxesbeat|talk]]) 19:27, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
::: `$@` and `$1` are different things -- `$@` replaces with all the parameters to the script where `$1` only does the first one -- for the script to have **any** change of working he will need just (exactly) the first one [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 22:48, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
;Inaccurate Description of &&<br />
<br />
The description formerly described the usage of &&:<br />
<br />
"This bug could be indicative that Randall wanted to use && throughout the whole script. This would make the installation trying sequentially and the first successful install stops the script and will not install multiple versions of the same software."<br />
<br />
This is false. The && operator will *quit* when it encounters the first command that *fails*. The operator that behaves as described is ||. With that said, it is obvious that Randall did not intend this, especially because the title text mentions what happens when multiple versions are installed.<br />
<br />
[[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.64|108.162.216.64]] 16:23, 11 March 2016 (UTC)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1654:_Universal_Install_Script&diff=114737Talk:1654: Universal Install Script2016-03-11T22:44:21Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
<hr />
<div><!--Please sign your posts with ~~~~--><br />
<br />
A few comments:<br />
<br />
* curl | sh is still a common way to install things like package managers. Until you have Homebrew, or pip (for older versions of Python that didn't bootstrap it), etc., you can't use a package manager to install it, so they usually give you a one-liner to download and run a shell script that installs the package manager. Of course this isn't an issue for linux distros (which, unlike OS X, come with a built-in package manager).<br />
* Mac users probably only interact with Steam through its GUI, but on linux, running steamcmd is more common. And this command will install a game that's in your library but not downloaded yet.<br />
* I don't know why _only_ apt gets a sudo, but for brew, and for typical installations of Python on a Mac, you don't want or need sudo; they encourage you to leave the relevant directory writable by your normal user account.<br />
* This script only handles the popular package managers on OS X and current popular linux distros. No port for FreeBSD, no Choco for Windows, etc. In fact, if you try it on Windows, you should get an error message telling you that you've ruined the joke by trying to extend it.<br />
<br />
--[[Special:Contributions/162.158.255.82|162.158.255.82]] 10:44, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Also, docker is a deployment tool for deploying isolated, complete applications. For example, instead of just installing the Python scripts to run your web server behind nginx, you'd deploy nginx, Python, the modules you need for each, the appropriate configurations, a variety of tools the server depends on, and your scripts all as one big hunk of stuff. The docker website probably explains it better. :) --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.255.82|162.158.255.82]] 10:50, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
;Errors<br />
<br />
He forgot the .git on the end of the git clone command. <br />
<br />
--[[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.53|173.245.54.53]] 11:16, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: Actually, the command works fine anyway. I don't know whether it's git or GitHub which works around this. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.75.161|141.101.75.161]] 11:46, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:: Really? I've been typing 4 more characters than I needed to all this time. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.10|173.245.54.10]] 16:29, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
::: Yes you have -- and for information, it is git that does the work around [[User:Spongebog|Spongebob]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 22:44, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Also, the TLD in the curl. And, the install script would probably be at /install.sh, and use sh not bash. <br />
<br />
Sh is generally preferred in scripting anyway since it comes on all *nix systems by default. Bash is on a very large number of systems, but not all. <br />
<br />
Apt-get should have the -y flag. <br />
<br />
If installing a program, npm should be given the -g flag to install globally instead of just in this directory. <br />
<br />
Most programs print errors (as would arise if a package did not exist) to the console even if they are run with an & to indicate it should not be attached to the session. In this case, it should be &>/dev/null. <br />
<br />
The program as a whole ignores previous programs and continues anyway. If it was found in one package manager, it would be a a very bad idea to write over it with another package manager's copy. This is part of the point of the comic, as is noted in the title text, but it's still an error. <br />
--[[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.53|173.245.54.53]] 11:38, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
He forgot cpanm. :) [[Special:Contributions/108.162.217.17|108.162.217.17]] 16:02, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
He also left off emerge for Gentoo users. [[Special:Contributions/198.41.235.47|198.41.235.47]] 19:08, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
;Question<br />
<br />
That whooshing sound you heard was the Linux-y stuff going way over my head, but could part of the joke be that he's trying to install money? With all the $1's in the script? [[Special:Contributions/173.245.54.53|173.245.54.53]] 15:47, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
:No, all those $ are just part of the scripting language -- the $1's get replaced with the name of the program you're trying to install. There are so many $ simply because he's included so many install commands, each one of which needs the name of the program.[[User:N0lqu|-boB]] ([[User talk:N0lqu|talk]]) 16:00, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
::On that note, would any of these fail or would it not just be easier to use `$@`? [[User:Xerxesbeat|xerxesbeat]] ([[User talk:Xerxesbeat|talk]]) 19:27, 11 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
;Inaccurate Description of &&<br />
<br />
The description formerly described the usage of &&:<br />
<br />
"This bug could be indicative that Randall wanted to use && throughout the whole script. This would make the installation trying sequentially and the first successful install stops the script and will not install multiple versions of the same software."<br />
<br />
This is false. The && operator will *quit* when it encounters the first command that *fails*. The operator that behaves as described is ||. With that said, it is obvious that Randall did not intend this, especially because the title text mentions what happens when multiple versions are installed.<br />
<br />
[[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.64|108.162.216.64]] 16:23, 11 March 2016 (UTC)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=explain_xkcd:Community_portal/Proposals&diff=114407explain xkcd:Community portal/Proposals2016-03-08T17:59:39Z<p>Spongebog: /* Adding Ratings for Explanations */</p>
<hr />
<div><noinclude>{{Community portal}}</noinclude><br />
<br />
== Add unexplained strips ==<br />
<br />
At the moment, browsing through the explanations using the previous and next buttons is interrupted whenever there's an explanation missing.<br />
<br />
I think adding a page with the strip fr all of those with a short message like "no one has explained this yet, want to give it a shot?" would make the wiki easier to browse through and will get more strips explained faster.<br />
<br />
:I don't think that would happen. If suddenly it was much easier for people to skip over pages that had no explanation, I think they would do exactly that, skip right over it. On the same side of that coin, If suddenly there are no longer any red links on the [[List of all comics]] then everyone perusing that page assumes that all the comics have been explained and don't need to contribute any more. It's astonishing how quickly an [[589: Designated Drivers|embedded]] red link gets an explanation page created simply to get rid of the red link.<br />
<br />
:Secondarily, ''many'' of the pages created recently aren't being created with their numerical and titular redirects. Without the numerical redirect, the comic template can't find that there is a previous/next comic to link to. Every once in a while somebody will go through and try to notice all the pages that don't have their redirects created but it's an unscientific process that only happens occasionally. If we could get every joe blow that comes in and vomits up a poorly done explanation to create the redirects I wouldn't be quite as annoyed at their lack of show-don't-tell-manship. But, since they can't be bothered to put the date in the comic template, I doubt we'll ever get people to create the redirects.<br />
<br />
:'''TL;DR:''' No more red links, no more work gets done on the back catalog.<br />
<br />
:--[[User:Lcarsos|lcarsos]]<span title="I'm an admin. I can help.">_a</span> ([[User talk:Lcarsos|talk]]) 14:28, 21 December 2012 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== xplainkcd.com ==<br />
<br />
When I first saw this site I thought it should definitely be at xplainkcd.com or at least redirect from that url {{unsigned|115.166.22.158|12:45, 3 January 2013 (UTC)}}<br />
<br />
: I like that idea! --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 13:28, 3 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:Yeah! If it's possible, it would be cool! At least as a redirect. -- [[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 15:46, 3 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:Not technically the same thing, but I just took [http://expxkcd.com http://expxkcd.com]. More explanation is given on the website itself. {{User:Grep/signature|05:10, 29 March 2014}}<br />
::We do that with explainxkcd.com as well, but yay shorter URLs! Mind if I use that for our social media links? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 06:45, 29 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
:::I had no idea that you did that, but sure, go ahead! If you want, I can change any DNS records if you wish to have it go directly to you guys. {{User:Grep/signature|07:16, 29 March 2014}}<br />
:::In case you were wondering, I just did the following: <code>^/([0-9]+)(/large)?/?$</code> {{User:Grep/signature|07:25, 29 March 2014}}<br />
::::Hrm. We're just matching with <code>^(\d+)/?$</code>. You can keep ownership of the URL if you want, unless you have traffic concerns or whatever and you want us to handle it, which we're very capable of doing. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 08:47, 29 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I have made http://www.xkcd.ga and http://www.xkcd.tk both forward to http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/Main_Page. Is this ok? [[User:17jiangz1|17jiangz1]] ([[User talk:17jiangz1|talk]]) 08:49, 26 December 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Section style and usage ==<br />
<br />
I am new here and I'm trying to get up to speed with the culture. I have a few questions about how and where to use sections (== this ==). I am more willing to go with (and enforce) whatever norms there are here, but I have not seen them actually discussed. <br />
<br />
# '''Is it OK to create sections in Discussion pages?''' I have been told no, but there are many examples extant of this usage in this Wiki and indeed in Wikipedia.<br />
# '''Section title case''' [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Manual_of_Style/Capital_letters#Acronyms Wikipedia's style guide] recommends sentence case, not title case. There are many title cased section headers here. <br />
# '''Links''' I do not have a reference for this but it seems to me putting links in section code (== [[<span style="color:blue"><nowiki>this</nowiki></span>]] == ) is bad form. <br />
<br />
Last note -- it's understood if these bylaws have not yet been written. I can see that a few of you have made a huge personal investment to make this Wiki what it is today, and that is a credit to you all -- this is awesome! As a long-time aficionado of xkcd I applaud your work and look forward to further collaboration.<br />
--[[User:Smartin|Smartin]] ([[User talk:Smartin|talk]]) 04:15, 4 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:As a general rule, we stick to the standard format that existing pages follow, with an optional trivia section below the transcript. Some zealous editors like to add other sections though, which tend to be for the most part unneeded or redundant. If something you want to add doesn't help to explain the comic in some way, but the inclusion of which would somehow still add to the page, *and* it doesn't fall under the trivia category, a new section is warranted. This isn't the case most of the time though, so editors usually fold the content of extraneous sections into "Explanation" or "Trivia." We have no policy on links in titles, and they're allowed so long as they are appropriate; the link is useful and can't be folded into the section itself. And we use title case for titles cuz it just makes sense. '''[[User:Davidy22|<span title="I want you."><u><font color="purple" size="2px">David</font><font color="green" size="3px">y</font></u><sup><font color="indigo" size="1px">22</font></sup></span>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 05:08, 4 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:We generally do not (or at least, discourage) use sections on the talk/discussion pages for explanation pages. This is purely for looks. The comic discussion section of the explanation page looks/feels wrong if there are level 2 section breaks in the transclusion. Also, if the [http://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Manual:Table_of_contents Table of Contents] starts showing up on a page, such as on [[Click and Drag]] the sections created on the talk page also show up in the TOC. This gets confusing, and this is why we prefer not to use them on explanation talk pages. Everywhere else we follow standard wiki format and do use sections on the discussion pages.<br />
<br />
:Personally, I think that links in section titles looks wrong, but I choose not to be the dictator of style in this matter. :p<br />
<br />
:Please feel free to make edits. The worst that happens is someone reverts your edit. If it's a big enough issue and/or you don't seem to be learning from what people are fixing about your edits someone will leave a comment on your talk page. That's it. We might leave a nasty-gram in the edit summary, but oh well. We only ban for malicious intent. Honestly working to better the wiki is good, even if sometimes we grumble about it.<br />
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:--[[User:Lcarsos|lcarsos]]<span title="I'm an admin. I can help.">_a</span> ([[User talk:Lcarsos|talk]]) 07:00, 4 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
::Oh, I just looked at your talk page. I completely forgot that that happened. Don't worry about it. Learning the ropes is part of the experience. Do make edits, and if they're wrong, we'll nudge you in the right direction. [[User:Lcarsos|lcarsos]]<span title="I'm an admin. I can help.">_a</span> ([[User talk:Lcarsos|talk]]) 07:18, 4 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I have been moving some trivia sections to directly below the explanation, in order to make it more consistent, and easier to survey and maintain. Often the dividing line between trivia and explanation is not entirely clear, and in articles without a trivia section the end of the explanation very often contains trivia-like information. (e.g. [[1155: Kolmogorov Directions]]) -- [[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 10:13, 4 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
===Title case doesn't make any sense===<br />
At first sight title case in titles just makes sense. However title case '''never''' makes sense. It's worse than all caps. Besides, only Americans and children like title case. [[Special:Contributions/190.96.48.48|190.96.48.48]] 20:04, 10 August 2013 (UTC)<br />
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<br />
==New character==<br />
As per [[Talk:1178: Pickup Artists]], the character with hair has appeared in quite a few comics now, and he's starting to become a recurring character. Shall we go ahead with inaugurating him into our list of regular characters, and what name shall we assign him? Current candidate names include Hairy and Harry. Anyone? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u><font color="purple" title="I want you">David</font><font color="green" size="3px">y</font></u><font color="indigo" size="4px">²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 00:07, 26 February 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: I like Harry :) --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 01:04, 26 February 2013 (UTC)<br />
::Cos made a point in the discussion on [[Talk:1178: Pickup Artists]] that Hairy is directly descriptive, whereas Harry is not obvious to visitors. On the other hand, not all names are descriptive ([[Danish]]) and I think this wiki is entitled to create some xkcd-in-culture, and not just describe. And Harry is quite funny.<br />
::I wonder: has [[Randall]] ever called him anything at all in the transcript? –[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 21:52, 26 February 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::Well, he's not named in a any official transcripts, but he's already called Harry in quite a few comic explanations. Then again, I do like having a more descriptive name for him. Shall we hold this up to a vote? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u><font color="purple" title="I want you">David</font><font color="green" size="3px">y</font></u><font color="indigo" size="4px">²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 23:29, 26 February 2013 (UTC)<br />
::::I think we should wait a little for a few more viewpoints to crop up. Also, can someone link to some more comics he's been featured in? I've got [[1028: Communication]], [[1027: Pickup Artist]] and [[1178: Pickup Artists]]. –[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 23:41, 27 February 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::::I actually like what that anon said: ''Curly''. Second choice: Hairy (being descriptive, a la Black Hat, Beret, Cueball, etc.) While there's talk about in-culture, we've done that with the names Cueball, Beret, etc. It's my opinion that the only names that should be "real" proper names are those that are named in the comic. Megan, Miss Lenhart, etc. Danish (as is discussed below) isn't truly a proper name, but you could argue it's a meta-description (one attributed by Black hat.) So that's my vote: yes for '''Curly''' or '''Hairy''', no for Harry. [[User:IronyChef|IronyChef]] ([[User talk:IronyChef|talk]]) 05:21, 2 March 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::That's right, [[Danish]] is not descriptive, but 1/ that name was suggested because the character [[515: No One Must Know|was called that way in the comic]], which is a tiny bit like a name given by the author (at least more than Harry which we have completely made up), and 2/ in that case it's hard to find a descriptive term: use something that revolves around her black hair (her only descriptive feature), and you easily mix up with [[Megan]]; the only graphical difference is that her hair is ''long'', but what kind of name can you make out of that?<br />
:::For this new character, I suggest Hairy because it comes as the easy solution with every advantage: descriptive, easy to understand, and it's not ugly... I actually see no reason to resort to a made-up name like Harry.<br />
:::[[User:Cos|Cos]] ([[User talk:Cos|talk]]) 22:29, 27 February 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: '''Alright. So the discussion's been had, and the most oft recommended name appears to be Hairy. All in favor, say aye. If more than 1/3 of editors agree and we have more than 6 votes, Hairy it is.''' '''[[User:Davidy22|<u><font color="purple" title="I want you">David</font><font color="green" size="3px">y</font></u><font color="indigo" size="4px">²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 05:58, 2 March 2013 (UTC)<br />
:# '''Aye''' '''[[User:Davidy22|<u><font color="purple" title="I want you">David</font><font color="green" size="3px">y</font></u><font color="indigo" size="4px">²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 05:58, 2 March 2013 (UTC)<br />
:# '''Aye''' [[User:Guru-45|Guru-45]] ([[User talk:Guru-45|talk]]) 06:14, 2 March 2013 (UTC)<br />
:# '''Aye''' to Hairy. [[User:IronyChef|IronyChef]] ([[User talk:IronyChef|talk]]) 15:43, 2 March 2013 (UTC)<br />
:# '''Aye'''. Harry would be a nice nod to the fact that he's actually hairy, but indeed it's better to avoid inside jokes. --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 17:05, 2 March 2013 (UTC)<br />
:# '''Aye'''. I'm convinced! –[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 17:52, 3 March 2013 (UTC)<br />
:# '''Aye'''. Hairy. [[User:Lcarsos|lcarsos]]<span title="I'm an admin. I can help.">_a</span> ([[User talk:Lcarsos|talk]]) 20:52, 3 March 2013 (UTC)<br />
::Hooray! We now have a [[:Category:Comics featuring Hairy]], with four pages already! Does anyone feel compelled to create "[[Hairy]]", with a brief description and a nice profile pic like the other characters? –[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 22:58, 3 March 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Ambiguous characters ==<br />
<br />
I've been thinking about the problem of the ambiguity of characters. "Is this really Cueball even though he has an eye and half a nose?", "This is very likely ''not'' x." "Darnit, these arn't Cueballs, these are Randall and his friends!", and so on. The character ambiguity is standard for xkcd (not less so in the early ones), and comes from the very loose or "free" way Randall uses his characters to be whatever he needs at the moment. It's simply often impossible for us to know whether he had e.g. "Cueball" or himself in mind, when drawing a particular comic (and I'd say: probably often both).<br />
<br />
I want to suggest that we in general have a likewise rather loose policy towards including characters in the categories for the comics. So that reasonably ambiguous cases should be included in e.g. (does she have a ponytail?) This is not because I believe this or that to really be this or that; I just don't believe in objective truth (here!). I feel that when doing research :) on a character, the borderline cases are often the most interesting ones, and you want to be able to find them through the "Comics featuring miss x"!<br />
<br />
I came to think this through now, when I wanted to (and did) list two comics with [[Miss Lenhart]] (?) where she was drawn but not named. Any thoughts on this in general? Other case studies? –[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 21:17, 5 March 2013 (UTC)<br />
:My take has always been that [[Cueball]], for example, has not been a specific character. There is not ''a'' cueball, per se, distinct from any other cueball... indeed, there are several comics with several cueballs in-frame, and that is the point. I see the cueball character as a wildcard character (pun intended) ready to stand in for anybody (and ''not'' necessarily just Randall; I think those readers who suggest "this ''is'' Randall" are missing the point; he's way more META than that...) [[Megan]], while slightly less generic, still remains the female wild-card significant-other, while Curls seems to be a not-significant-other female used to illustrate a relationship that is transient. Other characters come and go, and when it's important to visually distinguish them from others in the frame, they're given additional characteristics, to wit [[Hairy]], [[Ponytail]], etc.<br />
:Unfortunately, that viewpoint is not commonly held, so I daresay I'm in the minority here.<br />
:-- [[User:IronyChef|IronyChef]] ([[User talk:IronyChef|talk]]) 14:18, 6 March 2013 (UTC)<br />
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== Note at the top, about the server error ==<br />
<br />
:''This thread was moved to [[MediaWiki talk:Sitenotice]]''<br />
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<br />
== I've removed "add a comment!" from Discussion heading ==<br />
<br />
This does move it to above the line, and the rule stops early. Undo my change if that's more bothering than when the TOC is displayed as "add a comment!Discussion"... <br />
<br />
I don't know how to automatically treat level 2 headers as level 3. That may be why Discussion was a level 1 heading earlier.<br />
[[User:Markhurd|Mark Hurd]] ([[User talk:Markhurd|talk]]) 11:16, 14 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Actually I now noticed there was a short edit war at {{tl|comic discussion}} over whether it should be a level 1 heading, just for this reason. [[User:Waldir]] seems to have conceeded... [[User:Markhurd|Mark Hurd]] ([[User talk:Markhurd|talk]]) 11:25, 14 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
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:: No edit war, hence no (intentional) concession. I reverted a change once, and didn't notice the change being re-implemented by another user. In any case, it is irrelevant now since we actively discourage using headers in talk pages precisely so that they don't display in the TOC for the main comic page, where the discussion page is transcluded to (see the discussion [[#Section style and usage|above]]). This might not scale well for comics that generate lots of discussion. It might be worth discussing our customs (and perhaps write them down somewhere) before performing such changes. What do others think? --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 11:49, 14 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
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== Time: The Table ==<br />
<br />
Right now on the page [[1190: Time]], we have a whole bunch of tables in the form image-time-hash. The tables take up heaps of vertical space and all have to be collapsed to even be remotely traversible. I propose that we aggregate all the images into one table after Time ends, like so:<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable plainlinks table-padding"<br />
|-<br />
!Image<br />
!Time<br />
!Image<br />
!Time<br />
!Image<br />
!Time<br />
!Image<br />
!Time<br />
|-<br />
|[[Media:time.png|00:00]]||01/00:00||[[Media:time.png|10:00]]||01/10:00||[[Media:time.png|20:00]]||01/20:00||[[Media:time.png|30:00]]||AND MOAR SAMPLE DATAS<br />
|-<br />
|[[Media:time.png|00:30]]||01/00:30||[[Media:time.png|10:30]]||01/10:30||[[Media:time.png|20:30]]||01/20:30||[[Media:time.png|30:30]]||AND MOAR SAMPLE DATAS<br />
|}<br />
<br />
The hash values aren't really a part of the comic, they're gibberish for the most part and they take up space that could be used to compact the table, as shown above. Even if we are conservative and make the table only five columns wide to account for smaller screens, we've divided scrolling time by five and eliminated much of the need for annoying collapsed tables and section headers for each day. Constructing the table shouldn't be particularly hard either, as all our current data is in nice regular tables with clear patterns that are easy enough to parse through. <br />
<br />
I'm putting this here because the organization of the frame entries would be unintuitive and difficult to change from the edit window, which would make it a poor choice when we're still expanding it and don't even know how long the comic will continue for. It's merely a space-saving trick for after we're sure that the comic is over. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 09:26, 16 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
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:Oh and it'd be really nice if other people could also upload images if you're awake and a new one rolls by. There's gaps in the image record every time I wake up, and I dun likey. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 11:34, 20 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Good work so far; go ahead make it better! :) –[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 08:34, 24 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
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==Featured Explanation, and Archival?==<br />
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* Wikipedia has featured content. Now that we are close to reaching the goal of all comics explained, I think it makes more sense to have a "featured explanation" which would serve as a sort of a marker for a complete and good explanation. Many comics, and almost all charts are not fully explained/not a good quality explanation.<br />
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* We should set up archival of discussion of the most discussed pages, like this one. Its not very pleasing to see comments from July 2012 still lying around here. It becomes hectic at some point.<br />
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Just my 2 cents, feel free to discuss. Cheers,<br />
[[Special:Contributions/117.194.88.180|117.194.88.180]] 13:36, 24 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
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:We dedicate this wiki to explaining xkcd, and we do actually have a featured comic feature; it changes every week on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and we usually manage to fill out the explanation for it within an hour or so of it going up. The most recent comic tends to be the one that most people visiting the wiki care about, so we give it prime space on the front page so they can find it easily. xkcd updates frequently enough that there isn't really that big of a time window for us to feature an article on our front page. Also, we're a volunteer project with quite a bit less manpower than Wikipedia.<br />
:We do need to archive talk pages though. Some of these are getting ridiculously long. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 14:04, 24 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
::I agree with Davidy22. Archiving topics can be done by anyone, by moving resolved threads to the portal section's corresponding [[explain xkcd talk:Community portal/Proposals|talk page]]. We could start with the threads marked "✓ Closed". [[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 17:42, 1 May 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:: The reason I asked for a "featured explanation" was because many of the comic explanations we currently have are sub-par, and we're almost at our initial goal of explaining all comics. A "featured explanation" would drive our editors towards the goal of having complete and good explanation towards all comics, and would allow us to know which explanations need elaboration.<br />
:: P.S. My definition of complete explanation would be - To have a good explanation, To have all categories relevant, To link to any comics related and To explain any technical portions of the comic.<br />
:: [[Special:Contributions/117.194.82.49|117.194.82.49]] 07:45, 8 May 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::That message on the front page is going to link to all the pages marked by the incomplete template. If you find an unsatisfactory explanation, please mark it with <nowiki>{{incomplete}}</nowiki> '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 07:54, 8 May 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::: By my definition, I think all comics will be incomplete. An incomplete template will be focused more towards improving the worst explanations, while a featured one will be to improve the best ones. Since we already have the former, we should focus on the latter. Just my 2 cents. [[Special:Contributions/117.194.85.82|117.194.85.82]] 06:55, 9 May 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Split the list of all comics ==<br />
<br />
[[List of all comics]] is getting larger and larger, which makes it hard to read and hard to edit. How about splitting into parts, say [[List of all comics/1-1000]], [[List of all comics/1001-2000]], etc., or something to that effect? --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 17:39, 1 May 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: Done. [[Special:Contributions/117.194.88.176|117.194.88.176]] 10:03, 9 May 2013 (UTC)<br />
::Great job, thanks! [[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 11:09, 9 May 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::And I've added back [[List of all comics (full)]], which allows, for example, listing all comics by alphabetical order.[[User:Markhurd|Mark Hurd]] ([[User talk:Markhurd|talk]]) 17:29, 10 May 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Sidebar ads ==<br />
<br />
''Moved from [[Talk:Main Page]] –– [[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 08:06, 4 May 2013 (UTC)''<br />
<br />
Are they generating significant money? The ones I see are pretty sleazy looking and/or scammy - "Power Companies Hate this Device! - click here to break the laws of thermodynamics!" and "Debt relief program click here to lose more money". How much money are they generating? Can you set any selections to remove the sleazy ads? [[User:J-beda|J-beda]] ([[User talk:J-beda|talk]]) 18:30, 3 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Do we have sleazy sidebar ads? Since when? Thanks Google Chrome and AdBlock, I had no idea! –[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 07:47, 14 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
::People give 20$ a pop to get a bunch of clicks on explainxkcd, and Jeff uses that money to buy a faster server with a hard drive that doesn't have less space than a public toilet with an elephant in it. It'd be really nice if you didn't turn on adblock, the money is appreciated. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 08:47, 14 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::It's a question of me not turning it off specifically every time I visit this site. More importantly, I do think people would be more likely to click the "donate" if it weren't irrelevant ads around it. –[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 19:29, 14 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::Generating money is a great thing. Getting "20$ a pop to get a bunch of clicks" is a bit unclear. Do the ads only generate revenue when clicked on? So EXKCD only gets money when someone actually falls for the sleazy ads? I know lots of people do not like Google - but at least their adsense stuff is relevant to the content of the website, which might generate some legitimate traffic for a legitimate advertiser.... [[User:J-beda|J-beda]] ([[User talk:J-beda|talk]]) 11:48, 19 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
::::Welllll, I didn't pick the ad supplier. You could bring it up with [[User talk:Jeff|Jeff]] if you want, I think he picked the ad provider on basis of which one had a mediawiki plugin or something. If you can link Jeff to a quick and easy way to put adsense on mediawiki, he should change it quickly enough. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 14:21, 19 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::::And I also gather then that they are only a temporary thing? -- [[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 08:27, 24 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
::::::Until we can buy a server that doesn't poop itself every time a new comic is released, the ads are staying. If you want them to go away sooner, throw more money at Jeff. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 09:25, 24 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
::::::: The ads are crap. For sure. Wish I didn't have to run them, but I don't trust donations alone to hold up continually some better hosting. The ads really don't bring in that much $$$. I had google adsense before, but Google shutdown my adsense account for unnamed reason after 1 week. This new ad service is way sketchier. If you all think they don't have a place here, I'll ax 'em. --[[User:Jeff|<b><font color="orange">Jeff</font></b>]] ([[User talk:Jeff|talk]]) 16:02, 24 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
::::::: Thanks for the info Jeff. How much ad money are we talking about? Is it calculated on how many ads are displayed or how many are clicked-through? How close to the goal is the server fund? How about a Kickstarter campaign for the server? $10 gets your name on a thankyou webpage or something like that. [[User:J-beda|J-beda]] ([[User talk:J-beda|talk]]) 17:32, 24 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::::::: It ain't much, last I looked it was $2 or $3 in 2 weeks. I believe it is based on clicks, it is not nearly as clear as Google adsense. I'm not really interested in doing a Kickstarter. I think the donations will cover the initial start up, I just want to be able to cover the monthly costs as well. A few things are still up in the air. --[[User:Jeff|<b><font color="orange">Jeff</font></b>]] ([[User talk:Jeff|talk]]) 16:24, 25 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::::::::Can you find a way to show the donations and ad income on the site, to make it transparent? ––[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 15:30, 30 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
::::::::: How about a donation amount that you'll take to turn it (the annoying unethical scummy ads) off for a year? Give me a dollar value and I might step up for the good of us all! [[User:J-beda|J-beda]] ([[User talk:J-beda|talk]]) 16:28, 3 May 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Economic transparency ==<br />
<br />
I think this is very important: How can we make the donations and ad-income transparent, so that we all can see when and how much money is coming in, and how far we are from reaching our goal? – [[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 00:35, 24 May 2013 (UTC)<br />
: Sounds fine to me, I think I can put something together. --[[User:Jeff|<b><font color="orange">Jeff</font></b>]] ([[User talk:Jeff|talk]]) 15:52, 28 May 2013 (UTC)<br />
::Hi, may I bump this issue? Or maybe you have done something, and I missed it? Anyway, I would still appreciate it! –[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 17:43, 22 February 2014 (UTC)<br />
:::Numberssss. I'll get on with it, just need less homework and a few more numbers. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 07:54, 23 February 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I would like to respectfully file a complain. I find the banner advertisement of background checks distasteful. [[User:Benjaminikuta|Benjaminikuta]] ([[User talk:Benjaminikuta|talk]]) 05:10, 15 July 2014 (UTC)<br />
: Hey [[User:Benjaminikuta|Benjaminikuta]] - I am the one who approved those ads. But, since you have filed a complaint about them, I have gone ahead and removed them. Thanks. --[[User:Jeff|<b><font color="orange">Jeff</font></b>]] ([[User talk:Jeff|talk]]) 12:52, 15 July 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I thank you. [[User:Benjaminikuta|Benjaminikuta]] ([[User talk:Benjaminikuta|talk]]) 03:36, 17 July 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Using <nowiki><nowiki></nowiki></nowiki> in transcripts to improve accuracy ==<br />
<br />
In the transcripts, <nowiki>[[lines]]</nowiki> are being changed to [lines] in order to avoid auto-linking. Why not just surround these with <nowiki><nowiki></nowiki></nowiki> tags and avoid the problem entirely? --[[User:Epauley|Epauley]] ([[User talk:Epauley|talk]]) 04:18, 16 June 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Because it takes less time to type and single brackets are just as readable as double brackets to visitors. It's also a bit more readable in the editor. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 09:55, 16 June 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Strip Title ==<br />
<br />
For someone who commonly browses explainxkcd in place of xkcd, and hence often see the strips for the first time here rather than the parent site, I find it somewhat odd that the 'Title Text' is so poorly displayed given how critical it can be to the strip.<br />
<br />
I propose that, while retaining the given name (perhaps moving it top left), the title text be enlarged and relocated to being over the strip as originally intended. {{unsigned ip|175.41.133.18}}<br />
:The title text is placed very well at bottom of the image.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 07:20, 6 September 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:I would have to agree with Dgbrt, it's placed nicely at the bottom, and there is no need for it to be moved. My reasoning is that you never actually read the title text first, you read it last. Making it <code>text-align: left;</code> does not make sense, because the image is centered (just like on xkcd.com). I also believe that there is no need for it to be re-sized, mainly due to the fact that it is slightly larger than the title text (for me, at least). {{User:Grep/signature|05:18, 08 September 2013}}<br />
<br />
:Plus, if you hover over the image, it's the same as on xkcd.com {{User:Grep/signature|06:13, 08 September 2013}}<br />
<br />
:I also agree with Dgbrt and Grep. The title text is kind of a bonus and should not be emphasized more than on the original page. On the original site you only see it before the image, if you have very slow internet access (or very fast eyes) --[[User:Chtz|Chtz]] ([[User talk:Chtz|talk]]) 08:06, 2 October 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Sections in talk pages ==<br />
<br />
Is there a reason why there are no sections in talk pages? It is not a very big deal, but especially for longer talk pages it would make editing be much handier, especially when using the preview function (not having to find the section every time). Also it automatically adds a description to the history (thus makes it more easy to look for certain edits, or decide by just looking at the [[Special:RecentChanges]], if a comment should concern you. --[[User:Chtz|Chtz]] ([[User talk:Chtz|talk]]) 08:01, 2 October 2013 (UTC)<br />
:When discussion pages are transcluded by the comic discussion template, section headers carry over from talk pages and bad things happen. Using ; to denote headers instead of equals signs works well, and doesn't share transclusion pain. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 08:04, 2 October 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== references ==<br />
<br />
Any chance we can add [https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Extension:Cite/Cite.php cite.php] to this wiki? Most pages don't need it, but some comics take on a life of their own and being able to add reference tags would be really helpful for those. [[User:LadyMondegreen|LadyMondegreen]] ([[User talk:LadyMondegreen|talk]]) 01:33, 9 October 2013 (UTC)<br />
: Cite has been added to the wiki. Thanks for the suggestion! --[[User:Jeff|<b><font color="orange">Jeff</font></b>]] ([[User talk:Jeff|talk]]) 01:35, 17 October 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Stylized writing ==<br />
<br />
I understand that this wiki isn't as formal as wikipedia or sites like that but it seems that there are a few questionable practices:<br />
<br />
1. The use of questions - when a non-rhetorical or unnecessary question is entered into the explanation.<br />
<br />
2. Extremely painted/biased view points - when there is obvious bias in the tone of the explanation of the contributor, in other <br />
words; a lack of neutrality.<br />
<br />
3. Extreme repetition/rehashing - the explanation restates things and makes for a long and tedious read when a more straight-forward explanation is possible and clearer.<br />
<br />
4. The general informality - "This one's an easy one" "This is simple" "this one's straightforward" "You're an idiot for not understanding this one" etc.<br />
<br />
5. Many other practices that make the explanation hard to read, difficult to understand, or plain ugly.<br />
<br />
I know that there are disparaging view points on how a comic should be explained, but please let's clean up the site a bit, acknowledge each view point and report on all of them and then tighten up the sloppy writing. Carry out arguments in the talk section, not the explanation. Perhaps we could first try to say the majority view point on the interpretation and then write the alternate explanations, of course this would bring up the debate on which is the majority explanation. Either way, more complete, logical explanations should be given more credence. --[[User:Lackadaisical|Lackadaisical]] ([[User talk:Lackadaisical|talk]]) 00:25, 23 October 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:I agree with 2-5. 1, on the other hand, is sometimes useful and can contribute the to explanation, although 1 is still a very good point. I would say that you should edit it to have "arguments in the talk" be a 6th point as well. Unfortunately, though, we are not all logical, comic-understanding machines here, so minor deviations of these rules are still to be expected. But I think that overall, these are good rules, even if 2/3 are sort of part of 5.<br />
:[[User:Lackadaisical|Lackadaisical]], please sign your post with <nowiki>~~~~</nowiki><span style="float: right;">{{User:Grep/signature|23:55, 22 October 2013}}</span><br />
<br />
:I understand the use of questions in certain parts. And it was probably better to put the others as sub-categories to five but I wanted to show some common things that can be easily fixed. I know that some explanations require a lot of text and extensive research because of the abstract subjects Randall deals with and that it's difficult to be completely standardized but I think it would be good for us to try to come up with some general things to try to avoid to help the explanations "flow" --[[User:Lackadaisical|Lackadaisical]] ([[User talk:Lackadaisical|talk]]) 00:25, 23 October 2013 (UTC)<br />
::Most of that isn't intentional, it's just an awful lot of labor to copy check all the explanations. I've been going through all the current articles and fixing consistency issues, the worst being wrong transcript/title text/dates and the most benign being wikilinks, spelling and trailing spaces. I'm at 682 so far, but my next pass will be on actual language and content, and it'll probably take longer. It takes a while though, and you can totally work on improving language in articles if you want to. Some explanations were pulled from the old blog, some were written and just got lost in the changelog. Copy editing everything we have so far is a very labor-intensive job, and the only way to really deal with it is to knuckle down and do it, or form a wikiproject and hope to heaven that visitors feel charitable enough to join in on it. I'd *probably* push to finish up all our incomplete articles first though, just because that's more directly related to the purpose of the site; tone and style probably comes second to having correct explanations. That doesn't mean you can't do it yourself, it's just that I'll probably only dedicate the subheader on the main page to one project at a time and our current biggest bugbear hasn't been solved yet. I could put up a sitenotice to see if that speeds the process up any. I'll do that when I get back home. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 03:31, 23 October 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Easy redirect to comic? ==<br />
<br />
I've been thinking, and there is one thing that would make navigating to the explained comics easier. My method of browsing is I'll see the comic on xkcd.com first, and if there is something curious about it that I don't quite understand, I'll come here. Sometimes it can be a bit troublesome, going to the homepage and then navigatiing to the right comic. Not too bad, but I'd like an easy way to go direct. So I was thinking, what if you had a redirect such that if you typed in, for example, www.explainxkcd.com/505, you would get redirected to http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=505:_A_Bunch_of_Rocks. That would mean that you could get to the comic just from adding an "explain" to the start of the xkcd.com URL. I don't know if that is at all possible, but it would be pretty handy if it happened. Thoughts?<br />
[[User:Alcatraz ii|Alcatraz ii]] ([[User talk:Alcatraz ii|talk]]) 03:01, 25 October 2013 (UTC)<br />
:[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=explain_xkcd:Community_portal/Technical#Redirect_from_explainxkcd.com.2F1234 That's actually already on the to-do list.] I'm testing it right now and we should have it up soon. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 04:02, 25 October 2013 (UTC)<br />
:: Awesome :) [[User:Alcatraz ii|Alcatraz ii]] ([[User talk:Alcatraz ii|talk]]) 03:26, 1 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::Whoop, forgot to mark this as complete. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 04:37, 1 November 2013 (UTC) <br />
:::: Done! Copy this and drag it to your bookmarks bar: |javascript: var url = document.URL; document.location = url.replace('xkcd.com','explainxkcd.com');| {{unsigned ip|173.245.52.29}}<br />
:::::The feature requested here has also long since been implemented. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 22:20, 4 April 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Increase support via prominent display of copyright and license for text submitted to explainxkcd ==<br />
<br />
XKCD itself is rather liberally licensed, and gets lots of good will from that. As it says on the bottom of every page "This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.5 License." For details see [http://xkcd.com/license.html xkcd - A Webcomic - License].<br />
<br />
But I found nothing on most pages of explainxkcd about copyright or licensing, and it discouraged me from contributing or donating. Finally, as I was writing this proposal up, I found a link on the editing page here: [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=explain_xkcd:Copyrights explain xkcd:Copyrights - explain xkcd] saying that "''The Explain XKCD wiki is generally licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 license (CC-BY-SA-3.0)''". That notice should be more prominent on the site, with at least a link on each page. [[User:Nealmcb|Nealmcb]] ([[User talk:Nealmcb|talk]]) 15:27, 5 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:This should be mentioned at the main page, including a reference to the xkcd origin.<br />
:BTW: NO DOUBLE SPACES after a sentence. Are you US guys still using a typewriter? It's not rendered at a web page and stupid like Gallons, Miles, Foots, and much more unique US behaviours. But that's just a joke beside.<br />
:The licence hint is much more important, you are just correct.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 21:12, 5 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
::Added a creative commons icon to the footer of the page, next to the powered by mediawiki button. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 22:16, 5 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== New Comics Bot ==<br />
<br />
Would there be need for such a thing?<br />
[[Special:Contributions/108.162.231.52|108.162.231.52]] Synthetica<br />
:Nice idea, I never thought about that before. I will do some tests on existing comics to check if this could reduce the current number of error posts for a new article. When that is ready and working I will talk to some admins. My bot account [[User:DgbrtBOT|DgbrtBOT]] was originally intended for [[1190: Time]] picture uploads, but I never have used it because Time was over. Creating the new pages should be easy in general, avoiding errors will cost some more work. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 20:31, 6 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
::If you can get dgbrtBOT to do that, that'd help us an awful lot. It'd allow us to get rid of the ifexist cases in template:LATESTCOMIC as well, since the bot could change automatically that whenever a new comic goes up. It'll also help us get new comics down almost the moment they pop up, since the bot could sample several times a minute until a comic is posted. So long as it gets the general pattern right so that we have a correct page set up, we're good. An admin can come in sometime later to clean up categories and image urls and other piddly easy-to-fix details. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 20:54, 6 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::I will work on this next weekend, just local scripts and no updates here. I also will talk about my results before any automatic updates will be activated. My first focus is on creating the new pages in the general pattern, LATESTCOMIC and also the page "All comics" are maybe a bonus later. And of course all my scripts will be open source.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 21:44, 6 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
::::The first version is ready and I will test it at my local wiki. If everything goes well I could activate it for Wednesday (2013-11-13). LATESTCOMIC and "All comics" are on my roadmap, but first I want produce correct new pages here. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 20:00, 10 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::::Righty ho. Here goes. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 20:36, 10 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
Even when my automatic local wiki test did fail today, just a damn wrong password, I will activate the bot here for Wednesday. It will only run from 4:00 PM until 8:00 PM UTC. You will not see my possible updates at [[Special:RecentChanges]] unless you click ''Show bots'' at the top of that page. LATESTCOMIC and "All comics" are not covered, but this is at my TODO list until this test will be successful. Give me a '''GO''' or '''NO-GO''' for this test.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 21:49, 11 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Easily a GO, I'll be ready to clean up if anything goes wrong. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 22:08, 11 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
::So be ready on Wednesday for the clean up. My worst case is ''it simply does not work'', second worse scenario is still that I could delete some contend already posted here, but I'm trying to avoid this. ''Huston'', the countdown clock is counting. I'm joking about this because I really want to be confident about this ''BOT'' or ROBOT or uncontrolled action here.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 00:28, 12 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::The bot can't do anything that I can't reverse. I can even restore a backup from an hour before the bot's edits if it manages to break the database. How quickly does it poll xkcd, by the way? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 07:53, 12 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
First live test here (comic 1289). Please delete this page: [[Simple_Answers:_1289]]. Since my local wiki did not provide this templates I could not see this error before. In general the bot will update pages differ to any existing pages, but when it is not changed no update will happen. I'm fixing this errors at my script and do a second test here soon. I want to see it's producing correct pages until the bot will do it's work when I'm sleeping.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 22:31, 12 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Ok, test are done here, BOT is scheduled for the next update. Polling is every five minutes on Mon, Wed, and Fri from 04:00 until 08:00 UTC. Let's see how it will work.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 23:08, 12 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
::Couldja ramp that up to once/twice a minute, push the start time back by an hour, and the end time by a few hours? Also, is it possible to terminate it once it finds a comic for a certain day? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 01:45, 13 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::It worked! Though it posted the comic 5 minutes past post time. We has technology now, we can afford to poll faster and closer, yeah? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 05:32, 13 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
Uhh, it worked... I will increase the polls when I'm more confident about the release times. Today it was approx. 05:00 UTC (GMT) or 01:00 EST (Randall's time zone). Looks like he is still at daylight saving time, would have been 00:00 EDT. The polls will be increased to one minute when I'm sure about the Standard Release Time (SRT). Next steps for the next update on Friday are:<br />
:The "All comics" page.<br />
:The LATESTCOMIC template.<br />
--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 19:54, 13 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:The LATESTCOMIC template is included for the next run, it just simply has to return a number. But it's still the most critical part because if it does not work the Main Page is broken. I will change this to a better solution using that IFEXIST syntax soon. The list of all comics is still at my ToDo list. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 22:06, 14 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
::The desired content of the LATESTCOMIC template should be just the comic number. If we can get out of having to poll multiple IFEXIST statements to find the latest comic, that would be a fantastic boon to our server performance. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 04:43, 15 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::OK, it did work today so I will not change this. Next step is the list for all comics.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 11:10, 15 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
Next run will include an update on the "All comics" page. I'm crossing my fingers. When this update is also successful I will document my Bot at the Bot user page [[User:DgbrtBOT]]. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 22:15, 17 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Oh, I forgot this detail: The bot is starting at 00:00 EST (RLT - Randall local time), which is 04:00 UTC and 05:00 MET for me. It polls every 5 minutes until 23:55 MET (22:55 UTC, 18:55 RLT) the main page until a new comic is found. I do not poll the comic number because I want to avoid 404 message logs at the servers.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 22:30, 17 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Something went wrong there. That's gonna need fixing. I am enjoying the looks of the apparently faster polling though. Maybe you could also set the start time to 00:00:05 EST to catch the on-time xkcd releases within ten seconds? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 05:33, 18 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
::Uh, what a mess. I will do some more tests at my local wiki. At the next time I will do a check against the number from the LATESTCOMIC template, only the next number will be processed. The test against my local history did fail because of some cleanups after testings.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 08:18, 18 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::I don't like mess. So the BOT got many more checks before posting here but the bot was starting at 05:00 local time for me. I'm really asleep at that time. The mess here was covered, but I do need another GO for the next attempt. Otherwise I will just do a test to my local wiki.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 22:35, 18 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
No GO so far, my next test will run only at my local wiki.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 21:16, 19 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:My script is here: [https://github.com/dgbrt/explainXKCD_update explainXKCD_update]. At my current test "explainxkcd.com" is commented out and "localhost" is active. Since I don't like mess and the bot does act while I am sleeping the next update must be done manually here. I'm hoping the bot will be ready for the next update on Friday.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 22:15, 19 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
::Bot is ready for Friday, everything went smooth at my last local test today. The bot did find the latest comic at 04:05 UTC and all essential pages were properly created. So I will activate it for this site again. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 21:57, 20 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
Bot did work as expected. So I name it release 1.1337, the next planed release will be 2.1337 (beta) because of this two issues:<br />
*"Include any categories below this line." will be removed because it doesn't make any sense any more.<br />
*BETA: I want to use the full template features at [[List of all comics]], just ensuring that the pictures are working properly. No need for this at the most comics, but the BOT doesn't cover all possibilities on corrupt file names like we have had in "Pi vs. Tau". The picture was without that dot. My bot just shows the real link it did upload here.<br />
I'm pretty sure we will have some issues on this bot, but for general pages it should work. So the bot will be active on Mon,Wed,Fri from 0:00 EST (or EDT) every five minutes until it did found a new comic, on success the bot does not poll any more.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 21:51, 22 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Aww, it's a bot. It doesn't need to rest or take time off to do other stuff. It can totally poll once or more times per minute. Also, if you set the start time to a few seconds after midnight, Randall time, when he uploads a comic on-time, you'll get it within a few seconds as opposed to having to wait for the next polling. As for the image names, maybe you could convert spaces in the comic name to underscores, compare the two comic names you have and use that to decide which version of the template to use? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 23:08, 22 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
::I have to avoid that the bot is running twice, Internet Timeouts and more. And the comics are also published later sometimes. Look at my release [https://github.com/dgbrt/explainXKCD_update 1.1337], release 2.1337 will be later, Maybe I should start at 2 minutes after 0:00, but let's see right now how the bot does work. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 00:38, 23 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
Uhh, what a huge discussion here. The bot will get a major update soon: Scheduler does start it once and until a comic is found and uploaded it here or an other limit is reached (maybe the end of the day) the bot will poll by a small delay. But every poll is still an entire download from the main page, When a new comic is found bot stops.<br />
:Why, you could use http://xkcd.com/info.0.json, right?[[Special:Contributions/108.162.231.52|108.162.231.52]] 07:38, 2 December 2013 (UTC)Synthetica<br />
::The BOT performs perfect and I prefer to analyze the original page. A title text like the one from today (a text showing a link) will be covered in the future.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 10:35, 2 December 2013 (UTC)<br />
A great enhancement would be also covering a new comic like 1190 Time was. I'm looking forward on this, some ideas, it does require a complete analyse of the page and then finding some strange content. <br />
--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 23:05, 27 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Require description for 'incomplete' tags ==<br />
I've been trying to fix some of the incompletes, but several explanation pages I've come across are tagged incomplete without any reason given. The reason should be a required part of the tag. --[[Special:Contributions/173.245.52.223|173.245.52.223]] 03:35, 7 December 2013 (UTC)<br />
:This incomplete tags are just older than the recent change of that template. Current adds require a description, but it's not easy to figure out all that old reasons. If someone does find a reason, please just add it. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 20:22, 7 December 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Should there be a subwiki to cover the shop links that appear above the comic? ==<br />
<br />
The current one (as of writing) is [http://imgs.xkcd.com/store_news/store_gd_b11_1ze4.png] but this is a different than the usual, and there was also a third in between these.<br />
[[User:Rsranger65|Rsranger65]] ([[User talk:Rsranger65|talk]]) 06:00, 8 December 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Those are very ephemeral. They aren't going to exist for very long, I don't know how valuable it would be to archive that stuff. We could probably do it, but having to figure out another naming convention and all for advertisements doesn't appeal to me at the current moment. If you can flesh it out, I'd love to see how you think we should do it. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 07:24, 8 December 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== New Character ==<br />
<br />
OK, I think we need a name for the character with a goatee and glasses in comics [[435: Purity]], [[796: Bad Ex]] and [[964: Dorm Poster]] as well as possibly others. Edit: oh and I suggest Goatee and Glasses Guy, but I'm open for suggestions Edit 2: also in [[826: Guest Week: Zach Weiner (SMBC)]] Halfhat {{unsigned|Halfhat}}<br />
edit 3: Another sighting [[954: Chin-Up Bar]] [[User:Halfhat|Halfhat]] ([[User talk:Halfhat|talk]]) 16:57, 13 January 2014 (UTC)<br />
: In the transcript, he is called "Person with Glasses and a Goatee" --[[User:Jeff|<b><font color="orange">Jeff</font></b>]] ([[User talk:Jeff|talk]]) 15:39, 21 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
:: "Glasses Guy", "Goatee Guy" are both probably descriptive enough! --[[User:Jeff|<b><font color="orange">Jeff</font></b>]] ([[User talk:Jeff|talk]]) 15:41, 21 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== What If Comics ==<br />
<br />
Hi, I was thinking, maybe at some point we should do the comics in the ''What If?'' section, like [http://what-if.xkcd.com/imgs/a/36/cornstarch_bitcoins.png this one.] [[User:Halfhat|Halfhat]] ([[User talk:Halfhat|talk]]) 20:01, 13 January 2014 (UTC)<br />
: Start creating the pages for them! --[[User:Jeff|<b><font color="orange">Jeff</font></b>]] ([[User talk:Jeff|talk]]) 15:36, 21 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
: I think I can start creating one or two pages for What If, if that helps... [[User:Daniel Carrero|Daniel Carrero]] ([[User talk:Daniel Carrero|talk]]) 16:14, 5 April 2014 (UTC)<br />
:: If nobody has any problem with it, I'm gonna give it a try later. :) [[User:Daniel Carrero|Daniel Carrero]] ([[User talk:Daniel Carrero|talk]]) 13:14, 8 April 2014 (UTC)<br />
:::I thought they were already pretty self-explanatory though. Also, how are we gonna organize and present them? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 16:31, 8 April 2014 (UTC)<br />
::::I totally agree with David: Read the entire What-If page and follow the links provided by Randall. No one of us can do that better in depth. But an overview page for this site is maybe not a bad idea, we just need a proper link here — a link at the main menu on the left. Translations to other languages are just another issue. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 22:37, 8 April 2014 (UTC)<br />
:::::Yes, I was thinking of an overview, summarizing the contents and discoveries of each what if page. Not to mention, we could also organize what if pages by categories, such as physics/love.<br />
:::::Would you like me to post here an example of what I would write? That way we can decide if it's worthy of creating an actual page. [[User:Daniel Carrero|Daniel Carrero]] ([[User talk:Daniel Carrero|talk]]) 12:53, 9 April 2014 (UTC)<br />
:Adding pages for What If? posts would be very helpful. Although the articles themselves are obviously self-explanatory, there are almost as many subtle references, running gags, and in-jokes in What If? posts these days as in the comics themselves.<br />
I often visit explain xkcd when I feel like I'm missing an inside joke or a pop culture reference in a comic, and it would be very helpful to many people (especially those from other cultures/subcultures) to have the same service.<br />
For example, today's What If? contains multiple allusions to the Superman Movie, a running Citation Needed joke, and a whole comic that is a not-so-subtle dig at Elon Musk and the Hyperloop. It would be awesome if the community here at explainxkcd could tackle stuff like that.<br />
Anonymous 20:05, 31 July 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I agree. I don't understand the mouseover text on the first image in "Snow Removal", for example. [[User:Benjaminikuta|Benjaminikuta]] ([[User talk:Benjaminikuta|talk]]) 22:57, 23 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Transcripts ==<br />
<br />
The whole point of the transcripts is to have those who are unable to view images to still be able to read the comic, right?<br />
<br />
Then why is it required to stick to strictly official transcripts, where sometimes rewriting them slightly would make them flow better or otherwise get the ideas across better? I've tried rewriting a few, but they get reverted. I think that having easier-to-understand transcripts would be more important than strictly following official transcripts; what do you think? (For a few examples, see [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=207:_What_xkcd_Means&diff=60061&oldid=57400 this edit] and [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=995%3A_Coinstar&diff=59862&oldid=57316 this edit]. [[User:Zowayix|Zowayix]] ([[User talk:Zowayix|talk]]) 17:38, 19 February 2014 (UTC)<br />
:We use the original transcript to try and deduce original author intent if it's unclear from the image. I remember one comic where Beret Guy was off in the distance and it was difficult to distinguish him from the image, but the official transcript said it was him. We don't stick to the original transcript if it's obviously wrong, or it has typographical errors: see [[Laser Scope]]. Those edits seem to be mainly targeted at language and clarity, and should be fine. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 23:06, 19 February 2014 (UTC)<br />
::Would it be helpful to have another (optional) section for expanding on the official transcripts? I too think it could be helpful, especially for complex images (such as 1079/United Shapes [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/1079]). Or does supplemental description belong in the Explanation sections? Cheers. [[User:Karenb|Karenb]] ([[User talk:Karenb|talk]]) 23:00, 20 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
:::Naaah, how many people even know there's an original transcript? If the original is wrong, change it. If your additions begin to verge on explanatory, move eet to the trivia/explanation sections. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 00:52, 21 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== "Characters in this Comic" section ==<br />
<br />
Should there be a "Characters in this Comic" section in each comic explanation? (I feel like this should be longer but don't have anything else to say.) [[User:Z|Z]] ([[User talk:Z|talk]]) 23:33, 11 May 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:There is a Category section at the bottom of each comic. Just scroll down and you will see any character belonging to a specific comic. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 21:50, 12 May 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Adding the Radiation chart from XKCD ==<br />
<br />
Hi <br />
As there are already other comics with explanations even though they are not part of the number system.<br />
This one does not seem to have any yet:<br />
http://xkcd.com/radiation/<br />
And as it is very alike the Money strip (the unexplained of the week) so I think it should be explained as well.<br />
If you agree please add it as I'm not sure how to do that.<br />
<br />
Best regards<br />
:[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 18:47, 7 June 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Reddit comments? ==<br />
<br />
There should be a link in each comics explanation page somewhere linking to the comment section for the relevant comic on /r/xkcdcomic or reddit.<br />
:The reddit comments page isn't ''that'' close to what we do though. If this is more popular, we'll do it, though there'll need to be a fair bit of post-hoc editing since I don't think there's a standard URL scheme for all the past comics. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 03:15, 23 June 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Not insulting new users ==<br />
<br />
I am writing a response to a vulnerability assessment. I have included a link to http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/936 noting that it contains a good explanation of the relative security of passwords vs passphrases. I just noticed that the top of that page contains "Explain xkcd: It's 'cause you're dumb." Looks like I'll have to find a different site to link to. --[[User:Pascal|Pascal]] ([[User talk:Pascal|talk]]) 17:33, 28 June 2014 (UTC)<br />
:I agree. While I'm sure it can seem cute or funny in various circles, that text has always seemed immature and inappropriate to me, and I'm sure to many folks we'd like to invite to the site. I suggest that it be changed. [[User:Nealmcb|Nealmcb]] ([[User talk:Nealmcb|talk]]) 19:52, 23 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== RSS feed ==<br />
<br />
Is there an RSS feed (or some equivalent) of Explain XKCD available? It's helpful for those using feed readers, and superior to the primary XKCD RSS since there are explanations and the mouse over text is transcribed for the lazy. Thanks [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.154|108.162.219.154]] 08:24, 28 August 2014 (UTC)<br />
:[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Special:NewPages&feed=atom&hideredirs=1&limit=90&offset=&namespace=0&username=&feed=&tagfilter= Why yes, we do!] It's the regular new pages log that all wikis have. It's a little ugly at the moment, and sometimes junk gets in there when a bot chucks spam at us, so a nicer feed is in the works, but the linked one should do you excellently for now. When the nice one is done, you'll see it in the sidebar below the "Help" button. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 11:31, 28 August 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Navigation Pane Link - Categories ==<br />
<br />
How about having a link to the "Special:Categories" page in the navigation pane?<br />
<br />
A fair amount of effort has gone into categorising the comics, and at the moment it isn't particularly obvious how to browse by category. Is this worth doing?{{unsigned|Pudder}}<br />
:Space on the sidebar is on a premium. I dunno, I'd probably be against it, but I want to hear what other admins say as well. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 16:45, 29 September 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Alternate realities what if would benefit from a wiki entry ==<br />
<br />
The what if entry from the end of November 2014 providing excerpts from alternate reality what ifs would benefit from an explain page. <br />
I suspect these may have been typos that have been made into jokes, but some of the humor might not be apparent to all. <br />
I doubt I have access (or maybe know how) to set it up myself. <br />
<br />
Cheers {{unsigned ip|199.27.133.42}}<br />
<br />
: Made it. Check out [[What If: 120: Alternate Universe What Ifs]]. [[User:17jiangz1|17jiangz1]] ([[User talk:17jiangz1|talk]]) 09:10, 26 December 2014 (UTC)<br />
::We don't actually have a structure for what if pages in general, so I'll have to take that down, but when we do we can make pages for every what if. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 09:57, 26 December 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Secondary URLs? ==<br />
<br />
I have made http://www.xkcd.ga and http://www.xkcd.tk both forward to http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/Main_Page. Is this ok? [[User:17jiangz1|17jiangz1]] ([[User talk:17jiangz1|talk]]) 08:50, 26 December 2014 (UTC)<br />
:While we probably won't advertise them because we can't guarantee the uptime of third-party URLs, and they add an additional redirect layer and lack our shortened URL features, you're free to purchase and link URLs to us independently. We are not owned by Randall and as such cannot claim to actually be xkcd, so I'm not hugely comfortable with you using the plain name "xkcd" to link to us; a url in the format http://www.xkcd.[TLD] should by rights link to the main xkcd site, but no trademark claim has been made or likely will be made, so you should be fine with doing whatever you want to do with URL redirects '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 09:57, 26 December 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== LaTeX (Or MathML, TeX) support? ==<br />
<br />
[[1489:_Fundamental_Forces|In the most recent comic at the time of posting]], there was use of formulae, being:<br/>F<sub>gravity</sub> = G m<sub>1</sub>m<sub>2</sub>/d<sup>2</sup><br/>F<sub>static</sub> = K<sub>e</sub> q<sub>1</sub>q<sub>2</sub>/d<sup>2</sup><br/><br />
There are probably many more comics using formulae that cannot be rendered properly without the use of LaTeX or something. The [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:Displaying_a_formula help page on Wikipedia] says that the following should work:<br/><math>F_{gravity}=G\frac{m_1m_2}{d^2}</math><br/><math>F_{static}=K_e\frac{q_1q_2}{d^2}</math><br />
Provided that one has to set <source lang="php" enclose="none">$wgUseTeX = true;</source> in [[mw:Manual:LocalSettings.php|LocalSettings.php]]. Is there any reason for this to be disabled? If there is, is there any alternative? —[[Special:Contributions/141.101.106.95|141.101.106.95]] 21:18, 20 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:The wgUseTeX flag was deprecated in mediawiki 1.18 in a move to simplify base mediawiki and move niche features into seperate plugins. I vaguely remember this being requested in the past, can't find any evidence of me implementing it. I'll try it now, see what stopped me last time. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 01:12, 21 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
:Ah, there's a bit of configuration work to it and I was busy at the time probably. I'll put it on the growing to do list on my userpage. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 01:20, 21 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Merge Cueball & Rob ==<br />
<br />
At the risk of posting this idea too many places and annoying everyone, I would like to propose that we consider merging [[Cueball]] and [[Rob]] and redirecting Cueball to Rob, much as [[Cutie]] now redirects to [[Megan]]. The most common name given for a Cueball-like character in the strip is "Rob". Like Megan, he is not always named. Also, like Megan, Rob tends to have distinct characteristics such as being a nerdy alter-ego to Randall (e.g. [[1168: tar]]) just as Megan often is the appearance given to comic representations of Randall's wife (see [[1141: Two Years]], before hair loss). Megan and Cueball appear to have a relationship (e.g. [[159: Boombox]]) and Megan clearly hangs out with Rob in ways not inconsistent with adventurous couples (e.g. [[782: Desecration]]). Finally, comics that feature both [[Black Hat]] and "Cueball" seem to depict them as friends and possibly roommates. However, we learn in [[1102: Fastest-Growing]] that Black Hat's roommate is named "Rob".<br />
<br />
In short, I believe if [[159: Boombox]] had called "Cueball" "Rob" we would've rewritten both Cutie and Cueball to redirect there. Because we learned that "Cueball's" name is actually Rob much later (I think the earliest occurrences are [[647: Scary]], and [[716: Time Machine]]; the first time he is seen with Megan in a capacity that might indicate a relationship is [[782: Desecration]]). [[User:Djbrasier|Djbrasier]] ([[User talk:Djbrasier|talk]]) 19:05, 11 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:As I answered your comment on [[1496: Art Project]] Rob is [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/Category:Comics_featuring_Rob already listed] as part of the category for Comics featuring Cueball: and this is listed as the first entry when going to the page for [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/Category:Comics_featuring_Cueball Category:Comics featuring Cueball]. Cueball is such an integral part of explain xkcd that I do not think any other users wish to change. Also the 9 incidences with Rob is maybe a specific person and at the time Randall did not think to give him any features. Also Cueballs have no specific behavior as you allude to. Neither has Megan. You can always find several Cueballs and Megans that behave a certain way. But then you can find many other comics where they behave the opposite way. Thus Rob and Cueball should not be merged. Also there are several comics with more than one Cueball. And here we have this problem: It is typically the first who writes the transcript who decides who of the Cueballs (or Megans) he feels represents the "real" Cueball. However, there is no real behavior of Cueball. So who should decide. I could change all these transcripts so it becomes the other character who becomes Cueball, because I think that the first transcriber did it wrong. And this is why in a comic with more than one Cueball (where neither is called Rob or the like) neither of the two should be called Cueball. It would still be in the category with Cueball, because that is just comics with a Cueball like character no matter how many. But they cannot be named Cueball and friend or Rob and friend (unless Rob's name is mentioned!) They could be called Cueball 1 and Cueball 2, but then guy or man would be better. I know several places have comics with two Cueballs where someone has designated one of them Cueball and the other friend of foe etc. But this should be corrected so none of these are called Cueball. Same should go for more than one Megan. But this is very rare, and I have only found one other than ''Art project'' and here only one Megan had any lines. The problem with different opinions on which Cueball is which came for the first time up with Megan in ''Art project'': The two Megan-like characters was first named (left to right) Megan and Danish. Then unidentified girl and Megan. Then Megan and unidentified girl, then two Megan like girls with short and long hair and finally you reverted it to my first change away from Danish to unidentified girl and Megan. (I can live with that as there is difference in hair length and behavior). But as far as I see it Cueball is not Rob as well as Megan should have continued to be called Cutie (but I would not like to change that now, as I have grown fond of Megan). But at the time the change was done I believe it was wrong. The same fondness for the name Cueball also makes me sure that no one else would wish to call him Rob, even if that is as much his name as Megan is Cuties... --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 21:57, 11 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
::My argument is that it is inertia and sentiment ("fond of Megan") that prevents an objective, equal treatment here. [[User:Djbrasier|Djbrasier]] ([[User talk:Djbrasier|talk]]) 22:47, 11 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
::Also, regarding the analogy made above to Danish. I am fine with a nickname when Randall hasn't named a character. So she was "unidentified girl" and then became "Danish". But, when we named her "Danish", we went back to "Journal 1" and other places and renamed her. My proposal is that we should go back through and rename "Cueball" as "Rob". Alternatively, we should reinstate "Cutie" for cases in which it is not clear that a character is "Megan" per se, but just Megan in her "everywoman" capacity. [[User:Djbrasier|Djbrasier]] ([[User talk:Djbrasier|talk]]) 00:00, 12 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I'm not sure how to post a poll, but I see the following options:<br />
<br />
1) Status quo: Cueball for all unidentified males without distinct characteristics (e.g. hats), Megan for all shoulder-length brunettes. Rob only for named Cueballs. Multiple Cueballs in a comic mean one is named Cueball and others get named "Friend", etc.<br />
<br />
2) Symmetry 1: Cueball/Rob stays as is. Unnamed brunettes get named "Cutie". "Megan" like "Rob" is reserved for comics in which a name is used.<br />
<br />
3) Symmetry 2: Megan stays as is. Rob is the default for indistinct males. "Cueball" page redirects to "Rob" (as "Cutie" now redirect to "Megan").<br />
<br />
4) Expunge all Cueballs from multi-Cueball comics: Basically the status quo, except that in comics with multiple Cueballs none are named "Cueball" and are just all given names "Man 1", "Man 2", etc.<br />
<br />
I am ambivalent regarding options 2 or 3. I could live with 1 if there is consensus for it, but I don't like it. 4 is a disaster in my mind and gains nothing. [[User:Djbrasier|Djbrasier]] ([[User talk:Djbrasier|talk]]) 22:47, 11 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:We are probably the only one who reads these post...? But anyway as is clear I'm for 4. Which has been used several places already.´I can live with 1. I think 2 and 3 are disasters. Also it would be completely confusing for those who have used this page for many years. Why do you bring this up now? Is it because of the multiple Megan comics, or have you just signed up here, and dislike that it doesn't follow the rules you would have expected?--[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 20:19, 12 March 2015 (UTC) <br />
::I suggest instead that we create a category for multiple Cueballs, so it is easy to explain why the Cueball is not a specific character, and thus can never be Rob (except when it is clear from the text), or be expected to behave a certain way. And in reverse we make a Named Megan category so it is easy to find the few (three?) where she has been named. This by the way has nothing to do with the other suggestions, so I might just do that to get an overview. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 20:19, 12 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
::: It seems more consistent to me to use [[Cutie]] for all unnamed "Megans" and reserve "Megan" for named comics. Thus, Rob is '''a''' Cueball and Megan is '''a''' Cutie. [[User:Djbrasier|Djbrasier]] ([[User talk:Djbrasier|talk]]) 13:30, 13 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
::::I've read through some of your discussions (Here, Kynde's talk page, Art Project discussion), and thought I might put my thoughts forwards. Essentially we have three questions here:<br />
::::1) Should we merge Cueball and Rob, and rename all Cueballs as Rob?<br />
::::2) Should we rename all Megans as Cutie, except where she is explicitly named?<br />
::::3) Once questions 1 & 2 are answered, what do we do where the 'same' character appears multiple times in one comic?<br />
<br />
::::*I understand the objective argument for renaming Cueball to Rob, however I'm unconvinced of the importance of being entirely objective, and I can't imagine Cueball being renamed to anything other than Cueball. <br />
::::*I think its fairly clear where the Cueball label has come from, even if it might not be immediately obvious to some. Even if readers don't make the link between Cueball's head and a cue-ball, it is quite a generic label, which I think fits well with the transient every-man nature of Cueball's usage.<br />
::::*There is something far more specific about the name Rob, which suggests that he is the same character every time. The origin of the name isn't obvious, which I think would be likely to cause confusion. <br />
::::This brings me to conclude that for me, the answer to Q1 has to be that Cueball should stay as Cueball, unless explicitly named something else. <br />
<br />
::::The question of changing Megan to Cutie is one where I am less confident. Following the arguments I've made above, the outcome has to be that we rename to Cutie unless specifically named Megan, however I am not entirely convinced. The name Megan has a history, there are surely lots of people who now know her as Megan, what do we really stand to gain from all the work of changing to Cutie? I would also suggest that the name Cutie may not be accepted well by those with strong feminist views.<br />
<br />
::::As far as multi-character comics, I don't have time right now, but I will come back later and add my thoughts. Now that we've only got a few incomplete comics, we've had to resort to discussing renaming characters!--[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 15:07, 13 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
:::::I agree with the reasons for keeping Cueball and Megan. And also that Cutie is such a loaded word, that it should never have been used anyway. This I did not immediately think about, but Cutie sounds like something from either a porn movie, or else a Bond Babe... Like the phrase from one of those movies: "Hello, I'm Plenty..." Then we should have to find a third name. And everyone here knows her as Megan. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 13:24, 15 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
::::::I have created the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/Category:Multiple_Cueballs Category:Multiple Cueballs] to locate them and to show how often there are more than one. Feel free to add any I haven't found yet. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 09:45, 16 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I think Rob is Black Hat's roommate and Megan's boyfriend/partner/husband (see above). The "Cueball" in comics such as [[159: Boombox]] and [[542: Cover-Up]] should, in my view, be renamed "Rob", even though he is not explicitly called that in those comics. Most other "Cueball" comics can stay unchanged. [[User:Djbrasier|Djbrasier]] ([[User talk:Djbrasier|talk]]) 00:43, 14 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
:I have left my reason to disagree also with this on the two comics talk page. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 13:24, 15 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
In my opinion, it is quite clear that [[Randall]] has chosen to name the main male protagonist [[Rob]], for the few occasions where he needs characters to call upon each other, in the same way as he has chosen [[Megan]] for the main female protagonist. We should therefore try to overcome our nostalgia, follow Randall, and call the common male protagonist Rob. The problem with multiple cueballs can most often be resolved by identifying the protagonist, from the first-person narration or the general perspective. Thus, in [[525: I Know You're Listening]] Rob is the comic's "I", to the left. In [[1110: Click and Drag]], Rob is obviously flying with a balloon. In [[610: Sheeple]] Rob is arguably the guy in the foreground facing us. Non-Rob "cueballs" we could refer to as "friend" "man", etc. In this way roughly half of the "multiple cueballs" would be resolved. I think I can live with a few unclear cases, like [[220: Philosophy]]. [[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 12:22, 19 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:A featureless character has been ''specifically'' named Rob in 9 comics, compared with 968 'Comics featuring Cueball'. I believe it is fundamentally flawed to assert that because a featureless character is named Rob in less than 1% of appearances, that all featureless characters should therefore be assumed to be Rob. As I've discussed above, I think that Rob strongly implies a specific person, whereas Cueball is a vague 'everyman' character. I feel it would be a huge error to change all Cueballs to Robs.--[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 17:37, 19 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
::The problem with that logic is that "Megan" is only named in a small number of comics (fewer that "Rob"). So we should have a different name for an unnamed generic female. [[Cutie]] is fine, but if people perceive that as sexist, then another name, maybe "Cuegirl" or "Brunette" would work. (Side note: I doubt "Cutie" would be perceived as sexist and there's history there.) What I '''do''' find sexist is the fact that there is asymmetry between male and female "everyperson"s. In sum, I would say there is at less evidence to support naming Megan-everywoman "Megan" in all cases as there is to name Rob-everyman (here called "Cueball") "Rob" in all cases. Asymmetry here ignores the fact that Randall clearly intends his name to be "Rob" and also that we are using a proper name for everywoman but a contrived name for everyman, while creating an artificial distinction between Rob and Cueball and smearing out any possible distinction between Megan-everywoman and Megan-properName. [[User:Djbrasier|Djbrasier]] ([[User talk:Djbrasier|talk]]) 13:18, 27 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:::As I put in my earlier comment (see above), I do agree that the logical conclusion is that Megan should no longer be named Megan, and should have an equivalent generic name. As an aside, I'm quite partial to your suggestion of Cuegirl. I disagree with your assertion that "Randall clearly intends his name to be Rob", and I think that is the central point of this discussion. I don't believe that there is anywhere near enough evidence to assign a specific name to what I believe is a generic character. If we want to go for formal logic, consider the syllogism "Some non descipt characters are called Rob, there are many non-descript characters, therfore all non-descript characters are called Rob". The conclusion simply does not follow. --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 14:22, 27 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
::::Great, I vote for Cuegirl & Cueball :: Megan & Rob! [[User:Djbrasier|Djbrasier]] ([[User talk:Djbrasier|talk]]) 01:31, 31 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I agree with Djbrasier's and St.nerol's arguments, and I too feel that the arguments against dealing with this in an objective, symmetrical and logical way seem mostly based on nostalgia. Either we agree that a few named instances of the everywoman are sufficient to generalize to the (vastly more numerous) unnamed instances, and apply the same standard to the everyman, which is only consistent (and even more justified in the case of Rob since he is named in more comics than Megan), or we decide that the extrapolation is unjustified and we revert the Cutie-->Megan merge. The alternative --having double standards and deciding things based on historical baggage and emotional attachment rather than rationality-- makes no sense for followers of the comic that ''literally invented'' nerd-sniping!<br />
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I'd also add that, as a non-native speaker, "cueball" doesn't ring any immediate bells unless the connection to cue balls is pointed out explicitly -- so actually Rob works even better as a generic name than Cueball. We have already [[#New character|agreed previously]] that clarity is better than cleverness when we named [[Hairy]], forgoing the less obvious alliteration "Harry", so I vote we use the name Randall ''actually'' gave us, let go of our attachments to a creation he never endorsed, and honor our collective nerdiness by doing the logical thing: apply our standards uniformly and adopt Rob the same way we adopted Megan. --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 06:09, 10 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
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:I've already put my thoughts forward above, so I won't repeat the same ground I've covered, other than to say I believe it would be a mistake to turn all Cueballs into Robs. While I will admit to having some nostalgia for the name Cueball, that isn't a major facet of my argument. I believe that any generic name is better than a specific name. Call them Stickboy & Stickgirl if you want! I know there are a fairly significant number of contributors and visitors who do not have English as their first language, but I don't believe that is a reason to choose a specific name, rather than a generic name, even if the origin of the latter isn't immediately obvious to all. It would be interesting to know whether each of us sees Cueball as always being the same person, or Cueball *is* Randall, or Cueball is just a changeable everyman.<br />
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:To me, he is a changeable everyman, who I guess may represent or be based on: Randall, his friends, family or acquaintances, famous people, someone he saw in the street, or a completely made up character used to fill a specific role in the comic. The reason I argue againt merging Rob & Cueball is that the Cueball I see is this morphing and fluid character, and to use a specific name to tie him down to being the same character all the time runs completely counter to that. --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 08:31, 10 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
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:: Understood, and sorry for mischaracterizing your argument (the nostalgia part does butt the discussion though). I suppose I would be somewhat ambivalent to either have Rob+Megan, or Cueball+Cutie -- Cuegirl doesn't work because she has hair :) --, in the interests of reason and symmetry. But I lean slightly towards Rob+Megan because those are names Randall actually gave us, while anything else is our own invention and thus has no claim to legitimacy other than popular support.<br />
:: Particularly, while I understand your concern about shoehorning the various personality traits the Cueballs show in different comics into a single persona, that doesn't seem to have been a problem for Megan -- not to mention real people ''are'' indeed complex and multi-faceted beings (or "morphing and fluid", to use your terms) rather than one-dimensional caricatures. Heck, even Black Hat has his romantic side! :) So in light of that, I don't think we have to worry about ruining Cueball by naming him Rob -- if anything, that'd add more depth to him as a character! --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 16:35, 10 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
:::I'm still very much against changing things here. Call it nostalgia, but there are many users who will never read these arguments, who one day comes back and cannot find Megan or Cueball, and will ask who the heck are Cuegirl/Cutie. I'm completely with Pudder on the problem with giving Cueball the name Rob. It just doesn't make sense. I agree that we have a inconsistency with Megan. But then everyone who uses this page a few times, becomes familiar with that name. However the main problem with all your great ideas is this. Who should correct the either 984 pages where Cueball is mentioned because he is a part of it (and all the other pages relevant to him or where he is exactly mentioned because he isn't part of the comic) and/or who should do the same for 487 comics (plus loose pages) for Megan. Unless those in favor for changing the names will do this, then the discussion is moot. It is already clearly stated in the relevant pages that these two characters are generic and that they have been named but a few times. So what more can we do unless someone is willing to use several days to change this back. I sincerely doubt you can keep the correct syntax if you just try a brute force replacement? There are so many interconnecting links etc. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 13:21, 25 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
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I completely disagree with merging Cueball and Rob. Rob has [[276|Emily]] and [[632|Lisa]] as girlfriends, and Cueball has Megan. Rob also lives a more action-filled and stereotypical life compared to Cueball. --[[User:Youforgotthisthing|Youforgotthisthing]] ([[User talk:Youforgotthisthing|talk]]) 13:14, 15 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
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<br />
I think the main stances here are clear:<br />
* Keep as is<br />
* Rename Cuball to Rob<br />
* Change Megan back to Cutie/Cuegirl<br />
Since keeping it status quo wouldn't change anything and is asymmetrical, I'll go over the others:<br />
* Rename Cueball to Rob - Arguments:<br />
** Randall gave him this name;<br />
** It would offer symmetry to Megan;<br />
** If the Cutie -> Megan logic is to be followed (as she was changed once named in the comics) then Cueball should be Rob;<br />
** Even though cueball is a generic everyman name, Rob seems more like a name you could give anyone and would be more recognizable to non-native English speakers.<br />
* Change Megan back to Cutie/Cuegirl - Arguments:<br />
** It would cause symmetry again, letting her have an everywoman name;<br />
** Nostalgia for Cueball;<br />
** Megan is not always the same character, so she should not always have the name Megan<br />
<br />
I happen to agree with the idea of merging Cueball and Rob, but I'm not closed to the idea of Cutie/Cuegirl. The main problem is that these characters are typically interchangeable everymen/everywomen and there can be more than one in a comic. So another question is what we should do for multiple Cueballs/Robs. In my opinion, we should have all the comics with more than one depict them as Man 1, Man 2, etc. --[[User:Sensorfire|Sensorfire]] ([[User talk:Sensorfire|talk]]) 17:04, 20 May 2015 (UTC)<br />
:Well I disagree. The users are used to refeer to these characters now by these names. It is also impractical to try to change them all. Megan is rarely twice in a comic. Maybe she is more the same like Black Hat is. But it is made clear that they are not the same in every comic in their pages. If there are muliple Cueballs but one is the main protagonist then he us cueball. If none can be singled out then Cueball like guy to the left/right can be used. I have done that for tbose cases I have found so far ([[:Category:Multiple_Cueballs|49 today]]).--[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 20:58, 7 June 2015 (UTC)<br />
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== How to fit explanations of new classes of xkcd-related mysteries into the site: what-if, t-shirts, posters, special comics etc. ==<br />
<br />
I suggest that the [http://explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/explain_xkcd:About explain xkcd] page should explain how this site is laid out, and what sorts of things are explained here besides the online numbered xkcd comics that come out three times a week.<br />
<br />
For example, there is the [[A Smarter Planet]] series, and there are ideas for explaining some of the [http://what-if.xkcd.com/ What-If] series. I'd like to add my explanation of the [https://gist.github.com/nealmcb/398af29a72f7b3efc202 XKCD Greek t-shirt, with mathematical, scientific and engineering uses for greek letters] and perhaps some other t-shirts, posters and the like.<br />
<br />
But I can't even figure out how to find non-numbered-comic-explanations, without going thru the entire [[Special:AllPages]] listing, which includes a huge set of unnumbered aliases as well as the numbered ones. <br />
<br />
I've taken a stab towards that by editing the About page to point to some categories (and to start with a little overview), but since I'm just poking around, I might have missed some things. [[User:Nealmcb|Nealmcb]] ([[User talk:Nealmcb|talk]]) 19:40, 23 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
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== Link to "Special pages" on main page ==<br />
<br />
I think there should be a link to [[Special:SpecialPages]] on the main-page--[[User:17jiangz1|17jiangz1]] ([[User talk:17jiangz1|talk]]) 11:55, 29 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
:Special pages is a default feature in every mediawiki installation. It's also in the sidebar of every page, and it's not relevant to xkcd. Why does it merit space on the main page? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 18:56, 29 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
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== Science comic ==<br />
<br />
Should the Science Magazine comic be added? http://m.sciencemag.org/content/342/6154/58.full [[User:Mikemk|Mikemk]] ([[User talk:Mikemk|talk]]) 03:14, 4 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
:I think that would be a great idea. Could there be other copyright rules when the comic has been published on Science? It there anyway to find out if Randall also has a link to it from (or has it on) xkcd? As he has done with the other [[:Category:Extra_Comics|Extra_Comics]]. And how do we create such a page, if there can be no link directly to xkcd (at the top of the comic)? --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 13:24, 30 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
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== "what if?" section? ==<br />
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I would like to start a new "what if?" section explaining and discussing what if pages.--[[User:17jiangz1|17jiangz1]] ([[User talk:17jiangz1|talk]]) 06:08, 8 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
:Why does it need to exist? The main xkcd comic needs it, because Randall tends to be obtuse at times, but the what if articles are sourced and written out already. Supposedly, they're already explanations to questions sent in to Randall. Why do we need to explain explanations? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 06:29, 8 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
::Explaining them indeed seems unnecessary, but we could certainly catalog and summarize them. --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 16:38, 10 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
::The images on what if? also have title texts that could further be explained, and we could organize what if pages by categories, as well as provide summaries. There are also subtle references, running gags, and in-jokes in What If? that should be explained.--[[User:17jiangz1|17jiangz1]] ([[User talk:17jiangz1|talk]]) 08:44, 11 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
::This https://what-if.xkcd.com/120/ is a example of a what if that could do with some explanations.--[[User:17jiangz1|17jiangz1]] ([[User talk:17jiangz1|talk]]) 08:47, 11 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
:::That's one of 135 what-ifs, and it's entirely self referential and can be figured out by reading the rest of the archive. The substance of the majority of pages is going to be incredibly thin, Randall doesn't tend to leave much for explanation. Comics that are simple one-shot images are our least used pages for good reason, and the what-if images pretty much all fall into that category, or are used to illustrate Randall's point that he makes in the immediately preceding paragraph. We could archive/catalog all the what-if pages and be a second archive button for the series, though there's a little less value to that than the archiving we did for [[Time]] and [[Externalities]] because there's already an archive along the same lines on the main site. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 19:14, 11 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
::::I think the main value we could add is a summary (TL;DR style) of each entry, in a short Q&A format. --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 12:13, 13 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
If we are going forward with this, is there anyway to find the date in which the what if was first published?--[[User:17jiangz1|17jiangz1]] ([[User talk:17jiangz1|talk]]) 09:01, 11 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
:At the bottom of the page, there's an archive button. Click that. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 19:14, 11 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
Well, fact is, the [[what if?]] page is much, '''much''' larger now. [[User:Nk22|Nk22]] ([[User talk:Nk22|talk]]) 11:52, 20 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
:Thank you, Nk22! I've added a link from the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/explain_xkcd About explain xkcd] page. {{unsigned|Nealmcb}}<br />
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== Userscript ==<br />
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Hello there, just wrote a simple userscript that adds an 'Explain' button to the original xkcd.com<br />
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https://gist.github.com/magazov/934de662d60c9fb5fea9<br />
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You can run it via Greasemonkey, Tampermonkey and other similar plugins :)<br />
<br />
[[Image:Screen_Shot_xkcd_button.png]]<br />
{{unsigned|Magazovski}}<br />
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:Yeah, there's a few of these floating around. In the future, could you use an imgur link instead of uploading stuff like that to the wiki? Thanks. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 18:02, 21 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
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::So maybe explainxkcd should host & maintain one of them? --[[User:Magazovski|Magazovski]] ([[User talk:Magazovski|talk]]) 09:30, 22 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
:::Why would we host an image hosting site? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 23:17, 23 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
::::He means we could host and maintain a userscript to help our fans get here from xkcd.... [[User:Nealmcb|Nealmcb]] ([[User talk:Nealmcb|talk]]) 14:36, 9 May 2015 (UTC)<br />
:::::Hum, that's not a bad idea. I'll put it on the list of things to do. Although, if they're already here, why do they need a userscript to help them get here? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 00:34, 11 May 2015 (UTC)<br />
::::::For people who mainly view the comics through the official site, but sometimes need an explanation of the comic. --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 09:23, 11 May 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Updating the incomplete comic of the day ==<br />
<br />
Currently, I think the incomplete comic of the day should be changed more often (i.e. daily), since the incomplete comics are piling up, and most users aren't seeing the notice, as it is dismissible.--[[User:17jiangz1|17jiangz1]] ([[User talk:17jiangz1|talk]]) 11:40, 22 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
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:While I agree that the comic of the day could be changed more often, I wouldn't say that the incomplete comics are ''piling up''. Over the months I've been active here, the number of incomplete comics had fallen considerably. In fact if you check the comics which are still marked as incomplete, most of them are one where a significant effort would be required to complete them. For example the large comics (Money, Time, Congress) or dynamic comics (Externalities, Click & Drag, Pixels). --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 15:32, 23 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
::Yeah. Of the 15 incomplete "pages," only 10 of them are actual comics that need the attention, and the full count is still dropping. I've been keeping it on single comics as of late because the remaining actual incomplete comics have been cycled through ~3 times already, with no significant effort made on them, because they're such monumental pieces of work. Making the message dismissable is by design, we are a service first and foremost, we're not trying that hard to make visitors do our work for us. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 23:17, 23 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Infrequently recurring minor charachters ==<br />
<br />
Should we just group all of the characters that are not of enough significance to warrant their own character page into a single page (i.e. [[Other Minor Characters]])? --{{User:17jiangz1/signature|02:58, 09 May 2015}}<br />
:See comic [[1000]] for a sample of what this entails. Also, what value to we stand to provide by cataloging every unique character that has appeared in xkcd? Does it help us explain the comics any better? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 11:32, 9 May 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Comic page creation ==<br />
<br />
Is comic page creation not automated? If it isn't, then [[Help talk:How to add a new comic explanation]] should be created.--{{User:17jiangz1/signature|14:19, 26 May 2015}} 14:19, 26 May 2015 (UTC)<br />
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:Comic explanation was, at one point, automated. However, the bot ran on a schedule, and so sometimes there would be a few hours between a new comic being posted and the page getting created. Some editors just can't wait that long, so they do the bot's work before the bot even gets going. I agree that this page should be created and be kept up to date. Historically no one has read any of the help pages I've written. ;p [[User:Lcarsos|lcarsos]]<span title="I'm an admin. I can help.">_a</span> ([[User talk:Lcarsos|talk]]) 17:42, 26 May 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:However, I think that the page should be [[Help:Comic Explanation Page Creation]]. [[User:Lcarsos|lcarsos]]<span title="I'm an admin. I can help.">_a</span> ([[User talk:Lcarsos|talk]]) 17:43, 26 May 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Re-proposing merging Cueball and Rob ==<br />
<br />
Okay, so this was previously [[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/explain_xkcd:Community_portal/Proposals#Merge_Cueball_.26_Rob discussed] but I felt that it was worth bringing up again. Really, at this point, there's no logical reason why the two should not be merged, or Megan and Cutie should be un-merged. Rob and Cueball clearly seem to be the same person, at least when cueball appears as a specific character. In the instances where there are multiple Cueballs, we should just refer to them as Man 1, Man 2, and so on. Can we get a vote or something this time? Yes, I understand that Cueball isn't always the same character. But neither is [[Megan]], and yet we always refer to the short black haired girl (formerly [[Cutie]]) as Megan. If that logic applies to her, it applies to Rob. It's pretty clear that Randall intended to name the character Rob, as most named Cueballs are named Rob and not Fred or something.<br />
<br />
In short: Please don't bring nostalgia into this, it's really not relevant. Changing Cueball to Rob or Megan back to Cutie (or Cuegirl?) would have symmetry and make sense. {{unsigned ip|Sensorfire}}<br />
:I'm ok with dumping a marginal character page that only served to add confusion to character identification in new comics, but this was a subject of contention before so we probably need to see more of people's thoughts first. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 01:03, 5 September 2015 (UTC)<br />
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:I agree: let's list the arguments for both sides, ensure that everyone agrees with the objectiveness of that listing, and then vote. If there's support for this plan, and nobody does it first, I'll take a stab at producing a first draft of the summary. --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 23:57, 14 September 2015 (UTC)<br />
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:Randall is currently on a booktour. So, how about, instead of us (without the ability to read minds) arguing about his intention or who is/isn't the same character, someone go see him and ask? Then we'll know with absolute 100% certainty. [[User:WaltG123|WaltG123]] ([[User talk:WaltG123|talk]]) 04:49, 25 November 2015 (UTC)<br />
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== Adjective phrases ==<br />
<br />
Overwhelmed with the need to be picayune, I am compelled to point out that on the homepage there is the sentence that begins "There are a lot of comics that don't have set in stone explanations..." This sentence contains a adjective phrase which should be hyphenated thus: "set-in-stone"<br />
<br />
Please pretend that I have said something witty here, as I am too tired to think of anything funny. {{unsigned|Gamewriter}}<br />
:Is it actually grammatically wrong in it's current state? Huh. I guess I'll change it. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 20:42, 1 November 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Update MediaWiki ==<br />
<br />
You are currently using MediaWiki 1.19.17. It's ''really'' outdated. Maybe update to 1.26.2, the current recommended stable version? There is an [[mw:Manual:Upgrading|official guide]] for that. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.80.77|141.101.80.77]] 12:03, 24 January 2016 (UTC) (PS my IP address is wrong it's not what you think it is)<br />
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== Rename Hair Bun Girl ==<br />
<br />
The character [[Hair Bun Girl]] was named in April 2015. There wasn't any discussion of the name at the time, so I'd like to open that discussion now please.<br />
<br />
At present we have several other characters named after distinctive visual features: [[Ponytail]], [[Black Hat]], [[White Hat]], [[Beret Guy]], and arguably [[Hairy]] and [[Cueball]]. In all but one of those cases, the name matches the distinctive feature itself, without the addition of "guy", "girl", etc. Given the number of comics that Beret Guy is in it's probably too late to modify his name, but it's not too late for Hair Bun Girl.<br />
<br />
Besides the consistency issue, there's also the inaccuracy of referring to a grown woman with the term "girl", particularly when the character has been presented as older than [[Megan]]. I'd really like to fix this while her number of appearances is still manageable.<br />
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The name "Hairbun" has been proposed and I think that matches really nicely with Ponytail in particular.<br />
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[[User:Jkshapiro|Jkshapiro]] ([[User talk:Jkshapiro|talk]]) 04:23, 9 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:As the "guy" who created the Hair Bun Girl characther, I have no objection to changing the name. I did not think about the issue with girl/woman, probably because I'm not native English speaker. (And with the Beret Guy as an example). Jkshapiro was so kind as to [[User_talk:Kynde#Hair_Bun_.22Girl.22|ask my opinion]] before starting this discussion. At first I thought that ''Hairbun'' was a little weird, but then again so is Ponytail in this context. So I '''support''' the change to '''Hairbun'''! --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 13:06, 9 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
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I vote '''change''' Hair Bun to Hairbun and '''keep''' girl. [[User:Mikemk|Mikemk]] ([[User talk:Mikemk|talk]]) 21:02, 10 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Mobile friendly website ==<br />
<br />
Can we get a mobile friendly version of the wiki? If we already have one, what about forwarding the main site to it when viewed on a phone? [[User:Mikemk|Mikemk]] ([[User talk:Mikemk|talk]]) 20:59, 10 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== New categories ==<br />
<br />
I think there may be a need to propose a standard way to decide on categories: what new ones are needed, what are the prerequisites for creating a new category, how to maintain new categories and make sure they are actually used when they apply etc. For now I have gathered all previous discussions about new categories under this section. -- [[User:Malgond|Malgond]] ([[User talk:Malgond|talk]]) 13:39, 17 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:I think that whenever there are more than 4-5 comics that you wish to refer to in a given explanation because they are of the same topic as the current comic, then having a category is much to prefer rather than listing 5, 6 or 7 comics. I have made several categories for these instances, for instance for sport including the most used sports. At the time being I keep them up to date. One of the things this site does so well is giving you an easy way to find a specific comic even though you cannot remember the title of any precise quotes etc. If you just have an idea of what the topic was you might find it based on the categories. In this way I do not think we can have too many categories. As long as they describe a recurring subject. Only fault is that there seems to be no way to search for a comic based on more than one category? That would be great. In some cases even only 3 comics in a category can make sense. For instance I would be sorry to see this one go [[:Category:Puts on sunglasses]] (and I did not make it!) --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 13:09, 19 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
::For instance I have long wished for categories that covered all the space probe related comics, particularly all those referencing the Mars rovers. So today I made them with 16 and 9 comics in them already. [[:Category:Space probes]] [[:Category:Mars rovers]]. I hope people will generally think this was a great idea! :-) --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 20:42, 20 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:::And [[:Category:The Lion King]]... --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 21:47, 1 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
=== Category: Protip ===<br />
<br />
Anyone for adding ''Protip'' as a [[:Category:Comic series|Comic series]]. I have found five so far: [[653]], [[711]], [[1022]], [[1047]] and [[1156]]. (There are also a few comics with a protip title text.) -- [[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 10:25, 4 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
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:I think that qualifies as a recurring topic (thus worthy of a category), but not as a series, where you can see a clear sequence. In fact, [[:Category:My Hobby|My Hobby]] has the same limitation, for what I suggest it to be removed from [[:Category:Comic series]]. --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 11:42, 4 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
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::Seconded. Looks general and common enough to be a category. '''[[User:Davidy22|<span title="I want you."><u><font color="purple" size="2px">David</font><font color="green" size="3px">y</font></u><sup><font color="indigo" size="1px">22</font></sup></span>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 14:57, 4 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:::Okay, great! Do you think that the ones with a "protip:" title text should be included? Besides, I think I might be the one responsiple for moving My Hobby from [[:Category:Comics by topic|Comics by topic]] to Comic series. I felt that all the My Hobby comics were about different topics, but maybe i've got to narrow an interpretation of the word "topic". -- [[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 15:31, 4 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:::: Can you link to the protip-in-title-text comics?<br />
:::: As for My Hobby, note that categories aren't mutually exclusive. They can be in the "my hobby" topic, and each of them further categorized as appropriate: music, math, etc. Makes sense? --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 03:45, 5 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::: I just searched for protip in the xkcd search bar. Here: [[1084]], [[427]]. And yes, makes sense. I've moved My Hobby back to "by topic". -- [[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 12:06, 5 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
=== Category: Sports ===<br />
<br />
How about creating a new "Sports" category? [[User:Ekedolphin|Ekedolphin]] ([[User talk:Ekedolphin|talk]]) 15:31, 28 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Well, maybe. Everyone aren't so keen on new categories here. Which comics are you thinking of, for a start? –[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 20:32, 28 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
::We definitely need to reach an agreement as a community on when to create new categories. Something simple like a minimum of 3 (or, say, 5) existing comics. Since we're already at the proposals' portal... what do you guys think about that? --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 21:44, 28 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::My opinion: Five would be enough to qualify. [[User:Ekedolphin|Ekedolphin]] ([[User talk:Ekedolphin|talk]]) 09:31, 29 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
::::I vote for four. But it should also be a reasonable thing to categorize, like sports, not like "sports with Cueball containing at least three anagram words". Wich sholdn't be a problem. :) But the best name choice could be tricky sometimes. e.g. "Film & television", Film & TV", "Film", "Films", or "Movies"? –[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 12:59, 29 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::<br />
::::Agreed, five should be enough to create the category without having to discuss it. - [[User:Cos|Cos]] ([[User talk:Cos|talk]]) 00:50, 26 February 2013 (UTC)<br />
: OK, let's start with [[588: Pep Rally|588]], [[1092: Michael Phelps|1092]], [[904: Sports|904]] and [[1107: Sports Cheat Sheet|1107]]. Should be able to find a few more. [[User:Ekedolphin|Ekedolphin]] ([[User talk:Ekedolphin|talk]]) 05:00, 29 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
::Yeah, it's a broad subject so there are probably several more. -[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 12:59, 29 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::I found another one, sort of, in [[929:Speculation|929]] (although it hasn't been explained yet). Should I get the ball rolling (no pun intended) on setting up the category? Don't wanna do it unilaterally and get yelled at. ;) [[User:Ekedolphin|Ekedolphin]] ([[User talk:Ekedolphin|talk]]) 06:18, 30 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
::::I think you should. On a wiki, getting stuck in discussions which die without a conclusion, to the point that motivated people give up without having done anything, is definitely counter-productive, and phrases like [[wikipedia:Wikipedia:Be bold|Wikipedia:Be bold]] are here to remind us of that. Seems like people agreed that you ''could'', and after a while nobody said that you ''shouldn't'', so I'd say do it. - [[User:Cos|Cos]] ([[User talk:Cos|talk]]) 00:50, 26 February 2013 (UTC)<br />
:I did it without looking here first, because it was obvious there were many [[:Category:Sport|sport comics]]. I have even created four under categories (only one was there before, Chess). There are 10 comics at present that are related to other sports than the five under categories. And given the way Randall thinks about sport (not very much) he still has plenty of comics about the subject. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 07:33, 14 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
=== Category: Sex ===<br />
<br />
I think we should also create a Sex category. There's no ''doubt'' we can find more than three examples. I'll start looking for them and post the ones I find in here; again, I don't wanna create a large category by myself without community consent. [[User:Ekedolphin|Ekedolphin]] ([[User talk:Ekedolphin|talk]]) 09:20, 2 February 2013 (UTC)<br />
*OK, the ones for Category: Sex that I've found so far are [[443]], [[219]], [[550]], [[1026]], [[575]], [[468]], [[592]], [[320]], [[1101]], [[417]], [[713]], [[672]], [[230]], [[436]], [[940]], [[532]], [[649]], [[176]], [[1006]], [[596]] and [[717]], and I'm sure there are many more. Should we create this category? [[User:Ekedolphin|Ekedolphin]] ([[User talk:Ekedolphin|talk]]) 23:17, 3 February 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:Same as [[#Category: Sports|above]], do it. Oh, already did; well, all the better. - [[User:Cos|Cos]] ([[User talk:Cos|talk]]) 00:53, 26 February 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
=== Category: Flowcharts ===<br />
<br />
Hello, the line "Randall has made use of flowcharts before." in today's comic explanation made me want a [[:Category:Flowcharts|flowcharts category]] to navigate into...<br />
<br />
As it didn't exist, I proceeded to create it, but as the log says, [[User:lcarsos|lcarsos]] deleted such a category in November, saying ''"Insufficient differentiation from Category:Comics with charts, diluting the depth of comics tagged charts"''.<br />
<br />
I don't agree with that, and I think we could profit from such a subcategory. I found those pages fitting it:<br />
* [[94: Profile Creation Flowchart]]<br />
* [[210: 90's Flowchart]]<br />
* [[488: Steal This Comic]]<br />
* [[627: Tech Support Cheat Sheet]]<br />
* [[844: Good Code]]<br />
* [[851: Na]]<br />
* [[854: Learning to Cook]]<br />
* [[1195: Flowchart]]<br />
<br />
So? - [[User:Cos|Cos]] ([[User talk:Cos|talk]]) 10:59, 5 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Weell if you're willing to take charge of the category and personally make sure it's added to all relevant comic explanations, go ahead. The usual objection to making new categories is that we admins can't remember all the categories when we're reviewing new explanations, but it's K if you're willing to take up that responsibility yourself. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 11:17, 5 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
:<br />
:: OK. I did it without waiting for further replies, because I think it will be especially profitable today (to viewers).<br />
:: It doesn't seem a big issue to me if the correct category is not added when a new explanation is made: a passing editor will do it later on... But hey, I'm OK with taking special care of adding pages to this category.<br />
:: [[User:Cos|Cos]] ([[User talk:Cos|talk]]) 12:28, 5 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
::: I just want to add that Cos' view is indeed the appropriate way to work in wikis: there is no concept of a single author for a page, category, or piece of text, and the workload is meant to be distributed among several editors: it is not necessary that any single editor remembers all existing categories, or knows the wiki markup by heart, or knows how to work with all the features of mediawiki, etc. The reason why wikis can be edited by anyone is precisely a recognition that there *will* be errors and any page can be improved somehow. That reasoning against categories should, IMO, be abandoned, or at most only kept as the opinion of some editors. --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 22:00, 6 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Isnt there a page which lists all the categories? If not, there should be one, and it should be accessible to all. Such a page could be useful when trying to quick-add categories to comics. [[Special:Contributions/117.194.83.155|117.194.83.155]] 13:43, 24 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Yes, there is. [[Special:Categories]]. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 14:07, 24 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
::Of course, there's a gazillion of 'em, over several pages, so I understand any reluctance to add new categories (having just suggested a new one myself which I feel is justified, but knowing that the upkeep needed may be the key point of contention so remaining philosophical about it).<br />
::A solution perhaps to carry over from another locale that I frequent is to have a "Categories of Character" page, a "Categories of Object" one, perhaps "Categories of Event", and a "Categories of Publication". For each new comic someone can easily check the shorter Character categories list against those present, the Object list against itemsin use, Events, etc, and of course the Publication one has the "Tuesday Comic"/equivalent, and other date-based ones (although isn't that automatic from templated creation? ...never added a comic, but would imagine it is). After that it's a trawl through the miscelania categories (perhaps a meta-category just for them?). But, yeah, a lot of work to set up. Wouldn't wish it on anyone who wasn't already willing to do it, and I remain an anon-IP person right now so can hardly commit ''myself'' as volunteer maintainer of this. [[Special:Contributions/178.98.31.27|178.98.31.27]] 17:20, 22 June 2013 (UTC)<br />
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=== Category: (Barred/banned from?) Conferences ===<br />
<br />
I come here after realising I erroneously posted (in reply) to the Main page Talk, being anonymous (or at least IP-only) and without a list of qualifying articles to support me, just yet, but still wish to put forward the above category before I forget. There's no apparent equivalent, that I found, but it's definitely a recurring meme. I should be back (named or otherwise) with my suggested list of members, if someone else doesn't get there first, but I thought I'd start with the placemarker. [[Special:Contributions/178.98.31.27|178.98.31.27]] 16:41, 22 June 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Ok, so I got the bee in my bonnet and spent a few minutes actually looking into this. Revising "Barred from Conferences" (actually more often "Banned" or even "Thrown out of"/equivalent) to just "Conferences", the subset of comics that I can easily find that are involved is *[[153]], *[[177]], *[[365]], *[[410]], *[[463]], *[[541]], [[545]], [[685]], [[829]] and [[867]], but I'm sure there are more recent ones that I didn't spot/recall. One alternative title to "Conferences" is "Presentations", and I'm sure if I'd searched for that I'd have found more potential candidates (less some that might ''exit'' the renamed category). The asterisked ones ''do'' deal with being barred/banned/thrown out/etc, making it still a suitable category in its own right, IMO, but I'll leave it up to your combined musings to decide. [[Special:Contributions/178.98.31.27|178.98.31.27]] 17:07, 22 June 2013 (UTC)<br />
::I add [[690]] to the list. --[[User:Chtz|Chtz]] ([[User talk:Chtz|talk]]) 08:12, 13 September 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
::: Great suggestions! I created [[:Category:Public speaking]] and [[:Category:Banned from conferences]]. I also added [[Wikipedian Protester]] to the mix, of course :) --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 21:59, 13 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
=== Category: Wishes ===<br />
<br />
[http://explainxkcd.com/1391/ Several] [http://explainxkcd.com/1086/ comics] [http://explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/152:_Hamster_Ball now] [http://xkcd.com/879/ exist] that talk about wishes - probably more. Should there be a category for this? [[User:Z|Z]] ([[User talk:Z|talk]]) 23:22, 7 July 2014 (UTC)<br />
:Doesn't seem significant enough. If you promise to maintain the category you can make it yourself, although it will be cleared out if it gets neglected as new comics are released. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 15:20, 8 July 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
=== Category: Artificial Intelligence ===<br />
<br />
Hello world.<br />
<br />
There are a handful of comics involving Ai - [[1540]], [[1530]], [[1450]] and [[948]] for instance - and maybe it's an idea to give them their own category {{unsigned|Nk22}}<br />
<br />
:The usual objection to new categories is that they get abandoned and are too narrow for other people to think of picking them up. If you're going to own it and update it with new comics, you can make it. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 21:01, 23 June 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
=== Category: Size Comparisons ===<br />
There are numerous comics comparing sizes of things. I can't get a list right now, but off the top of my head, radiation dosages, money, today's comic, and space shuttles in horses. [[User:Mikemk|Mikemk]] ([[User talk:Mikemk|talk]]) 19:23, 29 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Adding Ratings for Explanations ==<br />
<br />
I found [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/1652 today's explanation] excellently written however that is not always the case. Frequently explanations are walk through of the conversation that are too wordy without any succinct explanation of why or how a strip is funny -- while many of those low quality explanations are not strictly "incomplete" they could benefit from a careful rewrite. I was wondering if we should add a rating tool such as " ''Was this explanation helpful? yes/no'' " so as to identify explanation that could benefit from improvement without having to be tagged as "incomplete". [[User:Spongebog|Spongebog]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 17:57, 8 March 2016 (UTC)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=explain_xkcd:Community_portal/Proposals&diff=114406explain xkcd:Community portal/Proposals2016-03-08T17:57:38Z<p>Spongebog: /* Adding Ratings for Explanations */ new section</p>
<hr />
<div><noinclude>{{Community portal}}</noinclude><br />
<br />
== Add unexplained strips ==<br />
<br />
At the moment, browsing through the explanations using the previous and next buttons is interrupted whenever there's an explanation missing.<br />
<br />
I think adding a page with the strip fr all of those with a short message like "no one has explained this yet, want to give it a shot?" would make the wiki easier to browse through and will get more strips explained faster.<br />
<br />
:I don't think that would happen. If suddenly it was much easier for people to skip over pages that had no explanation, I think they would do exactly that, skip right over it. On the same side of that coin, If suddenly there are no longer any red links on the [[List of all comics]] then everyone perusing that page assumes that all the comics have been explained and don't need to contribute any more. It's astonishing how quickly an [[589: Designated Drivers|embedded]] red link gets an explanation page created simply to get rid of the red link.<br />
<br />
:Secondarily, ''many'' of the pages created recently aren't being created with their numerical and titular redirects. Without the numerical redirect, the comic template can't find that there is a previous/next comic to link to. Every once in a while somebody will go through and try to notice all the pages that don't have their redirects created but it's an unscientific process that only happens occasionally. If we could get every joe blow that comes in and vomits up a poorly done explanation to create the redirects I wouldn't be quite as annoyed at their lack of show-don't-tell-manship. But, since they can't be bothered to put the date in the comic template, I doubt we'll ever get people to create the redirects.<br />
<br />
:'''TL;DR:''' No more red links, no more work gets done on the back catalog.<br />
<br />
:--[[User:Lcarsos|lcarsos]]<span title="I'm an admin. I can help.">_a</span> ([[User talk:Lcarsos|talk]]) 14:28, 21 December 2012 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== xplainkcd.com ==<br />
<br />
When I first saw this site I thought it should definitely be at xplainkcd.com or at least redirect from that url {{unsigned|115.166.22.158|12:45, 3 January 2013 (UTC)}}<br />
<br />
: I like that idea! --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 13:28, 3 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:Yeah! If it's possible, it would be cool! At least as a redirect. -- [[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 15:46, 3 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:Not technically the same thing, but I just took [http://expxkcd.com http://expxkcd.com]. More explanation is given on the website itself. {{User:Grep/signature|05:10, 29 March 2014}}<br />
::We do that with explainxkcd.com as well, but yay shorter URLs! Mind if I use that for our social media links? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 06:45, 29 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
:::I had no idea that you did that, but sure, go ahead! If you want, I can change any DNS records if you wish to have it go directly to you guys. {{User:Grep/signature|07:16, 29 March 2014}}<br />
:::In case you were wondering, I just did the following: <code>^/([0-9]+)(/large)?/?$</code> {{User:Grep/signature|07:25, 29 March 2014}}<br />
::::Hrm. We're just matching with <code>^(\d+)/?$</code>. You can keep ownership of the URL if you want, unless you have traffic concerns or whatever and you want us to handle it, which we're very capable of doing. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 08:47, 29 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I have made http://www.xkcd.ga and http://www.xkcd.tk both forward to http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/Main_Page. Is this ok? [[User:17jiangz1|17jiangz1]] ([[User talk:17jiangz1|talk]]) 08:49, 26 December 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Section style and usage ==<br />
<br />
I am new here and I'm trying to get up to speed with the culture. I have a few questions about how and where to use sections (== this ==). I am more willing to go with (and enforce) whatever norms there are here, but I have not seen them actually discussed. <br />
<br />
# '''Is it OK to create sections in Discussion pages?''' I have been told no, but there are many examples extant of this usage in this Wiki and indeed in Wikipedia.<br />
# '''Section title case''' [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Manual_of_Style/Capital_letters#Acronyms Wikipedia's style guide] recommends sentence case, not title case. There are many title cased section headers here. <br />
# '''Links''' I do not have a reference for this but it seems to me putting links in section code (== [[<span style="color:blue"><nowiki>this</nowiki></span>]] == ) is bad form. <br />
<br />
Last note -- it's understood if these bylaws have not yet been written. I can see that a few of you have made a huge personal investment to make this Wiki what it is today, and that is a credit to you all -- this is awesome! As a long-time aficionado of xkcd I applaud your work and look forward to further collaboration.<br />
--[[User:Smartin|Smartin]] ([[User talk:Smartin|talk]]) 04:15, 4 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:As a general rule, we stick to the standard format that existing pages follow, with an optional trivia section below the transcript. Some zealous editors like to add other sections though, which tend to be for the most part unneeded or redundant. If something you want to add doesn't help to explain the comic in some way, but the inclusion of which would somehow still add to the page, *and* it doesn't fall under the trivia category, a new section is warranted. This isn't the case most of the time though, so editors usually fold the content of extraneous sections into "Explanation" or "Trivia." We have no policy on links in titles, and they're allowed so long as they are appropriate; the link is useful and can't be folded into the section itself. And we use title case for titles cuz it just makes sense. '''[[User:Davidy22|<span title="I want you."><u><font color="purple" size="2px">David</font><font color="green" size="3px">y</font></u><sup><font color="indigo" size="1px">22</font></sup></span>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 05:08, 4 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:We generally do not (or at least, discourage) use sections on the talk/discussion pages for explanation pages. This is purely for looks. The comic discussion section of the explanation page looks/feels wrong if there are level 2 section breaks in the transclusion. Also, if the [http://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Manual:Table_of_contents Table of Contents] starts showing up on a page, such as on [[Click and Drag]] the sections created on the talk page also show up in the TOC. This gets confusing, and this is why we prefer not to use them on explanation talk pages. Everywhere else we follow standard wiki format and do use sections on the discussion pages.<br />
<br />
:Personally, I think that links in section titles looks wrong, but I choose not to be the dictator of style in this matter. :p<br />
<br />
:Please feel free to make edits. The worst that happens is someone reverts your edit. If it's a big enough issue and/or you don't seem to be learning from what people are fixing about your edits someone will leave a comment on your talk page. That's it. We might leave a nasty-gram in the edit summary, but oh well. We only ban for malicious intent. Honestly working to better the wiki is good, even if sometimes we grumble about it.<br />
<br />
:--[[User:Lcarsos|lcarsos]]<span title="I'm an admin. I can help.">_a</span> ([[User talk:Lcarsos|talk]]) 07:00, 4 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
::Oh, I just looked at your talk page. I completely forgot that that happened. Don't worry about it. Learning the ropes is part of the experience. Do make edits, and if they're wrong, we'll nudge you in the right direction. [[User:Lcarsos|lcarsos]]<span title="I'm an admin. I can help.">_a</span> ([[User talk:Lcarsos|talk]]) 07:18, 4 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I have been moving some trivia sections to directly below the explanation, in order to make it more consistent, and easier to survey and maintain. Often the dividing line between trivia and explanation is not entirely clear, and in articles without a trivia section the end of the explanation very often contains trivia-like information. (e.g. [[1155: Kolmogorov Directions]]) -- [[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 10:13, 4 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
===Title case doesn't make any sense===<br />
At first sight title case in titles just makes sense. However title case '''never''' makes sense. It's worse than all caps. Besides, only Americans and children like title case. [[Special:Contributions/190.96.48.48|190.96.48.48]] 20:04, 10 August 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
==New character==<br />
As per [[Talk:1178: Pickup Artists]], the character with hair has appeared in quite a few comics now, and he's starting to become a recurring character. Shall we go ahead with inaugurating him into our list of regular characters, and what name shall we assign him? Current candidate names include Hairy and Harry. Anyone? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u><font color="purple" title="I want you">David</font><font color="green" size="3px">y</font></u><font color="indigo" size="4px">²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 00:07, 26 February 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: I like Harry :) --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 01:04, 26 February 2013 (UTC)<br />
::Cos made a point in the discussion on [[Talk:1178: Pickup Artists]] that Hairy is directly descriptive, whereas Harry is not obvious to visitors. On the other hand, not all names are descriptive ([[Danish]]) and I think this wiki is entitled to create some xkcd-in-culture, and not just describe. And Harry is quite funny.<br />
::I wonder: has [[Randall]] ever called him anything at all in the transcript? –[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 21:52, 26 February 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::Well, he's not named in a any official transcripts, but he's already called Harry in quite a few comic explanations. Then again, I do like having a more descriptive name for him. Shall we hold this up to a vote? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u><font color="purple" title="I want you">David</font><font color="green" size="3px">y</font></u><font color="indigo" size="4px">²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 23:29, 26 February 2013 (UTC)<br />
::::I think we should wait a little for a few more viewpoints to crop up. Also, can someone link to some more comics he's been featured in? I've got [[1028: Communication]], [[1027: Pickup Artist]] and [[1178: Pickup Artists]]. –[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 23:41, 27 February 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::::I actually like what that anon said: ''Curly''. Second choice: Hairy (being descriptive, a la Black Hat, Beret, Cueball, etc.) While there's talk about in-culture, we've done that with the names Cueball, Beret, etc. It's my opinion that the only names that should be "real" proper names are those that are named in the comic. Megan, Miss Lenhart, etc. Danish (as is discussed below) isn't truly a proper name, but you could argue it's a meta-description (one attributed by Black hat.) So that's my vote: yes for '''Curly''' or '''Hairy''', no for Harry. [[User:IronyChef|IronyChef]] ([[User talk:IronyChef|talk]]) 05:21, 2 March 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::That's right, [[Danish]] is not descriptive, but 1/ that name was suggested because the character [[515: No One Must Know|was called that way in the comic]], which is a tiny bit like a name given by the author (at least more than Harry which we have completely made up), and 2/ in that case it's hard to find a descriptive term: use something that revolves around her black hair (her only descriptive feature), and you easily mix up with [[Megan]]; the only graphical difference is that her hair is ''long'', but what kind of name can you make out of that?<br />
:::For this new character, I suggest Hairy because it comes as the easy solution with every advantage: descriptive, easy to understand, and it's not ugly... I actually see no reason to resort to a made-up name like Harry.<br />
:::[[User:Cos|Cos]] ([[User talk:Cos|talk]]) 22:29, 27 February 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: '''Alright. So the discussion's been had, and the most oft recommended name appears to be Hairy. All in favor, say aye. If more than 1/3 of editors agree and we have more than 6 votes, Hairy it is.''' '''[[User:Davidy22|<u><font color="purple" title="I want you">David</font><font color="green" size="3px">y</font></u><font color="indigo" size="4px">²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 05:58, 2 March 2013 (UTC)<br />
:# '''Aye''' '''[[User:Davidy22|<u><font color="purple" title="I want you">David</font><font color="green" size="3px">y</font></u><font color="indigo" size="4px">²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 05:58, 2 March 2013 (UTC)<br />
:# '''Aye''' [[User:Guru-45|Guru-45]] ([[User talk:Guru-45|talk]]) 06:14, 2 March 2013 (UTC)<br />
:# '''Aye''' to Hairy. [[User:IronyChef|IronyChef]] ([[User talk:IronyChef|talk]]) 15:43, 2 March 2013 (UTC)<br />
:# '''Aye'''. Harry would be a nice nod to the fact that he's actually hairy, but indeed it's better to avoid inside jokes. --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 17:05, 2 March 2013 (UTC)<br />
:# '''Aye'''. I'm convinced! –[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 17:52, 3 March 2013 (UTC)<br />
:# '''Aye'''. Hairy. [[User:Lcarsos|lcarsos]]<span title="I'm an admin. I can help.">_a</span> ([[User talk:Lcarsos|talk]]) 20:52, 3 March 2013 (UTC)<br />
::Hooray! We now have a [[:Category:Comics featuring Hairy]], with four pages already! Does anyone feel compelled to create "[[Hairy]]", with a brief description and a nice profile pic like the other characters? –[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 22:58, 3 March 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Ambiguous characters ==<br />
<br />
I've been thinking about the problem of the ambiguity of characters. "Is this really Cueball even though he has an eye and half a nose?", "This is very likely ''not'' x." "Darnit, these arn't Cueballs, these are Randall and his friends!", and so on. The character ambiguity is standard for xkcd (not less so in the early ones), and comes from the very loose or "free" way Randall uses his characters to be whatever he needs at the moment. It's simply often impossible for us to know whether he had e.g. "Cueball" or himself in mind, when drawing a particular comic (and I'd say: probably often both).<br />
<br />
I want to suggest that we in general have a likewise rather loose policy towards including characters in the categories for the comics. So that reasonably ambiguous cases should be included in e.g. (does she have a ponytail?) This is not because I believe this or that to really be this or that; I just don't believe in objective truth (here!). I feel that when doing research :) on a character, the borderline cases are often the most interesting ones, and you want to be able to find them through the "Comics featuring miss x"!<br />
<br />
I came to think this through now, when I wanted to (and did) list two comics with [[Miss Lenhart]] (?) where she was drawn but not named. Any thoughts on this in general? Other case studies? –[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 21:17, 5 March 2013 (UTC)<br />
:My take has always been that [[Cueball]], for example, has not been a specific character. There is not ''a'' cueball, per se, distinct from any other cueball... indeed, there are several comics with several cueballs in-frame, and that is the point. I see the cueball character as a wildcard character (pun intended) ready to stand in for anybody (and ''not'' necessarily just Randall; I think those readers who suggest "this ''is'' Randall" are missing the point; he's way more META than that...) [[Megan]], while slightly less generic, still remains the female wild-card significant-other, while Curls seems to be a not-significant-other female used to illustrate a relationship that is transient. Other characters come and go, and when it's important to visually distinguish them from others in the frame, they're given additional characteristics, to wit [[Hairy]], [[Ponytail]], etc.<br />
:Unfortunately, that viewpoint is not commonly held, so I daresay I'm in the minority here.<br />
:-- [[User:IronyChef|IronyChef]] ([[User talk:IronyChef|talk]]) 14:18, 6 March 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Note at the top, about the server error ==<br />
<br />
:''This thread was moved to [[MediaWiki talk:Sitenotice]]''<br />
<br />
<br />
== I've removed "add a comment!" from Discussion heading ==<br />
<br />
This does move it to above the line, and the rule stops early. Undo my change if that's more bothering than when the TOC is displayed as "add a comment!Discussion"... <br />
<br />
I don't know how to automatically treat level 2 headers as level 3. That may be why Discussion was a level 1 heading earlier.<br />
[[User:Markhurd|Mark Hurd]] ([[User talk:Markhurd|talk]]) 11:16, 14 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Actually I now noticed there was a short edit war at {{tl|comic discussion}} over whether it should be a level 1 heading, just for this reason. [[User:Waldir]] seems to have conceeded... [[User:Markhurd|Mark Hurd]] ([[User talk:Markhurd|talk]]) 11:25, 14 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:: No edit war, hence no (intentional) concession. I reverted a change once, and didn't notice the change being re-implemented by another user. In any case, it is irrelevant now since we actively discourage using headers in talk pages precisely so that they don't display in the TOC for the main comic page, where the discussion page is transcluded to (see the discussion [[#Section style and usage|above]]). This might not scale well for comics that generate lots of discussion. It might be worth discussing our customs (and perhaps write them down somewhere) before performing such changes. What do others think? --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 11:49, 14 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Time: The Table ==<br />
<br />
Right now on the page [[1190: Time]], we have a whole bunch of tables in the form image-time-hash. The tables take up heaps of vertical space and all have to be collapsed to even be remotely traversible. I propose that we aggregate all the images into one table after Time ends, like so:<br />
<br />
{| class="wikitable plainlinks table-padding"<br />
|-<br />
!Image<br />
!Time<br />
!Image<br />
!Time<br />
!Image<br />
!Time<br />
!Image<br />
!Time<br />
|-<br />
|[[Media:time.png|00:00]]||01/00:00||[[Media:time.png|10:00]]||01/10:00||[[Media:time.png|20:00]]||01/20:00||[[Media:time.png|30:00]]||AND MOAR SAMPLE DATAS<br />
|-<br />
|[[Media:time.png|00:30]]||01/00:30||[[Media:time.png|10:30]]||01/10:30||[[Media:time.png|20:30]]||01/20:30||[[Media:time.png|30:30]]||AND MOAR SAMPLE DATAS<br />
|}<br />
<br />
The hash values aren't really a part of the comic, they're gibberish for the most part and they take up space that could be used to compact the table, as shown above. Even if we are conservative and make the table only five columns wide to account for smaller screens, we've divided scrolling time by five and eliminated much of the need for annoying collapsed tables and section headers for each day. Constructing the table shouldn't be particularly hard either, as all our current data is in nice regular tables with clear patterns that are easy enough to parse through. <br />
<br />
I'm putting this here because the organization of the frame entries would be unintuitive and difficult to change from the edit window, which would make it a poor choice when we're still expanding it and don't even know how long the comic will continue for. It's merely a space-saving trick for after we're sure that the comic is over. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 09:26, 16 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:Oh and it'd be really nice if other people could also upload images if you're awake and a new one rolls by. There's gaps in the image record every time I wake up, and I dun likey. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 11:34, 20 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Good work so far; go ahead make it better! :) –[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 08:34, 24 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
==Featured Explanation, and Archival?==<br />
<br />
* Wikipedia has featured content. Now that we are close to reaching the goal of all comics explained, I think it makes more sense to have a "featured explanation" which would serve as a sort of a marker for a complete and good explanation. Many comics, and almost all charts are not fully explained/not a good quality explanation.<br />
<br />
* We should set up archival of discussion of the most discussed pages, like this one. Its not very pleasing to see comments from July 2012 still lying around here. It becomes hectic at some point.<br />
<br />
Just my 2 cents, feel free to discuss. Cheers,<br />
[[Special:Contributions/117.194.88.180|117.194.88.180]] 13:36, 24 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:We dedicate this wiki to explaining xkcd, and we do actually have a featured comic feature; it changes every week on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and we usually manage to fill out the explanation for it within an hour or so of it going up. The most recent comic tends to be the one that most people visiting the wiki care about, so we give it prime space on the front page so they can find it easily. xkcd updates frequently enough that there isn't really that big of a time window for us to feature an article on our front page. Also, we're a volunteer project with quite a bit less manpower than Wikipedia.<br />
:We do need to archive talk pages though. Some of these are getting ridiculously long. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 14:04, 24 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
::I agree with Davidy22. Archiving topics can be done by anyone, by moving resolved threads to the portal section's corresponding [[explain xkcd talk:Community portal/Proposals|talk page]]. We could start with the threads marked "✓ Closed". [[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 17:42, 1 May 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:: The reason I asked for a "featured explanation" was because many of the comic explanations we currently have are sub-par, and we're almost at our initial goal of explaining all comics. A "featured explanation" would drive our editors towards the goal of having complete and good explanation towards all comics, and would allow us to know which explanations need elaboration.<br />
:: P.S. My definition of complete explanation would be - To have a good explanation, To have all categories relevant, To link to any comics related and To explain any technical portions of the comic.<br />
:: [[Special:Contributions/117.194.82.49|117.194.82.49]] 07:45, 8 May 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::That message on the front page is going to link to all the pages marked by the incomplete template. If you find an unsatisfactory explanation, please mark it with <nowiki>{{incomplete}}</nowiki> '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 07:54, 8 May 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::: By my definition, I think all comics will be incomplete. An incomplete template will be focused more towards improving the worst explanations, while a featured one will be to improve the best ones. Since we already have the former, we should focus on the latter. Just my 2 cents. [[Special:Contributions/117.194.85.82|117.194.85.82]] 06:55, 9 May 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Split the list of all comics ==<br />
<br />
[[List of all comics]] is getting larger and larger, which makes it hard to read and hard to edit. How about splitting into parts, say [[List of all comics/1-1000]], [[List of all comics/1001-2000]], etc., or something to that effect? --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 17:39, 1 May 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
: Done. [[Special:Contributions/117.194.88.176|117.194.88.176]] 10:03, 9 May 2013 (UTC)<br />
::Great job, thanks! [[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 11:09, 9 May 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::And I've added back [[List of all comics (full)]], which allows, for example, listing all comics by alphabetical order.[[User:Markhurd|Mark Hurd]] ([[User talk:Markhurd|talk]]) 17:29, 10 May 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Sidebar ads ==<br />
<br />
''Moved from [[Talk:Main Page]] –– [[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 08:06, 4 May 2013 (UTC)''<br />
<br />
Are they generating significant money? The ones I see are pretty sleazy looking and/or scammy - "Power Companies Hate this Device! - click here to break the laws of thermodynamics!" and "Debt relief program click here to lose more money". How much money are they generating? Can you set any selections to remove the sleazy ads? [[User:J-beda|J-beda]] ([[User talk:J-beda|talk]]) 18:30, 3 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Do we have sleazy sidebar ads? Since when? Thanks Google Chrome and AdBlock, I had no idea! –[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 07:47, 14 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
::People give 20$ a pop to get a bunch of clicks on explainxkcd, and Jeff uses that money to buy a faster server with a hard drive that doesn't have less space than a public toilet with an elephant in it. It'd be really nice if you didn't turn on adblock, the money is appreciated. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 08:47, 14 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::It's a question of me not turning it off specifically every time I visit this site. More importantly, I do think people would be more likely to click the "donate" if it weren't irrelevant ads around it. –[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 19:29, 14 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::Generating money is a great thing. Getting "20$ a pop to get a bunch of clicks" is a bit unclear. Do the ads only generate revenue when clicked on? So EXKCD only gets money when someone actually falls for the sleazy ads? I know lots of people do not like Google - but at least their adsense stuff is relevant to the content of the website, which might generate some legitimate traffic for a legitimate advertiser.... [[User:J-beda|J-beda]] ([[User talk:J-beda|talk]]) 11:48, 19 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
::::Welllll, I didn't pick the ad supplier. You could bring it up with [[User talk:Jeff|Jeff]] if you want, I think he picked the ad provider on basis of which one had a mediawiki plugin or something. If you can link Jeff to a quick and easy way to put adsense on mediawiki, he should change it quickly enough. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 14:21, 19 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::::And I also gather then that they are only a temporary thing? -- [[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 08:27, 24 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
::::::Until we can buy a server that doesn't poop itself every time a new comic is released, the ads are staying. If you want them to go away sooner, throw more money at Jeff. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 09:25, 24 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
::::::: The ads are crap. For sure. Wish I didn't have to run them, but I don't trust donations alone to hold up continually some better hosting. The ads really don't bring in that much $$$. I had google adsense before, but Google shutdown my adsense account for unnamed reason after 1 week. This new ad service is way sketchier. If you all think they don't have a place here, I'll ax 'em. --[[User:Jeff|<b><font color="orange">Jeff</font></b>]] ([[User talk:Jeff|talk]]) 16:02, 24 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
::::::: Thanks for the info Jeff. How much ad money are we talking about? Is it calculated on how many ads are displayed or how many are clicked-through? How close to the goal is the server fund? How about a Kickstarter campaign for the server? $10 gets your name on a thankyou webpage or something like that. [[User:J-beda|J-beda]] ([[User talk:J-beda|talk]]) 17:32, 24 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::::::: It ain't much, last I looked it was $2 or $3 in 2 weeks. I believe it is based on clicks, it is not nearly as clear as Google adsense. I'm not really interested in doing a Kickstarter. I think the donations will cover the initial start up, I just want to be able to cover the monthly costs as well. A few things are still up in the air. --[[User:Jeff|<b><font color="orange">Jeff</font></b>]] ([[User talk:Jeff|talk]]) 16:24, 25 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::::::::Can you find a way to show the donations and ad income on the site, to make it transparent? ––[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 15:30, 30 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
::::::::: How about a donation amount that you'll take to turn it (the annoying unethical scummy ads) off for a year? Give me a dollar value and I might step up for the good of us all! [[User:J-beda|J-beda]] ([[User talk:J-beda|talk]]) 16:28, 3 May 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Economic transparency ==<br />
<br />
I think this is very important: How can we make the donations and ad-income transparent, so that we all can see when and how much money is coming in, and how far we are from reaching our goal? – [[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 00:35, 24 May 2013 (UTC)<br />
: Sounds fine to me, I think I can put something together. --[[User:Jeff|<b><font color="orange">Jeff</font></b>]] ([[User talk:Jeff|talk]]) 15:52, 28 May 2013 (UTC)<br />
::Hi, may I bump this issue? Or maybe you have done something, and I missed it? Anyway, I would still appreciate it! –[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 17:43, 22 February 2014 (UTC)<br />
:::Numberssss. I'll get on with it, just need less homework and a few more numbers. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 07:54, 23 February 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I would like to respectfully file a complain. I find the banner advertisement of background checks distasteful. [[User:Benjaminikuta|Benjaminikuta]] ([[User talk:Benjaminikuta|talk]]) 05:10, 15 July 2014 (UTC)<br />
: Hey [[User:Benjaminikuta|Benjaminikuta]] - I am the one who approved those ads. But, since you have filed a complaint about them, I have gone ahead and removed them. Thanks. --[[User:Jeff|<b><font color="orange">Jeff</font></b>]] ([[User talk:Jeff|talk]]) 12:52, 15 July 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I thank you. [[User:Benjaminikuta|Benjaminikuta]] ([[User talk:Benjaminikuta|talk]]) 03:36, 17 July 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Using <nowiki><nowiki></nowiki></nowiki> in transcripts to improve accuracy ==<br />
<br />
In the transcripts, <nowiki>[[lines]]</nowiki> are being changed to [lines] in order to avoid auto-linking. Why not just surround these with <nowiki><nowiki></nowiki></nowiki> tags and avoid the problem entirely? --[[User:Epauley|Epauley]] ([[User talk:Epauley|talk]]) 04:18, 16 June 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Because it takes less time to type and single brackets are just as readable as double brackets to visitors. It's also a bit more readable in the editor. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 09:55, 16 June 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Strip Title ==<br />
<br />
For someone who commonly browses explainxkcd in place of xkcd, and hence often see the strips for the first time here rather than the parent site, I find it somewhat odd that the 'Title Text' is so poorly displayed given how critical it can be to the strip.<br />
<br />
I propose that, while retaining the given name (perhaps moving it top left), the title text be enlarged and relocated to being over the strip as originally intended. {{unsigned ip|175.41.133.18}}<br />
:The title text is placed very well at bottom of the image.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 07:20, 6 September 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:I would have to agree with Dgbrt, it's placed nicely at the bottom, and there is no need for it to be moved. My reasoning is that you never actually read the title text first, you read it last. Making it <code>text-align: left;</code> does not make sense, because the image is centered (just like on xkcd.com). I also believe that there is no need for it to be re-sized, mainly due to the fact that it is slightly larger than the title text (for me, at least). {{User:Grep/signature|05:18, 08 September 2013}}<br />
<br />
:Plus, if you hover over the image, it's the same as on xkcd.com {{User:Grep/signature|06:13, 08 September 2013}}<br />
<br />
:I also agree with Dgbrt and Grep. The title text is kind of a bonus and should not be emphasized more than on the original page. On the original site you only see it before the image, if you have very slow internet access (or very fast eyes) --[[User:Chtz|Chtz]] ([[User talk:Chtz|talk]]) 08:06, 2 October 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Sections in talk pages ==<br />
<br />
Is there a reason why there are no sections in talk pages? It is not a very big deal, but especially for longer talk pages it would make editing be much handier, especially when using the preview function (not having to find the section every time). Also it automatically adds a description to the history (thus makes it more easy to look for certain edits, or decide by just looking at the [[Special:RecentChanges]], if a comment should concern you. --[[User:Chtz|Chtz]] ([[User talk:Chtz|talk]]) 08:01, 2 October 2013 (UTC)<br />
:When discussion pages are transcluded by the comic discussion template, section headers carry over from talk pages and bad things happen. Using ; to denote headers instead of equals signs works well, and doesn't share transclusion pain. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 08:04, 2 October 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== references ==<br />
<br />
Any chance we can add [https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Extension:Cite/Cite.php cite.php] to this wiki? Most pages don't need it, but some comics take on a life of their own and being able to add reference tags would be really helpful for those. [[User:LadyMondegreen|LadyMondegreen]] ([[User talk:LadyMondegreen|talk]]) 01:33, 9 October 2013 (UTC)<br />
: Cite has been added to the wiki. Thanks for the suggestion! --[[User:Jeff|<b><font color="orange">Jeff</font></b>]] ([[User talk:Jeff|talk]]) 01:35, 17 October 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Stylized writing ==<br />
<br />
I understand that this wiki isn't as formal as wikipedia or sites like that but it seems that there are a few questionable practices:<br />
<br />
1. The use of questions - when a non-rhetorical or unnecessary question is entered into the explanation.<br />
<br />
2. Extremely painted/biased view points - when there is obvious bias in the tone of the explanation of the contributor, in other <br />
words; a lack of neutrality.<br />
<br />
3. Extreme repetition/rehashing - the explanation restates things and makes for a long and tedious read when a more straight-forward explanation is possible and clearer.<br />
<br />
4. The general informality - "This one's an easy one" "This is simple" "this one's straightforward" "You're an idiot for not understanding this one" etc.<br />
<br />
5. Many other practices that make the explanation hard to read, difficult to understand, or plain ugly.<br />
<br />
I know that there are disparaging view points on how a comic should be explained, but please let's clean up the site a bit, acknowledge each view point and report on all of them and then tighten up the sloppy writing. Carry out arguments in the talk section, not the explanation. Perhaps we could first try to say the majority view point on the interpretation and then write the alternate explanations, of course this would bring up the debate on which is the majority explanation. Either way, more complete, logical explanations should be given more credence. --[[User:Lackadaisical|Lackadaisical]] ([[User talk:Lackadaisical|talk]]) 00:25, 23 October 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:I agree with 2-5. 1, on the other hand, is sometimes useful and can contribute the to explanation, although 1 is still a very good point. I would say that you should edit it to have "arguments in the talk" be a 6th point as well. Unfortunately, though, we are not all logical, comic-understanding machines here, so minor deviations of these rules are still to be expected. But I think that overall, these are good rules, even if 2/3 are sort of part of 5.<br />
:[[User:Lackadaisical|Lackadaisical]], please sign your post with <nowiki>~~~~</nowiki><span style="float: right;">{{User:Grep/signature|23:55, 22 October 2013}}</span><br />
<br />
:I understand the use of questions in certain parts. And it was probably better to put the others as sub-categories to five but I wanted to show some common things that can be easily fixed. I know that some explanations require a lot of text and extensive research because of the abstract subjects Randall deals with and that it's difficult to be completely standardized but I think it would be good for us to try to come up with some general things to try to avoid to help the explanations "flow" --[[User:Lackadaisical|Lackadaisical]] ([[User talk:Lackadaisical|talk]]) 00:25, 23 October 2013 (UTC)<br />
::Most of that isn't intentional, it's just an awful lot of labor to copy check all the explanations. I've been going through all the current articles and fixing consistency issues, the worst being wrong transcript/title text/dates and the most benign being wikilinks, spelling and trailing spaces. I'm at 682 so far, but my next pass will be on actual language and content, and it'll probably take longer. It takes a while though, and you can totally work on improving language in articles if you want to. Some explanations were pulled from the old blog, some were written and just got lost in the changelog. Copy editing everything we have so far is a very labor-intensive job, and the only way to really deal with it is to knuckle down and do it, or form a wikiproject and hope to heaven that visitors feel charitable enough to join in on it. I'd *probably* push to finish up all our incomplete articles first though, just because that's more directly related to the purpose of the site; tone and style probably comes second to having correct explanations. That doesn't mean you can't do it yourself, it's just that I'll probably only dedicate the subheader on the main page to one project at a time and our current biggest bugbear hasn't been solved yet. I could put up a sitenotice to see if that speeds the process up any. I'll do that when I get back home. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 03:31, 23 October 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Easy redirect to comic? ==<br />
<br />
I've been thinking, and there is one thing that would make navigating to the explained comics easier. My method of browsing is I'll see the comic on xkcd.com first, and if there is something curious about it that I don't quite understand, I'll come here. Sometimes it can be a bit troublesome, going to the homepage and then navigatiing to the right comic. Not too bad, but I'd like an easy way to go direct. So I was thinking, what if you had a redirect such that if you typed in, for example, www.explainxkcd.com/505, you would get redirected to http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=505:_A_Bunch_of_Rocks. That would mean that you could get to the comic just from adding an "explain" to the start of the xkcd.com URL. I don't know if that is at all possible, but it would be pretty handy if it happened. Thoughts?<br />
[[User:Alcatraz ii|Alcatraz ii]] ([[User talk:Alcatraz ii|talk]]) 03:01, 25 October 2013 (UTC)<br />
:[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=explain_xkcd:Community_portal/Technical#Redirect_from_explainxkcd.com.2F1234 That's actually already on the to-do list.] I'm testing it right now and we should have it up soon. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 04:02, 25 October 2013 (UTC)<br />
:: Awesome :) [[User:Alcatraz ii|Alcatraz ii]] ([[User talk:Alcatraz ii|talk]]) 03:26, 1 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::Whoop, forgot to mark this as complete. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 04:37, 1 November 2013 (UTC) <br />
:::: Done! Copy this and drag it to your bookmarks bar: |javascript: var url = document.URL; document.location = url.replace('xkcd.com','explainxkcd.com');| {{unsigned ip|173.245.52.29}}<br />
:::::The feature requested here has also long since been implemented. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 22:20, 4 April 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Increase support via prominent display of copyright and license for text submitted to explainxkcd ==<br />
<br />
XKCD itself is rather liberally licensed, and gets lots of good will from that. As it says on the bottom of every page "This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.5 License." For details see [http://xkcd.com/license.html xkcd - A Webcomic - License].<br />
<br />
But I found nothing on most pages of explainxkcd about copyright or licensing, and it discouraged me from contributing or donating. Finally, as I was writing this proposal up, I found a link on the editing page here: [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=explain_xkcd:Copyrights explain xkcd:Copyrights - explain xkcd] saying that "''The Explain XKCD wiki is generally licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 license (CC-BY-SA-3.0)''". That notice should be more prominent on the site, with at least a link on each page. [[User:Nealmcb|Nealmcb]] ([[User talk:Nealmcb|talk]]) 15:27, 5 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:This should be mentioned at the main page, including a reference to the xkcd origin.<br />
:BTW: NO DOUBLE SPACES after a sentence. Are you US guys still using a typewriter? It's not rendered at a web page and stupid like Gallons, Miles, Foots, and much more unique US behaviours. But that's just a joke beside.<br />
:The licence hint is much more important, you are just correct.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 21:12, 5 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
::Added a creative commons icon to the footer of the page, next to the powered by mediawiki button. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 22:16, 5 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== New Comics Bot ==<br />
<br />
Would there be need for such a thing?<br />
[[Special:Contributions/108.162.231.52|108.162.231.52]] Synthetica<br />
:Nice idea, I never thought about that before. I will do some tests on existing comics to check if this could reduce the current number of error posts for a new article. When that is ready and working I will talk to some admins. My bot account [[User:DgbrtBOT|DgbrtBOT]] was originally intended for [[1190: Time]] picture uploads, but I never have used it because Time was over. Creating the new pages should be easy in general, avoiding errors will cost some more work. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 20:31, 6 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
::If you can get dgbrtBOT to do that, that'd help us an awful lot. It'd allow us to get rid of the ifexist cases in template:LATESTCOMIC as well, since the bot could change automatically that whenever a new comic goes up. It'll also help us get new comics down almost the moment they pop up, since the bot could sample several times a minute until a comic is posted. So long as it gets the general pattern right so that we have a correct page set up, we're good. An admin can come in sometime later to clean up categories and image urls and other piddly easy-to-fix details. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 20:54, 6 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::I will work on this next weekend, just local scripts and no updates here. I also will talk about my results before any automatic updates will be activated. My first focus is on creating the new pages in the general pattern, LATESTCOMIC and also the page "All comics" are maybe a bonus later. And of course all my scripts will be open source.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 21:44, 6 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
::::The first version is ready and I will test it at my local wiki. If everything goes well I could activate it for Wednesday (2013-11-13). LATESTCOMIC and "All comics" are on my roadmap, but first I want produce correct new pages here. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 20:00, 10 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::::Righty ho. Here goes. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 20:36, 10 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
Even when my automatic local wiki test did fail today, just a damn wrong password, I will activate the bot here for Wednesday. It will only run from 4:00 PM until 8:00 PM UTC. You will not see my possible updates at [[Special:RecentChanges]] unless you click ''Show bots'' at the top of that page. LATESTCOMIC and "All comics" are not covered, but this is at my TODO list until this test will be successful. Give me a '''GO''' or '''NO-GO''' for this test.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 21:49, 11 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Easily a GO, I'll be ready to clean up if anything goes wrong. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 22:08, 11 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
::So be ready on Wednesday for the clean up. My worst case is ''it simply does not work'', second worse scenario is still that I could delete some contend already posted here, but I'm trying to avoid this. ''Huston'', the countdown clock is counting. I'm joking about this because I really want to be confident about this ''BOT'' or ROBOT or uncontrolled action here.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 00:28, 12 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::The bot can't do anything that I can't reverse. I can even restore a backup from an hour before the bot's edits if it manages to break the database. How quickly does it poll xkcd, by the way? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 07:53, 12 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
First live test here (comic 1289). Please delete this page: [[Simple_Answers:_1289]]. Since my local wiki did not provide this templates I could not see this error before. In general the bot will update pages differ to any existing pages, but when it is not changed no update will happen. I'm fixing this errors at my script and do a second test here soon. I want to see it's producing correct pages until the bot will do it's work when I'm sleeping.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 22:31, 12 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Ok, test are done here, BOT is scheduled for the next update. Polling is every five minutes on Mon, Wed, and Fri from 04:00 until 08:00 UTC. Let's see how it will work.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 23:08, 12 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
::Couldja ramp that up to once/twice a minute, push the start time back by an hour, and the end time by a few hours? Also, is it possible to terminate it once it finds a comic for a certain day? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 01:45, 13 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::It worked! Though it posted the comic 5 minutes past post time. We has technology now, we can afford to poll faster and closer, yeah? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 05:32, 13 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
Uhh, it worked... I will increase the polls when I'm more confident about the release times. Today it was approx. 05:00 UTC (GMT) or 01:00 EST (Randall's time zone). Looks like he is still at daylight saving time, would have been 00:00 EDT. The polls will be increased to one minute when I'm sure about the Standard Release Time (SRT). Next steps for the next update on Friday are:<br />
:The "All comics" page.<br />
:The LATESTCOMIC template.<br />
--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 19:54, 13 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:The LATESTCOMIC template is included for the next run, it just simply has to return a number. But it's still the most critical part because if it does not work the Main Page is broken. I will change this to a better solution using that IFEXIST syntax soon. The list of all comics is still at my ToDo list. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 22:06, 14 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
::The desired content of the LATESTCOMIC template should be just the comic number. If we can get out of having to poll multiple IFEXIST statements to find the latest comic, that would be a fantastic boon to our server performance. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 04:43, 15 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::OK, it did work today so I will not change this. Next step is the list for all comics.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 11:10, 15 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
Next run will include an update on the "All comics" page. I'm crossing my fingers. When this update is also successful I will document my Bot at the Bot user page [[User:DgbrtBOT]]. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 22:15, 17 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Oh, I forgot this detail: The bot is starting at 00:00 EST (RLT - Randall local time), which is 04:00 UTC and 05:00 MET for me. It polls every 5 minutes until 23:55 MET (22:55 UTC, 18:55 RLT) the main page until a new comic is found. I do not poll the comic number because I want to avoid 404 message logs at the servers.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 22:30, 17 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Something went wrong there. That's gonna need fixing. I am enjoying the looks of the apparently faster polling though. Maybe you could also set the start time to 00:00:05 EST to catch the on-time xkcd releases within ten seconds? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 05:33, 18 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
::Uh, what a mess. I will do some more tests at my local wiki. At the next time I will do a check against the number from the LATESTCOMIC template, only the next number will be processed. The test against my local history did fail because of some cleanups after testings.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 08:18, 18 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::I don't like mess. So the BOT got many more checks before posting here but the bot was starting at 05:00 local time for me. I'm really asleep at that time. The mess here was covered, but I do need another GO for the next attempt. Otherwise I will just do a test to my local wiki.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 22:35, 18 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
No GO so far, my next test will run only at my local wiki.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 21:16, 19 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:My script is here: [https://github.com/dgbrt/explainXKCD_update explainXKCD_update]. At my current test "explainxkcd.com" is commented out and "localhost" is active. Since I don't like mess and the bot does act while I am sleeping the next update must be done manually here. I'm hoping the bot will be ready for the next update on Friday.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 22:15, 19 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
::Bot is ready for Friday, everything went smooth at my last local test today. The bot did find the latest comic at 04:05 UTC and all essential pages were properly created. So I will activate it for this site again. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 21:57, 20 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
Bot did work as expected. So I name it release 1.1337, the next planed release will be 2.1337 (beta) because of this two issues:<br />
*"Include any categories below this line." will be removed because it doesn't make any sense any more.<br />
*BETA: I want to use the full template features at [[List of all comics]], just ensuring that the pictures are working properly. No need for this at the most comics, but the BOT doesn't cover all possibilities on corrupt file names like we have had in "Pi vs. Tau". The picture was without that dot. My bot just shows the real link it did upload here.<br />
I'm pretty sure we will have some issues on this bot, but for general pages it should work. So the bot will be active on Mon,Wed,Fri from 0:00 EST (or EDT) every five minutes until it did found a new comic, on success the bot does not poll any more.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 21:51, 22 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Aww, it's a bot. It doesn't need to rest or take time off to do other stuff. It can totally poll once or more times per minute. Also, if you set the start time to a few seconds after midnight, Randall time, when he uploads a comic on-time, you'll get it within a few seconds as opposed to having to wait for the next polling. As for the image names, maybe you could convert spaces in the comic name to underscores, compare the two comic names you have and use that to decide which version of the template to use? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 23:08, 22 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
::I have to avoid that the bot is running twice, Internet Timeouts and more. And the comics are also published later sometimes. Look at my release [https://github.com/dgbrt/explainXKCD_update 1.1337], release 2.1337 will be later, Maybe I should start at 2 minutes after 0:00, but let's see right now how the bot does work. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 00:38, 23 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
Uhh, what a huge discussion here. The bot will get a major update soon: Scheduler does start it once and until a comic is found and uploaded it here or an other limit is reached (maybe the end of the day) the bot will poll by a small delay. But every poll is still an entire download from the main page, When a new comic is found bot stops.<br />
:Why, you could use http://xkcd.com/info.0.json, right?[[Special:Contributions/108.162.231.52|108.162.231.52]] 07:38, 2 December 2013 (UTC)Synthetica<br />
::The BOT performs perfect and I prefer to analyze the original page. A title text like the one from today (a text showing a link) will be covered in the future.--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 10:35, 2 December 2013 (UTC)<br />
A great enhancement would be also covering a new comic like 1190 Time was. I'm looking forward on this, some ideas, it does require a complete analyse of the page and then finding some strange content. <br />
--[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 23:05, 27 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Require description for 'incomplete' tags ==<br />
I've been trying to fix some of the incompletes, but several explanation pages I've come across are tagged incomplete without any reason given. The reason should be a required part of the tag. --[[Special:Contributions/173.245.52.223|173.245.52.223]] 03:35, 7 December 2013 (UTC)<br />
:This incomplete tags are just older than the recent change of that template. Current adds require a description, but it's not easy to figure out all that old reasons. If someone does find a reason, please just add it. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 20:22, 7 December 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Should there be a subwiki to cover the shop links that appear above the comic? ==<br />
<br />
The current one (as of writing) is [http://imgs.xkcd.com/store_news/store_gd_b11_1ze4.png] but this is a different than the usual, and there was also a third in between these.<br />
[[User:Rsranger65|Rsranger65]] ([[User talk:Rsranger65|talk]]) 06:00, 8 December 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Those are very ephemeral. They aren't going to exist for very long, I don't know how valuable it would be to archive that stuff. We could probably do it, but having to figure out another naming convention and all for advertisements doesn't appeal to me at the current moment. If you can flesh it out, I'd love to see how you think we should do it. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 07:24, 8 December 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== New Character ==<br />
<br />
OK, I think we need a name for the character with a goatee and glasses in comics [[435: Purity]], [[796: Bad Ex]] and [[964: Dorm Poster]] as well as possibly others. Edit: oh and I suggest Goatee and Glasses Guy, but I'm open for suggestions Edit 2: also in [[826: Guest Week: Zach Weiner (SMBC)]] Halfhat {{unsigned|Halfhat}}<br />
edit 3: Another sighting [[954: Chin-Up Bar]] [[User:Halfhat|Halfhat]] ([[User talk:Halfhat|talk]]) 16:57, 13 January 2014 (UTC)<br />
: In the transcript, he is called "Person with Glasses and a Goatee" --[[User:Jeff|<b><font color="orange">Jeff</font></b>]] ([[User talk:Jeff|talk]]) 15:39, 21 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
:: "Glasses Guy", "Goatee Guy" are both probably descriptive enough! --[[User:Jeff|<b><font color="orange">Jeff</font></b>]] ([[User talk:Jeff|talk]]) 15:41, 21 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== What If Comics ==<br />
<br />
Hi, I was thinking, maybe at some point we should do the comics in the ''What If?'' section, like [http://what-if.xkcd.com/imgs/a/36/cornstarch_bitcoins.png this one.] [[User:Halfhat|Halfhat]] ([[User talk:Halfhat|talk]]) 20:01, 13 January 2014 (UTC)<br />
: Start creating the pages for them! --[[User:Jeff|<b><font color="orange">Jeff</font></b>]] ([[User talk:Jeff|talk]]) 15:36, 21 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
: I think I can start creating one or two pages for What If, if that helps... [[User:Daniel Carrero|Daniel Carrero]] ([[User talk:Daniel Carrero|talk]]) 16:14, 5 April 2014 (UTC)<br />
:: If nobody has any problem with it, I'm gonna give it a try later. :) [[User:Daniel Carrero|Daniel Carrero]] ([[User talk:Daniel Carrero|talk]]) 13:14, 8 April 2014 (UTC)<br />
:::I thought they were already pretty self-explanatory though. Also, how are we gonna organize and present them? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 16:31, 8 April 2014 (UTC)<br />
::::I totally agree with David: Read the entire What-If page and follow the links provided by Randall. No one of us can do that better in depth. But an overview page for this site is maybe not a bad idea, we just need a proper link here — a link at the main menu on the left. Translations to other languages are just another issue. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 22:37, 8 April 2014 (UTC)<br />
:::::Yes, I was thinking of an overview, summarizing the contents and discoveries of each what if page. Not to mention, we could also organize what if pages by categories, such as physics/love.<br />
:::::Would you like me to post here an example of what I would write? That way we can decide if it's worthy of creating an actual page. [[User:Daniel Carrero|Daniel Carrero]] ([[User talk:Daniel Carrero|talk]]) 12:53, 9 April 2014 (UTC)<br />
:Adding pages for What If? posts would be very helpful. Although the articles themselves are obviously self-explanatory, there are almost as many subtle references, running gags, and in-jokes in What If? posts these days as in the comics themselves.<br />
I often visit explain xkcd when I feel like I'm missing an inside joke or a pop culture reference in a comic, and it would be very helpful to many people (especially those from other cultures/subcultures) to have the same service.<br />
For example, today's What If? contains multiple allusions to the Superman Movie, a running Citation Needed joke, and a whole comic that is a not-so-subtle dig at Elon Musk and the Hyperloop. It would be awesome if the community here at explainxkcd could tackle stuff like that.<br />
Anonymous 20:05, 31 July 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I agree. I don't understand the mouseover text on the first image in "Snow Removal", for example. [[User:Benjaminikuta|Benjaminikuta]] ([[User talk:Benjaminikuta|talk]]) 22:57, 23 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Transcripts ==<br />
<br />
The whole point of the transcripts is to have those who are unable to view images to still be able to read the comic, right?<br />
<br />
Then why is it required to stick to strictly official transcripts, where sometimes rewriting them slightly would make them flow better or otherwise get the ideas across better? I've tried rewriting a few, but they get reverted. I think that having easier-to-understand transcripts would be more important than strictly following official transcripts; what do you think? (For a few examples, see [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=207:_What_xkcd_Means&diff=60061&oldid=57400 this edit] and [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=995%3A_Coinstar&diff=59862&oldid=57316 this edit]. [[User:Zowayix|Zowayix]] ([[User talk:Zowayix|talk]]) 17:38, 19 February 2014 (UTC)<br />
:We use the original transcript to try and deduce original author intent if it's unclear from the image. I remember one comic where Beret Guy was off in the distance and it was difficult to distinguish him from the image, but the official transcript said it was him. We don't stick to the original transcript if it's obviously wrong, or it has typographical errors: see [[Laser Scope]]. Those edits seem to be mainly targeted at language and clarity, and should be fine. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 23:06, 19 February 2014 (UTC)<br />
::Would it be helpful to have another (optional) section for expanding on the official transcripts? I too think it could be helpful, especially for complex images (such as 1079/United Shapes [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/1079]). Or does supplemental description belong in the Explanation sections? Cheers. [[User:Karenb|Karenb]] ([[User talk:Karenb|talk]]) 23:00, 20 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
:::Naaah, how many people even know there's an original transcript? If the original is wrong, change it. If your additions begin to verge on explanatory, move eet to the trivia/explanation sections. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 00:52, 21 March 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== "Characters in this Comic" section ==<br />
<br />
Should there be a "Characters in this Comic" section in each comic explanation? (I feel like this should be longer but don't have anything else to say.) [[User:Z|Z]] ([[User talk:Z|talk]]) 23:33, 11 May 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:There is a Category section at the bottom of each comic. Just scroll down and you will see any character belonging to a specific comic. --[[User:Dgbrt|Dgbrt]] ([[User talk:Dgbrt|talk]]) 21:50, 12 May 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Adding the Radiation chart from XKCD ==<br />
<br />
Hi <br />
As there are already other comics with explanations even though they are not part of the number system.<br />
This one does not seem to have any yet:<br />
http://xkcd.com/radiation/<br />
And as it is very alike the Money strip (the unexplained of the week) so I think it should be explained as well.<br />
If you agree please add it as I'm not sure how to do that.<br />
<br />
Best regards<br />
:[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 18:47, 7 June 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Reddit comments? ==<br />
<br />
There should be a link in each comics explanation page somewhere linking to the comment section for the relevant comic on /r/xkcdcomic or reddit.<br />
:The reddit comments page isn't ''that'' close to what we do though. If this is more popular, we'll do it, though there'll need to be a fair bit of post-hoc editing since I don't think there's a standard URL scheme for all the past comics. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 03:15, 23 June 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Not insulting new users ==<br />
<br />
I am writing a response to a vulnerability assessment. I have included a link to http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/936 noting that it contains a good explanation of the relative security of passwords vs passphrases. I just noticed that the top of that page contains "Explain xkcd: It's 'cause you're dumb." Looks like I'll have to find a different site to link to. --[[User:Pascal|Pascal]] ([[User talk:Pascal|talk]]) 17:33, 28 June 2014 (UTC)<br />
:I agree. While I'm sure it can seem cute or funny in various circles, that text has always seemed immature and inappropriate to me, and I'm sure to many folks we'd like to invite to the site. I suggest that it be changed. [[User:Nealmcb|Nealmcb]] ([[User talk:Nealmcb|talk]]) 19:52, 23 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
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== RSS feed ==<br />
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Is there an RSS feed (or some equivalent) of Explain XKCD available? It's helpful for those using feed readers, and superior to the primary XKCD RSS since there are explanations and the mouse over text is transcribed for the lazy. Thanks [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.154|108.162.219.154]] 08:24, 28 August 2014 (UTC)<br />
:[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Special:NewPages&feed=atom&hideredirs=1&limit=90&offset=&namespace=0&username=&feed=&tagfilter= Why yes, we do!] It's the regular new pages log that all wikis have. It's a little ugly at the moment, and sometimes junk gets in there when a bot chucks spam at us, so a nicer feed is in the works, but the linked one should do you excellently for now. When the nice one is done, you'll see it in the sidebar below the "Help" button. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 11:31, 28 August 2014 (UTC)<br />
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== Navigation Pane Link - Categories ==<br />
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How about having a link to the "Special:Categories" page in the navigation pane?<br />
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A fair amount of effort has gone into categorising the comics, and at the moment it isn't particularly obvious how to browse by category. Is this worth doing?{{unsigned|Pudder}}<br />
:Space on the sidebar is on a premium. I dunno, I'd probably be against it, but I want to hear what other admins say as well. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 16:45, 29 September 2014 (UTC)<br />
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== Alternate realities what if would benefit from a wiki entry ==<br />
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The what if entry from the end of November 2014 providing excerpts from alternate reality what ifs would benefit from an explain page. <br />
I suspect these may have been typos that have been made into jokes, but some of the humor might not be apparent to all. <br />
I doubt I have access (or maybe know how) to set it up myself. <br />
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Cheers {{unsigned ip|199.27.133.42}}<br />
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: Made it. Check out [[What If: 120: Alternate Universe What Ifs]]. [[User:17jiangz1|17jiangz1]] ([[User talk:17jiangz1|talk]]) 09:10, 26 December 2014 (UTC)<br />
::We don't actually have a structure for what if pages in general, so I'll have to take that down, but when we do we can make pages for every what if. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 09:57, 26 December 2014 (UTC)<br />
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== Secondary URLs? ==<br />
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I have made http://www.xkcd.ga and http://www.xkcd.tk both forward to http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/Main_Page. Is this ok? [[User:17jiangz1|17jiangz1]] ([[User talk:17jiangz1|talk]]) 08:50, 26 December 2014 (UTC)<br />
:While we probably won't advertise them because we can't guarantee the uptime of third-party URLs, and they add an additional redirect layer and lack our shortened URL features, you're free to purchase and link URLs to us independently. We are not owned by Randall and as such cannot claim to actually be xkcd, so I'm not hugely comfortable with you using the plain name "xkcd" to link to us; a url in the format http://www.xkcd.[TLD] should by rights link to the main xkcd site, but no trademark claim has been made or likely will be made, so you should be fine with doing whatever you want to do with URL redirects '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 09:57, 26 December 2014 (UTC)<br />
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== LaTeX (Or MathML, TeX) support? ==<br />
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[[1489:_Fundamental_Forces|In the most recent comic at the time of posting]], there was use of formulae, being:<br/>F<sub>gravity</sub> = G m<sub>1</sub>m<sub>2</sub>/d<sup>2</sup><br/>F<sub>static</sub> = K<sub>e</sub> q<sub>1</sub>q<sub>2</sub>/d<sup>2</sup><br/><br />
There are probably many more comics using formulae that cannot be rendered properly without the use of LaTeX or something. The [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:Displaying_a_formula help page on Wikipedia] says that the following should work:<br/><math>F_{gravity}=G\frac{m_1m_2}{d^2}</math><br/><math>F_{static}=K_e\frac{q_1q_2}{d^2}</math><br />
Provided that one has to set <source lang="php" enclose="none">$wgUseTeX = true;</source> in [[mw:Manual:LocalSettings.php|LocalSettings.php]]. Is there any reason for this to be disabled? If there is, is there any alternative? —[[Special:Contributions/141.101.106.95|141.101.106.95]] 21:18, 20 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
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:The wgUseTeX flag was deprecated in mediawiki 1.18 in a move to simplify base mediawiki and move niche features into seperate plugins. I vaguely remember this being requested in the past, can't find any evidence of me implementing it. I'll try it now, see what stopped me last time. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 01:12, 21 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
:Ah, there's a bit of configuration work to it and I was busy at the time probably. I'll put it on the growing to do list on my userpage. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 01:20, 21 February 2015 (UTC)<br />
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== Merge Cueball & Rob ==<br />
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At the risk of posting this idea too many places and annoying everyone, I would like to propose that we consider merging [[Cueball]] and [[Rob]] and redirecting Cueball to Rob, much as [[Cutie]] now redirects to [[Megan]]. The most common name given for a Cueball-like character in the strip is "Rob". Like Megan, he is not always named. Also, like Megan, Rob tends to have distinct characteristics such as being a nerdy alter-ego to Randall (e.g. [[1168: tar]]) just as Megan often is the appearance given to comic representations of Randall's wife (see [[1141: Two Years]], before hair loss). Megan and Cueball appear to have a relationship (e.g. [[159: Boombox]]) and Megan clearly hangs out with Rob in ways not inconsistent with adventurous couples (e.g. [[782: Desecration]]). Finally, comics that feature both [[Black Hat]] and "Cueball" seem to depict them as friends and possibly roommates. However, we learn in [[1102: Fastest-Growing]] that Black Hat's roommate is named "Rob".<br />
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In short, I believe if [[159: Boombox]] had called "Cueball" "Rob" we would've rewritten both Cutie and Cueball to redirect there. Because we learned that "Cueball's" name is actually Rob much later (I think the earliest occurrences are [[647: Scary]], and [[716: Time Machine]]; the first time he is seen with Megan in a capacity that might indicate a relationship is [[782: Desecration]]). [[User:Djbrasier|Djbrasier]] ([[User talk:Djbrasier|talk]]) 19:05, 11 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
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:As I answered your comment on [[1496: Art Project]] Rob is [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/Category:Comics_featuring_Rob already listed] as part of the category for Comics featuring Cueball: and this is listed as the first entry when going to the page for [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/Category:Comics_featuring_Cueball Category:Comics featuring Cueball]. Cueball is such an integral part of explain xkcd that I do not think any other users wish to change. Also the 9 incidences with Rob is maybe a specific person and at the time Randall did not think to give him any features. Also Cueballs have no specific behavior as you allude to. Neither has Megan. You can always find several Cueballs and Megans that behave a certain way. But then you can find many other comics where they behave the opposite way. Thus Rob and Cueball should not be merged. Also there are several comics with more than one Cueball. And here we have this problem: It is typically the first who writes the transcript who decides who of the Cueballs (or Megans) he feels represents the "real" Cueball. However, there is no real behavior of Cueball. So who should decide. I could change all these transcripts so it becomes the other character who becomes Cueball, because I think that the first transcriber did it wrong. And this is why in a comic with more than one Cueball (where neither is called Rob or the like) neither of the two should be called Cueball. It would still be in the category with Cueball, because that is just comics with a Cueball like character no matter how many. But they cannot be named Cueball and friend or Rob and friend (unless Rob's name is mentioned!) They could be called Cueball 1 and Cueball 2, but then guy or man would be better. I know several places have comics with two Cueballs where someone has designated one of them Cueball and the other friend of foe etc. But this should be corrected so none of these are called Cueball. Same should go for more than one Megan. But this is very rare, and I have only found one other than ''Art project'' and here only one Megan had any lines. The problem with different opinions on which Cueball is which came for the first time up with Megan in ''Art project'': The two Megan-like characters was first named (left to right) Megan and Danish. Then unidentified girl and Megan. Then Megan and unidentified girl, then two Megan like girls with short and long hair and finally you reverted it to my first change away from Danish to unidentified girl and Megan. (I can live with that as there is difference in hair length and behavior). But as far as I see it Cueball is not Rob as well as Megan should have continued to be called Cutie (but I would not like to change that now, as I have grown fond of Megan). But at the time the change was done I believe it was wrong. The same fondness for the name Cueball also makes me sure that no one else would wish to call him Rob, even if that is as much his name as Megan is Cuties... --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 21:57, 11 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
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::My argument is that it is inertia and sentiment ("fond of Megan") that prevents an objective, equal treatment here. [[User:Djbrasier|Djbrasier]] ([[User talk:Djbrasier|talk]]) 22:47, 11 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
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::Also, regarding the analogy made above to Danish. I am fine with a nickname when Randall hasn't named a character. So she was "unidentified girl" and then became "Danish". But, when we named her "Danish", we went back to "Journal 1" and other places and renamed her. My proposal is that we should go back through and rename "Cueball" as "Rob". Alternatively, we should reinstate "Cutie" for cases in which it is not clear that a character is "Megan" per se, but just Megan in her "everywoman" capacity. [[User:Djbrasier|Djbrasier]] ([[User talk:Djbrasier|talk]]) 00:00, 12 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
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I'm not sure how to post a poll, but I see the following options:<br />
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1) Status quo: Cueball for all unidentified males without distinct characteristics (e.g. hats), Megan for all shoulder-length brunettes. Rob only for named Cueballs. Multiple Cueballs in a comic mean one is named Cueball and others get named "Friend", etc.<br />
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2) Symmetry 1: Cueball/Rob stays as is. Unnamed brunettes get named "Cutie". "Megan" like "Rob" is reserved for comics in which a name is used.<br />
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3) Symmetry 2: Megan stays as is. Rob is the default for indistinct males. "Cueball" page redirects to "Rob" (as "Cutie" now redirect to "Megan").<br />
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4) Expunge all Cueballs from multi-Cueball comics: Basically the status quo, except that in comics with multiple Cueballs none are named "Cueball" and are just all given names "Man 1", "Man 2", etc.<br />
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I am ambivalent regarding options 2 or 3. I could live with 1 if there is consensus for it, but I don't like it. 4 is a disaster in my mind and gains nothing. [[User:Djbrasier|Djbrasier]] ([[User talk:Djbrasier|talk]]) 22:47, 11 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
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:We are probably the only one who reads these post...? But anyway as is clear I'm for 4. Which has been used several places already.´I can live with 1. I think 2 and 3 are disasters. Also it would be completely confusing for those who have used this page for many years. Why do you bring this up now? Is it because of the multiple Megan comics, or have you just signed up here, and dislike that it doesn't follow the rules you would have expected?--[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 20:19, 12 March 2015 (UTC) <br />
::I suggest instead that we create a category for multiple Cueballs, so it is easy to explain why the Cueball is not a specific character, and thus can never be Rob (except when it is clear from the text), or be expected to behave a certain way. And in reverse we make a Named Megan category so it is easy to find the few (three?) where she has been named. This by the way has nothing to do with the other suggestions, so I might just do that to get an overview. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 20:19, 12 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
::: It seems more consistent to me to use [[Cutie]] for all unnamed "Megans" and reserve "Megan" for named comics. Thus, Rob is '''a''' Cueball and Megan is '''a''' Cutie. [[User:Djbrasier|Djbrasier]] ([[User talk:Djbrasier|talk]]) 13:30, 13 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
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::::I've read through some of your discussions (Here, Kynde's talk page, Art Project discussion), and thought I might put my thoughts forwards. Essentially we have three questions here:<br />
::::1) Should we merge Cueball and Rob, and rename all Cueballs as Rob?<br />
::::2) Should we rename all Megans as Cutie, except where she is explicitly named?<br />
::::3) Once questions 1 & 2 are answered, what do we do where the 'same' character appears multiple times in one comic?<br />
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::::*I understand the objective argument for renaming Cueball to Rob, however I'm unconvinced of the importance of being entirely objective, and I can't imagine Cueball being renamed to anything other than Cueball. <br />
::::*I think its fairly clear where the Cueball label has come from, even if it might not be immediately obvious to some. Even if readers don't make the link between Cueball's head and a cue-ball, it is quite a generic label, which I think fits well with the transient every-man nature of Cueball's usage.<br />
::::*There is something far more specific about the name Rob, which suggests that he is the same character every time. The origin of the name isn't obvious, which I think would be likely to cause confusion. <br />
::::This brings me to conclude that for me, the answer to Q1 has to be that Cueball should stay as Cueball, unless explicitly named something else. <br />
<br />
::::The question of changing Megan to Cutie is one where I am less confident. Following the arguments I've made above, the outcome has to be that we rename to Cutie unless specifically named Megan, however I am not entirely convinced. The name Megan has a history, there are surely lots of people who now know her as Megan, what do we really stand to gain from all the work of changing to Cutie? I would also suggest that the name Cutie may not be accepted well by those with strong feminist views.<br />
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::::As far as multi-character comics, I don't have time right now, but I will come back later and add my thoughts. Now that we've only got a few incomplete comics, we've had to resort to discussing renaming characters!--[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 15:07, 13 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
:::::I agree with the reasons for keeping Cueball and Megan. And also that Cutie is such a loaded word, that it should never have been used anyway. This I did not immediately think about, but Cutie sounds like something from either a porn movie, or else a Bond Babe... Like the phrase from one of those movies: "Hello, I'm Plenty..." Then we should have to find a third name. And everyone here knows her as Megan. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 13:24, 15 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
::::::I have created the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/Category:Multiple_Cueballs Category:Multiple Cueballs] to locate them and to show how often there are more than one. Feel free to add any I haven't found yet. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 09:45, 16 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
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I think Rob is Black Hat's roommate and Megan's boyfriend/partner/husband (see above). The "Cueball" in comics such as [[159: Boombox]] and [[542: Cover-Up]] should, in my view, be renamed "Rob", even though he is not explicitly called that in those comics. Most other "Cueball" comics can stay unchanged. [[User:Djbrasier|Djbrasier]] ([[User talk:Djbrasier|talk]]) 00:43, 14 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
:I have left my reason to disagree also with this on the two comics talk page. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 13:24, 15 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
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In my opinion, it is quite clear that [[Randall]] has chosen to name the main male protagonist [[Rob]], for the few occasions where he needs characters to call upon each other, in the same way as he has chosen [[Megan]] for the main female protagonist. We should therefore try to overcome our nostalgia, follow Randall, and call the common male protagonist Rob. The problem with multiple cueballs can most often be resolved by identifying the protagonist, from the first-person narration or the general perspective. Thus, in [[525: I Know You're Listening]] Rob is the comic's "I", to the left. In [[1110: Click and Drag]], Rob is obviously flying with a balloon. In [[610: Sheeple]] Rob is arguably the guy in the foreground facing us. Non-Rob "cueballs" we could refer to as "friend" "man", etc. In this way roughly half of the "multiple cueballs" would be resolved. I think I can live with a few unclear cases, like [[220: Philosophy]]. [[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 12:22, 19 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
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:A featureless character has been ''specifically'' named Rob in 9 comics, compared with 968 'Comics featuring Cueball'. I believe it is fundamentally flawed to assert that because a featureless character is named Rob in less than 1% of appearances, that all featureless characters should therefore be assumed to be Rob. As I've discussed above, I think that Rob strongly implies a specific person, whereas Cueball is a vague 'everyman' character. I feel it would be a huge error to change all Cueballs to Robs.--[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 17:37, 19 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
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::The problem with that logic is that "Megan" is only named in a small number of comics (fewer that "Rob"). So we should have a different name for an unnamed generic female. [[Cutie]] is fine, but if people perceive that as sexist, then another name, maybe "Cuegirl" or "Brunette" would work. (Side note: I doubt "Cutie" would be perceived as sexist and there's history there.) What I '''do''' find sexist is the fact that there is asymmetry between male and female "everyperson"s. In sum, I would say there is at less evidence to support naming Megan-everywoman "Megan" in all cases as there is to name Rob-everyman (here called "Cueball") "Rob" in all cases. Asymmetry here ignores the fact that Randall clearly intends his name to be "Rob" and also that we are using a proper name for everywoman but a contrived name for everyman, while creating an artificial distinction between Rob and Cueball and smearing out any possible distinction between Megan-everywoman and Megan-properName. [[User:Djbrasier|Djbrasier]] ([[User talk:Djbrasier|talk]]) 13:18, 27 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
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:::As I put in my earlier comment (see above), I do agree that the logical conclusion is that Megan should no longer be named Megan, and should have an equivalent generic name. As an aside, I'm quite partial to your suggestion of Cuegirl. I disagree with your assertion that "Randall clearly intends his name to be Rob", and I think that is the central point of this discussion. I don't believe that there is anywhere near enough evidence to assign a specific name to what I believe is a generic character. If we want to go for formal logic, consider the syllogism "Some non descipt characters are called Rob, there are many non-descript characters, therfore all non-descript characters are called Rob". The conclusion simply does not follow. --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 14:22, 27 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
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::::Great, I vote for Cuegirl & Cueball :: Megan & Rob! [[User:Djbrasier|Djbrasier]] ([[User talk:Djbrasier|talk]]) 01:31, 31 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
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I agree with Djbrasier's and St.nerol's arguments, and I too feel that the arguments against dealing with this in an objective, symmetrical and logical way seem mostly based on nostalgia. Either we agree that a few named instances of the everywoman are sufficient to generalize to the (vastly more numerous) unnamed instances, and apply the same standard to the everyman, which is only consistent (and even more justified in the case of Rob since he is named in more comics than Megan), or we decide that the extrapolation is unjustified and we revert the Cutie-->Megan merge. The alternative --having double standards and deciding things based on historical baggage and emotional attachment rather than rationality-- makes no sense for followers of the comic that ''literally invented'' nerd-sniping!<br />
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I'd also add that, as a non-native speaker, "cueball" doesn't ring any immediate bells unless the connection to cue balls is pointed out explicitly -- so actually Rob works even better as a generic name than Cueball. We have already [[#New character|agreed previously]] that clarity is better than cleverness when we named [[Hairy]], forgoing the less obvious alliteration "Harry", so I vote we use the name Randall ''actually'' gave us, let go of our attachments to a creation he never endorsed, and honor our collective nerdiness by doing the logical thing: apply our standards uniformly and adopt Rob the same way we adopted Megan. --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 06:09, 10 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
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:I've already put my thoughts forward above, so I won't repeat the same ground I've covered, other than to say I believe it would be a mistake to turn all Cueballs into Robs. While I will admit to having some nostalgia for the name Cueball, that isn't a major facet of my argument. I believe that any generic name is better than a specific name. Call them Stickboy & Stickgirl if you want! I know there are a fairly significant number of contributors and visitors who do not have English as their first language, but I don't believe that is a reason to choose a specific name, rather than a generic name, even if the origin of the latter isn't immediately obvious to all. It would be interesting to know whether each of us sees Cueball as always being the same person, or Cueball *is* Randall, or Cueball is just a changeable everyman.<br />
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:To me, he is a changeable everyman, who I guess may represent or be based on: Randall, his friends, family or acquaintances, famous people, someone he saw in the street, or a completely made up character used to fill a specific role in the comic. The reason I argue againt merging Rob & Cueball is that the Cueball I see is this morphing and fluid character, and to use a specific name to tie him down to being the same character all the time runs completely counter to that. --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 08:31, 10 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
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:: Understood, and sorry for mischaracterizing your argument (the nostalgia part does butt the discussion though). I suppose I would be somewhat ambivalent to either have Rob+Megan, or Cueball+Cutie -- Cuegirl doesn't work because she has hair :) --, in the interests of reason and symmetry. But I lean slightly towards Rob+Megan because those are names Randall actually gave us, while anything else is our own invention and thus has no claim to legitimacy other than popular support.<br />
:: Particularly, while I understand your concern about shoehorning the various personality traits the Cueballs show in different comics into a single persona, that doesn't seem to have been a problem for Megan -- not to mention real people ''are'' indeed complex and multi-faceted beings (or "morphing and fluid", to use your terms) rather than one-dimensional caricatures. Heck, even Black Hat has his romantic side! :) So in light of that, I don't think we have to worry about ruining Cueball by naming him Rob -- if anything, that'd add more depth to him as a character! --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 16:35, 10 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
:::I'm still very much against changing things here. Call it nostalgia, but there are many users who will never read these arguments, who one day comes back and cannot find Megan or Cueball, and will ask who the heck are Cuegirl/Cutie. I'm completely with Pudder on the problem with giving Cueball the name Rob. It just doesn't make sense. I agree that we have a inconsistency with Megan. But then everyone who uses this page a few times, becomes familiar with that name. However the main problem with all your great ideas is this. Who should correct the either 984 pages where Cueball is mentioned because he is a part of it (and all the other pages relevant to him or where he is exactly mentioned because he isn't part of the comic) and/or who should do the same for 487 comics (plus loose pages) for Megan. Unless those in favor for changing the names will do this, then the discussion is moot. It is already clearly stated in the relevant pages that these two characters are generic and that they have been named but a few times. So what more can we do unless someone is willing to use several days to change this back. I sincerely doubt you can keep the correct syntax if you just try a brute force replacement? There are so many interconnecting links etc. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 13:21, 25 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
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I completely disagree with merging Cueball and Rob. Rob has [[276|Emily]] and [[632|Lisa]] as girlfriends, and Cueball has Megan. Rob also lives a more action-filled and stereotypical life compared to Cueball. --[[User:Youforgotthisthing|Youforgotthisthing]] ([[User talk:Youforgotthisthing|talk]]) 13:14, 15 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
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I think the main stances here are clear:<br />
* Keep as is<br />
* Rename Cuball to Rob<br />
* Change Megan back to Cutie/Cuegirl<br />
Since keeping it status quo wouldn't change anything and is asymmetrical, I'll go over the others:<br />
* Rename Cueball to Rob - Arguments:<br />
** Randall gave him this name;<br />
** It would offer symmetry to Megan;<br />
** If the Cutie -> Megan logic is to be followed (as she was changed once named in the comics) then Cueball should be Rob;<br />
** Even though cueball is a generic everyman name, Rob seems more like a name you could give anyone and would be more recognizable to non-native English speakers.<br />
* Change Megan back to Cutie/Cuegirl - Arguments:<br />
** It would cause symmetry again, letting her have an everywoman name;<br />
** Nostalgia for Cueball;<br />
** Megan is not always the same character, so she should not always have the name Megan<br />
<br />
I happen to agree with the idea of merging Cueball and Rob, but I'm not closed to the idea of Cutie/Cuegirl. The main problem is that these characters are typically interchangeable everymen/everywomen and there can be more than one in a comic. So another question is what we should do for multiple Cueballs/Robs. In my opinion, we should have all the comics with more than one depict them as Man 1, Man 2, etc. --[[User:Sensorfire|Sensorfire]] ([[User talk:Sensorfire|talk]]) 17:04, 20 May 2015 (UTC)<br />
:Well I disagree. The users are used to refeer to these characters now by these names. It is also impractical to try to change them all. Megan is rarely twice in a comic. Maybe she is more the same like Black Hat is. But it is made clear that they are not the same in every comic in their pages. If there are muliple Cueballs but one is the main protagonist then he us cueball. If none can be singled out then Cueball like guy to the left/right can be used. I have done that for tbose cases I have found so far ([[:Category:Multiple_Cueballs|49 today]]).--[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 20:58, 7 June 2015 (UTC)<br />
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== How to fit explanations of new classes of xkcd-related mysteries into the site: what-if, t-shirts, posters, special comics etc. ==<br />
<br />
I suggest that the [http://explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/explain_xkcd:About explain xkcd] page should explain how this site is laid out, and what sorts of things are explained here besides the online numbered xkcd comics that come out three times a week.<br />
<br />
For example, there is the [[A Smarter Planet]] series, and there are ideas for explaining some of the [http://what-if.xkcd.com/ What-If] series. I'd like to add my explanation of the [https://gist.github.com/nealmcb/398af29a72f7b3efc202 XKCD Greek t-shirt, with mathematical, scientific and engineering uses for greek letters] and perhaps some other t-shirts, posters and the like.<br />
<br />
But I can't even figure out how to find non-numbered-comic-explanations, without going thru the entire [[Special:AllPages]] listing, which includes a huge set of unnumbered aliases as well as the numbered ones. <br />
<br />
I've taken a stab towards that by editing the About page to point to some categories (and to start with a little overview), but since I'm just poking around, I might have missed some things. [[User:Nealmcb|Nealmcb]] ([[User talk:Nealmcb|talk]]) 19:40, 23 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Link to "Special pages" on main page ==<br />
<br />
I think there should be a link to [[Special:SpecialPages]] on the main-page--[[User:17jiangz1|17jiangz1]] ([[User talk:17jiangz1|talk]]) 11:55, 29 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
:Special pages is a default feature in every mediawiki installation. It's also in the sidebar of every page, and it's not relevant to xkcd. Why does it merit space on the main page? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 18:56, 29 March 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Science comic ==<br />
<br />
Should the Science Magazine comic be added? http://m.sciencemag.org/content/342/6154/58.full [[User:Mikemk|Mikemk]] ([[User talk:Mikemk|talk]]) 03:14, 4 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
:I think that would be a great idea. Could there be other copyright rules when the comic has been published on Science? It there anyway to find out if Randall also has a link to it from (or has it on) xkcd? As he has done with the other [[:Category:Extra_Comics|Extra_Comics]]. And how do we create such a page, if there can be no link directly to xkcd (at the top of the comic)? --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 13:24, 30 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== "what if?" section? ==<br />
<br />
I would like to start a new "what if?" section explaining and discussing what if pages.--[[User:17jiangz1|17jiangz1]] ([[User talk:17jiangz1|talk]]) 06:08, 8 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
:Why does it need to exist? The main xkcd comic needs it, because Randall tends to be obtuse at times, but the what if articles are sourced and written out already. Supposedly, they're already explanations to questions sent in to Randall. Why do we need to explain explanations? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 06:29, 8 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
::Explaining them indeed seems unnecessary, but we could certainly catalog and summarize them. --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 16:38, 10 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
::The images on what if? also have title texts that could further be explained, and we could organize what if pages by categories, as well as provide summaries. There are also subtle references, running gags, and in-jokes in What If? that should be explained.--[[User:17jiangz1|17jiangz1]] ([[User talk:17jiangz1|talk]]) 08:44, 11 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
::This https://what-if.xkcd.com/120/ is a example of a what if that could do with some explanations.--[[User:17jiangz1|17jiangz1]] ([[User talk:17jiangz1|talk]]) 08:47, 11 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
:::That's one of 135 what-ifs, and it's entirely self referential and can be figured out by reading the rest of the archive. The substance of the majority of pages is going to be incredibly thin, Randall doesn't tend to leave much for explanation. Comics that are simple one-shot images are our least used pages for good reason, and the what-if images pretty much all fall into that category, or are used to illustrate Randall's point that he makes in the immediately preceding paragraph. We could archive/catalog all the what-if pages and be a second archive button for the series, though there's a little less value to that than the archiving we did for [[Time]] and [[Externalities]] because there's already an archive along the same lines on the main site. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 19:14, 11 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
::::I think the main value we could add is a summary (TL;DR style) of each entry, in a short Q&A format. --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 12:13, 13 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
If we are going forward with this, is there anyway to find the date in which the what if was first published?--[[User:17jiangz1|17jiangz1]] ([[User talk:17jiangz1|talk]]) 09:01, 11 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
:At the bottom of the page, there's an archive button. Click that. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 19:14, 11 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
Well, fact is, the [[what if?]] page is much, '''much''' larger now. [[User:Nk22|Nk22]] ([[User talk:Nk22|talk]]) 11:52, 20 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
:Thank you, Nk22! I've added a link from the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/explain_xkcd About explain xkcd] page. {{unsigned|Nealmcb}}<br />
<br />
== Userscript ==<br />
<br />
Hello there, just wrote a simple userscript that adds an 'Explain' button to the original xkcd.com<br />
<br />
https://gist.github.com/magazov/934de662d60c9fb5fea9<br />
<br />
You can run it via Greasemonkey, Tampermonkey and other similar plugins :)<br />
<br />
[[Image:Screen_Shot_xkcd_button.png]]<br />
{{unsigned|Magazovski}}<br />
<br />
:Yeah, there's a few of these floating around. In the future, could you use an imgur link instead of uploading stuff like that to the wiki? Thanks. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 18:02, 21 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
::So maybe explainxkcd should host & maintain one of them? --[[User:Magazovski|Magazovski]] ([[User talk:Magazovski|talk]]) 09:30, 22 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
:::Why would we host an image hosting site? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 23:17, 23 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
::::He means we could host and maintain a userscript to help our fans get here from xkcd.... [[User:Nealmcb|Nealmcb]] ([[User talk:Nealmcb|talk]]) 14:36, 9 May 2015 (UTC)<br />
:::::Hum, that's not a bad idea. I'll put it on the list of things to do. Although, if they're already here, why do they need a userscript to help them get here? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 00:34, 11 May 2015 (UTC)<br />
::::::For people who mainly view the comics through the official site, but sometimes need an explanation of the comic. --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 09:23, 11 May 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Updating the incomplete comic of the day ==<br />
<br />
Currently, I think the incomplete comic of the day should be changed more often (i.e. daily), since the incomplete comics are piling up, and most users aren't seeing the notice, as it is dismissible.--[[User:17jiangz1|17jiangz1]] ([[User talk:17jiangz1|talk]]) 11:40, 22 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:While I agree that the comic of the day could be changed more often, I wouldn't say that the incomplete comics are ''piling up''. Over the months I've been active here, the number of incomplete comics had fallen considerably. In fact if you check the comics which are still marked as incomplete, most of them are one where a significant effort would be required to complete them. For example the large comics (Money, Time, Congress) or dynamic comics (Externalities, Click & Drag, Pixels). --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 15:32, 23 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
::Yeah. Of the 15 incomplete "pages," only 10 of them are actual comics that need the attention, and the full count is still dropping. I've been keeping it on single comics as of late because the remaining actual incomplete comics have been cycled through ~3 times already, with no significant effort made on them, because they're such monumental pieces of work. Making the message dismissable is by design, we are a service first and foremost, we're not trying that hard to make visitors do our work for us. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 23:17, 23 April 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Infrequently recurring minor charachters ==<br />
<br />
Should we just group all of the characters that are not of enough significance to warrant their own character page into a single page (i.e. [[Other Minor Characters]])? --{{User:17jiangz1/signature|02:58, 09 May 2015}}<br />
:See comic [[1000]] for a sample of what this entails. Also, what value to we stand to provide by cataloging every unique character that has appeared in xkcd? Does it help us explain the comics any better? '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 11:32, 9 May 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Comic page creation ==<br />
<br />
Is comic page creation not automated? If it isn't, then [[Help talk:How to add a new comic explanation]] should be created.--{{User:17jiangz1/signature|14:19, 26 May 2015}} 14:19, 26 May 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:Comic explanation was, at one point, automated. However, the bot ran on a schedule, and so sometimes there would be a few hours between a new comic being posted and the page getting created. Some editors just can't wait that long, so they do the bot's work before the bot even gets going. I agree that this page should be created and be kept up to date. Historically no one has read any of the help pages I've written. ;p [[User:Lcarsos|lcarsos]]<span title="I'm an admin. I can help.">_a</span> ([[User talk:Lcarsos|talk]]) 17:42, 26 May 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:However, I think that the page should be [[Help:Comic Explanation Page Creation]]. [[User:Lcarsos|lcarsos]]<span title="I'm an admin. I can help.">_a</span> ([[User talk:Lcarsos|talk]]) 17:43, 26 May 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Re-proposing merging Cueball and Rob ==<br />
<br />
Okay, so this was previously [[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/explain_xkcd:Community_portal/Proposals#Merge_Cueball_.26_Rob discussed] but I felt that it was worth bringing up again. Really, at this point, there's no logical reason why the two should not be merged, or Megan and Cutie should be un-merged. Rob and Cueball clearly seem to be the same person, at least when cueball appears as a specific character. In the instances where there are multiple Cueballs, we should just refer to them as Man 1, Man 2, and so on. Can we get a vote or something this time? Yes, I understand that Cueball isn't always the same character. But neither is [[Megan]], and yet we always refer to the short black haired girl (formerly [[Cutie]]) as Megan. If that logic applies to her, it applies to Rob. It's pretty clear that Randall intended to name the character Rob, as most named Cueballs are named Rob and not Fred or something.<br />
<br />
In short: Please don't bring nostalgia into this, it's really not relevant. Changing Cueball to Rob or Megan back to Cutie (or Cuegirl?) would have symmetry and make sense. {{unsigned ip|Sensorfire}}<br />
:I'm ok with dumping a marginal character page that only served to add confusion to character identification in new comics, but this was a subject of contention before so we probably need to see more of people's thoughts first. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 01:03, 5 September 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:I agree: let's list the arguments for both sides, ensure that everyone agrees with the objectiveness of that listing, and then vote. If there's support for this plan, and nobody does it first, I'll take a stab at producing a first draft of the summary. --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 23:57, 14 September 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:Randall is currently on a booktour. So, how about, instead of us (without the ability to read minds) arguing about his intention or who is/isn't the same character, someone go see him and ask? Then we'll know with absolute 100% certainty. [[User:WaltG123|WaltG123]] ([[User talk:WaltG123|talk]]) 04:49, 25 November 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Adjective phrases ==<br />
<br />
Overwhelmed with the need to be picayune, I am compelled to point out that on the homepage there is the sentence that begins "There are a lot of comics that don't have set in stone explanations..." This sentence contains a adjective phrase which should be hyphenated thus: "set-in-stone"<br />
<br />
Please pretend that I have said something witty here, as I am too tired to think of anything funny. {{unsigned|Gamewriter}}<br />
:Is it actually grammatically wrong in it's current state? Huh. I guess I'll change it. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 20:42, 1 November 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Update MediaWiki ==<br />
<br />
You are currently using MediaWiki 1.19.17. It's ''really'' outdated. Maybe update to 1.26.2, the current recommended stable version? There is an [[mw:Manual:Upgrading|official guide]] for that. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.80.77|141.101.80.77]] 12:03, 24 January 2016 (UTC) (PS my IP address is wrong it's not what you think it is)<br />
<br />
== Rename Hair Bun Girl ==<br />
<br />
The character [[Hair Bun Girl]] was named in April 2015. There wasn't any discussion of the name at the time, so I'd like to open that discussion now please.<br />
<br />
At present we have several other characters named after distinctive visual features: [[Ponytail]], [[Black Hat]], [[White Hat]], [[Beret Guy]], and arguably [[Hairy]] and [[Cueball]]. In all but one of those cases, the name matches the distinctive feature itself, without the addition of "guy", "girl", etc. Given the number of comics that Beret Guy is in it's probably too late to modify his name, but it's not too late for Hair Bun Girl.<br />
<br />
Besides the consistency issue, there's also the inaccuracy of referring to a grown woman with the term "girl", particularly when the character has been presented as older than [[Megan]]. I'd really like to fix this while her number of appearances is still manageable.<br />
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The name "Hairbun" has been proposed and I think that matches really nicely with Ponytail in particular.<br />
<br />
[[User:Jkshapiro|Jkshapiro]] ([[User talk:Jkshapiro|talk]]) 04:23, 9 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:As the "guy" who created the Hair Bun Girl characther, I have no objection to changing the name. I did not think about the issue with girl/woman, probably because I'm not native English speaker. (And with the Beret Guy as an example). Jkshapiro was so kind as to [[User_talk:Kynde#Hair_Bun_.22Girl.22|ask my opinion]] before starting this discussion. At first I thought that ''Hairbun'' was a little weird, but then again so is Ponytail in this context. So I '''support''' the change to '''Hairbun'''! --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 13:06, 9 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
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I vote '''change''' Hair Bun to Hairbun and '''keep''' girl. [[User:Mikemk|Mikemk]] ([[User talk:Mikemk|talk]]) 21:02, 10 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
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== Mobile friendly website ==<br />
<br />
Can we get a mobile friendly version of the wiki? If we already have one, what about forwarding the main site to it when viewed on a phone? [[User:Mikemk|Mikemk]] ([[User talk:Mikemk|talk]]) 20:59, 10 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== New categories ==<br />
<br />
I think there may be a need to propose a standard way to decide on categories: what new ones are needed, what are the prerequisites for creating a new category, how to maintain new categories and make sure they are actually used when they apply etc. For now I have gathered all previous discussions about new categories under this section. -- [[User:Malgond|Malgond]] ([[User talk:Malgond|talk]]) 13:39, 17 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:I think that whenever there are more than 4-5 comics that you wish to refer to in a given explanation because they are of the same topic as the current comic, then having a category is much to prefer rather than listing 5, 6 or 7 comics. I have made several categories for these instances, for instance for sport including the most used sports. At the time being I keep them up to date. One of the things this site does so well is giving you an easy way to find a specific comic even though you cannot remember the title of any precise quotes etc. If you just have an idea of what the topic was you might find it based on the categories. In this way I do not think we can have too many categories. As long as they describe a recurring subject. Only fault is that there seems to be no way to search for a comic based on more than one category? That would be great. In some cases even only 3 comics in a category can make sense. For instance I would be sorry to see this one go [[:Category:Puts on sunglasses]] (and I did not make it!) --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 13:09, 19 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
::For instance I have long wished for categories that covered all the space probe related comics, particularly all those referencing the Mars rovers. So today I made them with 16 and 9 comics in them already. [[:Category:Space probes]] [[:Category:Mars rovers]]. I hope people will generally think this was a great idea! :-) --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 20:42, 20 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:::And [[:Category:The Lion King]]... --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 21:47, 1 March 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
=== Category: Protip ===<br />
<br />
Anyone for adding ''Protip'' as a [[:Category:Comic series|Comic series]]. I have found five so far: [[653]], [[711]], [[1022]], [[1047]] and [[1156]]. (There are also a few comics with a protip title text.) -- [[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 10:25, 4 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:I think that qualifies as a recurring topic (thus worthy of a category), but not as a series, where you can see a clear sequence. In fact, [[:Category:My Hobby|My Hobby]] has the same limitation, for what I suggest it to be removed from [[:Category:Comic series]]. --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 11:42, 4 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
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::Seconded. Looks general and common enough to be a category. '''[[User:Davidy22|<span title="I want you."><u><font color="purple" size="2px">David</font><font color="green" size="3px">y</font></u><sup><font color="indigo" size="1px">22</font></sup></span>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 14:57, 4 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:::Okay, great! Do you think that the ones with a "protip:" title text should be included? Besides, I think I might be the one responsiple for moving My Hobby from [[:Category:Comics by topic|Comics by topic]] to Comic series. I felt that all the My Hobby comics were about different topics, but maybe i've got to narrow an interpretation of the word "topic". -- [[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 15:31, 4 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:::: Can you link to the protip-in-title-text comics?<br />
:::: As for My Hobby, note that categories aren't mutually exclusive. They can be in the "my hobby" topic, and each of them further categorized as appropriate: music, math, etc. Makes sense? --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 03:45, 5 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::: I just searched for protip in the xkcd search bar. Here: [[1084]], [[427]]. And yes, makes sense. I've moved My Hobby back to "by topic". -- [[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 12:06, 5 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
=== Category: Sports ===<br />
<br />
How about creating a new "Sports" category? [[User:Ekedolphin|Ekedolphin]] ([[User talk:Ekedolphin|talk]]) 15:31, 28 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Well, maybe. Everyone aren't so keen on new categories here. Which comics are you thinking of, for a start? –[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 20:32, 28 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
::We definitely need to reach an agreement as a community on when to create new categories. Something simple like a minimum of 3 (or, say, 5) existing comics. Since we're already at the proposals' portal... what do you guys think about that? --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 21:44, 28 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::My opinion: Five would be enough to qualify. [[User:Ekedolphin|Ekedolphin]] ([[User talk:Ekedolphin|talk]]) 09:31, 29 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
::::I vote for four. But it should also be a reasonable thing to categorize, like sports, not like "sports with Cueball containing at least three anagram words". Wich sholdn't be a problem. :) But the best name choice could be tricky sometimes. e.g. "Film & television", Film & TV", "Film", "Films", or "Movies"? –[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 12:59, 29 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::<br />
::::Agreed, five should be enough to create the category without having to discuss it. - [[User:Cos|Cos]] ([[User talk:Cos|talk]]) 00:50, 26 February 2013 (UTC)<br />
: OK, let's start with [[588: Pep Rally|588]], [[1092: Michael Phelps|1092]], [[904: Sports|904]] and [[1107: Sports Cheat Sheet|1107]]. Should be able to find a few more. [[User:Ekedolphin|Ekedolphin]] ([[User talk:Ekedolphin|talk]]) 05:00, 29 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
::Yeah, it's a broad subject so there are probably several more. -[[User:St.nerol|St.nerol]] ([[User talk:St.nerol|talk]]) 12:59, 29 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
:::I found another one, sort of, in [[929:Speculation|929]] (although it hasn't been explained yet). Should I get the ball rolling (no pun intended) on setting up the category? Don't wanna do it unilaterally and get yelled at. ;) [[User:Ekedolphin|Ekedolphin]] ([[User talk:Ekedolphin|talk]]) 06:18, 30 January 2013 (UTC)<br />
::::I think you should. On a wiki, getting stuck in discussions which die without a conclusion, to the point that motivated people give up without having done anything, is definitely counter-productive, and phrases like [[wikipedia:Wikipedia:Be bold|Wikipedia:Be bold]] are here to remind us of that. Seems like people agreed that you ''could'', and after a while nobody said that you ''shouldn't'', so I'd say do it. - [[User:Cos|Cos]] ([[User talk:Cos|talk]]) 00:50, 26 February 2013 (UTC)<br />
:I did it without looking here first, because it was obvious there were many [[:Category:Sport|sport comics]]. I have even created four under categories (only one was there before, Chess). There are 10 comics at present that are related to other sports than the five under categories. And given the way Randall thinks about sport (not very much) he still has plenty of comics about the subject. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 07:33, 14 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
=== Category: Sex ===<br />
<br />
I think we should also create a Sex category. There's no ''doubt'' we can find more than three examples. I'll start looking for them and post the ones I find in here; again, I don't wanna create a large category by myself without community consent. [[User:Ekedolphin|Ekedolphin]] ([[User talk:Ekedolphin|talk]]) 09:20, 2 February 2013 (UTC)<br />
*OK, the ones for Category: Sex that I've found so far are [[443]], [[219]], [[550]], [[1026]], [[575]], [[468]], [[592]], [[320]], [[1101]], [[417]], [[713]], [[672]], [[230]], [[436]], [[940]], [[532]], [[649]], [[176]], [[1006]], [[596]] and [[717]], and I'm sure there are many more. Should we create this category? [[User:Ekedolphin|Ekedolphin]] ([[User talk:Ekedolphin|talk]]) 23:17, 3 February 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:Same as [[#Category: Sports|above]], do it. Oh, already did; well, all the better. - [[User:Cos|Cos]] ([[User talk:Cos|talk]]) 00:53, 26 February 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
=== Category: Flowcharts ===<br />
<br />
Hello, the line "Randall has made use of flowcharts before." in today's comic explanation made me want a [[:Category:Flowcharts|flowcharts category]] to navigate into...<br />
<br />
As it didn't exist, I proceeded to create it, but as the log says, [[User:lcarsos|lcarsos]] deleted such a category in November, saying ''"Insufficient differentiation from Category:Comics with charts, diluting the depth of comics tagged charts"''.<br />
<br />
I don't agree with that, and I think we could profit from such a subcategory. I found those pages fitting it:<br />
* [[94: Profile Creation Flowchart]]<br />
* [[210: 90's Flowchart]]<br />
* [[488: Steal This Comic]]<br />
* [[627: Tech Support Cheat Sheet]]<br />
* [[844: Good Code]]<br />
* [[851: Na]]<br />
* [[854: Learning to Cook]]<br />
* [[1195: Flowchart]]<br />
<br />
So? - [[User:Cos|Cos]] ([[User talk:Cos|talk]]) 10:59, 5 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Weell if you're willing to take charge of the category and personally make sure it's added to all relevant comic explanations, go ahead. The usual objection to making new categories is that we admins can't remember all the categories when we're reviewing new explanations, but it's K if you're willing to take up that responsibility yourself. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 11:17, 5 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
:<br />
:: OK. I did it without waiting for further replies, because I think it will be especially profitable today (to viewers).<br />
:: It doesn't seem a big issue to me if the correct category is not added when a new explanation is made: a passing editor will do it later on... But hey, I'm OK with taking special care of adding pages to this category.<br />
:: [[User:Cos|Cos]] ([[User talk:Cos|talk]]) 12:28, 5 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
::: I just want to add that Cos' view is indeed the appropriate way to work in wikis: there is no concept of a single author for a page, category, or piece of text, and the workload is meant to be distributed among several editors: it is not necessary that any single editor remembers all existing categories, or knows the wiki markup by heart, or knows how to work with all the features of mediawiki, etc. The reason why wikis can be edited by anyone is precisely a recognition that there *will* be errors and any page can be improved somehow. That reasoning against categories should, IMO, be abandoned, or at most only kept as the opinion of some editors. --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 22:00, 6 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Isnt there a page which lists all the categories? If not, there should be one, and it should be accessible to all. Such a page could be useful when trying to quick-add categories to comics. [[Special:Contributions/117.194.83.155|117.194.83.155]] 13:43, 24 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Yes, there is. [[Special:Categories]]. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 14:07, 24 April 2013 (UTC)<br />
::Of course, there's a gazillion of 'em, over several pages, so I understand any reluctance to add new categories (having just suggested a new one myself which I feel is justified, but knowing that the upkeep needed may be the key point of contention so remaining philosophical about it).<br />
::A solution perhaps to carry over from another locale that I frequent is to have a "Categories of Character" page, a "Categories of Object" one, perhaps "Categories of Event", and a "Categories of Publication". For each new comic someone can easily check the shorter Character categories list against those present, the Object list against itemsin use, Events, etc, and of course the Publication one has the "Tuesday Comic"/equivalent, and other date-based ones (although isn't that automatic from templated creation? ...never added a comic, but would imagine it is). After that it's a trawl through the miscelania categories (perhaps a meta-category just for them?). But, yeah, a lot of work to set up. Wouldn't wish it on anyone who wasn't already willing to do it, and I remain an anon-IP person right now so can hardly commit ''myself'' as volunteer maintainer of this. [[Special:Contributions/178.98.31.27|178.98.31.27]] 17:20, 22 June 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
=== Category: (Barred/banned from?) Conferences ===<br />
<br />
I come here after realising I erroneously posted (in reply) to the Main page Talk, being anonymous (or at least IP-only) and without a list of qualifying articles to support me, just yet, but still wish to put forward the above category before I forget. There's no apparent equivalent, that I found, but it's definitely a recurring meme. I should be back (named or otherwise) with my suggested list of members, if someone else doesn't get there first, but I thought I'd start with the placemarker. [[Special:Contributions/178.98.31.27|178.98.31.27]] 16:41, 22 June 2013 (UTC)<br />
:Ok, so I got the bee in my bonnet and spent a few minutes actually looking into this. Revising "Barred from Conferences" (actually more often "Banned" or even "Thrown out of"/equivalent) to just "Conferences", the subset of comics that I can easily find that are involved is *[[153]], *[[177]], *[[365]], *[[410]], *[[463]], *[[541]], [[545]], [[685]], [[829]] and [[867]], but I'm sure there are more recent ones that I didn't spot/recall. One alternative title to "Conferences" is "Presentations", and I'm sure if I'd searched for that I'd have found more potential candidates (less some that might ''exit'' the renamed category). The asterisked ones ''do'' deal with being barred/banned/thrown out/etc, making it still a suitable category in its own right, IMO, but I'll leave it up to your combined musings to decide. [[Special:Contributions/178.98.31.27|178.98.31.27]] 17:07, 22 June 2013 (UTC)<br />
::I add [[690]] to the list. --[[User:Chtz|Chtz]] ([[User talk:Chtz|talk]]) 08:12, 13 September 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
::: Great suggestions! I created [[:Category:Public speaking]] and [[:Category:Banned from conferences]]. I also added [[Wikipedian Protester]] to the mix, of course :) --[[User:Waldir|Waldir]] ([[User talk:Waldir|talk]]) 21:59, 13 November 2013 (UTC)<br />
<br />
=== Category: Wishes ===<br />
<br />
[http://explainxkcd.com/1391/ Several] [http://explainxkcd.com/1086/ comics] [http://explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/152:_Hamster_Ball now] [http://xkcd.com/879/ exist] that talk about wishes - probably more. Should there be a category for this? [[User:Z|Z]] ([[User talk:Z|talk]]) 23:22, 7 July 2014 (UTC)<br />
:Doesn't seem significant enough. If you promise to maintain the category you can make it yourself, although it will be cleared out if it gets neglected as new comics are released. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 15:20, 8 July 2014 (UTC)<br />
<br />
=== Category: Artificial Intelligence ===<br />
<br />
Hello world.<br />
<br />
There are a handful of comics involving Ai - [[1540]], [[1530]], [[1450]] and [[948]] for instance - and maybe it's an idea to give them their own category {{unsigned|Nk22}}<br />
<br />
:The usual objection to new categories is that they get abandoned and are too narrow for other people to think of picking them up. If you're going to own it and update it with new comics, you can make it. '''[[User:Davidy22|<u>{{Color|#707|David}}<font color=#070 size=3>y</font></u><font color=#508 size=4>²²</font>]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 21:01, 23 June 2015 (UTC)<br />
<br />
=== Category: Size Comparisons ===<br />
There are numerous comics comparing sizes of things. I can't get a list right now, but off the top of my head, radiation dosages, money, today's comic, and space shuttles in horses. [[User:Mikemk|Mikemk]] ([[User talk:Mikemk|talk]]) 19:23, 29 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
== Adding Ratings for Explanations ==<br />
<br />
I found [[http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/1652 today's explanation]] excellently written however that is not always the case. Frequently explanations are walk through of the conversation that are too wordy without any succinct explanation of why or how a strip is funny -- while many of those low quality explanations are not strictly "incomplete" they could benefit from a careful rewrite. I was wondering if we should add a rating tool such as " ''Was this explanation helpful? yes/no'' " so as to identify explanation that could benefit from improvement without having to be tagged as "incomplete". [[User:Spongebog|Spongebog]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 17:57, 8 March 2016 (UTC)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=269:_TCMP&diff=113925269: TCMP2016-03-04T11:32:37Z<p>Spongebog: /* Explanation */</p>
<hr />
<div>{{comic<br />
| number = 269<br />
| date = May 28, 2007<br />
| title = TCMP<br />
| image = tcmp.png<br />
| titletext = A big obstacle in experimenting with the mind's dream-simulation-engine is holding onto the details as you wake up. With TCMP you can bring back any information you want.<br />
}}<br />
<br />
==Explanation==<br />
<br />
{{Incomplete| Missing cultural explanation of of "first post" and trolling}}<br />
<br />
[[Cueball]] trained himself to type while asleep, so he could communicate from inside his dreams. He calls this ''Trans-Consciousness Messaging Protocol'', or '''TCMP'''. <br />
<br />
He succeeds in using this system to send a message from inside his dream, but his friends, [[Megan]] and another Cueball-like guy, are disappointed when that first message is a {{w|troll (Internet)|trollish}} "F1rst p0st!!", instead of something constructive. See also [[1019: First Post]] and [[1258: First]] and regarding trolling [[493: Actuarial]].<br />
<br />
"Bell & Watson" refers to {{w|Alexander Graham Bell}} and his assistant {{w|Thomas A. Watson}}. Bell is traditionally credited with inventing the {{w|telephone}} because he was awarded the patent for it although {{w|Elisha Gray and Alexander Bell telephone controversy|that is still controversial}}. His first phone call was to Watson in another part of their lab.<br />
<br />
The title text explains how this protocol, if real, would be of great value in dream research since you then would not have to worry about forgetting the dreams after waking up like as in [[430: Every Damn Morning]]. You can relay the dreams as you experience them.<br />
<br />
However, in order for this to work the dream has to be {{w|Lucid dream|lucid}}, where the dreamer is aware that he or she is dreaming. This type of dream is very facinating to [[Randall]] as mentioned in the title text of [[203: Hallucinations]]. But thus this could never work for normal dreams. And lucid dreams are probably easier to remember anyway.<br />
<br />
==Transcript==<br />
:[Cueball stand with a keyboard next to a bed. The keyboard is connected to a computer to the right. He talks to Megan and a Cueball-like friend.]<br />
:Cueball: Hey, help me test the Trans-Consciousness Messaging Protocol.<br />
:Friend: What's that?<br />
:Cueball: I've been training myself to keep my fingers moving slightly as I fall asleep. So I can type from inside dreams.<br />
<br />
:[Cueball sits with the keyboard on the bed.]<br />
:Cueball: I'm going to sleep now. My computer will relay my messages to you as I explore the dream world.<br />
<br />
:[Cueball stand with the keyboard in a forrest with tall trees. The leaves are not visdible, they are above the top of the drawing. At the top there is a frame with text:]<br />
:In the dream:<br />
:Cueball (thinking): So strange to think none of this is real. <br />
:Cueball (thinking): And yet I have this lifeline to the internet back home.<br />
<br />
:[Cueball places the keyboard on a stone, bends down and types.]<br />
:Cueball (thinking): A chance to speak from one reality to another. <br />
:Cueball (thinking): I feel like Bell & Watson. I get to write the inaugural TCMP message. <br />
:Cueball (thinking): Let's see...<br />
:Keyboard: *Type type type*<br />
<br />
:[Megan at the computer and the Cueball-like friend behind her looks at his message from the dream. At the top there is a frame with text:]<br />
:Outside:<br />
:Megan: "F1rst P0st!!"?<br />
:Friend: Great. He's jumped straight to trans-reality trolling.<br />
<br />
{{comic discussion}}<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]<br />
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]<br />
[[Category:Multiple Cueballs]]<br />
[[Category:Dreams]]</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1643:_Degrees&diff=112013Talk:1643: Degrees2016-02-16T02:18:36Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
<hr />
<div>Rankine is a good compromise. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.56.65|173.245.56.65]] 14:11, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
0.173 rad = 10°. Now it could be 10°C (50°F) or 10°F (-12°C).--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.228.113|108.162.228.113]] 14:14, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
It should probably be noted that since 0.173 radians is equal to around 9.91 degrees, the temperature that Cueball gave is likely in 'radians Celsius', since 9.91 degrees Farenheit would be an unlikely temperature to occur, unless they're somewhere like Canada or northern Russia --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.152.59|162.158.152.59]] 14:17, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:It would appear that that's already been noted since I started writing that comment. Ignore me. --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.152.59|162.158.152.59]] 14:18, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
::It would appear you're not in New England. Temperature last night -14°F = -26°C = -0.244 rad F = -0.556 rad C. But others have noted this as well. [[User:Bob Stein - VisiBone|Bob Stein - VisiBone]] ([[User talk:Bob Stein - VisiBone|talk]]) 23:41, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Guys, we moved away from the Réaumur-scale: You can do the same for the Fahrenheit :-). --[[User:DaB.|DaB.]] ([[User talk:DaB.|talk]]) 14:20, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
: And we all moved away from the Rømer scale (what Reumer and Fahrenheit were both based on), 0F is 0Rø, 100C/80Reu is 80Rø). We even moved from the 100C-0C to 0C-100C since Celsius was a (half) crazy Swedish scientist who thought Reumer made sense if it was based on 100 instead of 80, and 100 was the freezing point (everybody ignores the second part of his scale).[[Special:Contributions/162.158.114.222|162.158.114.222]] 17:07, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:: {{w|Ole_Rømer|Rømer}} was {{w|Danish}} -- Calling him Sweedish is an insult -- kind if the same insult as calling Cruz Canadian [[User:Spongebog|Spongebog]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 17:14, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:::Then it was great that it was Celsius who was called a ''crazy Swedish scientist'' above, (and he was Swedish). Rømer is luckily more known for making the first quantitative measurements of the speed of light and not for his failed temperature scale. (I'm from Denmark and like the light part: He measured the hesitation of light ;-) --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 21:31, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Considering how cold New England is today, I'm pretty sure it's Fahrenheit. {{unsigned ip|108.162.218.71}}<br />
<br />
Temperature is given in F. Look at which month it is. And how this is a darn cold winter (at least in Canada). [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.43|108.162.216.43]] 14:32, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
: its currently 10F in the Boston area where Randall lives.<br />
:: For people from the future, see [https://www.wunderground.com/history/airport/KBOS/2016/2/15/DailyHistory.html?req_city=Somerville&req_state=MA&reqdb.zip=02143&reqdb.magic=1&reqdb.wmo=99999 this historical data page for the day the comic was released] --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.214.59|108.162.214.59]] 19:00, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
What's with the "We lost a Mars probe over this" remark? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.104.113|141.101.104.113]] 14:33, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
: One of the Mars probes crashed into Mars because one of the NASA contractors was using US Customary units instead of SI units. [[User:Blaisepascal|Blaisepascal]] ([[User talk:Blaisepascal|talk]]) 14:39, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:: Is there a reference for this ?? [[User:Spongebog|Spongebog]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 17:17, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
::: It was the Mars Climate Orbiter, it crashed in 1999 because software supplied by Lockheed Martin produced results in US customary units even though the specs called for metrics units. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars_Climate_Orbiter [[User:Martin|Martin]] ([[User talk:Martin|talk]]) 22:04, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:The mars probe remark is in reference to a mistake in switching navigational numbers from American standard to metric (namely in that they didn't) which caused the probe to slam into the surface of mars. If I remember correctly that is.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.78|108.162.238.78]] 14:43, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I used to think that physicists prefer Kelvin, which is of course sort of based on Celsius. [[User:Jkrstrt|Jkrstrt]] ([[User talk:Jkrstrt|talk]]) 15:28, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
If he used Radians Fahrenheit, then 1 would be very close to earth's historical mean temperature for the period 1951 to 1980. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.55.64|173.245.55.64]] 16:19, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
: That sounds like it could almost be useful.... What is the temperature on the surface on the sun in Radians ? [[User:Spongebog|Spongebog]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 17:20, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:: 96.08 [https://www.google.com/search?q=5505+degrees+in+radians radians] [https://www.google.com/search?q=temperature+of+surface+of+sun+in+degrees+Celsius Celsius], or 173.5 [https://www.google.com/search?q=9941+degrees+in+radians radians] [https://www.google.com/search?q=temperature+of+surface+of+sun+in+degrees+Fahrenheit Fahrenheit]. --[[Special:Contributions/108.162.214.59|108.162.214.59]] 19:00, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
"Easier to spell"? When editing, I had to correct myself from "Celcius" to "Celsius". I never get Fahrenheit wrong! [[User:Cosmogoblin|Cosmogoblin]] ([[User talk:Cosmogoblin|talk]]) 20:55, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
Can someone explain to me why Fahrenheit's scale is so much more popular across the Atlantic than in his home <s>city</s> <s>country</s> continent? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.102.219|162.158.102.219]] 21:37, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:Same reason that the British used it. It was there. Unlike the Brits the US just never got around to change it [[User:Spongebog|Spongebog]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 02:18, 16 February 2016 (UTC)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1643:_Degrees&diff=111840Talk:1643: Degrees2016-02-15T17:27:03Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
<hr />
<div>Rankine is a good compromise. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.56.65|173.245.56.65]] 14:11, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
0.173 rad = 10°. Now it could be 10°C (50°F) or 10°F (-12°C).--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.228.113|108.162.228.113]] 14:14, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
It should probably be noted that since 0.173 radians is equal to around 9.91 degrees, the temperature that Cueball gave is likely in 'radians Celsius', since 9.91 degrees Farenheit would be an unlikely temperature to occur, unless they're somewhere like Canada or northern Russia --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.152.59|162.158.152.59]] 14:17, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:It would appear that that's already been noted since I started writing that comment. Ignore me. --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.152.59|162.158.152.59]] 14:18, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Guys, we moved away from the Réaumur-scale: You can do the same for the Fahrenheit :-). --[[User:DaB.|DaB.]] ([[User talk:DaB.|talk]]) 14:20, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
: And we all moved away from the Rømer scale (what Reumer and Fahrenheit were both based on), 0F is 0Rø, 100C/80Reu is 80Rø). We even moved from the 100C-0C to 0C-100C since Celsius was a (half) crazy Swedish scientist who thought Reumer made sense if it was based on 100 instead of 80, and 100 was the freezing point (everybody ignores the second part of his scale).[[Special:Contributions/162.158.114.222|162.158.114.222]] 17:07, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:: {{w|Ole_Rømer|Rømer}} was {{w|Danish}} -- Calling him Sweedish is an insult -- kind if the same insult as calling Cruz Canadian [[User:Spongebog|Spongebog]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 17:14, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
Considering how cold New England is today, I'm pretty sure it's Fahrenheit. {{unsigned ip|108.162.218.71}}<br />
<br />
Temperature is given in F. Look at which month it is. And how this is a darn cold winter (at least in Canada). [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.43|108.162.216.43]] 14:32, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
: its currently 10F in the Boston area where Randall lives.<br />
<br />
<br />
What's with the "We lost a Mars probe over this" remark? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.104.113|141.101.104.113]] 14:33, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
: One of the Mars probes crashed into Mars because one of the NASA contractors{{Citation needed}} was using US Customary units instead of SI units. [[User:Blaisepascal|Blaisepascal]] ([[User talk:Blaisepascal|talk]]) 14:39, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:: Is there a reference for this ?? [[User:Spongebog|Spongebog]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 17:17, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:The mars probe remark is in reference to a mistake in switching navigational numbers from American standard to metric (namely in that they didn't) which caused the probe to slam into the surface of mars. If I remember correctly that is.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.78|108.162.238.78]] 14:43, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I used to think that physicists prefer Kelvin, which is of course sort of based on Celsius. [[User:Jkrstrt|Jkrstrt]] ([[User talk:Jkrstrt|talk]]) 15:28, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
If he used Radians Fahrenheit, then 1 would be very close to earth's historical mean temperature for the period 1951 to 1980. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.55.64|173.245.55.64]] 16:19, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
: That sounds like it could almost be useful.... What is the temperature on the surface on the sun in Radians ? [[User:Spongebog|Spongebog]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 17:20, 15 February 2016 (UTC)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1643:_Degrees&diff=111838Talk:1643: Degrees2016-02-15T17:22:08Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
<hr />
<div>Rankine is a good compromise. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.56.65|173.245.56.65]] 14:11, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
0.173 rad = 10°. Now it could be 10°C (50°F) or 10°F (-12°C).--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.228.113|108.162.228.113]] 14:14, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
It should probably be noted that since 0.173 radians is equal to around 9.91 degrees, the temperature that Cueball gave is likely in 'radians Celsius', since 9.91 degrees Farenheit would be an unlikely temperature to occur, unless they're somewhere like Canada or northern Russia --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.152.59|162.158.152.59]] 14:17, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:It would appear that that's already been noted since I started writing that comment. Ignore me. --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.152.59|162.158.152.59]] 14:18, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Guys, we moved away from the Réaumur-scale: You can do the same for the Fahrenheit :-). --[[User:DaB.|DaB.]] ([[User talk:DaB.|talk]]) 14:20, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
: And we all moved away from the Rømer scale (what Reumer and Fahrenheit were both based on), 0F is 0Rø, 100C/80Reu is 80Rø). We even moved from the 100C-0C to 0C-100C since Celsius was a (half) crazy Swedish scientist who thought Reumer made sense if it was based on 100 instead of 80, and 100 was the freezing point (everybody ignores the second part of his scale).[[Special:Contributions/162.158.114.222|162.158.114.222]] 17:07, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:: {{w|Rømer_scale|Rømer}} was {{w|Danish}} -- Calling him Sweedish is an insult -- kind if the same insult as calling Cruz Canadian [[User:Spongebog|Spongebog]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 17:14, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
Considering how cold New England is today, I'm pretty sure it's Fahrenheit. {{unsigned ip|108.162.218.71}}<br />
<br />
Temperature is given in F. Look at which month it is. And how this is a darn cold winter (at least in Canada). [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.43|108.162.216.43]] 14:32, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
: its currently 10F in the Boston area where Randall lives.<br />
<br />
<br />
What's with the "We lost a Mars probe over this" remark? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.104.113|141.101.104.113]] 14:33, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
: One of the Mars probes crashed into Mars because one of the NASA contractors{{Citation needed}} was using US Customary units instead of SI units. [[User:Blaisepascal|Blaisepascal]] ([[User talk:Blaisepascal|talk]]) 14:39, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:: Is there a reference for this ?? [[User:Spongebog|Spongebog]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 17:17, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
:The mars probe remark is in reference to a mistake in switching navigational numbers from American standard to metric (namely in that they didn't) which caused the probe to slam into the surface of mars. If I remember correctly that is.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.78|108.162.238.78]] 14:43, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I used to think that physicists prefer Kelvin, which is of course sort of based on Celsius. [[User:Jkrstrt|Jkrstrt]] ([[User talk:Jkrstrt|talk]]) 15:28, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
If he used Radians Fahrenheit, then 1 would be very close to earth's historical mean temperature for the period 1951 to 1980. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.55.64|173.245.55.64]] 16:19, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
: That sounds like it could almost be useful.... What is the temperature on the surface on the sun in Radians ? [[User:Spongebog|Spongebog]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 17:20, 15 February 2016 (UTC)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1643:_Degrees&diff=111837Talk:1643: Degrees2016-02-15T17:20:44Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
<hr />
<div>Rankine is a good compromise. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.56.65|173.245.56.65]] 14:11, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
0.173 rad = 10°. Now it could be 10°C (50°F) or 10°F (-12°C).--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.228.113|108.162.228.113]] 14:14, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
It should probably be noted that since 0.173 radians is equal to around 9.91 degrees, the temperature that Cueball gave is likely in 'radians Celsius', since 9.91 degrees Farenheit would be an unlikely temperature to occur, unless they're somewhere like Canada or northern Russia --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.152.59|162.158.152.59]] 14:17, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:It would appear that that's already been noted since I started writing that comment. Ignore me. --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.152.59|162.158.152.59]] 14:18, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Guys, we moved away from the Réaumur-scale: You can do the same for the Fahrenheit :-). --[[User:DaB.|DaB.]] ([[User talk:DaB.|talk]]) 14:20, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
: And we all moved away from the Rømer scale (what Reumer and Fahrenheit were both based on), 0F is 0Rø, 100C/80Reu is 80Rø). We even moved from the 100C-0C to 0C-100C since Celsius was a (half) crazy Swedish scientist who thought Reumer made sense if it was based on 100 instead of 80, and 100 was the freezing point (everybody ignores the second part of his scale).[[Special:Contributions/162.158.114.222|162.158.114.222]] 17:07, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:: {{w|Rømer_scale|Rømer}} was {{w|Danish}} -- Calling him Sweedish is an insult -- kind if the same insult as calling Cruz Canadian [[User:Spongebog|Spongebog]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 17:14, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
Considering how cold New England is today, I'm pretty sure it's Fahrenheit. {{unsigned ip|108.162.218.71}}<br />
<br />
Temperature is given in F. Look at which month it is. And how this is a darn cold winter (at least in Canada). [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.43|108.162.216.43]] 14:32, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
What's with the "We lost a Mars probe over this" remark? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.104.113|141.101.104.113]] 14:33, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
: One of the Mars probes crashed into Mars because one of the NASA contractors{{Citation needed}} was using US Customary units instead of SI units. [[User:Blaisepascal|Blaisepascal]] ([[User talk:Blaisepascal|talk]]) 14:39, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:: Is there a reference for this ?? [[User:Spongebog|Spongebog]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 17:17, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
its currently 10F in the Boston area where Randall lives.<br />
<br />
The mars probe remark is in reference to a mistake in switching navigational numbers from American standard to metric (namely in that they didn't) which caused the probe to slam into the surface of mars. If I remember correctly that is.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.78|108.162.238.78]] 14:43, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I used to think that physicists prefer Kelvin, which is of course sort of based on Celsius. [[User:Jkrstrt|Jkrstrt]] ([[User talk:Jkrstrt|talk]]) 15:28, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
If he used Radians Fahrenheit, then 1 would be very close to earth's historical mean temperature for the period 1951 to 1980. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.55.64|173.245.55.64]] 16:19, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
: That sounds like it could almost be useful.... What is the temperature on the surface on the sun in Radians ? [[User:Spongebog|Spongebog]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 17:20, 15 February 2016 (UTC)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1643:_Degrees&diff=111836Talk:1643: Degrees2016-02-15T17:17:28Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
<hr />
<div>Rankine is a good compromise. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.56.65|173.245.56.65]] 14:11, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
0.173 rad = 10°. Now it could be 10°C (50°F) or 10°F (-12°C).--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.228.113|108.162.228.113]] 14:14, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
It should probably be noted that since 0.173 radians is equal to around 9.91 degrees, the temperature that Cueball gave is likely in 'radians Celsius', since 9.91 degrees Farenheit would be an unlikely temperature to occur, unless they're somewhere like Canada or northern Russia --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.152.59|162.158.152.59]] 14:17, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:It would appear that that's already been noted since I started writing that comment. Ignore me. --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.152.59|162.158.152.59]] 14:18, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Guys, we moved away from the Réaumur-scale: You can do the same for the Fahrenheit :-). --[[User:DaB.|DaB.]] ([[User talk:DaB.|talk]]) 14:20, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
: And we all moved away from the Rømer scale (what Reumer and Fahrenheit were both based on), 0F is 0Rø, 100C/80Reu is 80Rø). We even moved from the 100C-0C to 0C-100C since Celsius was a (half) crazy Swedish scientist who thought Reumer made sense if it was based on 100 instead of 80, and 100 was the freezing point (everybody ignores the second part of his scale).[[Special:Contributions/162.158.114.222|162.158.114.222]] 17:07, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:: {{w|Rømer_scale|Rømer}} was {{w|Danish}} -- Calling him Sweedish is an insult -- kind if the same insult as calling Cruz Canadian [[User:Spongebog|Spongebog]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 17:14, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
Considering how cold New England is today, I'm pretty sure it's Fahrenheit. {{unsigned ip|108.162.218.71}}<br />
<br />
Temperature is given in F. Look at which month it is. And how this is a darn cold winter (at least in Canada). [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.43|108.162.216.43]] 14:32, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
What's with the "We lost a Mars probe over this" remark? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.104.113|141.101.104.113]] 14:33, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
: One of the Mars probes crashed into Mars because one of the NASA contractors{{Citation needed}} was using US Customary units instead of SI units. [[User:Blaisepascal|Blaisepascal]] ([[User talk:Blaisepascal|talk]]) 14:39, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:: Is there a reference for this ?? [[User:Spongebog|Spongebog]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 17:17, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
its currently 10F in the Boston area where Randall lives.<br />
<br />
The mars probe remark is in reference to a mistake in switching navigational numbers from American standard to metric (namely in that they didn't) which caused the probe to slam into the surface of mars. If I remember correctly that is.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.78|108.162.238.78]] 14:43, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I used to think that physicists prefer Kelvin, which is of course sort of based on Celsius. [[User:Jkrstrt|Jkrstrt]] ([[User talk:Jkrstrt|talk]]) 15:28, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
If he used Radians Fahrenheit, then 1 would be very close to earth's historical mean temperature for the period 1951 to 1980. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.55.64|173.245.55.64]] 16:19, 15 February 2016 (UTC)</div>Spongeboghttps://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=Talk:1643:_Degrees&diff=111835Talk:1643: Degrees2016-02-15T17:14:13Z<p>Spongebog: </p>
<hr />
<div>Rankine is a good compromise. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.56.65|173.245.56.65]] 14:11, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
0.173 rad = 10°. Now it could be 10°C (50°F) or 10°F (-12°C).--[[Special:Contributions/108.162.228.113|108.162.228.113]] 14:14, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
It should probably be noted that since 0.173 radians is equal to around 9.91 degrees, the temperature that Cueball gave is likely in 'radians Celsius', since 9.91 degrees Farenheit would be an unlikely temperature to occur, unless they're somewhere like Canada or northern Russia --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.152.59|162.158.152.59]] 14:17, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:It would appear that that's already been noted since I started writing that comment. Ignore me. --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.152.59|162.158.152.59]] 14:18, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
Guys, we moved away from the Réaumur-scale: You can do the same for the Fahrenheit :-). --[[User:DaB.|DaB.]] ([[User talk:DaB.|talk]]) 14:20, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
: And we all moved away from the Rømer scale (what Reumer and Fahrenheit were both based on), 0F is 0Rø, 100C/80Reu is 80Rø). We even moved from the 100C-0C to 0C-100C since Celsius was a (half) crazy Swedish scientist who thought Reumer made sense if it was based on 100 instead of 80, and 100 was the freezing point (everybody ignores the second part of his scale).[[Special:Contributions/162.158.114.222|162.158.114.222]] 17:07, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
:: {{w|Rømer_scale|Rømer}} was {{w|Danish}} -- Calling him Sweedish is an insult -- kind if the same insult as calling Cruz Canadian [[User:Spongebog|Spongebog]] ([[User talk:Spongebog|talk]]) 17:14, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
<br />
Considering how cold New England is today, I'm pretty sure it's Fahrenheit. {{unsigned ip|108.162.218.71}}<br />
<br />
Temperature is given in F. Look at which month it is. And how this is a darn cold winter (at least in Canada). [[Special:Contributions/108.162.216.43|108.162.216.43]] 14:32, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
What's with the "We lost a Mars probe over this" remark? [[Special:Contributions/141.101.104.113|141.101.104.113]] 14:33, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
: One of the Mars probes crashed into Mars because one of the NASA contractors was using US Customary units instead of SI units. [[User:Blaisepascal|Blaisepascal]] ([[User talk:Blaisepascal|talk]]) 14:39, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
its currently 10F in the Boston area where Randall lives.<br />
<br />
The mars probe remark is in reference to a mistake in switching navigational numbers from American standard to metric (namely in that they didn't) which caused the probe to slam into the surface of mars. If I remember correctly that is.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.78|108.162.238.78]] 14:43, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
I used to think that physicists prefer Kelvin, which is of course sort of based on Celsius. [[User:Jkrstrt|Jkrstrt]] ([[User talk:Jkrstrt|talk]]) 15:28, 15 February 2016 (UTC)<br />
<br />
If he used Radians Fahrenheit, then 1 would be very close to earth's historical mean temperature for the period 1951 to 1980. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.55.64|173.245.55.64]] 16:19, 15 February 2016 (UTC)</div>Spongebog