908: The Cloud

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The Cloud

Title text: There's planned downtime every night when we turn on the Roomba and it runs over the cord.

This explanation may be incomplete or incorrect: no explanation of unusual dialog in the last panel If you can address this issue, please edit the page! Thanks.

Explanation

This comic is a reference to all of the companies that rolled out "cloud" services like Google's and Amazon's music service and Apple's aptly named iCloud online backup service around the time that the comic was released.

Also, in this comic is a reference to caching and the Roomba. Caching is the way that remote sites would locally store data from the "The Cloud" to prevent from putting too much pressure on Black Hat's non-Enterprise class cable modem. The Roomba is a round vacuum that runs automatically around the house. The Roomba begins to learn the dimensions of rooms, however, apparently it has never learned not to run over the cord.

The regular nightly downtime is a reference to an urban legend in which some critical piece of equipment (often a server) is unplugged regularly so that a vacuum cleaner or similar janitorial tool can be temporarily plugged in. Although the Roomba vacuum does not require this computer's outlet, "running over the cord" apparently causes similar interruption in service.

This comic is reminiscent of the British sitcom "The IT Crowd" in which they showcase a box that they make the rest of their non-Tech coworkers believe is "The Internet".

Transcript

[Cueball finds a computer tower with a wire leading away from it.]

Cueball: What's this?

Off-screen: The Cloud.

[Cueball looks behind him. The wire leads to an outlet in the wall next to where Black Hat sits at a desk with a computer. Another wire leads from that outlet to Black Hat's computer.]

Cueball: Huh? I always thought "The Cloud" was a huge, amorphous network of servers somewhere.

Black Hat: Yeah, but everyone buys server time from everyone else. In the end, they're all getting it here.

[A close-up of Black Hat.]

Cueball: How? You're on a cable modem.

Black Hat: There's a lot of caching.

[A close-up of Cueball, looking down at the tower at his feet.]

Cueball: Should the cord be stretched across the room like this?

Black Hat: Of course. It has to reach the server, and the server is over there.

[Cueball turns back to the Black Hat, still sitting at the computer.]

Cueball: What if someone trips on it?

Black Hat: Who would want to do that? It sounds unpleasant.

Cueball: Uh. Sometimes people do stuff by accident.

Black Hat: I don't think I know anybody like that.

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Discussion

iCloud is not a music service. It was released (around?) the same time as iTunes Match, which is Apple's online music service. iCloud replaced MobileMe as Apple's online data storage and email service (and Calendar, Notes, Contacts, and Reminders). Also, it provides access to Find My iPhone. 75.69.96.225 21:41, 4 March 2013 (UTC)

And just by the way, it was the original name of cloudme.com before Apple evidently acquired the rights from them. --79.222.27.115 22:57, 31 August 2013 (UTC)

Could this also be a reference to rose petals? (#1183)--Mralext20 (talk) 01:00, 8 December 2013 (UTC)

I doubt it considering that's 1183, and this is 908.108.162.221.45 00:15, 20 March 2014 (UTC)

I think BlackHat is being logical (Spock-like, if you will) - he really doesn't consider the "trip hazard" (to passersby or to the cloud services or their users). Also I don't think cable modem is meant to have an italicised 'cable' - that emphasis is wrong. 141.101.98.46 00:39, 14 February 2014 (UTC)randomstranger

Also, the server is far, far too small to fit all of the cloud. 108.162.250.161 08:53, 26 April 2016 (UTC)

I don't think BlackHat is being sadistic. I think this is meant to show the blithe ignorance or unfailing optimism of users' faith in "the Cloud", which takes on almost mythic proportions of invincibility/data integrity in many conversations. 162.158.22.172 03:31, 4 November 2016 (UTC)CodeCharming