Editing 1502: Wasted Time

{{comic
| number    = 1502
| date      = March 23, 2015
| title     = Wasted Time
| image     = wasted time.png
| titletext = Since it sounds like your time spent typing can't possibly be less productive than your time spent not typing, have you tried typing SLOWER?
}}

==Explanation==
In this comic, [[White Hat]] is pointing out to [[Cueball]] that his obsession with efficiency is inconsistent, something that is likely true of many people who claim to prize efficiency.

Here, Cueball raves about his new mobile keyboard which allows him to type 30% faster than his old keyboard. He notes that people (presumably himself particularly) do a lot of mobile typing, and a 30% reduction in the time that takes would allow more time for other activities.

White Hat, on the other hand, mocks Cueball for caring so much about mobile typing speed, suggesting that this may not be the first time Cueball has obsessed over minor improvements in efficiency. White Hat also notes that he's just seen Cueball open and close [http://news.google.com Google News] five times without reading anything, providing an example of how Cueball's other actions do not embody the same commitment to efficiency that he claims to have.

Cueball defends himself by saying that, since he wastes so much time, it's that much more important to improve efficiency in his life to make more time for important matters. The title text (presumably White Hat's reply) counters this defense by suggesting that Cueball may be better off using a ''slower'' keyboard, so that he will have ''less'' time to waste on stupid activities. This type of argument may be an example of a {{w|logical fallacy}} argument which suggests, perhaps incorrectly, that Cueball should spend less time doing stupid things to the extent that he spends longer doing things he already does.

Interestingly, in this comic, White Hat appears as the voice of reason to Cueball, an inversion of their typical dynamic (see for instance [[1386: People are Stupid]] and [[1459: Documents]]). The role-reversal may be an acknowledgment that while Cueball may often make a fool of White Hat, he's far from perfect himself.

[[Randall]]'s misadventures in {{w|time management}} are a recurring topic (see [[874: Time Management]] and the [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/Category:Time_management Time management category]).

Mobile keyboard efficiency was previously tangentially referenced in [[1068: Swiftkey]], and Randall's habit of opening news sites only to quickly get bored or distracted was shown in [[1411: Loop]].

==Transcript==
:[Cueball holding his smartphone in both hands is talking to White Hat.]
:Cueball: This new keyboard is like 30% faster! I'm never going back.

:[White Hat replies and Cueball lifts his arms.]
:White Hat: Good, put those years of horror behind you.
:Cueball: C'mon. Sure, sometimes my focus on efficiency doesn't make sense. But we type a '''''lot'''''.

:[Cueball holding his smartphone in one hand while talking to White Hat.]
:Cueball: That 30% improvement pretty quickly adds up to a ''huge'' amount of wasted time rescued. 

:[White hat replies and Cueball lifts one arm.]
:White Hat: I just watched you open Google News and then close it without reading it '''''five times in a row.'''''
:Cueball: The fact that I spend most of my time so stupidly only makes it '''''more''''' important not to waste any here.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring White Hat]]
[[Category:Time management]]
[[Category:Google]]
[[Category:Smartphones]]