Editing Syndication
Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.
The edit can be undone.
Please check the comparison below to verify that this is what you want to do, and then save the changes below to finish undoing the edit.
Latest revision | Your text | ||
Line 4: | Line 4: | ||
| image = syndication.jpg | | image = syndication.jpg | ||
| ldomain = imgs | | ldomain = imgs | ||
− | | lappend = comics/xkcd_ufs.jpg | + | | lappend = comics/xkcd_ufs.jpg |
| titletext = Complaints should be directed to the xkcd writing staff. | | titletext = Complaints should be directed to the xkcd writing staff. | ||
− | | before = | + | | before = Now that xkcd is carried by United Features Syndicate, there are going to be a few changes to the comic. Obviously, with the rights signed over, it will no longer be published under Creative Commons, and all previous strips will be retroactively un-CC'd and relicensed under UFS terms. All online content will be protected via proprietary DRM. I also recieved a letter outlining topics and content that would be off-limits in the new xkcd. Prohibited content includes: |
- Cultural references that would be lost on the average newspaper reader | - Cultural references that would be lost on the average newspaper reader | ||
Line 30: | Line 30: | ||
- Erotic use of flywheels | - Erotic use of flywheels | ||
− | - | + | - Exposés regarding other United Features syndicated characters |
− | - | + | - Exposés regarding the personal lives of United Features Syndicate executives, specifically including CEO Kenneth Lowe |
- Teledildonics | - Teledildonics | ||
Line 48: | Line 48: | ||
- Sexualization of Mt. Rushmore | - Sexualization of Mt. Rushmore | ||
− | - Staplers as | + | - Staplers as mélée weapons |
- Road trip buddy comedies starring Tank Girl and William Howard Taft | - Road trip buddy comedies starring Tank Girl and William Howard Taft | ||
Line 58: | Line 58: | ||
- Licking of nipples atop a moving train | - Licking of nipples atop a moving train | ||
− | The internet is the past. Newspapers are the future! See you in the funny papers. | + | The internet is the past. Newspapers are the future! See you in the funny papers. |
− | |||
}} | }} | ||
==Explanation== | ==Explanation== | ||
+ | {{incomplete|Created by an EROTIC FLYWHEEL. Needs a list explaining all the changes required. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}} | ||
+ | |||
This is a non-numbered [[:Category:April fools' comics|April fools' comic]], and is the first April fools' joke performed on xkcd. This comic is formatted similarly to other posts such as [[Blue Eyes]]. The post describes xkcd becoming syndicated into a newspaper, changing from a webcomic. Newspapers are notorious for censorship of content, and [[Randall]] describes all the changes that would be required of the comic, the humor coming from their progressive absurdity. | This is a non-numbered [[:Category:April fools' comics|April fools' comic]], and is the first April fools' joke performed on xkcd. This comic is formatted similarly to other posts such as [[Blue Eyes]]. The post describes xkcd becoming syndicated into a newspaper, changing from a webcomic. Newspapers are notorious for censorship of content, and [[Randall]] describes all the changes that would be required of the comic, the humor coming from their progressive absurdity. | ||
− | + | ==List of Changes proposed by Randall== | |
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | |||
− | + | {| border =1 width=100% cellpadding=5 class="wikitable" | |
− | + | ! # !! Change !! Explanation !! | |
− | + | |- | |
− | + | ! 1 | |
− | + | | '''Cultural References that would be lost on the average newspaper reader''' | |
− | + | |xkcd is known for its niche cultural references, one of the main reasons this wiki exists. | |
− | + | |- | |
− | + | ! 2 | |
− | + | | '''Mathematics above the high-school level''' | |
− | + | |Another trademark of xkcd is its use of mathematics for humor. More complex mathematics tends to lend itself less well to comedy. | |
− | + | |- | |
− | + | ! 3 | |
− | + | | '''Obscure scientific subjects''' | |
− | + | |Again, this is a common feature of xkcd comics, which turns off many would-be readers for its exclusivity, making xkcd difficult to syndicate. | |
− | + | |- | |
− | + | ! 4 | |
− | + | | '''Overt sexual material''' | |
− | + | |xkcd's abstract art style means that it can get away with sexual content without seeming profane, and takes advantage of this often. | |
− | + | |- | |
− | + | ! 5 | |
− | + | | '''Objectionable words such as {{w|fuck}}, {{w|shit}}, {{w|cunt}}, {{w|ass}}, {{w|tits}}, {{w|cock}}, {{w|scrotum}}, {{w|bitch}}, {{w|Belgium}}, {{w|pussy}}, or {{w|twat}}''' | |
− | + | |Newspaper comics tend to have very "clean" humor, which xkcd's usual writing style is ill suited for. Belgium is the rudest word in the universe according to {{w|The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy}}. | |
− | + | |- | |
− | + | !6 | |
− | + | | '''{{w|Same Sex relationships}}''' | |
− | + | |Newspapers are more often read by older people, so same-sex relationships are often absent to avoid conservative backlash. | |
− | + | |- | |
− | + | !7 | |
− | + | | '''{{w|Star Wars}}''' | |
− | + | |Star Wars, a common reference in xkcd, is an intellectual property that would need to be licensed, at great expense to United. | |
− | + | |- | |
− | + | !8 | |
− | + | | '''{{w|Star Trek}} (Original and Enterprise)''' | |
− | + | |Similar case to Star Wars. | |
− | + | |- | |
− | + | !9 | |
− | + | | '''The home phone numbers of {{w|White House}} employees''' | |
− | + | |At this point, the list items begin to become more absurd, tipping more credulous readers off to the joke. | |
− | + | |- | |
− | + | !10 | |
− | + | | '''{{w|Bacon}} Based Currencies''' | |
− | + | | | |
− | + | |- | |
− | + | !11 | |
− | + | | '''Erotic use of {{w|Flywheels}}''' | |
− | + | |While it is hard to see how one could use Flywheels erotically, {{w|Rule 34 (Internet meme)|there have been attempts}}. | |
− | + | |- | |
− | + | !12 | |
− | + | | '''Exposés regarding other United Features syndicated characters''' | |
− | + | |Here Randall seems to imply that certain (fictional) comic strip characters are involved in scandals, of which he knows the details. | |
+ | |- | ||
+ | !13 | ||
+ | | '''Exposés regarding the personal lives of {{w|United Features Syndicate}} executives, specifically including CEO {{w|Kenneth Lowe}}''' | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | !14 | ||
+ | | '''{{w|Teledildonics}}''' | ||
+ | |A form of technology used to have sex remotely, obviously unsuitable for the funnies. | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | !15 | ||
+ | | '''Portrayals of {{w|Johnny Cash}} as an {{w|Amway}} distributor''' | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | !16 | ||
+ | | '''Any story that ends with "and that's how my penis got the nickname 'grappling hook'.''' | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | !17 | ||
+ | | '''Computer-computer {{w|Cybersex}}''' | ||
+ | |Two chatbots cybering with one another is a plausibly real thing, and an easy target for xkcd. | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | !18 | ||
+ | | '''{{w|Swordfights}} between white people''' | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | !19 | ||
+ | | '''{{w|Bitch & Animal}}''' | ||
+ | |A "queercore" gay punk band, never mentioned elsewhere in xkcd. | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | !20 | ||
+ | | '''{{w|Sexualization}} of {{w|Mount Rushmore}}''' | ||
+ | |Mount Rushmore National Memorial is a sculpture carved into Mount Rushmore features the 60-foot (18 m) heads of Presidents George Washington (1732–1799), Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826), Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919), and Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), as for the sexualization of the mountain, See | ||
+ | Number 11 | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | !21 | ||
+ | | '''Staplers as mélée weapons''' | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | !22 | ||
+ | | '''Road trip buddy comedies starring {{w|Tank Girl}} and {{w|William Howard Taft}}''' | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | !23 | ||
+ | | '''{{w|Eric S. Raymond}} performing in {{w|Cirque du Soleil}}''' | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | !24 | ||
+ | | '''Hats with buckles''' | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | !25 | ||
+ | | '''Licking of nipples atop a moving train''' | ||
+ | | | ||
+ | |} | ||
==Transcript== | ==Transcript== | ||
Line 131: | Line 178: | ||
:Friend: I don't know. | :Friend: I don't know. | ||
− | |||
:Cueball: I don't know either! Computers are so complicated! | :Cueball: I don't know either! Computers are so complicated! | ||
:Friend: LOL! | :Friend: LOL! |