Editing Talk:1826: Birdwatching

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;Size error at release
This is a big one.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.246.41|108.162.246.41]] 04:07, 19 April 2017 (UTC)
:I wonder if the size is a technical error, or if I am missing some subtle joke. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.245.184|108.162.245.184]] 04:37, 19 April 2017 (UTC)
::I guess it's the latter. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.166.71|162.158.166.71]] 04:39, 19 April 2017 (UTC)

I think the vacuum is a further joke about scale and distance playing on the absurdity of trying to vacuum from a range of one mile. I must say I don't really understand this comic very well.[[Special:Contributions/108.162.245.70|108.162.245.70]] 04:47, 19 April 2017 (UTC)

Pretty sure the size is an error, I've seen this happen briefly before. It's 1200 dpi, suitable for archival, printing, or just what comes off the scanner [[Special:Contributions/108.162.246.107|108.162.246.107]] 09:04, 19 April 2017 (UTC)
:The size is intentional. it kinda freaked m out wen i saw it, though. i thought there was a problem with my phone! [[User:Will X|Will X]] ([[User talk:Will X|talk]]) 11:24, 19 April 2017 (UTC)
::I think the size is biting Randall in the rear.  I'm getting all sorts of 503 gateway timeouts that appear to be from his Varnish web accelerator. The East coast is waking up and pounding his server... [[Special:Contributions/162.158.78.106|162.158.78.106]] 11:32, 19 April 2017 (UTC)

It looks like they fixed the size. Maybe it wasn't intentional?
:I'm not sure, but maybe the size of the comic changes depending on the time?  I mean, it does see like the size is smaller as of right now.(By the way, I'm not the guy on top that didn't sign his/her post.) [[Special:Contributions/162.158.138.40|162.158.138.40]] 13:55, 19 April 2017 (UTC)
::It seems the error was fixed and it must be concluded that this was indeed an error. Or at least gave so much trouble that Randall regretted it... I have collected all comments on the size up here with a heading, to make it easier to read this and the rest of the comments. See the [[1826:_Birdwatching#Trivia|trivia section]]. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 20:51, 19 April 2017 (UTC)

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If Cueball is using a camera to try and spot the bird, it seems like he is holding it far too close to his face. Binoculars are meant to be held up to one's eyes but the screen of a camera would seem blurry in one's vision if it were held that close to the eyes. Perhaps that contributes to Cueball's difficulty
in spotting the hawk.{{unsigned ip|162.158.255.100}}

I thought the vacuum was trying to drain the atmosphere to make it so that the birds can't fly as high.[[User:1I1III1|1I1III1]] ([[User talk:1I1III1|talk]]) 05:42, 19 April 2017 (UTC)
: That was my thought, too. (/edit: Honestly, to think of sucking the birds in I found being too absurd, while sucking the atmosphere seemed absolutely plausible - at least for an XKCD...) [[User:Elektrizikekswerk|Elektrizikekswerk]] ([[User talk:Elektrizikekswerk|talk]]) 08:18, 19 April 2017 (UTC)
:: If only he had a vacuum the size of the one in Space Balls. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.50.162|173.245.50.162]] 15:59, 19 April 2017 (UTC)

Are these the same birds from 1824? [[User:Codrus|Codrus]] ([[User talk:Codrus|talk]]) 06:16, 19 April 2017 (UTC)
:Probably not but these two comics are definitely related. Have mentioned it in the explanation. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 20:51, 19 April 2017 (UTC)

Hey folks, am I the only one thinking that Cueball also holds the binoculars the wrong way around? Usually the small end is nearest to the eyes... That would for sure make birdwatching even MORE difficult. Regarding size, I think it is intentional.[[Special:Contributions/162.158.150.76|162.158.150.76]] 09:16, 19 April 2017 (UTC)
: Hey, that's a reflex camera, isn't it? Some camera geek can comment on birdwatching situation camera? That zoom seems much too small for the job, but I've got no real clue...--[[User:Blaisorblade|Blaisorblade]] ([[User talk:Blaisorblade|talk]]) 09:34, 19 April 2017 (UTC)
::The one from [[Superzoom]]! --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 20:51, 19 April 2017 (UTC)
:: It looks more like a bridge camera. Reflex camera lenses are usually larger near the front glass element and narrower near the sensor. This one looks like it's designed to collapse back into the camera. I agree it could be a superzoom, or the one from [[Superzoom]]. Those give lots of magnification for cheap at the expense of image quality, so their popular among first time birdwatcher.

I would take issue with the use of the word "confused" in the transcript. perhaps "blankly" would be more descriptive. --[[Special:Contributions/141.101.107.18|141.101.107.18]] 12:56, 19 April 2017 (UTC)
:Transcript is for as little explanation as possible. Have removed the word. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 20:51, 19 April 2017 (UTC)

Why is Megan wearing a knit cap?  Does Randall's wife have cancer again? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.79.89|162.158.79.89]] 16:10, 19 April 2017 (UTC)
:I don't think that's Megan. The transcript names that character as "Beanie-Man." [[Special:Contributions/162.158.78.238|162.158.78.238]]
::The transcript is made by us users. There are no longer any official [[Transcript on xkcd]]. [https://xkcd.com/1826/info.0.json Here is where it should have been for this comic]. It looks like a guy to me, but there has been several characters with a knit cap, see the link in the explanation to the largest knit cap comic, where there is a collection of other knit cap comics. It is definitely not Megan. And I sure hope that there is not more cancer for Randall and his wife. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 20:51, 19 April 2017 (UTC)

My first thought is than a successful birdwatcher requires patience, which is something that Cueball does not appear to have.  You also want to avoid to making noise, so Cueball talking will probably make the bird stay at a distance, and the ShopVac would be even more discouragement for the hawk.  There are other issues.  I would guess that the camera is a 200 to 300 millimeter lens.  If you wanted to get a good picture of a bird with that type of camera, you would have to get closer to the nest and wait very patiently for the bird to get closer.  (Patiently for several hours or even days.  That doesn't seem like Cueball.)  Many methods are available, but they are a lot of work.  You also don't try to find the bird using the camera.  You try to find the bird without using telescopes or binoculars and then only use the viewing aids once you find the general location of the bird.  Megan is presumably satisfied with the fact that the bird probably only fills a portion of the viewport, while Cueball is expecting a picture of the bird where you can count the feathers.  So Cueball has unreasonable expectations, is unwilling to wait, and is doing just about everything wrong.  He then complains about his lack of success.  Cueball's next attempt might be to use a camera mounted on a drone.  A lot of people have tried though, although the last image captured is often a close up view of the beak filling the entire screen. [[User:BradleyRoss|BradleyRoss]] ([[User talk:BradleyRoss|talk]]) 18:49, 19 April 2017 (UTC)

:Seriously? I though drones are so noisy birds avoid them ... -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 23:31, 19 April 2017 (UTC)

Am I the only one who is reminded of DR and Quinch at summer camp - "What kind of bird is that? (Boom) it's a dead bird uncle Waldo."

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Okay, I think I have an interpretation that is not accounted for by anything currently in the article or the comments. A vacuum with a screen is what is used to catch little bugs that may be too small for you to spot in the grass. I think it's a weird play on perspective, like in [[1522: Astronomy]], such that cueball thinks that using the vacuum will help him catch and observe the hawks too. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.78.190|162.158.78.190]] 22:31, 19 April 2017 (UTC)
:People vacuum lawns?  [[User:Miamiclay|Miamiclay]] ([[User talk:Miamiclay|talk]]) 00:33, 20 April 2017 (UTC)
:: Oh, no. I should have been clearer earlier. People who study and observe insects do this to catch them. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.79.161|162.158.79.161]] 23:30, 22 April 2017 (UTC)
:: I often vacuumed the lawn so to speak. To get rid of all the leaves. Of course I did use a device specifically made for that purpose and not a vacuum cleaner ;) We call them "Laubsauger" in Germany. Best (literal) translation would be "Leaves vacuum" or something like that. [[User:Elektrizikekswerk|Elektrizikekswerk]] ([[User talk:Elektrizikekswerk|talk]]) 10:51, 24 April 2017 (UTC)
:Yes, I think you are definitely onto something here. The shopvac is an improvised version of the vacuum bugcatcher, and the joke is that instead of catching small insects very close at hand, Cueball thinks this is going to be an 'easy way' to collect birds from a mile up. 

:Here are a few photos of the vacuum style insect collector in action. Most are based more on the leafblower model than a shop vac, but the general idea is clearly the same:

:* [http://biostor.org/reference/76824/page/3 An Inexpensive Vacuum Collector For Insect Sampling]
:* [https://ucanr.edu/repositoryfiles/ca1401p9-67123.pdf Vacuum cleaner principle applied in Sampling Insect Populations ]
:* [http://www.rinconvitova.com/d-vac.htm D-Vac Vacuum Insect Sampling Equipment]
:* [http://www.rinconvitova.com/history.htm An Improved Backpack Motor Fan for Suction Sampling of Insect Populations]
:* [http://media.nola.com/environment/photo/xuanchen1jpg-fca88349bf05fe83.jpg LSU doctoral entomology student Xuan Chen, right, and former student Max Adams use a vacuum collector to capture insects in a Louisiana marsh.]

: [[User:Flug|Flug]] ([[User talk:Flug|talk]]) 17:35, 25 April 2017 (UTC)
At first when I was looking at this, I thought he was holding a pair of binoculars like Megan (or whatever new character this is supposed to be), and that he was just looking at them through the wrong end. Then I saw all of this "superzoom" stuff and then I saw that he was holding a camera instead. Whoops. --[[User:JayRulesXKCD|'''JayRules''XKCD'''  ]]<sup>[[User talk:JayRulesXKCD|what's up?]]</sup> 19:31, 23 April 2017 (UTC)

; why is this page marked as incomplete

literally the joke is just cueball cant seem to get a picture of the birds because they are too far away so he decides hes going to use a vacuum to try and pull the birds closer. what more is there to explain [[User:TheJonyMyster|TheJonyMyster]] ([[User talk:TheJonyMyster|talk]]) 22:39, 10 June 2017 (UTC)
: on your side. have added a semisentence about handheld camera operation. [https://www.bhphotovideo.com/explora/photography/tips-and-solutions/guide-birding-long-lenses this link] backs me up ("The longer the focal length, the more difficult it is to steady the lens. ") --[[Special:Contributions/172.68.51.154|172.68.51.154]] 16:21, 22 September 2017 (UTC)