1057: Klout

|< < Prev Comic #1057 (May 18, 2012) Next > >|

1057: Klout

Title text: Though please do confirm that it's actually *me* on Klout first, and not one of my friends trying to get me punched. The great thing about this douchebag deadman switch is that I will never dare trigger it.

Explanation

This explanation may be incomplete or incorrect: needs a review If you can address this issue, please edit the page! Thanks.

Klout is a site that seeks to measure your "influence" on social media networks. Users grant other users +Ks for certain things. They also give away things to the users with the highest Klout scores. Universally, it is regarded as meaning absolutely nothing. The people that are really wrapped up in the score are typically not well-liked. An usage example of its use is ironically, like giving someone a +K for knowledge about "Pitbull". (The Bud Light promoter and producer/rapper/musician, etc., not the type of dog.)

The character appears to be Randall, considering the title text. A "dead man's switch" is any mechanism which is designed to activate if the user does not take any action. This is generally used to create a failsafe in case the user is incapacitated. For example, many exercise treadmills include a tether meant to connect the runner to the machine's base station. If the runner gets too far from the base station, the tether pulls a pin and the machine stops immediately. This way, if the runner has fallen or is struggling to keep up, the machine does not exacerbate an already unsafe situation. This "douchebag deadman switch" is predicated on Randall becoming somebody unrecognizable to his current self.

Transcript

Randall: I'd like to ask a favor. If someday, in the future, we meet in person,

Randall: And if, as of that day, I've interacted with Klout in any way except to opt out, I want you to punch me in the face without warning.

Randall: This may sound like a joke, so let me be clear: I am dead serious. Ignore anything I say retracting this. Thank you.

 add a comment! ⋅  add a topic (use sparingly)! ⋅  refresh comments!

Discussion

Klout is looong dead now. I suppose this means it's niche and hipster, and it's fine to use it now. Davidy²²[talk] 13:53, 8 January 2013 (UTC)

its not dead... just not really as trendy anymore.--Calvsie (talk) 21:01, 12 December 2013 (UTC)

Now is is ACTUALLY dead. Beanie (talk) 11:05, 17 May 2021 (UTC)

Any possible meaning in the fact that "clout" can mean a blow from a hand? I think it might be related, considering the site is called Klout and Randall requests being clouted, in a manner of speaking... 173.245.54.209 (talk) (please sign your comments with ~~~~)

Replace "Klout" with "Google+" for modern relevance. Keavon (talk) 00:02, 10 November 2014 (UTC)

Interacting with Google+ should not have anywhere close to Klout in "douchebagness", if any. Arifsaha (talk) 23:53, 5 December 2014 (UTC)

Also, Randall does have a Google Plus. https://plus.google.com/111588569124648292310/posts Benjaminikuta (talk) 08:32, 17 February 2015 (UTC)

Never make something like this unretractable, just in case the business you now hate changes its focus and becomes something worthwhile.173.245.50.174 18:21, 7 September 2015 (UTC)

Or it goes away entirely and something unrelated and much better by the same name appears later. --172.68.10.172 02:32, 9 March 2017 (UTC)

Well, part one has happened. --Dakranon (talk) 05:13, 11 May 2018 (UTC)

So now, if you want to punch Randall legally, just start something, which he will want to interact with and call it Klout. --Lupo (talk) 09:20, 10 July 2019 (UTC)