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We have an explanation for all 3308 xkcd comics, the 21 extra comics, and everything xkcd-related.
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Juice
I need to push some updates to the remote sensing instruments, which are there to measure the surface and definitely not do anything else.
Title text: I need to push some updates to the remote sensing instruments, which are there to measure the surface and definitely not do anything else.

    Explanation

    In this comic, Cueball has apparently misread the full name of the Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE) space probe, as he thought the last word was "Exploder". He must have been part of the design team, and now needs to update the programming so it doesn't carry out what he thought was the mission to destroy the moons (or, possibly, merely to self-destruct). Of course, this would be unlikely to be missed in real life, and it seems unlikely (and far from possible) that a probe would be sent out just to blow up the moons.[citation needed]

    In the title text, he's trying to be circumspect about the reason he needs to send a programming update as he doesn't want to let the rest of Mission Control know about his very odd misunderstanding. It also seems to reveal that the "exploding" would somehow be accomplished by (mis)using the scientific instruments (presumably by increasing the energy output of a radar-like instrument to the point it becomse a direct energy weapon), rather than the more logical primary fuel or power components of the craft.

    This is the second comic recently about JUICE, following 3304: Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer the week before.

    Transcript

    [Ponytail and Cueball are each sitting at large computer consoles, with their hands on the keyboards. Ponytail is on the left, below a sign on the wall that says "JUICE Mission Control". Cueball is on the right.]
    Cueball: Jupiter Icy Moons Exploder checkin is complete. All systems nominal.
    [Zoom in on just Ponytail and Cueball. You can only see part of their consoles and not the wall on the left. They've turned their heads to face each other.]
    Ponytail: Explorer.
    Cueball: What?
    Ponytail: Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer.
    [Zoom in on Cueball and his console. He looks pensive, with his hands in his lap.]
    [Zoom out to both characters and their consoles. Ponytail has her hand up to her forehead. Cueball is typing on his console.]
    Cueball: Control, everything is fine, but I need to schedule an urgent spacecraft update.
    Ponytail: Oh no.

             View comic discussion



    Edit this week's pick!

    This Week's Explanation for Improvement

    As part of the Explanation Improvement Project, each week the community selects one older, stagnant, or otherwise neglected explanation to expand and polish together. This week's pick is comic 186: Console Lines, you can help us by editing its explanation!

    To get involved with the project, you can also nominate an explanation that you think should be improved, or vote on current nominations!

    Console Lines
    If I get a Wii, it will be the first game console I've owned.
    Title text: If I get a Wii, it will be the first game console I've owned.

      Explanation

      Welcome to This Week's Explanation for Improvement! Anyone is encouraged to help explain comic 186: Console Lines; click here to get started! If you are new to wiki editing, you can read our editing FAQ for guidance. Here are some suggestions for improving this explanation:

        Why are the Nintendo people more kind than the Sony/Microsoft people?
        Why does Randall say that a Wii will be the first game console he will ever own? Are there other comics posted after this one where he says he owns a different console?
        Improve the explanation of the double meaning of "console" in the comic.
        Better explain the necessary historical context. How is the world different now compared to November 2006?

      This comic relates to video game consoles. At the time this comic was published, there were three major competing products: the PlayStation 3 by Sony, the Xbox 360 by Microsoft, and the Wii by Nintendo. The Wii was released on November 19, 2006, the day before this comic was published. It was Nintendo's 5th generation home console, succeeding the GameCube.

      When a game console gets released, fans are often seen queueing outside the stores or camping on the pavement in order to be among the first to get their hands on a console. The comic shows such a console camp and points out the differences between the fan communities. While the fans waiting in line for a Sony or Microsoft product are very rude, the Nintendo fans are apologetic and try to comfort (that is to say, console) those who arrived too late to obtain a package. The cliché that Nintendo fans are nicer and more polite may be attributed to the fact that the Wii is targeted at children and families with children, while the PS3 and the Xbox are targeted at the more "serious gamer" crowd.

      The comic may also contain a subtle pun on the fact that 'console' has two meanings. A game console (noun) is a device that allows you to play video games, taking control input from one or more users and displaying the progress of the game as video output. However, to console (verb) means to make someone feel better when they are upset, as those in the Wii queue are attempting to do for the latecomers.

      The title text primarily expresses Randall's distance from the console wars (he has never owned a game console before), but also indicates an inclination towards the Wii, which was known for its (at the time) innovative motion controls. The fact that he indicated that alongside this comic suggests that he may have been influenced by how he perceives the Nintendo fan community. Then again, maybe Randall is just unable to get a PS3 or Xbox because of the line situation illustrated here.

      Transcript

      Fans turning away latecomers to all-night game console campouts:
      [Two lines, presumably leading to video game stores, are shown, where the same two people just arrived, behind other people]
      [In the line labeled Sony/Microsoft:]
      [Cueball, Megan, and another Cueball are in line, while Cueball and Hairy are just outside of the line]
      Cueball: The line is full, asshole! Fuck off!
      [In the line labeled Nintendo:]
      [Cueball, a chair, another Cueball, a third Cueball, and Ponytail are in line, while Cueball and Hairy are just outside of the line]
      Cueball: I'm so sorry, all the consoles are spoken for.
      Cueball: Do ... do you want a hug?

               View comic discussion

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