explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:2251: Alignment Chart Alignment Chart

2024-12-13T06:17:57Z

141.101.99.6: Undo revision 359280 by 172.71.215.216 (talk) Use more words, and *sign* your contribution.

OK, hope someone will now explain it after I created this page. I'm lost on this one ;-) --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 10:49, 6 January 2020 (UTC)

Arrgh, edit conflict! [[User:Kev|Kev]] ([[User talk:Kev|talk]]) 11:55, 6 January 2020 (UTC)

I'm pretty sure the Punnet Square is ''also'' a meme template...[[Special:Contributions/162.158.154.229|162.158.154.229]] 15:59, 7 January 2020 (UTC)

I vaguely remember Randall to refer to the clay-sand diagram (or whatever it is called) as his all time favorite diagram on what-if somewhere. --[[User:Lupo|Lupo]] ([[User talk:Lupo|talk]]) 12:35, 6 January 2020 (UTC)
:You vaguely remember "Starsand" from https://what-if.xkcd.com/83/ with the quote "Fortunately, there's a wonderful chart by the US Geologic Survey that answers all these questions and more. For some reason, I find this chart very satisfying—it's like the erosion geology edition of the electromagnetic spectrum chart." directly applicabe to this chart[[User:Tier666|Tier666]] ([[User talk:Tier666|talk]]) 17:57, 6 January 2020 (UTC)

I fear any attempt to "explain" the CIE chromaticity diagram will devolve into arguments about why Randall chose it. I have found that folks outside the world of optics or neurooptical studies have a hard time understanding why the raw colors available in single wavelengths comprise that short curvy line inside the full colorspace. The way our brain processes the relative signal strengths from the different types of retinal cones is quite amazing. [[User:Cellocgw|Cellocgw]] ([[User talk:Cellocgw|talk]]) 12:57, 6 January 2020 (UTC)
:CGW I'm shocked! Surely you know that single-wavelengths are the curvy outer boundary while the inner curvy line shows the response to blackbody spectra. ;-) -Fred [[Special:Contributions/173.245.52.61|173.245.52.61]] 19:55, 6 January 2020 (UTC)
::Thanks for that; I was about to question the statement myself. All in all, I feel the current explanation of the chromaticity diagram doesn't really explain much, and seems unnecessarily biased to boot. I know just enough about chromaticity to think it's wrong but not enough to correct it. [[User:LtPowers|LtPowers]] ([[User talk:LtPowers|talk]]) 19:58, 6 January 2020 (UTC)
:::I agree that explanation isn't great, if it's not improved when I have free time tonight I'll take a stab at it. Or maybe CelloCGW will, since he IS an optics guru (which is why I had to raz him).[[Special:Contributions/173.245.52.61|173.245.52.61]] 20:13, 6 January 2020 (UTC)

@Fred - mea culpa. I should think before writing. Fortunately :-), the ratio of the colorspace to any 1-dimensional line's area is still infinite! [[User:Cellocgw|Cellocgw]] ([[User talk:Cellocgw|talk]]) 20:33, 6 January 2020 (UTC) .... now that someone did post some explanation of CIE, more comments. The current CIE spec may be paywalled, but it has changed little if at all over the last 40 or 50 years, so it's not all that hard to get the values. There are several sites (naturally I've lost the URLs) which provide algos to convert HSM to RGB to HSV and so on. See Wikipedia, https://law.resource.org/pub/us/cfr/ibr/003/cie.15.2004.tables.xls , and similar repositories [[User:Cellocgw|Cellocgw]] ([[User talk:Cellocgw|talk]]) 20:44, 6 January 2020 (UTC)

:I redid the CIE explanation - focusing on describing the diagram, rather than one thing it might get used for (e.g. black body). I think the diagrams on the right are labeled chaotic because they are not some neat geometric shape over-all. I didn't really follow much of what was there, so feel free to revive some of it if it seems useful. (My background in color theory comes from computer science and graphics, rather than from physics or hardware design.) [[Special:Contributions/162.158.107.201|162.158.107.201]] 00:57, 7 January 2020 (UTC)
::It's better! Though it might be nice to explain what the x and y coordinates on the CIE diagram represent. (I personally have no clue, even after perusing Wikipedia.) As for chaoticness and shape, really CN and CE are the one two that aren't simple geometric shapes; even CG is a trapezoid. [[User:LtPowers|LtPowers]] ([[User talk:LtPowers|talk]]) 15:04, 8 January 2020 (UTC)

I'm only familiar with 4th and 5th edition, but should the "Good/neutral/evil:" axis eplanation be changed to "selfless deeds or selfish deeds"? Good and evil are highly subjective ("One person's 'freedom fighter' is another person's 'terrorist'.") but at least in 5e the axis is explained as risking/sacrificing yourself for the benefit of others (Good) vs. sacrificing others for your own benefit (Evil). Also, the explanation of the CN character may benefit from dividing which parts of the explanation are "chatoic" vs "neutral". Finally the "lacking rhyme or reason" part of chaotic is highly debated within D&D circles. There are certainly people who play that way, but there are also others who feel that chaotic characters have just as much motivation and goals as a lawful or neutral character just that part of their motivation is to act contrarily to Tradition/Authority. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.186.54|162.158.186.54]] 14:37, 6 January 2020 (UTC)

: It seems from this page that even nerds tend to interpret the alignment system by the ‘common sense’ meaning of the names instead of the detailed explanation. I once simply went through the Wikipedia article, which cited the second edition IIRC: ‘lawful’ means sticking to ''some'' code of conduct, whereas ‘chaotic’ is a pure opportunist or behaves randomly. ‘Good’ and ‘evil’ indeed mean selfless vs selfish deeds, but afaik in one of the official explanations ‘evil’ meant exercising authority over others—so all managers would be ‘evil’ automatically. [[User:Aasasd|Aasasd]] ([[User talk:Aasasd|talk]]) 16:42, 6 January 2020 (UTC)

I am not sure the phase diagram is for Water - that has nine solid phases. Surely it is merely a simple example.
[[User:Arachrah|Arachrah]] ([[User talk:Arachrah|talk]]) 16:52, 6 January 2020 (UTC)

As an interesting note, this comic's alt-text also ends with a period inside of a quote. This was discussed at length in the previous comic. [[User:Agrasin|Agrasin]] ([[User talk:Agrasin|talk]]) 16:52, 6 January 2020 (UTC)

I'm just upset that both a soil diagram and the QAPF were included, but not the TAS. Where's the love for extrusive igneous rocks? [[User:Mergelong|Mergelong]] ([[User talk:Mergelong|talk]]) 18:22, 6 January 2020 (UTC)

BTW, I offer my condolences and wish luck to the person who's going to make a transcript of this comic. [[User:Aasasd|Aasasd]] ([[User talk:Aasasd|talk]]) 22:28, 6 January 2020 (UTC)

"lawful heterozygous silty liquid" Is this not him being Lawfull, having inherited different forms of a particular gene from each parent, and basically a bag full of salt water? [[User:Nappy|Nappy]] ([[User talk:Nappy|talk]]) 07:51, 7 January 2020 (UTC)

A phase diagram was also used in https://what-if.xkcd.com/138/ [[Special:Contributions/162.158.89.7|162.158.89.7]] 08:23, 7 January 2020 (UTC)

The phase diagrams for oxygen and radon look similar to the Lawful Neutral one here. [[Special:Contributions/172.68.34.166|172.68.34.166]] 23:06, 8 January 2020 (UTC)

Is it coincidence that the evil chaotic diagram looks a bit like a brain? --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.158.9|162.158.158.9]] 10:52, 9 January 2020 (UTC)

Made a "real" one using actual picts from the internet based on this comic ... but ALSO using his comic. Meta, meta, meta, maybe? https://imgur.com/gallery/CagOh8s

I'm fairly certain that Randall is classifying himself using the Omnispace classifier, rather than referencing "the true neutral, neutral good, lawful good, and lawful neutral charts in the Alignment Chart Alignment Chart." as the current description suggests. If you look at the Omnispace classifier, Silt, Liquid, Heterozygous, and Lawful Good all share a common point on the chart. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.68.207|172.69.68.207]] 17:55, 27 January 2020 (UTC)

It is unclear to me why the explanation claims that the chart in the comic is missing the low central vowel ä. The official IPA chart does not include this vowel, and the use of a diaresis to indicate centralization, like all other diacritics for indicating relative articulation, are given in a separate section from the main chart. Granted, the vowel chart on Wikipedia does include ä, but there is no reason that we should expect XKCD to do the same. That said, the omission of ɐ is quite odd, and seems to be an error. {{unsigned|IcarusProblem|01:40, 12 December 2023}}
== Omnispace Classifier ==

I think the Omnispace Classifier is meant to be a horrific Frankenstein amalgamation of the other 8 kinds of chart. Theoretically it can "classify anything" since it can classify anything the other 8 can, but practically it would obviously be totally useless, or at least a lot less useful than just using the specific chart that works for the situation. [[User:Pureawes0me|Pureawes0me]] ([[User talk:Pureawes0me|talk]]) 12:09, 6 January 2020 (UTC)

In the description of the Omnispace Classifier, saying "the diagram created for this comic is considered to be chaotically evil." is wrong. The diagram created for this comic is ''not'' an Omnispace Classifier, it is an alignment chart. It's even in the title "Alignment Chart Alignment Chart". [[User:Pureawes0me|Pureawes0me]] ([[User talk:Pureawes0me|talk]]) 14:11, 8 January 2020 (UTC)
:I concur. [[User:LtPowers|LtPowers]] ([[User talk:LtPowers|talk]]) 15:04, 8 January 2020 (UTC)
I feel the "Omnispace Classifier" is actually chaotic evil due to its mishmash of axes, which change randomly in topic and direction depending where you look on the graph. --[[User:GoldNinja|GoldNinja]] ([[User talk:GoldNinja|talk]]) 17:43, 8 January 2020 (UTC)

== Chart Position Rationale ==

The page currently tries to explain each chart's position based on the content of the chart, e.g. the political compass chart is lawful because politics relates to laws. I think this is wrong: the charts are arranged based on their properties ''as charts''. It's not based on whatever it is they represent. This feels more in character with how Randall tends to do things. It also avoids making a bunch of value judgments about various topics. [[User:Khaim|Khaim]] ([[User talk:Khaim|talk]]) 23:05, 8 January 2020 (UTC)

Possible explanations for each chart:
* Soil chart: Information-dense, continuous, triangular
* Punnett square: Simple, square
* IPA vowel chart: Irregular shape
* Phase diagram: Square, continuous
* Alignment chart: "A is A"
* CIE chromaticity diagram: Irregular shape, ''curved'', nonlinear
* Political compass: Square (lawful), highly subjective, not very useful
* QAPF rock diagram: Diamond shape is misleading since it's actually two ternary charts stuck together, not very useful (unless you're a geologist?)
* Omnispace classifier: Totally made up, irregular, completely useless
[[User:Khaim|Khaim]] ([[User talk:Khaim|talk]]) 23:31, 8 January 2020 (UTC)

:I agree with this, and it's how I first interpreted the comic.--[[User:GoldNinja|GoldNinja]] ([[User talk:GoldNinja|talk]]) 23:40, 8 January 2020 (UTC)
:Well, the point is to make any connection to both axis of the chart. Your explanations do not do that properly either. e.g. for IPA vowel chart "Irregular shape" does not explain why it would be considered "good", while it is one of maybe more possible reasons for being considered chaotic. --[[User:Lupo|Lupo]] ([[User talk:Lupo|talk]]) 07:39, 9 January 2020 (UTC)

== XKCD Alignment Chart ==

A while back, I was searching for an XKCD alignment chart, with no success, so I made one. It is not perfect, so I'm wondering what other opinions on the alignment of the characters are.

Lawful Good- Beret

Neutral Good- Ponytail

Chaotic Good- Mrs. Roberts

Lawful Neutral-Cueball

Neutral Neutral- Megan

Chaotic Neutral- White hat

Lawful Evil- Hairy

Neutral Evil- Danish

Chaotic Evil- Black Hat

--[[User:Fallencrow305|Fallencrow305]] ([[User talk:Fallencrow305|talk]]) 22:10, 28 July 2016 (UTC)

:What about Help I'm trapped in a drivers license factory Elaine Roberts? --[[User:JayRulesXKCD|JayRulesXKCD]] ([[User talk:JayRulesXKCD|talk]]) 15:48, 29 September 2016 (UTC)
::Or Hairbun? Or Science Girl? Here are my predictions: Elaine - Chaotic Good, Hairbun - Lawful Good, Science Girl - Lawful Neutral --[[User:JayRulesXKCD|JayRulesXKCD]] ([[User talk:JayRulesXKCD|talk]]) 16:00, 29 September 2016 (UTC)

:What? How can Beret Guy be anything other than chaotic?— {{unsigned|}}

:You did:
:{| class="wikitable"
|-
! !! Lawful !! Neutral !! Chaotic
|-
! Good !! Beret || Ponytail || Mrs. Roberts
|-
! Neutral !! Cueball || Megan || White Hat
|-
! Evil !! Hairy || Danish ||Black Hat
|}
:'''[[User:While False|While False]] ([[User talk:While False|speak]] | [[User:While False/explain xkcd museum|museum]]) 18:10, 17 October 2022 (UTC)'''

...while I see the slight logic of moving the above section away from the Main Page "Talk", it is only associated with this Explanation by having a common subject. Perhaps should have been re-asserted under a suitable bit of the Community Portal, or the (Talk of the) umbrella page for all characters? [[Special:Contributions/172.70.86.147|172.70.86.147]] 15:54, 17 February 2023 (UTC)

I'm pretty sure the Punnett square is neutral because the effect of a genetic combination can be good (resistance to HIV) or evil (Huntington disease). [[User:Nitpicking|Nitpicking]] ([[User talk:Nitpicking|talk]]) 03:36, 26 February 2024 (UTC)

I object to the soil chart being lawful good. Two of the categories are concave. You can mix sandy loam with sandy loam and get loam, or silt loam with silt loam and get silt. [[User:DanielLC|DanielLC]] ([[User talk:DanielLC|talk]]) 07:15, 1 March 2024 (UTC)

Popping by here only because of someone discovering a couple of redirect pages were not done, due to failure of the 'BOT of the day. (Was it really only four-and-a-half years ago that we were still pre-theusafBOT?) Good catch, that user! Of course, I still wonder what the Omnispace Classifier Classifier would rationalise as (as per the Omnispace Classifier, but with a subordinate Omnispace Classifier also added to the other eight... perhaps even a recursive OC-Clqssifier, in turn an OCC-Classifier). Idle thought, only, whilst I was noting the wikifixes just done! [[Special:Contributions/172.70.162.18|172.70.162.18]] 12:21, 1 July 2024 (UTC)

Talk:2252: Parenthetical Names

2024-12-13T06:16:00Z

141.101.99.6: Undo revision 359279 by 172.71.215.215 (talk) Why should I do it properly for you, if you're just this lazy?

Great to see, that dgbrtbot is back on the wiki. --[[User:Lupo|Lupo]] ([[User talk:Lupo|talk]]) 07:40, 9 January 2020 (UTC)

This would be especially annoying for World of Darkness tabletop RPGs. Every one of them (Except Orpheus but we don't talk about Orpheus) has a colon in them for stuff. IE Vampire: The Masquerade [[User:Gruetopia|Gruetopia]] ([[User talk:Gruetopia|talk]]) 08:49, 9 January 2020 (UTC)

Daenerys of the House Targaryen (the First of Her Name, The Unburnt, Queen of the Andals, the Rhoynar and the First Men, Queen of Meereen, Khaleesi of the Great Grass Sea, Protector of the Realm, Lady Regent of the Seven Kingdoms, Breaker of Chains and Mother of Dragons) --[[User:Lupo|Lupo]] ([[User talk:Lupo|talk]]) 09:22, 9 January 2020 (UTC)

@Lupo: FTFY: Daenerys (of the House Targaryen) (the First (of Her Name)), (The Unburnt),( Queen (of the Andals, the Rhoynar and the First Men)), (Queen (of Meereen)),( Khaleesi (of the Great Grass Sea)), (Protector (of the Realm)), (Lady Regent (of the Seven Kingdoms)), (Breaker (of Chains)) (and Mother (of Dragons)) {{unsigned|Cellocgw|12:55, 9 January 2020‎}}
:Or alternatively even: Daenerys (of (the House Targaryen (the First of Her Name, (The Unburnt, Queen of the Andals, (the Rhoynar and (the First Men, Queen of Meereen, Khaleesi (of the Great Grass Sea, Protector (of (the Realm, Lady Regent (of (the Seven Kingdoms, Breaker (of Chains and Mother (of Dragons[[312|)))))))))))))]] --[[User:Lupo|Lupo]] ([[User talk:Lupo|talk]]) 13:03, 9 January 2020 (UTC)
: "...the (First) Men..." "...the (Great) Grass (Sea)..." "...(Lady) Regent..." "... of the (Seven) Kingdoms ..."? [[Special:Contributions/162.158.158.9|162.158.158.9]] 15:56, 9 January 2020 (UTC)
: I prefet the titles that were (sadly) left out of (HBO's) Game (of Thrones): Tormund (Giantsbane)(, (Tall-)talker)(, (Horn-)blower)(, and Breaker (of Ice))(, Thunderfist)(, Husband (to Bears))(, (the) (Mead-)king (of (Ruddy) Hall))(, Speaker (to Gods))( and Father (of Hosts)(, Commander (of Oakenshield)). I just wanted to see Tormund (properly) introduced to Daenerys… [[User:SDF iain|SDF iain]] ([[User talk:SDF iain|talk]]) 16:07, 9 January 2020 (UTC)
::I also prefer a song (of ice and fire)over game (of thrones)(TV Series) --[[User:Lupo|Lupo]] ([[User talk:Lupo|talk]]) 16:47, 9 January 2020 (UTC)
:You forgot Stormborn. Daenerys (Stormborn (of the House Targaryen) (the First (of Her Name))), (The Unburnt),( Queen (of the Andals, the Rhoynar and the First Men)), (Queen (of Meereen)),( Khaleesi (of the (Great (Grass)) Sea)), (Protector (of the Realm)), (Lady Regent (of the (Seven) Kingdoms)), (Breaker (of Chains)) (and Mother (of Dragons)) -- [[User:Hkmaly|Hkmaly]] ([[User talk:Hkmaly|talk]]) 23:19, 9 January 2020 (UTC)

I always liked listening to Mott (the Hoople) but I've never been a fan of Vlad (the Impaler). [[Special:Contributions/162.158.214.88|162.158.214.88]] 12:14, 9 January 2020 (UTC)
: Didn't he open for Cage (the elephant)? [[User:Shamino|Shamino]] ([[User talk:Shamino|talk]]) 13:27, 9 January 2020 (UTC)

I spent the evening having a jabber with Jabba (the Hut). I listened to some tunes by Benny Goodman (the King (of Swing) ) . Reminds me of the Jewish Mother joke where the first Jewish president finally gets his mother to agree to hold Seder in the White House.[parentheses mine] Mother to her friend Sadie: "I'm having Seder with my son." Sadie: "Oh, your son (the doctor)?" Mother: "No the other one." [[User:Cellocgw|Cellocgw]] ([[User talk:Cellocgw|talk]]) 12:52, 9 January 2020 (UTC)

I am (the pretty sailor soldier of love and justice) Sailor Moon! In the name of (the Moon) I will punish you! -[[Special:Contributions/173.245.52.187|173.245.52.187]] 19:42, 9 January 2020 (UTC)

I feel like the chunk about the chunk about the Sonic movie's redesign is a bit pointless, could be shrunken down to "A film featuring the character titled Sonic the Hedgehog is set for release February 2020, of which Cueball is asking his friends if they want to see it or not."--[[User:GoldNinja|GoldNinja]] ([[User talk:GoldNinja|talk]]) 00:35, 10 January 2020 (UTC)
:Probably, but the design was so heinous as to warrant pulling the release plans and redoing the model. This is enough to cause a redocumentation here, as a warning to future generations to NEVER look up the original Sonic (The Hedgehog) movie model. Verily, what has been seen cannot be (un)seen! 15:34, 10 January 2020 (UTC)

Almost 3,5 months since his last hobby comic: [[2208: Drone Fishing|2208: Drone (Fishing)]]. Nice to see one again. --[[User:Kynde|Kynde]] ([[User talk:Kynde|talk]]) 08:25, 10 January 2020 (UTC)

There are restaurant chains named Sonic's and Popeye's, is there one named Jack's?
: Yes, Jack (in the Box)[https://www.jackinthebox.com/] [[User:Rtanenbaum|Rtanenbaum]] ([[User talk:Rtanenbaum|talk]]) 20:48, 12 January 2020 (UTC)

A few days after the publication of the comic, a weirdly relevant news: https://www.cnn.com/2020/01/11/us/family-feud-canada-popeyes-trnd/index.html [[Special:Contributions/162.158.210.128|162.158.210.128]] 21:46, 13 January 2020 (UTC)

I don't see why the explanation of the crappy Sonic movie trailer is in this article, I don't find it relevant to the joke or comic. [[Special:Contributions/172.70.178.221|172.70.178.221]]

== Different interpretation ==

It seems like this explanation is saying that Randall is adding "(the Hedgehog)", "(the Ripper)", and "(the Sailor) to "Sonic", "Jack", and "Popeye" respectively. But in reading the comic, the joke seems to be that the ''parenthesis themselves'' are the things being added, not the words inside of them. In other words, the article as written seems to suggest that he would have only said "Sonic" but instead says "Sonic (the Hedgehog)", when actually the joke seems (to me) to be that he's taking "Sonic the Hedgehog" and turning it into "Sonic (the Hedgehog)". --[[User:Raviolio|Raviolio]] ([[User talk:Raviolio|talk]]) 20:58, 10 January 2024 (UTC)
:I'm not sure what's wrong with the original version. "Jack" ''would'' typically be too hard to identify, bare of any context (we don't know what that comment is apropos of, so it may have that context if we scroll the conversation back). Assuming that it follows the same fairly easy identification as "Sonic" and "Popeye" then he could easily say "X" instead of "X the Y", and then ''unnecessarily'' add "(the Y)". Like not saying "Cher" but "Cher (the singer)" with perhaps unnecessary additional context.
:If it was rewriting "X the Y" (where more generally by necessity a full title) with parens, there are many other examples that would ''not'' so easily stand alone, in the direction of "Jack". "Alexander the Great", "William the Conqueror", "Pliny the Younger", with the latter even being difficult if you narrow down context to just him and his father... (But in the context of possible Alexanders, talking of Macedonia/Greece beforehand may be enough, and even in context of English(sort of/not British!) kings the tradition is that even temporally close William Rufus/the Second requires the more disambiguation. Third/Fourth are different eras from Williams I-and-II (far beyond even comparing both Theodore and Franklin D. Roosevelt) and possible-future-Fifth will probably be dealt with as King Charles (III) is right now, by current context.)
:Trying to think of more US-centric ones (equivalent to Paul Bunyan and Johnny Appleseed), but I'm getting stuck on "Dwayne (The Rock) Johnson"... ;) Well, there's "Washington (the State/otherwise)", I suppose. ...though what about "Rosie (the Riveter)"? Maybe there's just not that much history (only Popeye is even American, in the comic ...and Midway, perhaps, terratorially).
:Yes, an alternate explanation, but for (most of) the comic examples provided I'm not convinced. The "battle" example in the TT seems to be a deliberate inversion of the established concept for yet another layer of humour/bait-and-switch rather than defining the nature of the preceding ones... [[Special:Contributions/172.69.194.94|172.69.194.94]] 01:42, 11 January 2024 (UTC)

1254: Preferred Chat System

2023-10-14T21:13:45Z

141.101.99.6: /* Transcript */ As per observation on Talk, though I think that was suggesting explicit mention and not just category membership

{{comic
| number = 1254
| date = August 21, 2013
| title = Preferred Chat System
| image = preferred chat system.png
| titletext = If you call my regular number, it just goes to my pager.
}}

==Explanation==
As more options become available for communication, it becomes more difficult to determine the social etiquette of communicating with others. It is customary (or at least rarely incorrect) to return a communication from someone using the same medium as the initial contact. For example, a voicemail is generally returned with a phone call (perhaps resulting in another voicemail), and an email with an email, etc. However, sometimes people respond through a different channel, such as texting a response to a voicemail or emailing a reply to a text. This can create confusion that [[Randall]] is pointing out, because the recipient may be unsure whether to go back to their original communication method, or if the response was a signal that the recipient prefers the new method. Similarly, it becomes important for people to know what type of communication is preferred by a recipient, or most likely to reach the recipient quickly and generate the most useful response.

Randall portrays the difficulty [[Cueball]] is facing when communicating with a seemingly irrational recipient. Today's multitude of social networks and communication systems amplifies the problem. After several misses, Cueball is leaving a voicemail for his intended recipient to clarify the best way to reach them. He initially tried texting the recipient, to which they made one reply on the instant-messaging service {{w|Google Talk}} (commonly called GChat). This is unusual because instant messaging services are usually used to engage in longer conversations than one message. Cueball further is confused because the recipient, although silent on Google Talk, continues responding on {{W|Internet Relay Chat|IRC}}. Cueball then attempted to communicate by email, but the response came on {{w|Skype}}, another instant messaging service that features voice and video chat along with text. The recipient mentions that the email "''woke [them] up''", implying that they have e-mail configured to make an audible alert, possibly by being forwarded to a cell phone.

Cueball clarifies that he appreciates that the recipient is very quick to respond, but his confusion stems from his inability to determine the proper medium to use. As he finishes his voicemail, an owl (appears to be a {{w|Barn Owl}} from its face) flies towards him carrying a written message. This appears to be a reference to [[wikia:w:c:harrypotter:Owl post|owl post]], which is a form of communication in the {{w|Harry Potter}} lore which itself is presumably based on the real-world usage of {{w|Carrier pigeon|carrier pigeons}}. The owl post message indicates that the voicemail was received, and suggests using {{w|Google Voice}} next time, which is yet another form of voice and text communication, one that bypasses the standard telecom companies and gives the user a range of controls such as which device is called depending on who is calling or what time of day it is, or to simply ignore the call altogether.

Randall seems to have an interest in bird-related communications; [http://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc1149 RFC 1149 - IP over Avian Carriers] has been mentioned in previous comics.

The title text mentions a {{w|pager}}, a low-tech, low-cost wireless telecommunications device that beeps or vibrates when it receives a message. Simpler pagers can display numbers, usually the caller's phone number plus a couple of additional digits, while more sophisticated ones can receives text messages. The usual intent of a pager is for the recipient to call the number back or, today, to tell you that your table is ready. Pager use peaked in the 1980s and 1990s, but declined thereafter as cellular phones became ubiquitous. There can be absolutely no need for this hyper-connected individual to use a pager, and having your own cellphone forward messages to your pager makes almost no sense. The question in the beginning of the owl-message further suggests, that the reciever did not actually recieve the voicemail, but just had Cueball's phone number displayed on his pager.

A possible suggestion is that they are intentionally using such an abundance of communications options to, perversely, make it harder to have a conversation with them. So far, it seems to be working. If this is true, the person Cueball is trying to contact may very well be Black Hat.

Another suggestion is that Cueball is attempting to contact Beret Guy, as Beret Guy is known for doing odd things such as this.

This comic is closely related to a later comic, [[1789: Phone Numbers]].

==Transcript==
:[Cueball stands, talking on his cell phone.]
:Cueball: Sorry for the voicemail, but I'm confused about how to reach you.
:Cueball: When I text you, you reply once on GChat, then go quiet, yet answer IRC right away. I emailed you, and you replied on Skype and mentioned that the email "woke you up".
:Cueball: You're very responsive - I just have no sense of how you use technology.
:[An owl flies into the panel.]
:Cueball: ?!?
:[The owl perches on Cueballs's head. It has delivered a note to Cueball.]
:Note: did you try to call me? use my google voice number next time.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Harry Potter]]
[[Category:Animals]]
[[Category:Phones]]
[[Category:Comics with lowercase text]]

Talk:2841: Sign Combo

2023-10-14T19:49:36Z

141.101.99.6:

Theoretically you can get around this limitation by turning off the road before the sign and doing whatever maneuvers you need to out in the wide open area to the right or left of the road. It's not a U-turn if you're not on the road, and you didn't enter a restricted part of a road either, and didn't stop on the road. After which you calmly make a turn onto the road when traffic is clear. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.245.207|108.162.245.207]] 02:34, 14 October 2023 (UTC)
:I'm pretty sure swerving off of a road is also illegal. [[User:SteveTheNoob|SteveTheNoob]] ([[User talk:SteveTheNoob|talk]]) 04:41, 14 October 2023 (UTC)
:: You can always just pull over - if a cop asks, just tell him you were lost or tired or had to take a phone call. And then take the opportunity to ask about the bloody sign! Anonymous 07:30, 14 October 2023 (UTC)
So does making a three point turn count as a u-turn? [[Special:Contributions/172.69.58.66|172.69.58.66]] 02:40, 14 October 2023 (UTC)
Wouldn't putting it in reverse stop you briefly as you switched from forward acceleration to reverse?
:Yes, this is also an example of Rolle's theorem as seen in [[2042]]. [[User:SteveTheNoob|SteveTheNoob]] ([[User talk:SteveTheNoob|talk]]) 04:56, 14 October 2023 (UTC)

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immelmann_turn Immelmann!] [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stall_turn Hammerhead!] [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuban_eight Half Cuban Eight!] [[User:Jordan Brown|Jordan Brown]] ([[User talk:Jordan Brown|talk]]) 03:21, 14 October 2023 (UTC)

You could obey the title text if it was 45 miles per hour and 65 meters per hour, respectively. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.90.96|162.158.90.96]] 04:04, 14 October 2023 (UTC)

Take notice of the road markings too. At least here in Europe double white lines are not to be crossed. And they go past the point of the sign.--[[User:Henke37|Henke37]] ([[User talk:Henke37|talk]]) 07:06, 14 October 2023 (UTC)

:Double lines are also "do not cross" in America. And I think in this case it's supposed to be yellow, the dashed-and-solid combo indicates a one-sided passing zone into a lane with on-coming traffic, and double lines in general are only use to separate anti-parallel lanes of traffic, both of which use yellow. "Solid double white lines" do exist, but are only used in very specific cases. Near me, there's a very congested exit, and the solid double whites are used to indicate "no really, you should have switched lanes ages ago, it's too late now!", but since it isn't a Jersey barrier or a line of rods or even a full on median, nobody actually follows the rule. Anonymous 07:30, 14 October 2023 (UTC)

:: BTW in Europe, yellow lines are reserved for temporary use, and then take precedence over any existing white lines. Makes lots of sense, because there are so many construction sites here. (And the yellow lines are actually just adhesive tape.) --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.87.102|162.158.87.102]] 08:28, 14 October 2023 (UTC)

::: Back when elephants had fur, road markings in the USA were white. Starting in the 1950s, road crews throughout the USA began using yellow rather than white paint. From memory, it took about a decade for the transition to be completed, with more rural roads the last to go yellow. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.90.161|162.158.90.161]] 18:18, 14 October 2023 (UTC)

Speaking of lines ... in the USA, "Do Not Enter" signs on open roadways usually signal that the road ahead is one-way traffic coming at you. A driver is thereby warned (for example) not to enter the "exit" ramp of a freeway. However, the road striping indicates that passing is permitted for drivers proceeding forward past the sign ... which is nonsensical if the only legal traffic is coming at the viewpoint driver. I am reminded of the ancient comedy routine, "Somebody went to the Army-Navy store, got himself a sign, looked out his living room window, 'Look, Martha, we caught somebody!'" [[Special:Contributions/162.158.186.118|162.158.186.118]] 19:19, 14 October 2023 (UTC)

And I completely forgot why I was posting in the first place: I think there's good reason to create a full "traffic signs" or "road signs" tag, not just "traffic lights". I know there's a page with a very complicated "this is what the road ahead looks like" sign that just says "good luck", and of course there's "Next Five Miles" and "Ahead Stop". Thoughts? Anonymous 07:58, 14 October 2023 (UTC)

More thoughts: if you must not make a U-turn to the left, you should do it to the right.
And then return on the same lane, because of the double line.
And finally, the sign itself may be valid and not contradicting itself; it is your fault if you got on this road. ;) --[[Special:Contributions/162.158.87.102|162.158.87.102]] 08:28, 14 October 2023 (UTC)

In the Netherlands, the message on signs are only valid behind the sign (with the exception of the "precedence way" (voorrangsweg), where outside of built-up areas, the signs are after a junction (though technically... way before the ''next'' junction) , so a driver stopping /u-turning here wouldn't be violating anything except the double white lines.
Also, stopping out of necessity (e.g. the car in front is also stopped) is ''never'' illegal. [[User:IIVQ|IIVQ]] ([[User talk:IIVQ|talk]]) 09:06, 14 October 2023 (UTC)

:Stopping on a road with double white lines to your left may count as obstructing the road, which I can imagine to be illegal in many places? [[User:Gpvos|Gpvos]] ([[User talk:Gpvos|talk]]) 10:02, 14 October 2023 (UTC)

If I had to comply with these instructions, I would just put the car into reverse and argue that I was never "stopped". If I actually saw this in real life, I think I'd just slow down, put on my hazard lights, and make a u-turn when appropriate.[[User:Jsnider3|Jsnider3]] ([[User talk:Jsnider3|talk]]) 10:52, 14 October 2023 (UTC

UK equivalents: [[File:UK_traffic_sign_616.svg|50px]][[File:UK_traffic_sign_614.svg|50px]][[File:UK_traffic_sign_642.svg|25px]]
(Mounted vertically, obviously, and the Clearway would have to be the small version as a repeater/reminder, already being active). ...and Title Text would require suitable numeric alterations on: [[File:UK_traffic_sign_670V20.svg|50px]][[File:UK_traffic_sign_672.svg|50px]] [[Special:Contributions/162.158.74.23|162.158.74.23]] 11:51, 14 October 2023 (UTC)

"''Depending on the jurisdiction, signs may only apply to the road after them''" - uh, in which jurisdictions is that not the case? How could you adhere to the signage before you see them? --[[Special:Contributions/172.68.110.196|172.68.110.196]] 15:01, 14 October 2023 (UTC)
: I don't know US signage, but there are times when there's repeater/reminder signage. Or even "this is information you, as a driver, should already be able to infer from the rules of the road, but some of you are idiots and need A BIG HINT about something that you clearly have forgotten since the time you had to pass your driving test..." erected by the authorities. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.6|141.101.99.6]] 19:49, 14 October 2023 (UTC)

Talk:787: Orbiter

2022-09-21T05:36:55Z

141.101.99.6:

So, I suppose a flight to the Diaoyu islands is out of the question then. '''[[User:Davidy22|{{Color|#707|David}}y²²]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 02:25, 24 April 2013 (UTC)

: did you mean: Senkaku Islands? --[[User:Quicksilver|Quicksilver]] ([[User talk:Quicksilver|talk]]) 01:11, 20 August 2013 (UTC)

I feel like this explanation page is completely neglecting to explain the joke, which is situational humor in which Cueball, to avoid a workplace conflict between two people who feel strongly about the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, eliminates the discussion before it happens by rescheduling the check-in to what he thinks is a place which has no territorial disputes. Frank then decides to be a butt and bring up the old Texas dispute. [[Special:Contributions/108.162.238.203|108.162.238.203]] 16:56, 1 May 2014 (UTC)

May be a deeper joke here. When the space shuttle Columbia crashed, it was over Palestine, Texas.
[[Special:Contributions/108.162.246.207|108.162.246.207]] 02:37, 15 September 2014 (UTC)

The given lat-long for Oklahoma doesn't appear to actually relate to Greer County. I have very little knowledge of Texas vs Oklahoma turf wars, do some Texans believe all/most of Oklahoma should be within Texas? --[[User:Pudder|Pudder]] ([[User talk:Pudder|talk]]) 10:33, 16 October 2014 (UTC)

For what it's worth, the coordinates fall within Seminole Nation territory. I wanted to make a joke about "occupied Muscogee Nation" in reference to McGirt v. Oklahoma, but 96.6W is a few miles too far west. If only it was 96.4W... --[[Special:Contributions/172.68.182.116|172.68.182.116]] 00:51, 28 November 2020 (UTC)

This comic aged like honey. Honey is naturally antimicrobial. [[Special:Contributions/172.69.42.50|172.69.42.50]] 01:56, 22 May 2021 (UTC)

I don't think it is "probably based on the wrong assumption that the inclination cannot be higher than the latitude of the launch site;" Randall should know better than that. It's probably based on drawing a great circle through Israel and Oklahoma and noting that the inclination of that plane is greater than 57 degrees, and forgetting to account for the 12 degrees or so of rotation the earth will experience while the orbiter in en-route. That seems an easier mistake for someone who knows a bit about orbital mechanics to make, and it's more consistent with the alt-text mentioning the Outer Banks, which is where the shuttle would be dropping rocket bits on an ascent to a ~60 degree orbit.[[Special:Contributions/172.69.79.173|172.69.79.173]] 01:43, 21 September 2022 (UTC)

While the page is highlighted by the above exit, I've neutralised the undue assumption that Frank originally piped up in favour of Israel. Very probably "Israel guy" is just over in the same direction (limited options for showing separate voices in a crowded room, very slightly different elevation of emination) and doesn't themself have any strong concern over Texan(ish) territory like Frank does. [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.6|141.101.99.6]] 05:36, 21 September 2022 (UTC)

1500: Upside-Down Map

2015-03-19T21:44:56Z

141.101.99.6: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1500
| date = March 18, 2015
| title = Upside-Down Map
| image = upside_down_map.png
| titletext = Due to their proximity across the channel, there's long been tension between North Korea and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Southern Ireland.
}}

==Explanation==
It has been said that maps with the {{w|South-up map orientation|south pole at the top}} will "change your perspective of the world". Such a map can easily be achieved by simply rotating a normal map 180 degrees, though the text labels would also be upside-down and perhaps harder to read. A [https://www.google.com/search?site=&tbm=isch&q=upside-down%2Bmap%2Bof%2Bthe%2Bworld Google Images] search reveals many examples of upside-down maps with the text oriented correctly for reading.

This map is a comedic play on that where instead of the whole map being upside-down, each land mass is in the same position it would be in a traditional north-top map but rotated 180 degrees (presumably around some central point of the landmass) to the orientation it would have in a south-top map. Note that individual islands are rotated about their own centers, not following the rotation of the neighboring continent; however, some are displaced as necessary to keep them from being overlapped by the rotated continents. For instance, {{w|Madagascar}} would be overlapped by the {{w|Sahara}} if it remained in position, but is instead displaced eastward to keep it in the Indian Ocean. On the other hand all the islands of the {{w|Mediterranean Sea}} have disappeared under {{w|Asia}}.

Asia is so broad that almost the entire {{w|Indochinese Peninsula}} (with for instance {{w|Vietnam}} and {{w|Thailand}}) has been rotated out of the top of the map. Similarly, the map omits {{w|Antarctica}} in the south.

To keep their familiar shapes on a rectangular map, the continents would also have to be heavily distorted compared to their actual shapes, becoming much narrower (along the lines of latitude) near the poles and wider towards the equator. See also [[977: Map Projections]].

The basic climates for several areas would be distinctly different. For example, the formerly-Central America area would be in the arctic zone while Siberia would be subtropical.

This arrangement of the world's land masses would have great advantages for trade, because there are (presumably navigable) straits between the {{w|Americas}} and between Africa and Asia, removing the need for the {{w|Panama Canal}} and the {{w|Suez Canal}}.

The title text references the fact that in this new map, the {{w|United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland}} (UK) is now next to Asia, specifically the {{w|Korean Peninsula}}. {{w|North Korea}}, is mentioned in the text, having a history of hostile relations with nearby countries. However, on this map North Korea would be the part of {{w|Korea}} we today know as {{w|South Korea}}, Further, {{w|Northern Ireland}} is now at the south of the {{w|island of Ireland}}, so the UK's full name would need to change to The United Kingdom of Great Britain and '''Southern''' Ireland. There have been several wars concerning the {{w|English Channel}}, mainly, but not only, between {{w|England}} and {{w|France}}. Likewise there has been a history of animosity between Korea and {{w|Japan}}, separated by a similar body of water. Since a channel now, on this world map, exists between the UK and North Korea (the real world's South Korea) there could obviously have been many wars for the dominance over said channel.

Along the same line of thinking, interesting speculations could be made from the following "new" facts:
*{{w|Cuba}} is now off the east coast (formerly west coast) of {{w|Canada}} (and {{w|USA}}).
*{{w|Japan}} is next to the coast of {{w|Portugal}} and {{w|Spain}}.
*Madagascar lies next to {{w|Morocco}} and {{w|Mauritania}} on the east coast (formerly west coast) of Sahara.
*{{w|Taiwan}} is now next to France. It is though doubtful whether they get along any better with the French than with the mainland {{w|China|Chinese}}.
*{{w|Greenland}} lies next to {{w|Mexico}}.
*{{w|Sri Lanka}} is located next to the {{w|Yamalsky District}} of {{w|Russia}}.
*The island {{w|Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego|Tierra del Fuego}}, an island just south of the southern tip of South America, which is divided between {{w|Argentina}} and {{w|Chile}} is now located in a similar manner next to {{w|Colombia}} and {{w|Venezuela}}. So it would probably have been divided between these two countries.
*The {{w|Falkland Islands}} (not named in the map, they are probably represented by the single island above the T in Tierra) where Argentina and UK have an ongoing {{w|Falkland Islands sovereignty dispute|sovereignty dispute}} now could be claimed by {{w|Ecuador}} or {{w|Peru}}.
*The Mediterranean islands seem to have vanished entirely, as they are now in approximately the same place as {{w|Mongolia}}.

==Transcript==
:[Map of the world with all the landmasses rotated upside-down.]
:[Four oceans and all the visible continents have been named in large letters in a bold font. The Pacific has been named both to the left and right. Several islands (large and small) have been designated with name but in grey and in a much smaller normal font. For all continents the names are written on them. For the island the name is written in the ocean except for Greenland.]

:[Below the names on the map are given in the order they appear reading from left to right, first for the northern and then the southern hemisphere:]

:[Northern hemisphere:]
:'''North America'''
:Cuba
:Greenland
:'''Atlantic Ocean
:Iceland
:UK
:'''Asia'''
:Sri Lanka
:'''Europe'''
:'''Arctic Ocean'''
:Taiwan
:Japan
:'''Pacific Ocean'''

:[Southern hemisphere:]
:'''Pacific Ocean'''
:'''South America'''
:Tierra del Fuego
:'''Africa'''
:'''Indian Ocean'''
:Madagascar
:Indonesia
:'''Australia'''
:New Zealand

:[Below the main frame:]
:'''This upside-down map will change your perspective on the world!'''

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Geography]]
[[Category:Maps]]

1382: Rocket Packs

2014-06-16T09:27:40Z

141.101.99.6: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1382
| date = June 16, 2014
| title = Rocket Packs
| image = rocket_packs.png
| titletext = Every year: 'It's <year>--I want my jetpack [and also my free medical care covering all my jetpack-related injuries]!'
}}

==Explanation==
For a long time, many people have speculated that in the future, everyone would travel around with rockets strapped to their backs. However, this has not come to pass at the time this comic was published.

In this comic, Randall is pointing out that the problem with personal rocket packs is not how to attach a rocket to someone's back, but other practical considerations. One might be how to keep the hot exhaust from burning the user's {{w|Calf_(anatomy)|calves}}. (Many {{w|jet pack}} designs actually do have ways to deal with this, such as moving the rockets farther from the user, but there are many other practical issues which have made this an impractical form of travel given current technology).

The title text points out that if people did start using rocket packs, there would also be more injuries, raising health care costs. That's something that people usually don't consider when imagining a future where these devices are commonplace.

So this year when the comics was published the demand was:

:'' 'It's 2014--I want my jetpack [and also my free medical care covering all my jetpack-related injuries]!' ''

==Transcript==
:[Text above the frame]
:Rocket packs are easy.
:[In the frame: Cueball is lying on the ground with his Rocket Packs on his back and his calves severely burned]
:Cueball: Ow
:[Text below the frame]
:The hard part is inventing the calf shields.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]