explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:1839: Doctor Visit

2017-05-19T13:39:19Z

162.158.46.70: /* 30% Cerial */

This comic seems relatively simpler to explain. [[User:Nialpxe|Nialpxe]] ([[User talk:Nialpxe|talk]]) 06:38, 19 May 2017 (UTC)

I don't have the desire to edit this at the moment. However, it should be mentioned that when studied and considered critically the human body is actually quite resilient. We are merely used to thinking of "strong" and "tough" as properties of metal, which to someone unfamiliar with the materials which make up Human organs may associate them as being squishy and therefore weak. The human eye itself is perhaps vulnerable as it is a delicate instrument but it is not weak. Moreover the human body is self-renewing and of a far higher quality of function and design than any technology we have created. --[[User:Lackadaisical|Lackadaisical]] ([[User talk:Lackadaisical|talk]]) 13:16, 19 May 2017 (UTC)

== 30% Cereal ==

Am I the only one who doesn't get that one?
[[Special:Contributions/172.68.51.34|172.68.51.34]] 10:08, 19 May 2017 (UTC)

I'm pretty sure the 30% cereal is a reference that the human body is made of 70% of water. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.62.117|162.158.62.117]] 10:46, 19 May 2017 (UTC)

But blood has around 90% of water. Can a blood test tell how much water Cueball has ?

This possibly has to do with the fact that numerous things produced by the body, such as hair, are partly produced from consumed high fructose corn syrup which is found in cereal and countless other foods as a sweetener. {{Citation needed}} [[Special:Contributions/108.162.221.226|108.162.221.226]] 12:37, 19 May 2017 (UTC)
:I always thought that HFCS tasted like hair. Now I know what it's made of! *spits out beverage* (Just kidding. They don't use HFCS in my country.) [[User:Nialpxe|Nialpxe]] ([[User talk:Nialpxe|talk]]) 12:48, 19 May 2017 (UTC)

It seems that Randall recently read the book "Antifragile" by N. Taleb :)

I think it refers to that 70% of a human is water, I guess. [[Special:Contributions/162.158.46.70|162.158.46.70]] 13:39, 19 May 2017 (UTC)

1837: Rental Car

2017-05-15T10:17:27Z

162.158.46.70:

{{comic
| number = 1837
| date = May 15, 2017
| title = Rental Car
| image = rental_car.png
| titletext = Technically, both cars are haunted, but the murder ghosts can't stand listening to the broken GPS for more than a few minutes.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete| 🚧 🔨}}

This comic suggests that given a choice between a haunted (and occasionally murderous car) and one with a faulty GPS that cannot be turned off, it is a more popular choice to take the "murder car."

The title text suggests that even murderous ghosts are put off by the broken GPS.
==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

4 panels, 3rd is not bordered

Panel 1: A desk with items, part of a car rental office. Cueball is on the left, and two customers, Megan and another Cueball-like person is on the right

Cueball:-
We have two rental cars left.
One is the murder car. But don't let the name scare you!
It's definitely haunted. But most drivers don't get murdered.
Maybe One in Six.

Panel 2: Same scene as panel 1
Cueball:-
The Other is a regular sedan.
But is has a GPS that's stuck trying to navigate to Seattle.

Megan:-
...I can ignore it, right? That's fine.

Panel 3: Megan and Cueball-2 has taken the sedan

GPS:-
Turn Left
Recalculating
Make a U-Turn
Recalculating
Turn Right
Make a U-Turn
Recalculating

Panel 4: Megan and Cueball-2 are back at the rental

Cueball:-
Back already?

Megan:-
We'll take the murder car.

Cueball:-
Popular Choice.

{{comic discussion}}

1837: Rental Car

2017-05-15T09:53:09Z

162.158.46.70: Added an attempt at the transcript

1833: Code Quality 3

2017-05-05T15:37:47Z

162.158.46.70: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 1833
| date = May 5, 2017
| title = Code Quality 3
| image = code_quality_3.png
| titletext = It's like a half-solved cryptogram where the solution is a piece of FORTH code written by someone who doesn't know FORTH.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

This comic is a direct continuation of [[1513: Code Quality]] and [[1695: Code Quality 2]] in the [[:Category:Code Quality|Code Quality]] series, in which Ponytail continually insults Cueball's code style. In this comic, as in the previous, Cueball does not directly appear, only speaking off-panel; however, as it is a continuation of the series, it is clear that this is Cueball's code.

In the first panel, Ponytail references {{w|query string|query strings}}, which store information, such as search queries or page numbers, relevant to the URL. Query strings are not meant to be especially human-readable, so a song based on one would likely not be a good one.

A tactical light is a light that can be mounted on a gun for use in low-light scenarios. They tend to be very durable and very bright. Different models have different features and capabilities, so they are given cool-sounding model numbers. A JSON table of these model numbers would look like random data.

{{w|Alan Turing}} was a British theoretical computer scientist, often considered the father of the field. His 1936 paper outlined Turing machines, a theoretical model for computing, as well as computability and the halting problem. Theoretical computer science is very different from practical coding; understanding the contents of the paper would not at all help a coder to understand today's algorithms, design patterns, and best practices.

In the final panel, Ponytail references {{w|leet|leet-speak}}, in which symbols are replaced with similar-looking symbols, and a {{w|manifesto}}, a statement of a person or group's beliefs and intentions. A manifesto from a survivalist cult leader might be nonsensical, even before being translated to leet-speak. Memory allocation is a low-level computer programming concept; most modern languages have features that take care of memory allocation for the programmer, possibly implying that Cueball does not know how to use these features.

At the end of the final panel, Cueball, seeing that Ponytail is tired of reading his code, offers to ask someone else to read his code. Ponytail insults him again by saying that nobody would want to review his code after seeing it for the first time.

{{w|Forth_(programming_language)#Programmer.27s_perspective|Forth}} is an old programming language that tends to be difficult to read. A {{w|cryptogram}} is a cipher puzzle, generally one easy enough to be solved manually. The title text implies that the code is so bad that it looks like unreadable FORTH code that is missing random characters.

==Transcript==
:[Ponytail sitting in front of a computer screen typing. Cueball speaks only off-panel, but since this is a direct continuation of comic 1513 and 1695: Code Quality and Code Quality 2 where Cueball is shown, there can be no doubt it is him.]
:Ponytail: Your code looks like song lyrics written using only the stuff that comes after the question mark in a URL.
:Cueball (off-panel): Sorry.
:[Zoom in on Ponytail's upper body.]
:Ponytail: It's like a JSON table of model numbers for flashlights with "tactical" in their names.
:[Zoom back out again. Ponytail has lifted her hands off the table.]
:Ponytail: Like you read Turing's 1936 paper on computing and a page of JavaScript example code and guessed at everything in between.
:[Zoom in again on Ponytail's face.]
:Ponytail: It's like a leet-speak translation of a manifesto by a survivalist cult leader who's for some reason obsessed with memory allocation.
:Cueball (off-panel): I can get someone else to review my code.
:Ponytail: Not more than once, I bet.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Code Quality]]