explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:932: CIA

2016-03-24T15:25:55Z

162.158.85.87:

Hey, Lulzsec was ''awesome''. They released free passwords for porn websites on the internet! I'm sitting on 150 gigabytes of gold and pleasure, and it's all thanks to them. '''[[User:Davidy22|{{Color|purple|David}}y²²]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 09:16, 9 March 2013 (UTC)

Apparently computer experts are not a subset of people... [[Special:Contributions/108.162.219.7|108.162.219.7]] 21:48, 12 May 2014 (UTC)
:Good point. Randall made a mistake. Let's just say it's another hidden joke!

920: YouTube Parties

2016-03-23T16:34:53Z

162.158.85.87: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 920
| date = July 4, 2011
| title = YouTube Parties
| image = youtube_parties.png
| titletext = This reminds me of that video where... no? How have you not seen that? Oh man, let me find it. No, it's ok, we can go back to your video later.
}}

==Explanation==
A {{w|YouTube}} party is when a group of people show each other YouTube videos. The problem with YouTube parties is that no one pays attention to the video that's playing; instead, each person is thinking of the video that they personally want to play next.

You can see analogous behavior at any get-together where couples (parents) are telling stories about their kids. Nobody cares about anybody else's kid; they are just waiting (not even listening) until they get the chance to talk about their own offspring.

The joke seems to be that everybody is doing this, but it is unclear whether they realize it. They each seem to be under the delusion that the others will be fascinated by "their" video (or child's accomplishments), even though the evidence strongly suggests otherwise. Possibly they don't care about that either; they just want an audience, even an unwilling one.

This may be defensible where kids are involved, because the parents could reasonably feel that the accomplishments of their children reflect well on themselves. However, the people in the YouTube party didn't create the videos, they just found them. Which makes their behavior (or perhaps YouTube parties in general) even more inane and pointless.

The title text reiterates this point. The speaker is reminded of another video that is so superior to the one currently playing that we should find it and watch it immediately. We can always go back to the current video later (if anybody still remembers, that is; and according to the comic above no one will ''want'' to remember it).

==Transcript==
:[Cueball is standing by a laptop, showing a video to a group.]
:The problem with YouTube parties:
:Cueball (thinking): This video is blowing their ''MINDS.''
:Group (thinking): Oh man, I know what video we should watch once this is over.

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

916: Unpickable

2016-03-23T16:14:10Z

162.158.85.87: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 916
| date = June 24, 2011
| title = Unpickable
| image = unpickable.png
| titletext = The safe is empty except for an unsolved 5x5 Rubik's cube.
}}
==Explanation==
The comic plays on the idea that geeks and nerds will try to break into high-security areas in order to challenge themselves, instead of to steal things. The vault is labeled "unpickable" as a kind of challenge to break into it, while all the valuables are simply stored in a shoe box ''beside'' the vault.

To our knowledge, a 24-pin dual-tumbler {{w|Tubular pin tumbler lock|radial-hybrid lock}} would be too bulky and cumbersome to actually exist (the key would be huge, for one thing), but in theory would be a remarkably difficult type of lock to pick. The fused 17th pin means even with the correct key it cannot be opened. It would be much easier to simply break open the safe with brute force than to pick it. Since the vault is nearly unopenable, nerds and geeks would spend all their time on the vault and ignore the seemingly useless shoe box.

The title text continues the theme, with an unsolved 5x5 {{w|Rubik's cube}} to further challenge and distract the thief.

==Transcript==
:HackerShield Geek-Proof Safe System:
:[Two boxes sit side by side. One is a safe with a lock marked "Unpickable." It is labeled: (1) 24-pin dual-tumbler radial-hybrid lock (rendered unopenable by a fused 17th pin). The other is a shoebox. It is labeled: (2) Shoebox containing your valuables.]

{{Comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics with color]]

Talk:913: Core

2016-03-23T13:00:40Z

162.158.85.87:

FYI: It's not ''right'' under you. It's more like far, far, very far away from you. '''AND''' it's quite some time behind you, left of you, right of you, in front of you, and sometimes even {{w|Underwater Diving|above you}} .

And the crust is just thin enough that volcanoes and earthquakes are a thing. Safety! '''[[User:Davidy22|{{Color|#707|David}}y²²]]'''[[User talk:Davidy22|<tt>[talk]</tt>]] 01:30, 17 April 2013 (UTC)

Isn't the glancing down and saying "I study that" a reference to something more inappropriate? ~ JFreund
:I think that's the joke. [[User:NealCruco|NealCruco]] ([[User talk:NealCruco|talk]]) 17:27, 17 March 2014 (UTC)

I agree. If you stand with your arm at shoulder height and gesture downwards, saying "I study that", you will be pointing both toward the center of the earth and at your own genitals. That is the joke in the title text. {{unsigned ip|173.245.52.196}}

And if Carlos Saldanha,s documentary is correct, the earth will be filled - FILLED - with velociraptors. [[Special:Contributions/173.245.56.191|173.245.56.191]] 15:25, 29 August 2014 (UTC)