explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:1494: Insurance

2015-03-04T09:44:59Z

Obskyr: bah, why would anyone do that

Well...suck for you.
[[Special:Contributions/108.162.215.57|108.162.215.57]] 05:17, 4 March 2015 (UTC) RobotGoggles

'''Incomplete tag?'''
I know it's pretty early, and the explanation is bound to be rewritten, but the current explanation is a little confusing, and makes a couple jumps that I wouldn't necessarily make. Maybe the incomplete tag shouldn't be removed yet? I'd do it, but I don't really know enough about actually editing the explanations to feel comfortable doing it yet.
[[User:ARoseByAnyOtherName|ARoseByAnyOtherName]] ([[User talk:ARoseByAnyOtherName|talk]]) 08:52, 4 March 2015 (UTC)

: I mean, I had written an explanation I'd say was a bit clearer (if a bit more complicated), but some unregistered user removed most of it... Makes me a bit grumpy. The newly added ''Lifehacks vs. IT hacks'' section brings up most of the things that person removed, though, so this should be complete enough. [[User:Obskyr|Obskyr]] ([[User talk:Obskyr|talk]]) 09:44, 4 March 2015 (UTC)

== Any meaning to conveyer? ==

The spelling error in the alt text seems like a simple typo.

Lawyer? I assumed it was a salesman or HR guy. --[[User:RenniePet|RenniePet]] ([[User talk:RenniePet|talk]]) 08:50, 4 March 2015 (UTC)
:: Insurance agent. Not exactly a salesman; agents have multiple hats. You don't get fire insurance from HR.[[User:Taibhse|Taibhse]] ([[User talk:Taibhse|talk]]) 09:34, 4 March 2015 (UTC)

1494: Insurance

2015-03-04T05:47:37Z

Obskyr: Completed an incomplete sentence.

{{comic
| number = 1494
| date = March 4, 2015
| title = Insurance
| image = insurance.png
| titletext = LIFEHACKS: You can just take all the luggage off the airport conveyer belt and leave with it. They don't check that it's yours at the door!
}}

==Explanation==
[[Cueball]] in this comic, as is often the case, is some sort of programmer or at least logically minded person. He reads through the terms that are handed to him, and finds some sort of loophole. This is a play on the fact that programmers often find loopholes in programs and code, and exploiting them is nothing more than a "cool find" or an interesting idea.

The lawyer foresees this, and explains that a "cool hack" or the like in a law document like this is, in fact, illegal and not a very good idea to exploit. The comparison here is that exploiting a program's faults can be regarded as interesting or fun, while exploiting the faults in a legal document will most certainly result in some sort of legal repercussions.

The lawyer is also already prepared for the following question - how he knew Cueball would be looking for loopholes.

The title text provides another, similar juxtaposition between the security in place around airport luggage conveyors and the security in place in programming contexts. While airport luggage security certainly is exploitable, actually exploiting it is certainly not a good idea. This certainty contrasts with the often ambiguous morality of exploiting computer programs.

==Transcript==
[Cueball is standing in front of a desk, which a man sits behind. The man is apparently some sort of lawyer, and is handing Cueball a paper.]

Lawyer: Here's a page explaining the terms of your new fire insurance policy.

[Cueball reads the paper.]

Cueball: Hey, what if I-

Lawyer: And ''here's'' a page explaining that the "cool hack" you just thought of is called "insurance fraud". We already know about it and it's a crime.

Cueball: Oh. Right. How did-

Lawyer: I see a lot of programmers here.

{{comic discussion}}

1494: Insurance

2015-03-04T05:44:07Z

Obskyr: Added explanation of title text.

{{comic
| number = 1494
| date = March 4, 2015
| title = Insurance
| image = insurance.png
| titletext = LIFEHACKS: You can just take all the luggage off the airport conveyer belt and leave with it. They don't check that it's yours at the door!
}}

==Explanation==
[[Cueball]] in this comic, as is often the case, is some sort of programmer or at least logically minded person. He reads through the terms that are handed to him, and finds some sort of loophole. This is a play on the fact that programmers often find loopholes in programs and code, and exploiting them is nothing more than a "cool find" or an interesting idea.

The lawyer foresees this, and explains that a "cool hack" or the like in a law document like this is, in fact, illegal and not a very good idea to exploit. The comparison here is that exploiting a program's faults can be regarded as interesting or fun, while exploiting the faults in a legal document will most certainly result in some sort of legal repercussions.

The lawyer is also already prepared for the following question - how he knew Cueball would be looking for loopholes.

The title text provides another, similar juxtaposition between the security in place around airport luggage conveyors. While it certainly is exploitable, actually exploiting it is certainly not a good idea. This certainty contrasts with the often ambiguous morality of exploiting computer programs.

==Transcript==
[Cueball is standing in front of a desk, which a man sits behind. The man is apparently some sort of lawyer, and is handing Cueball a paper.]

Lawyer: Here's a page explaining the terms of your new fire insurance policy.

[Cueball reads the paper.]

Cueball: Hey, what if I-

Lawyer: And ''here's'' a page explaining that the "cool hack" you just thought of is called "insurance fraud". We already know about it and it's a crime.

Cueball: Oh. Right. How did-

Lawyer: I see a lot of programmers here.

{{comic discussion}}

1494: Insurance

2015-03-04T05:38:04Z

Obskyr: Added explanation.

{{comic
| number = 1494
| date = March 4, 2015
| title = Insurance
| image = insurance.png
| titletext = LIFEHACKS: You can just take all the luggage off the airport conveyer belt and leave with it. They don't check that it's yours at the door!
}}

==Explanation==
[[Cueball]] in this comic, as is often the case, is some sort of programmer or at least logically minded person. He reads through the terms that are handed to him, and finds some sort of loophole. This is a play on the fact that programmers often find loopholes in programs and code, and exploiting them is nothing more than a "cool find" or an interesting idea.

The lawyer foresees this, and explains that a "cool hack" or the like in a law document like this is, in fact, illegal and not a very good idea to exploit. The comparison here is that exploiting a program's faults can be regarded as interesting or fun, while exploiting the faults in a legal document will most certainly result in some sort of legal repercussions.

The lawyer is also already prepared for the following question - how he knew Cueball would be looking for loopholes.

==Transcript==
[Cueball is standing in front of a desk, which a man sits behind. The man is apparently some sort of lawyer, and is handing Cueball a paper.]

Lawyer: Here's a page explaining the terms of your new fire insurance policy.

[Cueball reads the paper.]

Cueball: Hey, what if I-

Lawyer: And ''here's'' a page explaining that the "cool hack" you just thought of is called "insurance fraud". We already know about it and it's a crime.

Cueball: Oh. Right. How did-

Lawyer: I see a lot of programmers here.

{{comic discussion}}

1494: Insurance

2015-03-04T05:30:52Z

Obskyr: Wiki syntax. Whoops.

1494: Insurance

2015-03-04T05:29:57Z

Obskyr: Added transcript.