3113: Fix This Sign
| Fix This Sign |
 Title text: We're building on our earlier success getting web developers to pay to change the backslashes in our displayed payment URL to forward slashes. |
Explanation[edit]
Randall has created a sign with a number of issues, such as bad kerning and alignment, that graphic designers might be disturbed by. Fortunately these graphic designers can donate money to have the sign's issues fixed (which is possibly an improvement upon the situation invoked in the case of 2598: Graphic Designers). Ironically, once all the errors are fixed, the sign won't make sense any more, requesting money for fixes that have already been made.
The relative values assigned to each 'fix' are presumably proportional to at least one observer's perceived degree of issue with each 'mistake'. Given the costs of printing a sign of this size, Randall may have severely underpriced his fixes and set up his business to fail, if he intends to honour the pledges. He may be relying on there being a lot of passing graphic designers, generating multiple 'doanations' for each issue. Perhaps he will only fix them if a certain total amount of money is raised. This would be similar to the Kickstarter model, where people can donate at different levels and multiple people can donate at the same level, but the project will only be undertaken if a certain total amount of money is raised. If that total is not raised, nobody gets charged and the project is cancelled. One would hope the QR code would lead to a page detailing whether that's the case, what the total amount raised would need to be to be worth undertaking the fixes, or otherwise explaining how the scam project works. The following paid solutions to deliberate issues are advertised:
- Fix kerning ($10)
- Kerning refers to the spacing between letters in a typeface, previously addressed in 1015: Kerning. Kerning issues can result in letters in text appearing too far apart, as if there were a space in between, or too close, as if the letters were merged. In some instances, combinations of letters can appear like other letters. A well known example of this is the r and n merging into an m. (For example, "kerning" might appear as "keming", which is hinted at in the comic with the R and N close together, although here they are in uppercase, so this merging doesn't happen.)
- In this instance, the N and I in this word are very close together in this actual item, as a self-demonstrating issue. In the sign's title, the I and S (in "THIS") are too far apart and the S and the I (in "SIGN") are too close to each other.
- Align columns ($20)
- Here the dollar amount and the text itself do not align in columns with the other entries, which disrupts the flow of the eye down the list, making it harder to read.
- Fix text size ($20)
- The size of this entry is smaller than the rest of the other entries. As with the misaligned columns, such variances could be displeasing to the eye or distracting.
- Fix typo ($50)
- The title of the sign says "Doanate to fix this sign!" Someone who is easily annoyed by random typos could be compelled to donate just to get the typo fixed.
- Fix centering ($50)
- The content of the sign is off-center, leaving larger gaps to the left than to the right.
- Fix rotation ($100)
- The content of the sign slopes slightly down from left to right. For example, in the title "doanate" is higher than "sign", and the QR code 'graphic' is noticeably off-square.
- Title text
- The title text refers to another common annoyance in a different field: that of website developers and, specifically, weblinks. URLs are defined to use forward slashes (/) rather than backslashes (\), which are used in Windows pathnames. Due to the widespread usage of both URLs and Windows pathnames, it is not uncommon for someone to mistakenly use backslashes in URLs, which isn't always supported. This annoyance was also discussed in 727: Trade Expert.
Transcript[edit]
- [A single panel containing a large, elevated sign with Ponytail standing in front of it.]
- [Title, slightly off horizontal, more to the right than central and the character spacing is not entirely consistent/aesthetic:] Doanate[sic] to fix this sign!
- [To the left of the lower part of the sign there is an 'QR code', tilted slightly with a plaintext link beneath it:] https://[illegible].com
- [To the right are several dollar values, in one column, and 'fixes', in a second, some of which have their own self-demonstrating quirks.]
- [The letters "R" and "N" may be too close together:] $10 fix kerning
- [Both dollar value and fix text are shifted left of their respective columns:] $20 align columns
- [This line is in a smaller font:] $20 fix text size
- $50 fix typo
- $50 fix centering
- $100 fix rotation
- [Ponytail stands looking at the sign, apparently in the process of using a smartphone:] Grrr...
- [Caption below panel:] My new company's business model is based on extorting graphic designers.
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I'm not certain, but this feels like Black Hat's doing (who's doing this for the irritation factor, not the money). 2001:1C02:1A9D:9700:9DCE:6FD1:E813:D91B 20:15, 9 July 2025 (UTC)
- He could easily be doing it for both. Putting up this sign and then not fixing it when people actually pay sounds like the stunt he would pull. 2601:647:8500:1E09:8424:D57A:75C9:D207 20:38, 9 July 2025 (UTC)
- The caption says "my," so it seems this would be Randall.--2600:100F:B13F:CB34:0:1E:BAC1:7001 22:02, 9 July 2025 (UTC)
What happens when everything is bought? Does the sign just stay up? Does it reset after a while? Is it removed? 2601:647:8500:1E09:8424:D57A:75C9:D207 20:40, 9 July 2025 (UTC)
the s and the i in "SIGN" are also too close to each other An user who has no account yet (talk) 22:00, 9 July 2025 (UTC)
This feels like a continuation of My Hobby, or perhaps a sequel series. Also, how do we know that the prices aren't typos? The true value could be WAY more expensive. Redacted II (talk) 00:18, 10 July 2025 (UTC)
This business model is reminiscent of their.™ from SMBC https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/their which would suggest that once the fixes have all been bought the sign is simply replaced with a worse one. 169.150.208.130 04:22, 10 July 2025 (UTC)
Where can we donate to fix the explainxkcd server? Also, those are not donations, as you get clear value for it. $1000: Change "Do(a)nate" to "Pay us". --Coconut Galaxy (talk) 05:22, 10 July 2025 (UTC)
My limited experience with the printing industry is that the graphic designers are not the object but the subject of the verb 'extorting' because they will bill you a lot for trivial changes even if it's to fix tgeir own mistakes. 109.37.229.249 11:06, 10 July 2025 (UTC)
- "Tgeir"... Can I PayPal you $50? --174.174.4.79 14:06, 10 July 2025 (UTC)
Shouldn't fixing the typo be the most expensive? You don't even need to be a graphic designer, lots of ordinary people should be bothered by it. Surely it's more annoying than non-centered text. Barmar (talk) 14:19, 10 July 2025 (UTC)
- Most to least annoying: Typo/column alignment (equal); text size; use of exclamation point; excessive whitespace; rotation/centring (equal); kerning. I'm also bothered by how far past the posts the sides of the sign extend. 82.13.184.33 15:37, 10 July 2025 (UTC)
- Honestly, I think Randall missed a trick - the posts are equidistant from their respective sides of the sign. Putting one post closer to its edge than the other would be yet another design annoyance that might prompt pedants such as I to pay up!
I think Randall is also trying to get pedantics upset by using the term "forward slashes" instead of just "slashes" - Just like a mouse doesn't have a "left click" button, only a "click" or "right click"
- I definitely use "left click" when talking to the less-informed users. Also, pedantic of me, but you mean "pedants", not "pedantics". SDSpivey (talk) 15:08, 12 July 2025 (UTC)
- I'm sure you've also come across situations where you've said "And now you left-click on that...", and the person you're trying to help goes "which one's Left Click?". ;)
- PS. "pedant" is the third-person present active indicative plural of the Latin singular "pedō" (to 'give feet'/'prop up'), which I think is interestng. :P 92.23.2.228 20:42, 12 July 2025 (UTC)
- I had some time when I have to call slash and backslash by ‘丿-slash’ and ‘乀-slash’ (See Chinese character strokes#Basic strokes). 物灵 (talk) 08:46, 13 July 2025 (UTC)
- Pedanticically, it doesn't have a "right click" either - it (usually) has a left button and a right button, which can be assigned to a primary click and a secondary click. If, like me, you have your mouse configured left handed, then the right button is the (primary) "click", and the left button is the secondary. 82.13.184.33 08:18, 14 July 2025 (UTC)
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