3163: Repair Video

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Repair Video
The statue should be in the likeness of whatever sculptor posted the sculpting tool repair video that was most helpful during the installation of the statue.
Title text: The statue should be in the likeness of whatever sculptor posted the sculpting tool repair video that was most helpful during the installation of the statue.

    Explanation

    Cueball finds a video explaining how to fix the exact problem he is currently having with his humidifier. The caption states that people who go to the effort of helping people, by creating such videos, should at least be rewarded by a statue.

    Thanks to this one, Cueball finds the solution to his problem easily, unlike in 979: Wisdom of the Ancients. This comic could be seen as a happier version of the events in that earlier comic, though this one concerns an appliance and the other concerns software.

    It is initially unclear whether this is one statue for each individual helper, or not, but the title text implies that a single model/muse is used, perhaps to symbolically represent gratefulness for the totality of all such helpful people in a single monumental creation of appreciation. Or, otherwise, as one original statue to then be duplicated as necessary to allow each helper to have their own personal copy.

    The choice of muse arises from the assumption that the sculptor who is making the statue will at some point experience the problem of having broken sculpting tools (though this depends upon the interpretation of their use in 'installation'), and so need to watch an instructional video on how to repair them and start/continue the commission. Therefore, as a representative helpful figure, the person who made the video consulted by the sculptor should be the one studied as the archetype for the final form.

    This requires that the sculptee be positively identified prior to the point at which sculptor gets too far into the sculpting process. Simplicity then suggests that the nascent commemorative process starts off by the hiring of a candidate craftsman who is currently inactive due to being beset by broken (but, under guidance, fixable) implements, and proceeding in whatever manner then leads towards the final goal.

    Transcript

    Ambox warning green construction.svg This is one of 27 incomplete transcripts:
    Don't remove this notice too soon. If you can fix this issue, edit the page!
    [Cueball sits at his desk, on which there is a laptop computer showing a video. His hands are on his lap. Behind Cueball's chair and on the floor, there is a humidifier with "E-21" printed on it, making noise. The humidifier's cord extends to the right side of the panel.]
    Voice from computer: Hey all!
    Voice from computer: Does your E-21 humidifier make an annoying clicking noise? Mine did, but I finally figured out that there's an easy fix, so I made this video in case anyone else...
    Cueball: Oh my god. Yes. Yes.
    Humidifier: Click click
    [Caption below the panel:]
    I know there's more important work in the world, but I feel like these people deserve, at minimum, a statue.

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    Discussion

    Lol Mathmaster (talk) 23:20, 3 November 2025 (UTC)

    I tried to check the explain page for this comic a little while ago and the page hadn’t been made yet :( Kirinhatchi (talk) 23:32, 3 November 2025 (UTC)

    I think Randall speaks for a few billion people with this one. 64.201.132.210 23:49, 3 November 2025 (UTC)

    It feels like this comic is almost a "happy ending" version of https://xkcd.com/979/. 2605:A601:AF4D:DE00:510E:86B:6FA2:356B 00:27, 4 November 2025 (UTC)

    I agree, it seems like a spiritual continuation. I put that in the explanation though it could definitely be moved/fit into the content more cleanly. R128 (talk) 00:55, 4 November 2025 (UTC)

    > "but afterwards decide to create instructional videos" -- I see some how-to videos that don't seem to be afterward, but intentional "What can I post about to get some clicks/eyeballs?" IAC, YouTube has become my go-to for many problems which should be easier to show than to talk about. But so many newbie videographers work in shadow, or block the key part with their shoulder, or rush the details. --PRR (talk) 01:07, 4 November 2025 (UTC)

    ...Scott here! - 24.177.125.170 03:45, 4 November 2025 (UTC)

    Before we all die, I have to know. Is it “hey all,” or “hey y’all?” KelOfTheStars! (talk) 04:19, 4 November 2025 (UTC)
    Or "hey all y'all?" 107.77.205.128 18:32, 4 November 2025 (UTC)
    "He yall yall!" 82.13.184.33 17:09, 5 November 2025 (UTC)
    How was the Antarctic? 82.13.184.33 09:24, 4 November 2025 (UTC)

    I feel like the explanation is missing an emphasis on the fact that Cueball's problem is entirely trivial (albeit very annoying) and hence farcical to suggest awarding statues for solving it, but it seems like it needs a more significant rework than just an added line, and I don't have the headspace to do it - anyone want to take a run at it? 82.13.184.33 09:27, 4 November 2025 (UTC)

    Ugh, another video that should have been text. I just want to know how to fix whatever it is, I don't need a 2 minute opening, monologue, and "Like and subscribe!" 163.116.254.55 16:00, 4 November 2025 (UTC)

    This will become wisdom of the ancients when the video platform does some housecleaning, deletes the video, and all that is left are some chat posts linking to it. 107.77.205.128 18:32, 4 November 2025 (UTC)
    Exactly, I first thought the comic would be criticism, since the entire big speech bubble is just filler. Reminds me of a German comic (which I can't find currently) where someone has an extremely specific, obscure and very urgent problem, meanwhile the TV advertises the exact solution, but forces them to sit through a hotline waiting loop first. In text, I can just jump to the relevant part. For example I soon want to replace the screen of my phone, but I already know how to open the main case, I want to skip past that and get to the screen-specific part. And I don't need to see all screws undone in real time, one diagram of where all are is much more helpful. Fabian42 (talk) 13:20, 6 November 2025 (UTC)

    I am reminded of this (relatable) ancient tweet by Martin A. Brooks: 

    “This video demonstrates….”

How I want tech stuff explained to me in order of preference:

1) A well written technical document.
2) A maintained wiki.
…
998) Spray painted on the side of a cow.
999) A video.

    124.171.37.127 22:52, 4 November 2025 (UTC)

    Where does 'some indecipherable pictograms' appear on this list? 82.13.184.33 09:50, 5 November 2025 (UTC)
    If it's auto repair, I kind of want a video mostly to learn about the gotchas before I start ripping into something. 130.76.187.35 13:53, 5 November 2025 (UTC)

    Man, Randall really seems have humidifiers on his mind a lot lately... StapleFreeBatteries (talk) 04:36, 5 November 2025 (UTC)

    Trying to overcome the tendency towards dry humour? 82.132.244.89 14:35, 5 November 2025 (UTC)

    You know what's worse than https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/979:_Wisdom_of_the_Ancients ? An XKCD comic about my problem, with no explanation about the fix. My dehumidifier makes an annoying clicking noise. 2601:19B:4103:97F0:ECAD:3D45:F3A9:F94D 15:31, 5 November 2025 (UTC)

    Can't see how this comic could help you... It's about a humidifier that annoyingly clicks, not a dehumidifier that annoyingly clicks... You need to search for a different comic with insufficient real-world info... :p 82.132.246.131 18:01, 5 November 2025 (UTC)


    The clicking is how the humidifier works, by fixing the clicking, you broke it ;) 92.79.75.163 11:46, 6 November 2025 (UTC)

    My thoughts exactly, at least 'fixing it' won't be as catastrophic as 'fixing a popping water-heater valve'.2001:1C02:1A9D:9700:2DD3:AF82:E909:78A9 02:06, 12 November 2025 (UTC)
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