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==Explanation==
 
==Explanation==
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This comic came out the day after [http://news.sky.com/story/1248397/andy-warhol-originals-found-on-floppy-disk Sky News published the story] of original {{w|Andy Warhol}} artwork, created in 1985 on an {{w|Amiga 1000}}, which was recovered from recently found floppy disks.
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{{incomplete|The file explains are better now, but still need work.}}
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Cueball is digging through a pile of old files, which the comic represents as literally digging into the depths of his filesystem.  The files are in concentric layers because each directory contains files moved over from an older system, so his "Documents" folder contains an "Old Desktop" folder from an older computer, the "Old Desktop" contains files recovered from the drive crash of the system before that, which had its own "My Documents" folder, which contained files saved from a [[wikipedia:Zip Disk|Zip Disk]] in high school. The result is that files from all the way back in high school have survived to his present-day machine. He discovers several files he is embarrassed about, including a poetry file that surprises him, since he does not remember writing poetry, and an "[[wikipedia:Animorphs|Animorphs]] Novel" mentioned in the title text, most likely a fan fiction of the Animorphs series, although possibly a copy of one of the original books.
  
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[[Cueball]] is shown literally digging through a pile of old files; which is a metaphor for looking through old files on his computer. The layers of the pile are arranged much like geological rock formations where older strata are deeper down than younger layers. The files are in concentric layers because each directory is embedded in the previous directory. Therefore, the "Documents" folder contains an "Old Desktop" folder, which contains a folder with files recovered from an older system, which itself contains a "My Documents" folder, which contains a folder with files copied from a {{w|Zip Disk}} from high school. The result is that files from high school have survived in his present-day machine. These older folders serve as a time capsule of sorts, storing old files from {{w|AOL}}, NYET, and {{w|Kazaa}}. These files are meant to be analogous to the fossils and artifacts found in lower, older rock layers.
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This comic came out the day after [http://news.sky.com/story/1248397/andy-warhol-originals-found-on-floppy-disk Sky News published the story] of original {{w|Andy Warhol}} artwork, created in 1985 on an {{w|Amiga 1000}}, was recovered from recently found floppy disks.
  
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The sizes of the files decrease as Cueball goes deeper, since data storage has gotten cheaper over time. When the Zip Drive first came out, it cost $200 USD (plus $20 per 100 MB floppy). As of 2019, $200 could buy you at least an 8 TB portable external hard drive. In the 1990s, during AOL's heyday, 10+ GB hard drives were prohibitively expensive and a terabyte of data was unimaginable to most users.
 
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Deep down, Cueball discovers several files he is surprised about, including a poetry file which embarrasses him as he does not remember writing poetry.
 
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In the title text, he mentions also finding an "{{w|Animorphs}} Novel", which may be a text copy of one of the original books or a fan fiction of the ''Animorphs'' series (his reaction of quickly eradicating it may either be to prevent him being caught with a presumably-illegal copy of an Animorphs book or as a result of embarrassment at his fan fiction - the former is less likely than the latter considering some of the other files mentioned, so it is most likely a fan fiction). The series was released between 1996 and 2001, consistent with the fact that these files were created during Cueball/[[Randall|Randall's]] high school years. The series was extremely popular at the time. Animorphs has already been mentioned in the title text of [[1187: Aspect Ratio]], and later it was the main joke in [[1380: Manual for Civilization]] and [[1817: Incognito Mode]].
 
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===Files and Folders===
 
 
The folders and files in detail:
 
The folders and files in detail:
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*'''Documents''' (47 GB) - A large folder containing many of [[Cueball]]'s personal files.
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'''Documents''' (47 GB): A large folder containing many of [[Cueball]]'s personal files.
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**''misc.txt'' - A miscellaneous {{w|text file}} of unknown size. Quite likely, no one except Cueball will know what's in it.
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*''misc.txt'': A miscellaneous {{w|text file}}, which could contain anything; possibly just various notes that Cueball is keeping.
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**''Video projects'' - Video files can take up a lot of space, and likely make up a significant chunk of that 47 GB.
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*'''Old desktop''' (12 GB) - A backup from a former computer.
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*''Video projects'': As video files can take up a lot of space and video projects tend to use a lot of them, this likely makes up a considerable portion of the 47 GB.
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**''Facebook pics'' - Because {{w|Facebook}} started in 2004, his old computer must have been functional by that time.
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**''Pics from other camera'' - No mention about the content, only the creator will remember.
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'''Old desktop''' (12 GB): A backup from a former computer.
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**''Temp'' - Old temporary files. Quite likely, even Cueball won't know what's in here.
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*''{{w|Facebook}} pics'': Pictures that were intended to be added to Facebook (and/or ones which were downloaded *from* Facebook).
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**''Misc PDFs'' - {{w|Portable Document Format|PDF files}} are often used for documentation on programs, but this could be also a collection of digitized books or other scanned documents.
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*''Pics from other camera'': Unknown pictures from a second camera.
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**''MP3'' - Probably mostly music. {{w|MP3}} is a widely-used format for digital audio files.
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*''Temp'': Temporary folders generally contain cached files and files that are used temporarily to install programs. A folder named "Temp" might also be created by a user to store unimportant text or image files, not intending or caring to give it a more meaningful or specifically explanatory name.
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*'''Recovered from drive crash''' (4 GB) - When a {{w|Hard disk drive|hard drive crashes}}, sometimes part of that content can be recovered.
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*''Misc {{w|Portable Document Format|PDF}}s'': PDFs are often used for documentation, but could be any collection of digitized books or other documents.
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**''Temp'' - More old temporary files.
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*''{{w|MP3}}'': MP3 is a widely used format for digital audio files.
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**''Work misc'' - Only the creator does maybe understand what's inside of this folder.
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**''Audio books'' - {{w|Audiobook|Audio books}} are recordings of a text being read.
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'''Recovered from drive crash''' (4 GB): When a {{w|Hard disk drive|hard drive}} crashes, some or all data may be recovered.
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*'''My Documents''' (570 MB) - This is a typical {{w|Microsoft Windows}} for your own documents.
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*''Temp'': Temporary files.
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**''Downloads'' - A common default location for downloaded files. Its content can be anything.
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*''Work misc'': Unknown work related projects.
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**''Kazaa shared'' - {{w|Kazaa}} was a peer-to-peer file sharing program, defunct in August 2012. The "shared" folder was open to other people on the internet for downloading.
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*''{{w|Audiobook|Audio books}}'':  Recordings of books being read out loud.
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**''AYB'' - {{w|All your base are belong to us|All Your Base}} is an internet meme based on a famously bad translation of the video game ''{{w|Zero Wing}}''. Probably a reference to [[286: All Your Base]].
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**''EV Override'' - {{w|Escape Velocity Override}} is an {{w|Apple Macintosh}} video game, released in 1998.
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'''My Documents''' (570 MB): {{w|Windows XP}} user accounts came with a "My Documents" folder that was widely used for storing personal files. The items in this archive came from the era when {{w|Windows XP}} was popular.
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**''Angband'' - [http://rephial.org/ Angband] is a game named after a fictional stronghold created by {{w|J. R. R. Tolkien}}.
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*''Downloads'': The default download folder for most browsers of the time.
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**''GIFs'' - {{w|GIF}} is an old image format widely used for small, often animated images.
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*''{{w|Kazaa}} shared'': Kazaa is a defunct peer-to-peer file sharing program. The "shared" folder is shared with other members.
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**''FIGHT CLUB.wmv'' - ''{{w|Fight Club}}'' is a movie from 1999. Nobody knows if this download was legal. As feature movies are typically compressed to 700 megabyte or more when shared over the Internet, it seems Cueball's file is either compressed in some obscure, irregular format; uses a small screen size; or is not the Brad Pitt movie - either way strongly in keeping with the original movie's themes of subversion.
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*''AYB'': {{w|All your base are belong to us|ALL YOUR BASE are belong to us}} is an internet {{w|Meme|meme}} inspired by a bad translation from ''{{w|Zero Wing}}''. Also referenced in [[286: All Your Base]].
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**''Elasto Mania'' - {{w|Elasto Mania}} is a physics-simulation game released in 2000. It claims to show real physics on this game, but there is still a dispute on this.
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*''{{w|Escape Velocity Override|EV Override}}'': An {{w|Apple Macintosh}} video game, released in 1998.
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**''AIM Direct Connect files'' - This may have to do with files transferred via {{w|AOL Instant Messenger}}.
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*''[http://rephial.org/ Angband]'': A game named after a fictional stronghold created by {{w|J. R. R. Tolkien}}.
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**''4chan'' - {{w|4chan}} is an imageboard where users can upload pictures anonymously; we know from [[512: Alternate Currency|a previous comic]] that Randall impulsively saves pictures from there.
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*''{{w|GIF}}s'': An image format widely used for transparent or animated images.
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**''ICQ logs'' - {{w|ICQ}} is an instant messaging program introduced in 1996. It is no longer used much in North America.
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*''{{w|Fight Club}}.wmv'': A movie. As feature movies are typically compressed to 700 megabytes, and this folder only contains 570 MB ''in its entirety'', including 94 MB explicitly in a further sub-folder, this one file must be significantly smaller. It could be of very low quality (e.g. resolution and/or frame-rate), truncated (after a prior failed copy) or even a fake download designed to [https://www.2-spyware.com/fake-codecs-that-drop-widely-spread-malware fool unwary recipients].
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*'''High school Zip disk''' (94 MB) - This refers to the {{w|Zip drive}}, the most popular form of {{w|superfloppy}}, introduced in 1994 with a capacity of 100 MB. These have long since given way to writable CDs/DVDs and {{w|USB flash drive}}s. These files are from when [[Cueball]] was in {{w|high school}} (i.e., a teenager) or earlier.
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*''{{w|Elasto Mania}}'': A physics-simulation game that claims to show real physics.
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**''Korn MIDI'' - {{w|Korn}} is an American {{w|nu metal}} band formed in 1993. {{w|MIDI}} is a music format used by synthesizers and early computer games, which can not really produce the sound of that metal band very well.
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*''{{w|AOL Instant Messenger|AIM}} Direct Connect files'': Files transferred via AOL Instant Messenger.
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**''Photos3'' - This is a folder of old photos from when Cueball was in high school.
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*''{{w|4chan}}'': An image-board where users can upload pictures anonymously. Randall impulsively saves pictures from there. This entry is something of an anomaly, the rest of the files at this level were most notable around 1998 to 2001 while 4chan was only launched at the end of 2003. Since this board frequently contains images you wouldn't want to be caught looking at, this folder may be buried to hide it.
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***''Prom'' - A {{w|prom}} is a kind of semi-formal dance held every year by students at most US high schools. These photos were presumably taken at one.
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*''{{w|ICQ}} logs'': Logs from an instant messaging program introduced in 1996 and no longer commonly used in North America.
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**''lovenote.txt'' - An old text file of a {{w|love letter}}, probably to a classmate in high school.
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**''Gorilla.bas'' - {{w|Gorillas (video game)|Gorillas}} is a video game first distributed with MS-DOS 5 and published in 1991 by IBM. The suffix "bas" indicates a {{w|BASIC}} program; the game was included with copies of QBasic (see below).  
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'''High school {{w|Zip drive|Zip disk}}''' (94 MB): The most popular form of {{w|superfloppy}}, introduced in 1994 with a capacity of 100 MB.
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**''Dream.txt'' - Some private dreams.
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*''{{w|Korn}} MIDI'': Korn is an American {{w|nu metal}} band formed in 1993. {{w|MIDI}} is a protocol for communication with electronic musical instruments. The result tends to be sounds of low quality (but it heavily depends on how MIDI is played).
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**''James.txt'' - Who is James? Is our user addicted to him? Perhaps [[James]] is a friend of Randall, and the same as the one who came up with [http://explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/107 xkcd #107]?
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*''Photos3'': This is a folder of old photos.
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**''AOL'' - {{w|AOL}} is an early online and internet service, founded in 1985 and popular in the 1990s.
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**''{{w|Prom}}'': Pictures taken at prom.
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***''Citadel'' - {{w|Citadel (software)|Citadel}} was a {{w|BBS}} and email platform that was widely used in the 1980s and early '90s.
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*''lovenote.txt'': An old text file of a {{w|love letter}}, probably to a classmate in high school. Possibly referencing [[340: Fight]].
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**''QBasic'' - {{w|QBasic}} is an old MS-DOS program (an {{w|Integrated development environment|IDE}}), released by {{w|Microsoft}} in 1991, which was used to write and run computer programs in the BASIC language.
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*''{{w|Gorillas (video game)|Gorillas}}.bas'': A game written in {{w|BASIC}}, to be run on {{w|QBasic}}, and supplied with MS-DOS.  
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**''NYET'' - ''NYET'' was a {{w|Tetris}}-like game for MS-DOS, released in 1988.
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*''Dream.txt'': Some private dreams.Possibly a reference to [[269|269: TCMP]]
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**''Jokes.txt'' - An old text file of jokes.
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*''James.txt'': This may be [[James Zetlen]], one of [[:Category:Friends of Randall|Randall's friends]].
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*'''AAAFILES''' (9.4 MB) - some of [[Cueball]]'s oldest documents, likely prefixed with "AAA" to put the folder at the top of an alphabetically-sorted list.
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*''{{w|AOL}}'':  An early online and internet service, founded in 1985 and popular in the 1990s.
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*'''TXT''' (850 K) - old text files, which include the poetry he didn't remember writing.
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**''{{w|Citadel (software)|Citadel}}'' -  A {{w|BBS}} and email platform that was widely used in the 1980s and early '90s.
 
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*''{{w|QBasic}}'': An {{w|Integrated development environment|IDE}} released by {{w|Microsoft}} in 1991, which was used to write and run computer programs in the BASIC language.
 
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*''NYET'': ''NYET'' was a {{w|Tetris}}-like game for MS-DOS, released in 1988.
 
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*''Jokes.txt'': An old text file of jokes.
 
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'''AAAFILES''' (9.4 MB): Some of [[Cueball]]'s oldest documents, likely prefixed with "AAA" to put the folder at the top of an alphabetically-sorted list.
 
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'''TXT''' (850 K): Old text files, which include poetry he didn't remember writing.
 
  
 
==Transcript==
 
==Transcript==
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[Cross-sectional view of what look vaguely like stratigraphic layers underground. A crevice leads down through these concentric layers to a cave-like cavity in the middle, where Cueball is going through the deepest, most central, and incidentally smallest of the files. Above, Megan stands at "ground level", looking down into the crevice.]
 
  
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:Megan: You OK down there?
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:Megan (on top of stack of files): ''You OK down there?''
  
 
:'''Documents''' (47 GB)
 
:'''Documents''' (47 GB)
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:'''AAAFILES''' (9.4 MB)
 
:'''AAAFILES''' (9.4 MB)
 
:'''TXT''' (850 K)
 
:'''TXT''' (850 K)
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:Cueball (deep inside the AAAFILES section looking at his txt files): Oh my god. I wrote '''poetry'''.
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:Cueball (deep inside the AAAFILES section looking at his txt files): ''Oh my god. I wrote '''poetry'''.''
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{{comic discussion}}
 
{{comic discussion}}
 
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
 
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
 
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
 
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
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[[Category:Animorphs]]
 
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[[Category:Comics featuring James Zetlen]]
 
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[[Category:Fight Club]]
 

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