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==Explanation== | ==Explanation== | ||
− | + | {{incomplete|Rough draft, can still use elaboration. Seems like there are two paragraphs more or less stating the same...? Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}} | |
− | + | Cueball is trying to remove the trash bag from his garbage can. However, the trash refuses to let him do so, citing that a paper towel in the trash is being used by some object in his home. | |
− | + | By itself, the comic is patently ridiculous; it is meant as a reflection of a common problem in computer use, specifically that of deleting currently-open files. One cannot delete a file in Windows while it's being used by a program, and Windows will also not tell the user which program it is. In technical terms, this happens on Microsoft Windows, specifically, because it was designed around FAT-type filesystems, rather than inode-based filesystems. Modern versions of Windows mostly use NTFS, which is significantly more advanced than FAT, but the added layer of indirection (called an "inode") that most filesystems provide between the directory entry for a file and its actual contents is not part of the paradigm that Windows uses, e.g., in its API. So when a program has a file open, it has a reference to the file's directory entry; consequently, the directory entry cannot be removed until the file is closed. On other operating systems, the program would have instead a reference to the file's inode, to which the directory entry points. The directory entry could be removed, decrementing the reference count of the inode and thus allowing it to be automatically deleted later when the program that has the file open closes it or terminates. In order to fix this, Windows would have to break backward compatibility, requiring all old software that runs on Windows to be updated to support a new API. (I am not sure whether NTFS would also have to change, or whether Windows could simply use it differently.) | |
− | + | The title text may be a reference to a simple solution to these sorts of problems: Wait a while, perhaps overnight, and see if the (unknown) application(s) close the open file(s). Alternatively, the user can shut down the system to make absolutely sure that nothing is using anything, and then remove the storage device. In some situations, this is the ''only'' way (at least in Windows) to safely remove an external hard drive from a computer. | |
− | + | Also, the title text may refer to the typical "solution" to the file deletion issue: waiting it out. Sometimes, while trying to delete the file, it could get so frustrating that many give up until the next day, hoping it'll fix itself. | |
− | + | This comic draws parallels between the act of emptying a physical rubbish bin and performing garbage collection on a filesystem, iconically represented by Microsoft as the emptying of a virtual wastebin on the desktop. It also may refer the growing trend of Internet of things, which is a concept that enables everyday objects to collect and exchange data. Sometimes when attempting to delete files the software may still have the file marked as in use, because the file is still marked as open by at least one process. The software will therefore prevent its deletion. This may be correct behaviour, as in when a document is still being worked on in a program, or it may happen erroneously, perhaps because the program has not closed the file properly, maybe because of incorrect behaviour. The user is then required to find the cause of the problem and rectify it before the file can be deleted. This may be difficult if the user is not familiar with the file in question, or the program that would have used it. | |
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− | + | In the case of the physical bin, the absurdity of this is highlighted by imagining that a paper towel is still locked as "in use" and that the rubbish bin won't allow it to be taken out for final disposal until the household object that was "using" the towel has been identified. | |
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==Transcript== | ==Transcript== | ||
− | :[Cueball is trying to take out | + | :[Cueball is trying to take out the trash] |
:Trash: Sorry, you can't empty the garbage yet. A paper towel in here is currently in use by some object in your house. | :Trash: Sorry, you can't empty the garbage yet. A paper towel in here is currently in use by some object in your house. | ||
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[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]] | [[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]] | ||
[[Category:Computers]] | [[Category:Computers]] | ||
+ | [[Category:Programming]] |