Difference between revisions of "explain xkcd"

Explain xkcd: It's 'cause you're dumb.
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Welcome to [[Main Page|'''explain xkcd''']], the site that explains many of the obscure references in [[Randall Monroe]]'s amazing [http://xkcd.com/ xkcd] web site!
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Here is a tour of various entry points to the site:
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* [[List of all comics]] - well, really just the main series of numbered comics that come out three times a week
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* [[:Category:Extra Comics]] - various extra comics, not in the numbered series
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* [[:Category:Characters]] - pages about specific xkcd characters
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* [[:Category:Comics by topic]]
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* [[:Category:Comic series]]
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* [[:Special:Categories]] - a list of all categories
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==History of explainxkcd==
 
<div class="plainlinks">'''explain xkcd''' was originally a blog, [http://wayback.archive.org/web/20091026122109/http://www.explainxkcd.com/2009/07/03/extrapolating/ created in July 2009] by [http://wayback.archive.org/web/20120626125757/http://www.explainxkcd.com/2012/04/13/thanks-for-your-support/ Mike] and mostly written by [[User:Jeff|Jeff]] ([https://twitter.com/jeff_underscore @jeff_underscore]), who posted explanations of [[xkcd]] comics, occasionally [http://wayback.archive.org/web/20120530084205/http://www.explainxkcd.com/author/bergsandwich/ helped by his friend Berg] ([https://twitter.com/ActuallyBerg @ActuallyBerg]) and by [http://wayback.archive.org/web/20120627061354/http://www.explainxkcd.com/author/mike/ Mike]. The blog gradually [http://www.google.com/trends/explore#q=explain+xkcd developed a significant following], and much interaction happened in the comments, especially for complex comics, where commenters pieced together all parts of [[Randall]]'s [[:Category:Large drawings|epic]] [[:Category:Dynamic comics|comics]] which would have taken way too much time for Jeff to do alone.
 
<div class="plainlinks">'''explain xkcd''' was originally a blog, [http://wayback.archive.org/web/20091026122109/http://www.explainxkcd.com/2009/07/03/extrapolating/ created in July 2009] by [http://wayback.archive.org/web/20120626125757/http://www.explainxkcd.com/2012/04/13/thanks-for-your-support/ Mike] and mostly written by [[User:Jeff|Jeff]] ([https://twitter.com/jeff_underscore @jeff_underscore]), who posted explanations of [[xkcd]] comics, occasionally [http://wayback.archive.org/web/20120530084205/http://www.explainxkcd.com/author/bergsandwich/ helped by his friend Berg] ([https://twitter.com/ActuallyBerg @ActuallyBerg]) and by [http://wayback.archive.org/web/20120627061354/http://www.explainxkcd.com/author/mike/ Mike]. The blog gradually [http://www.google.com/trends/explore#q=explain+xkcd developed a significant following], and much interaction happened in the comments, especially for complex comics, where commenters pieced together all parts of [[Randall]]'s [[:Category:Large drawings|epic]] [[:Category:Dynamic comics|comics]] which would have taken way too much time for Jeff to do alone.
  
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As the wiki became more and more popular, the number of old unexplained comics kept shrinking. The [[681: Gravity Wells|1000th comic explanation]] was [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=681:_Gravity_Wells&oldid=32993 created] on 9 April 2013, and by 8 June 2013, {{diff|41126|all previous comics had been explained}}, which led to a change in focus on the wiki activity, towards expanding the [[:Category:Incomplete explanations|incomplete explanations]].
 
As the wiki became more and more popular, the number of old unexplained comics kept shrinking. The [[681: Gravity Wells|1000th comic explanation]] was [http://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php?title=681:_Gravity_Wells&oldid=32993 created] on 9 April 2013, and by 8 June 2013, {{diff|41126|all previous comics had been explained}}, which led to a change in focus on the wiki activity, towards expanding the [[:Category:Incomplete explanations|incomplete explanations]].
  
Unfortunately, the growing popularity of explainxkcd brought increased stress to the server, which began to fail quite often due to the high volume of visits. Jeff added donation buttons to the sidebar in an attempt to collect enough funds to migrate to a better server. Eventually, in late August 2013 an [[explain xkcd:Advertise Here|advertising strategy]] was devised which has been in place since.
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==Advertising and Donations==
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Over time, the growing popularity of explainxkcd has brought increased stress to the server, which began to fail quite often due to the high volume of visits. Jeff added donation buttons to the sidebar in an attempt to collect enough funds to migrate to a better server. Eventually, in late August 2013 an [[explain xkcd:Advertise Here|advertising strategy]] was devised which has been in place since.
  
 
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[[Category:explain xkcd]]
 
[[Category:explain xkcd]]

Revision as of 19:32, 23 March 2015

Welcome to explain xkcd, the site that explains many of the obscure references in Randall Monroe's amazing xkcd web site!

Here is a tour of various entry points to the site:

History of explainxkcd