Xkcd

Recurring items

While there is no specific storyline to the comic, there are some recurring themescite news |url=http://www.gazette.uwo.ca/article.cfm?section=Arts&articleID=1837&month=11&day=21&year=2007 |title=Former NASA staffer creates comics for geeks |work=The Gazette |publisher=University of Western Ontario |first=Andrew |last=Moses |date=2007-11-21 |accessdate=2007-11-22] and characters, many of which are touched on in an "xkcd" parody of the Discovery Channel's "I Love the World" commercial.cite web |url=http://xkcd.com/c442.html |title=xkcd Loves the Discovery Channel (#442) |work=xkcd |accessdate=2008-06-27]

Themes

A large number of the strips are mathematics or computer science jokes. These jokes often feature university-level subjects, although many are written in such a way that a clear understanding of the subject is not usually required to get the punch line. Romance is another subject often visited in the comic, with many strips not intended to be humorous.There are also many strips opening with "My Hobby:" and usually depicting the non-descript narrator character describing some type of humorous or quirky behavior often involving language games.See, for example, "xkcd" comics [http://xkcd.com/37/ #37] , [http://xkcd.com/53/ #53] , [http://xkcd.com/60/ #60] , [http://xkcd.com/75/ #75] , [http://xkcd.com/79/ #79] , [http://xkcd.com/148/ #148] , [http://xkcd.com/168/ #168] , [http://xkcd.com/174/ #174] , [http://xkcd.com/236/ #236] , [http://xkcd.com/259/ #259] , [http://xkcd.com/287/ #287] , [http://xkcd.com/296/ #296] , [http://xkcd.com/326/ #326] , [http://xkcd.com/331/ #331] , [http://xkcd.com/389/ #389] , [http://xkcd.com/437/ #437] , and [http://xkcd.com/451/ #451] . ] References to Wikipedia articles or to Wikipedia as a whole are an occasional theme in "xkcd".See, for example, "xkcd" comics [http://xkcd.com/214/ #214] , [http://xkcd.com/285/ #285] , [http://xkcd.com/333/ #333] , and [http://xkcd.com/446/ #446] .] "xkcd" also frequently makes reference to Munroe's "obsession" with potential raptor attacks, cite web | title=Geek humor: Nothing to be ashamed of | url=http://media.www.thewhitonline.com/media/storage/paper291/news/2007/04/05/Features/Geek-Humor.Nothing.To.Be.Ashamed.Of-2823945.shtml | last=O'Kane | first=Erin | work=The Whit Online |date=2007-04-05 | accessdate=2007-04-23] See, for example, "xkcd" comics [http://xkcd.com/87/ #87] , [http://xkcd.com/135/ #135] , [http://xkcd.com/155/ #155] , and [http://xkcd.com/292/ #292] .] electric skateboards,cite web|title=Electric Skateboard(double comic)(#409)|work=xkcd|url=http://xkcd.com/c409.html|accessdate=2007-07-20] the game "Guitar Hero",cite web|title=Guitar Hero (#70)|work=xkcd|url=http://xkcd.com/c70.html|accessdate=2007-03-06] cite web|title=Music Knowledge (#132)|work=xkcd|url=http://xkcd.com/c132.html|accessdate=2007-03-06] and many "your mom" jokes.See, for example, "xkcd" comics [http://xkcd.com/116/ #116] , [http://xkcd.com/176/ #176] , [http://xkcd.com/320/ #320] , and [http://xkcd.com/366/ #366] .] There have also been several strips featuring "Red Spiders", Joss Whedon's short-lived series "Firefly", and the 1985 novel "Ender's Game". [http://xkcd.com/304/ #304] , [http://xkcd.com/241/ #241] ]

Each comic also has a tooltip, specified using the title attribute in HTML. The text usually contains an afterthought or annotation related to that day's comic. [cite web |url=http://imprint.uwaterloo.ca/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1654&Itemid=56&issuedate=2007-09-14 |title=A comic you can’t pronounce |accessdate=2007-09-16 |author= Peter Trinh |date=2007-09-14 |work=Imprint Online ]

Characters

Although the artist does not maintain a list of characters, some recurring characters can be identified by their visual features (for example, hats) and mannerisms.

*A man who looks like a normal stick-figure "xkcd" character, but for the addition of his trademark black hat. The man's hat is a reference to Aram from the now-defunct webcomic Men in Hats. cite news |first=Joshua |last=Zelinsky |title=Randall Munroe, writer of xkcd, talks about the comic, politics and the internet |url=http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Randall_Munroe,_writer_of_xkcd,_talks_about_the_comic,_politics_and_the_internet |format=Interview |publisher=Wikinews |date=2008-03-04 |accessdate=2008-09-22] The character himself refers to himself as a "Classhole" (a portmanteau of "class" and "asshole").cite web|title=Classhole (#72)|work=xkcd|url=http://xkcd.com/72/|accessdate=2008-10-03 | date= 2006-03-06 | last=Munroe | first=Randall] He does not shy from pointing out the foibles in others and has at times used extreme violence in order to emphasize a point.cite web|title=Words that End in GRY (#169)|work=xkcd|url=http://xkcd.com/c169.html|accessdate=2007-03-06] cite web|title=Join Myspace (#146)|work=xkcd|url=http://xkcd.com/c146.html|accessdate=2007-03-06] In the January 30, 2008 comic, his hat was taken by a woman, who is, to date, the only person ever to foil one of his schemes. As of June 6, 2008, the two have entered a "relationship."
*A boy in a barrel has appeared in five strips. Unlike most other characters, he is not a stick figure. He was repeatedly seen inside a barrel, floating in a large body of water. The boy in the barrel was one of many doodles in the older comics, but has not been seen since comic #31. [The boy appears in comics [http://xkcd.com/c1.html #1] , [http://xkcd.com/c11.html #11] , [http://xkcd.com/c22.html #22] , [http://xkcd.com/c25.html #25] , and [http://xkcd.com/c31.html #31] ]
*Another set of recurring characters is the nihilist and the existentialist, recognizable by their hats; the existentialist wears a beret and the nihilist wears a white top hat (or no hat at all).Fact|date=September 2008 Until comic #434, they had only been seen together, never separately. They are first seen in the "Nihilism" comic,cite web|title=Nihilism (#167)|work=xkcd|url=http://xkcd.com/167/|accessdate=2007-10-04] and again in "Kayak",cite web|title=Kayak (#209)|work=xkcd|url=http://xkcd.com/209/|accessdate=2007-11-01] "Hypotheticals"cite web|title=Hypotheticals (#248)|work=xkcd|url=http://xkcd.com/248/|accessdate=2007-10-23] , "Dignified"cite web|title=Dignified (#291)|work=xkcd|url=http://xkcd.com/291/|accessdate=2007-10-04] and "Mission".
*Fictionalised versions of well known real-life figures in the computing community sometimes appear, such as free software advocates Richard Stallman [cite web|title=Open Source (#225)|work=xkcd|url=http://xkcd.com/225/|accessdate=2007-11-17] cite web|title=1337 Part 5 (#345)|work=xkcd|url=http://xkcd.com/345/|accessdate=2007-11-17] and Cory Doctorow. [cite web|title=Blagofaire (#239)|work=xkcd|url=http://xkcd.com/239/|accessdate=2007-11-17]
*Mrs. Roberts was a main character in the "1337" [cite web | title = 1337: Part 1 | url = http://xkcd.com/341 | accessdate = 2008-09-05] series, and has appeared in other comics along with her children, "Robert'); DROP TABLE Students;--" aka "Little Bobby Tables," (a reference to SQL injection) [cite web | title = Exploits of a Mom | url = http://xkcd.com/327 | accessdate = 2008-01-10] and "Help I'm Trapped In A Driver's License Factory Elaine Roberts", the protagonist of the "1337" series. Elaine's first name is a reference to "Pi Equals". [cite web | title = Pi Equals | url = http://xkcd.com/10/ | accessdate = 2008-01-10]

Reception

"xkcd" is one of the most widely read webcomics. In November 2007, for example, it tallied between 60 and 70 million page views. cite web | url=http://www.wired.com/entertainment/theweb/news/2007/11/xkcd | last=So | first=Adrienne | date=2007-11-03 | accessdate=2008-09-17 | title = Real Geek Heart Beats in Xkcd's Stick Figures | publisher= [http://www.wired.com Wired] ]

Life imitates xkcd

On at least ten occasions, fans have been motivated by Munroe's comics to carry out, in real life, the subject of a particular drawing or sketch. Some notable examples include:
* Richard Stallman was sent a katana [cite web | url=http://blag.xkcd.com/2007/04/19/life-imitates-xkcd-part-ii-richard-stallman/ | title=Life Imitates xkcd, Part II: Richard Stallman | work=xkcd | date=2007-04-19 | accessdate=2007-08-20] and was confronted by students dressed as ninjas before speaking at the Yale Political Union [cite news | url=http://yaledailynews.com/articles/view/21889/ | title=Stallman trumpets free software | work=The Yale Daily News | accessdate=2007-10-19] [cite web | url=http://www.yale.edu/ypu/blog.html | title=Richard Stallman Debate | work=Blog of the YPU | date=2007-10-18 | accessdate=2007-10-21] – inspired by [http://xkcd.com/225/ "Open Source"]
* When Cory Doctorow won the 2007 EFF Pioneer Award, the presenters gave him a red cape, goggles and a balloon [cite web | url=http://blag.xkcd.com/2007/03/28/cory-doctorow-part-ii/ | title=Cory Doctorow, Part II | work=xkcd | date=2007-03-28 | accessdate=2007-09-05] – inspired by [http://xkcd.com/239/ "Blagofaire"]
* "xkcd" readers sneaking chess boards onto roller coasters [cite news|author=Chun Yu|title=The man [hiding] behind the raptor |url=http://www.thetartan.org/2007/11/12/pillbox/xkcd |publisher=The Tartan|date=November 12, 2007 |accessdate=2007-11-12] [cite web | title=People Playing Chess on Roller Coasters | url=http://xkcd.com/chesscoaster/ | accessdate=2007-08-20] – inspired by [http://xkcd.com/249/ "Chess Photo"]
* An "xkcd" reader created a [http://www.virtualroadside.com/blog/index.php/2007/11/11/inspired-by-xkcd-mbr-love-note/ "MBR Love Note"] installation program [cite web
url=http://www.virtualroadside.com/blog/index.php/2007/11/11/inspired-by-xkcd-mbr-love-note/ |title=Inspired by XKCD: MBR Love Note |last=Spicuzza |first=Dustin |work=Virtualroadside.com |date=2007-11-11 |accessdate=2008-07-15] – inspired by [http://www.xkcd.com/340/ "Fight"]
* Munroe himself solicited contributions from his readers of people playing electric guitars while in the shower on wetriffs.com [cite web | title = wetriffs.com | url = http://www.wetriffs.com | accessdate = 2008-01-10] after posting the comic [http://www.xkcd.com/305/ "Rule 34"] , in which a character registers that domain.
* A subgroup of [http://wiki.xkcd.com/geohashing/Main_Page "geohashing"] XKCD readers has emerged, members of which travel to random nearby latitude/longitude locations calculated by the geohashing algorithm described in [http://xkcd.com/426/ "Geohashing"] .
*Munroe, the creator, has mentioned in two of his blog entries, that he has a ball pit set up in his apartment, much like in the strip [http://xkcd.com/150/ Grownups] . [ [http://blag.xkcd.com/2008/02/27/ballpit-phase-ii/ Xkcd Blag - Phase II (ball pit)] ] [ [http://blag.xkcd.com/2007/11/19/growing-up/ Xkcd Blag - Growing up (ball pit)] ]
* YouTube has placed a feature on comments that plays back the comment aloud on "Audio Preview", based on the strip [http://xkcd.com/481/ Listen to Yourself] . [cite web|url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/3173494/YouTube-play-back-feature-to-humiliate-inane-commenters.html|title=YouTube 'play back' feature to humiliate inane commenters|accessdate=2008-10-10|last=Moore|first=Matthew|publisher=The Daily Telegraph|date=2008-10-10] [cite web|url=http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/152109/youtube_takes_a_page_from_xkcd.html|title=YouTube Takes a Page From xkcd|accessdate=2008-10-10|last=McNamara|first=Paul|publisher=PC World|date=2008-10-09]

In other languages

Many xkcd comics have been translated into Spanish by one reader. [http://es.xkcd.com/xkcd-es/] The comics available are the ones that, according to the translator, can be translated without losing their humor. [cite web
url = http://es.xkcd.com/xkcd-es/archive/
title = xkcd-es
accessdate = 2008-08-30]

References

General

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External links

* [http://www.xkcd.com/ Official site]
* [http://www.xkcd.com/rss.xml RSS-feed]
* [http://es.xkcd.com/xkcd-es/ xkcd in Spanish]