1190: "Time"

[SWuh]

I have just tried to explain to 2 colleagues in Germany that I got up 4 newpix early today (although I used the Outside vernacular for the passage of Time) in order to catch up on a webcomic that updates every newpix and the discussion thread about it. They seemed confused.

Yeah, I find you'll get that. My boyfriend thinks I am literally insane. He dropped me off at my house at 07:30, and it's now 09:30 and I have basically only managed to have breakfast and re-write my to-do list (oh, and re-write my house hunting notes). If I told him the extent of this, he would despair, I am sure.

[KarMann]

Page 41 out of 57.... I guess my week is booked solid.

Page 57 out of 72. 16 steps forward, 15 steps back.

I seem to be playing Achilles and the tortoise with myself. I'll never be able to over take myself if I quote myself...

Back around the end of the Rebuild Period, when there was coming to be less and less change between newpix, I posted a comment about its resemblance to Zeno's paradox. A while later, after one of those strange times in which I closed my eyes and opened them to many many newpix & newpages, it occurred to me that it also applied to trying to catch up with those newpages.

[Beidah]

There I've don itl I have joined the present and now I want to sleep.

[SWuh]

There I've don itl I have joined the present and now I want to sleep.

We're all so proud of you. you're a better person than I!!

[mittfh]

So now I know what mittfh stands for....

I can't believe I just googled that.

Me, either. So it just means BOFH?

Inspired by

It started off life as mbfh when I was studying a Biology degree, then I did a Masters in Comp Sci so it became "IT Trainee", then five years working as a school IT tech, then a brief spell as an IT teacher, now back to IT tech (ish - maintaining integrated social care information systems). Needless to say, I've encountered several "PICNIC" and "ID ten T" errors in my time...

[velkito]

I had joined the forums A LONG time ago, had to search my email to find my username.

I have read EVERY SINGLE post here since it all started, at least I think so. I may not have read some of the ninja posts.

Finally, I think I might have something to add that hasn't been said before: I now have a perfectly good use case for Google Glass. I'd be able to keep up with Time (heh!) as it happens.

...ohmigod is that actually real? I thought that was an april fools joke? please be real? It looks real from the various googling I've just done, but...

I want one....

yes, and you can maintain a Google+ Hangout while skydiving with it.

(if you are still reading this monstrosity of a thread) I'm curious, are you something of a beta tester? One of the people that got the dev kit? A quick google(heh) search reveals the earliest at which these would be publicly available is the end of this year..

[Magnap]

There I've don itl I have joined the present and now I want to sleep.

Enjoy your coma!

[appleGirl]

I am currently reading both the latest posts on this thread, and posts back on page 58. This is CONFUSING.

[mojacardave]

I was happily keeping up with this thread, until about UTC+38NP yesterday. Then I had to leave the house, and by the time I got home I had to sleep. There's no chance of catching up now. This thread updates almost as fast as I can read it! I think I've caught the main developments. Sounds like sleep deprivation and constant staring at a practically static image drove some people a bit crazy yesterday! I'm sure if I'd been able to stick around, I'd have helped to found the cult, but I missed that, and now seems like it might be a good place to try to rejoin normal society. No doubt I'll pop back occasionally - maybe even half-hourly - but I doubt I'll be active in the forum quite as constantly as I was for the first 3 days!

[Beidah]

There I've don itl I have joined the present and now I want to sleep.

Enjoy your coma!

Yeah, but if I coma, then I'll have to do this all over again.

[xspeedballx]

Coming up on 3:30. Coming up on x:30? Holy crap, 0.1 newpix 'til new pic!

Oh, and I'm trying to replace archaic terms like "3:30 AM" wth "7NP". (7 newpix after midnight.)

The term midnight feels archaic. I am thinking it should be described as 7 newpix after NDP(New Daily Pic). Granted this would imply a 96 newpix cycle not a 48 with a 144 cycle every third, but this should probably be avoided to increase adoption rates. Stick with a 48 newpix cycle culminating in a possible(but always observed) NDP.

[GerardE]

I have just tried to explain to 2 colleagues in Germany that I got up 4 newpix early today (although I used the Outside vernacular for the passage of Time) in order to catch up on a webcomic that updates every newpix and the discussion thread about it. They seemed confused.

Here in the Dutch speaking part of Europe I am also very selective in whom to tell, I'm glad that Time came up while I have some time to spend on it.

[daef]

.33333NP to go until the next....

[Magnap]

There I've don itl I have joined the present and now I want to sleep.

Enjoy your coma!

Yeah, but if I coma, then I'll have to do this all over again.

But at this time, it's mostly us quiet, non-new-religion-mad Europeans on, so if you coma now, you can wake up just in time to follow the American Explosion live!
EDIT: spelling

[Mr Moriaty]

Coming up on 3:30. Coming up on x:30? Holy crap, 0.1 newpix 'til new pic!

Oh, and I'm trying to replace archaic terms like "3:30 AM" wth "7NP". (7 newpix after midnight.)

The term midnight feels archaic. I am thinking it should be described as 7 newpix after NDP(New Daily Pic). Granted this would imply a 96 newpix cycle not a 48 with a 144 cycle every third, but this should probably be avoided to increase adoption rates. Stick with a 48 newpix cycle culminating in a possible(but always observed) NDP.

First Daily Pic (FDP) seems to be a better description than New Daily Pic (NDP) to me.
Also stops confusion with the standard NP

[Beidah]

There I've don itl I have joined the present and now I want to sleep.

Enjoy your coma!

Yeah, but if I coma, then I'll have to do this all over again.

But at this time, it's mostly us quit, non-new-religion-mad Europeans on, so if you coma now, you can wake up just in time to folow the American Explosion live!

You make a good argument.

Also, can I be the official ambassador to the outside? I understand both you guys, and them, and I still think they might have some use to us for the moment.

[SWuh]

I was happily keeping up with this thread, until about UTC+38NP yesterday. Then I had to leave the house, and by the time I got home I had to sleep. There's no chance of catching up now. This thread updates almost as fast as I can read it! I think I've caught the main developments. Sounds like sleep deprivation and constant staring at a practically static image drove some people a bit crazy yesterday! I'm sure if I'd been able to stick around, I'd have helped to found the cult, but I missed that, and now seems like it might be a good place to try to rejoin normal society. No doubt I'll pop back occasionally - maybe even half-hourly - but I doubt I'll be active in the forum quite as constantly as I was for the first 3 days!

Yeah I am now planning on just keeping up with current action while I am around and online and active. Screw trying to keep up with every post anymore!! too much like hard work.

[mojacardave]

Coming up on 3:30. Coming up on x:30? Holy crap, 0.1 newpix 'til new pic!

Oh, and I'm trying to replace archaic terms like "3:30 AM" wth "7NP". (7 newpix after midnight.)

The term midnight feels archaic. I am thinking it should be described as 7 newpix after NDP(New Daily Pic). Granted this would imply a 96 newpix cycle not a 48 with a 144 cycle every third, but this should probably be avoided to increase adoption rates. Stick with a 48 newpix cycle culminating in a possible(but always observed) NDP.

First Daily Pic (FDP) seems to be a better description than New Daily Pic (NDP) to me.
Also stops confusion with the standard NP

I think the New Daily Pic (NDP) idea was in reference to new XKCD comics. But that's unnecessarily complex, even for me!

[Mr Moriaty]

Also, can I be the official ambassador to the outside? I understand both you guys, and them, and I still think they might have some use to us for the moment.

They deliver the pizza... this is useful.

[sshaikh]

GAME OF THRONES!!! Maybe.

[Magnap]

There I've don itl I have joined the present and now I want to sleep.

Enjoy your coma!

Yeah, but if I coma, then I'll have to do this all over again.

But at this time, it's mostly us quit, non-new-religion-mad Europeans on, so if you coma now, you can wake up just in time to folow the American Explosion live!

You make a good argument.

Also, can I be the official ambassador to the outside? I understand both you guys, and them, and I still think they might have some use to us for the moment.

Thank you.
And of course you can be the new embassador, but you must be very careful in explaining us, preferably using buzz-words such as "hype", "expectation", "possimbable" and "dramatic suspense"

[Beidah]

There I've don itl I have joined the present and now I want to sleep.

Enjoy your coma!

Yeah, but if I coma, then I'll have to do this all over again.

But at this time, it's mostly us quit, non-new-religion-mad Europeans on, so if you coma now, you can wake up just in time to folow the American Explosion live!

You make a good argument.

Also, can I be the official ambassador to the outside? I understand both you guys, and them, and I still think they might have some use to us for the moment.

Thank you.
And of course you can be the new embassador, but you must be very careful in explaining us, preferably using buzz-words such as "hype", "expectation", "possimbable" and "dramatic suspense"

Alright, I shall go forth and spread the word of the Great Sandcastle. We should get some missionaries to help out.

[XonqNopp]

The one true comic now has a corner to itself on my second monitor. But I was doing some work during the last update and missed it happening.

Working on Linux, I just made this to be sure not to miss any (uncomment the firefox command if you are working on the Internet, and change the desktop (3) if you have firefox on another one, see man wmctrl):

Code: Select all

#!/bin/bash
## Remove the # in the URL (to prevent being considered as spam in fora)
URL="ht#tp://xkcd.c#om/1190/"
declare -i goal=15
myarray=$(seq 1 ${goal})
while true; do
    loc=$(date "+%S")
    if [[ ${loc:0:1} == "0" ]]; then
        loc=${loc:1}
    fi   
    declare -i ss=${loc}
    loc=$(date "+%M")
    if [[ ${loc:0:1} == "0" ]]; then
        loc=${loc:1}
    fi   
    declare -i mm=${loc}
    declare -i newpix=60-${ss}
    if (( $mm < 30 )); then
        offset=29
    else 
        offset=59
    fi   
    newpix=$(echo "$newpix+($offset-$mm-1)*60+55" | bc)
    sleep ${newpix}
    wmctrl -s 3;
    #firefox ${URL}
    for ii in ${myarray}; do
        date;
        sleep 1;
    done;
    echo " ";
done

This brings me back to firefox at xx:29:55 and xx:59:55, so at 0.9972NP then displays the date each second during 15 seconds. (I run it as background job since it only uses the terminal 0.008NP each 0.9972NP.)

[SWuh]

Intriguing developments...

[Eoink]

I've just watched the whole sequence through on Aubron's very useful page, and it struck me how my expectations have changed. When the first sand castle appeared as a single tower, I was quite impressed by its scale, it looked like a very sophisticated and large one. Now it's a corner of the smaller part of the construction.

[kaley]

So I wake up and start looking at what I missed ... when you take science-y people and make them bored you get religion? Seems about right. And also it's pretty cool that the comic has people again.

[sshaikh]

GAME OF THRONES!! Maybe.

[sqrdsqr]

There I've don itl I have joined the present and now I want to sleep.

Enjoy your coma!

Yeah, but if I coma, then I'll have to do this all over again.

But at this time, it's mostly us quit, non-new-religion-mad Europeans on, so if you coma now, you can wake up just in time to folow the American Explosion live!

You make a good argument.

Also, can I be the official ambassador to the outside? I understand both you guys, and them, and I still think they might have some use to us for the moment.

Thank you.
And of course you can be the new embassador, but you must be very careful in explaining us, preferably using buzz-words such as "hype", "expectation", "possimbable" and "dramatic suspense"

Alright, I shall go forth and spread the word of the Great Sandcastle. We should get some missionaries to help out.

I've been preaching to my friends over our ddr game (wifi on phone means i can keep up with at least time, though not the forum) but they just don't understand. It's not easy to join the experience this late in the game i guess.

[Grepus]

I've been ill but managed to pass out and get 10 hours sleep... 19 pages later and I'm up to date.

My last post was going back to a Game of Thrones theory as I saw the flags, but apparently that image was taken back down due to some tech hiccup. Now the flags are back, I'm sticking with it. King's Landing is on the east coast of Westeros, on Blackwater Bay. In the opening credits of the last season, I'm sure the camera pans out to reveal the size of it too. Coincidence? Who cares, it's a good conversation point!

[squonk]

There I've don itl I have joined the present and now I want to sleep.

Enjoy your coma!

Yeah, but if I coma, then I'll have to do this all over again.

But at this time, it's mostly us quiet, non-new-religion-mad Europeans on, so if you coma now, you can wake up just in time to follow the American Explosion live!

Yeah! Us Asians don't count for anything!

[Beatrice The Golden]

Actually... nevermind...

[higgs-boson]

[...]
Alright, I shall go forth and spread the word of the Great Sandcastle. We should get some missionaries to help out.

Don't forget to use "sustainable" as often as possible. This is valid for missionaries, as well.

Still wondering if this year's Western super Mare Sand Sculpture festival (starting tomorrow) is coincidence (link to the festivals picture archive here, great artists at work - I'm wondering how the sculptures survive the Rainy Britain climate for more than a couple of newpix).

[Mr Moriaty]

There I've don itl I have joined the present and now I want to sleep.

Enjoy your coma!

Yeah, but if I coma, then I'll have to do this all over again.

But at this time, it's mostly us quiet, non-new-religion-mad Europeans on, so if you coma now, you can wake up just in time to follow the American Explosion live!

Yeah! Us Asians don't count for anything!

Dammit... you made me laugh tea all over the front of my jumper... I hope you're happy.

[Beidah]

There I've don itl I have joined the present and now I want to sleep.

Enjoy your coma!

Yeah, but if I coma, then I'll have to do this all over again.

But at this time, it's mostly us quit, non-new-religion-mad Europeans on, so if you coma now, you can wake up just in time to folow the American Explosion live!

You make a good argument.

Also, can I be the official ambassador to the outside? I understand both you guys, and them, and I still think they might have some use to us for the moment.

Thank you.
And of course you can be the new embassador, but you must be very careful in explaining us, preferably using buzz-words such as "hype", "expectation", "possimbable" and "dramatic suspense"

Alright, I shall go forth and spread the word of the Great Sandcastle. We should get some missionaries to help out.

I've been preaching to my friends over our ddr game (wifi on phone means i can keep up with at least time, though not the forum) but they just don't understand. It's not easy to join the experience this late in the game i guess.

You mustn't give up. Tell them the joys you experience at the turning of each newpix. Tell them how great it feels to belong to a people who gather so frequently for religious fervor. Tell them how amazing the building of the sandcastle is to watch, one moment at a time!

[Mr Moriaty]

[...]
Alright, I shall go forth and spread the word of the Great Sandcastle. We should get some missionaries to help out.

Don't forget to use "sustainable" as often as possible. This is valid for missionaries, as well.

Still wondering if this year's Western super Mare Sand Sculpture festival (starting tomorrow) is coincidence (link to the festivals picture archive here, great artists at work - I'm wondering how the sculptures survive the Rainy Britain climate for more than a couple of newpix).

If it was weston super mare the tide would have gone out about 3 miles by now.

[higgs-boson]

If it was weston super mare the tide would have gone out about 3 miles by now.

Indeed, I missed that.

[Magnap]

There I've don itl I have joined the present and now I want to sleep.

Enjoy your coma!

Yeah, but if I coma, then I'll have to do this all over again.

But at this time, it's mostly us quiet, non-new-religion-mad Europeans on, so if you coma now, you can wake up just in time to follow the American Explosion live!

Yeah! Us Asians don't count for anything!

Well, i don't actually know your timezones, so i assumed that you would wake up a little later. I excuse for any offense given. Also, only Americans and Europeans have mentioned their continentality (except for some Japanese earlier).

[squonk]

There I've don itl I have joined the present and now I want to sleep.

Enjoy your coma!

Yeah, but if I coma, then I'll have to do this all over again.

But at this time, it's mostly us quiet, non-new-religion-mad Europeans on, so if you coma now, you can wake up just in time to follow the American Explosion live!

Yeah! Us Asians don't count for anything!

Dammit... you made me laugh tea all over the front of my jumper... I hope you're happy.

Only if it was green tea.

[tastony]

Having only been able to drop in on the thread every 10-20NP at best, I may have missed this, but have we considered whether there may be relativistic effects at work here? That is, could this be the real-time animation of a what is happening on a generation ship travelling at (say) 0.999c (where, of course, c=5.4E11 m/NP ), and we are just seeing the time-dilated version of what is happening?

Or, perhaps, the generation ship is very close to an event horizon? Would be a bit sadder, and I guess the picture would look red rather than black, so I guess I'd go with it travelling very fast.

Oh, and sandcastles! Cool.

[Jonas79]

Wow, this thread is huge... I was so sad when I saw that Cueball was gone and it was only the castle for a while. I only watched it on my phone, so I didn't notice the movement until I looked again this moring and there's a huge new castle I guess Megan was busy constructing this castle and that's why she didn't say anything, because she wasn't leaving. She was just there. (I'm sure someone has already said this, but I'm not going to read all pages to find where someone did )

I bet Cueball will make his return as well Just... wait for it...

Edit: And I was all wrong about when Megan would return. (And to add to the gender discussion, in Swedish we have made a gender neutral pronoun which I find convenient instead of using he/she. In Swedish he is "han" and she is "hon". Then someone started to use "hen" instead of "han/hon" and it cought on since it's obvious what you talk about. You should try something similar in English.)