This is a frequently asked questions page to assist newcomers to xkcd: Time and the One True Thread.
Questions About the Comic[]
How long has xkcd: Time been going?[]
- Since 2013-3-25.
Have you noticed the Javascript? What does it do?[]
- Yes, we have. About 10-20 newpix in to the comic, readers noticed a small piece of mysterious, minified JavaScript below the image that had not been there at the time of the comic's creation. Theories abounded as to what it did until people realized it primarily just autoloaded the next image. It seems to have been created on the fly by Randall in order to reduce the number of people hammering the refresh button every few millipix. As of the time of this writing, the script appears to be on its seventh revision.
What is up with the title text? Did it change?[]
- Yes, it has.
What is a molpy ? Where did that term come from?[]
A term originally coined to refer to one or more animals of unknown form appearing in the comic, usually just as a change in a few pixels from one frame to the next. The term is a portmanteau of mole and compy. The first molpy sighting occured in frame 1350. The term has come to be used in what sometimes appears to be a hap-hazard manner to append to or combine with animal names, regardless of whether they are recognizable as a planet-earth form of life.
Questions About the Thread[]
Why can't I post links or images yet?[]
- If you have less than 5 posts on the xkcd fora you cannot post either.
What is the ONG and why do you post it? Can I do that?[]
- The ONG is the latest frame of the comic, and yes, you can do it.
- Do take care not to simply post a link to https://xkcd.com/1190, since that link changes every ONG. How you get the true link depends somewhat on which browser you use. The safest way is to right-click on the comic, and select "View Image" from the menu that pops up, then copy the full "hash address" from your browser's address-bar. It should look something like "https://sslimgs.xkcd.com/comics/time/8e44b67b63662609ea0a945b81743f15099b4e98c3baa56fbbfbeb57b5862009.png" - the long gobbledy-gook number at the end will be different for every ONG. (Some browsers will offer more efficient ways to grab the link.) This is the correct link to the image to post in the Thread.
- Be quick about it, though. Competition to get the ONG can be fierce. Don't worry about missing it altogether, though - the Newpixbot will automagically post the ONG at about 10-minutes past the hour if nobody else has already done so.
What are redundant spoilers and why do you use them?[]
- Redundant spoilers are commonly used to upload images directly into the One True Thread, instead of relying on outside image-hosting sites. The redundant part contains the original attachment, which is a necessary but often visually unappealing version of the final uploaded image. See Redundant spoilers for more information.
What is this whole Pope business about?[]
Every 40 posts, a new page (or NewPage, abbreviated NP) is added to the thread, increasing the page count by one. The user whose post results in the creation of this page (i.e. the user whose post appears at the top of a page at the time that page appears) can, if they so choose, declare themselves Pope for that page, or Mome if they are female. Other titles have also been used, including Vatican Milliner's Perfect Customer (the term originated during The Madness, when the forum word filters replaced "Pope" with "Vatican Milliner's Perfect Customer"), Emperor/Empress, and others.
The user who holds the title may, if they desire, issue a "decree" that can be either "Time"-related (e.g. make predictions as to what will happen next; manipulate past frames) or not (e.g. post a picture of cute animals; place a random word somewhere in your post), which stays in effect for the duration of the page and which users whose posts appear on that page are encouraged (but not required) to follow.
Other Good Questions[]
Are you all CRAZY?[]
- Yes, most definitely. No I'm not.