Xkcd originated from a collection of hand-drawn sketches by Randall Munroe. So, I searched though a bunch of names that weren't taken, until I found one that wasn't taken on all the services I wanted. it couldn't be pronounceable because then it would sound like a word, and people would think of other words like it.it couldn't have any obvious acronym decoding or be an existing acronym.none of the letters could be mistaken for other letters numbers, so no 'L', because 'L', lower-cased, can look like 'i' or '1'.

And so, I to generate random strings and find one that had a certain set of qualities, which included: I want to get a string that will just point uniquely to me that's not my name, because that's kind of boring. Eventually, I was like, I'm tired of names that point to other things, that identify me with those things. I started out when I was 10 years old when AOL first popped up and I was on there as, I think I had, first, 'Skywalker4', then 'Animorph7', and then other names like 'Redtailedhawk6' or something. I've been using it as my name on every service box since at least the nineties, because I got tired of changing my name every time my interest changed. He will use animated GIFs, rather than standard formats, for some of the simpler dynamic comic images and will engage with complex page and server-side scripting to present the reader with the more immersive or interactive content.Īctually, I've been using as just a unique point in the space of four-character strings to point to me. These unique comics might involve user interactivity, utilize specific HTTP behaviors, or explore innovative graphic techniques, setting them apart from the ordinary static comics. Occasionally, Randall releases comics that go beyond the norm.

Speech in particular (the speaker commonly indicated by a single straight speech-line) may be given italic or bold emphasis if useful. Any text in the comics is usually entirely in capital letters (with some exceptions) and look like non-cursive block handwriting, whether floating dialogue, illustrative annotations, representations of web-pages or as physical signage/nameplates/labels present in the visible scene. Although quite complex objects can be drawn, or conventionally cartoon-like representations of things and animals, a majority of the people featured are stick figures who have become a cast of recurring characters. Xkcd comics are usually plain, predominantly black-and-white line drawings, but sometimes they make use of hues beyond the usual monochrome colors, even if it is just red-penned annotations.

Xkcd volume