wtfe²日本語

xkcd #1319

Automation

by Randall MunroePublished: License: CC BY-NC 2.5

Comic: Automation (xkcd #1319). Transcript below.

Automation © Randall Munroe · xkcd · CC BY-NC 2.5

Hover text'Automating' comes from the roots 'auto-' meaning 'self-', and 'mating', meaning 'screwing'.

Why it lands

The theory curve has automation paying for itself and leaving free time. The reality curve never comes down: writing code turns into debugging, rethinking and ongoing development, and the original task stops getting done. It pairs naturally with "Is It Worth the Time?", which does the arithmetic that this one skips.

Related

Transcript

  1. "I SPEND A LOT OF TIME ON THIS TASK. I SHOULD WRITE A PROGRAM AUTOMATING IT!"
  2. THEORY:
  3. WRITING CODE
  4. WORK
  5. WORK ON ORIGINAL TASK
  6. AUTOMATION TAKES OVER
  7. FREE TIME
  8. TIME
  9. REALITY:
  10. DEBUGGING
  11. WRITING CODE
  12. RETHINKING
  13. NO TIME FOR ORIGINAL TASK ANYMORE
  14. WORK
  15. TIME
  16. ONGOING DEVELOPMENT

Credits

Original
Automation — Randall Munroe, xkcd

The English page shows the original image unmodified. The Japanese page shows an adaptation by wtfe²: the lettering was erased from the art and replaced with a Japanese translation. The adaptation is shared under the same license as the original.