New feature: the word "comic" is now a link that if clicked, will restore the comic frame back to the one it wants you to transcribe... so if you browsed around looking for a name, or a reference... or you just started reading (guilty as charged), you can quickly jump back.

Also if you want to put the ë in Zoë, you can type it by hitting Option-U then E on a Mac, or holding down Alt and typing 137 on the numeric keypad on Windows.

Yay! I did one! Here's how I transcribed mine. Is this a good format?

looks good to me, what does everyone else think?

Looks good, one question though, In panel two is it supposed to be "let me find my center?"

Looks good to me. I've been adding a brief description of the picture, as well, but that's just me.

Oi, typo...

So, how do I fix that? If I browse back to the comic I did, the text to edit is blank.

Oh, hey, this is cool. It took me a while to notice (=to take a look) because the title of the thread came across as nonsensical. I still don't really understand it. I assume the beginning means "Sluggy-searching", and not Sluggy (subject) searching (verb) something. But what "Turk"?

For example:
(Panel 1. Torg and Zoë are at a table in the bar. Sasha approaches, waving.)
Sasha: Hi, Guys! Thanks for inviting me out, Torg!
Torg: Sasha, this is Zoë! She really wanted to ask you a lot of questions!

(Panel 2. Zoë is angry and sweating. Torg is surprised. Sasha is skeptical.)
Zoë: No, I didn't, Torg. I just wanted to meer her, not interrogate her!

(Panel 3. Grinning, Torg pulls a long sheet of paper out of Zoë's purse. Zoë is wide-eyed with shock. Sasha is surprised as well.)
Torg: Then why'd you bring all these written questions? Wow, this is longer than it looked rolled up! "1) Why did Riff want to keep you a secret?"

(Panel 4. Torg is wary, Zoë is furious, Sasha is annoyed.)
Torg: I did something stupid again, didn't I?

I like it. I'll use that from now on.

Hmm, that gets a bit subjective. I mean everyone might write things down too differently if there's that much detail. I wouldn't have used "skeptical" or "grinning" here.

[shrugs] So edit it if you get it on your turn. I'm looking at it like a wiki -- anyone can add, anyone can edit, and after enough people do enough strips, it'll work itself out.

So, is there eventually going to be a search function associated with this dialog database? Are you waiting for every comic to have been transcribed at least once, or should it simply search what has been done so far?

Also, it might be a good idea to show the full transcript for a comic after a search has been completed, and provide the option to edit it if someone sees a mistake.

Ya know, Pete could just sign Sluggy up at Oh No Robot to do the whole search engine thing for him. I know GPF is signed up there.

Good Lord that's in detail, but it may be excessive. If every comic is transcribed like that, then a potential searcher would have to contend with overlap with other comics.




My theory is to get a basic description of the comic (characters, setting, subject, ect.) and get as many out as possible. Quantity over quality if you will. Then, once a majority of the comics are transcribed, go over previously transcribed comics in greater detail as you have done.

What we need to do is establish some content in the beginning, then once the groundwork is laid, refine said content.




But that takes the fun out of it.

he could, but that requires effort on his part.
Also, every time I search XKCD, I always get like 3 instances of each strip I search for. My search won't do that.
Wait, am I purporting to write a better search engine than the one at Oh No Robot?
Well maybe I am.
My text box can't see you navigate the site. It submits transcripts for the comic it gave you. In other words, every time you're about to click "Submit," click "comic" first to make sure you're about to submit for the right one.
As for typos, don't worry. Next time someone is assigned that comic, they'll see your transcript and be able to edit it.
This one.
Yes, but I prefer this method of transcription. I'd rather the search return a lot of strips than not return the one you're looking for. Also, if each strip has a full transcript like that, then when you see the transcript in the search results, it should jog your memory to exactly which strip you want.
For example: What I have on file for this strip is "Oasis 90210". While that will be great for people searching for all Oasis strips, any references to 90210, or this exact instance "Oasis watching 90210," there's a lot more to the strip. What if people are searching for every strip with Riff's laser cannon, or references to the robot, or instances of Torg the Man-Donkey, because that's all they can remember about a strip? If they had a full transcript, they would see it in the search and hopefully be able to recognize the strip as the one they were looking for. Don't get me wrong, keywords are useful, but a transcript is doubly so.
Also, since we're going by Oh No Robot standards, all the searches I've done using them return full transcripts, so...
Yeah, the search might return a bunch of results, but if all you can remember about the strip is "Torg is angry," you can find the exact one you're looking for anyway.
That's a good point, too. I plan to write the search pretty soon (like maybe even today) and the more strips it can find, the better. I also plan to add a "flag this for improvement" feature in the search results so that if a transcript is there, but needs improvement, it'll weight it so it'll come up in the transcription process faster and get double-checked.

Once the search is up and running, we'll find out empirically how much detail works, and how much is too much. Then we can refine our methods and work out a really great search!