One Million Checkboxes

Ok this was pretty cool.

https://kottke.org/24/08/secret-message-in-one-million-checkboxes

(Editor's note: we usually do not post videos, but it is integral to understanding the story it well worth watching. I encourage you to watch the whole video! --MartyB)

posted 2d ago by Jason Kottke

The Secret Message Contained in One MillionCheckboxes

In my XOXO post on Monday, I said that Nolen Royalty, the creator of One Million Checkboxes (a game), had told "one of the wackiest internet nerd stories I've ever heard". Well, Royalty has now put that story online, both in the form of a blog post and a YouTube video: https://youtu.be/OI4DbECnp8A

I panicked. There were URLs in my database! There were URLs pointing to catgirls.win in my database!! Something was very very wrong.

I assumed I'd been hacked. I poured over my logs, looking for evidence of an intrusion. I read and re-read my code, searching for how somebody could be stuffing strings into a database that should have just contained 0s and 1s.

I couldn't find anything. My access logs looked fine. My (very simple) code was ok. My heart rate increased. My girlfriend patiently waited for me to join her for dinner. And then - wait.

Wait!

I saw it.

Watch the whole video to discover what he saw!

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