Talk:Portable hole

Portable holes in D&D

Portable holes in all D&D campaigns I've been in took objects with them when folded up, as opposed to leaving them buried in the ground. This was one of the main points of usefulness of the hole (carrying vast amounts of equipment or treasure around with zero encumberance). This is explicitly described in some editions of the DMG (mentioning, among other things, a telescoping tower as an example of field equipment stored). Any references for the "leaving buried" mode of operation? --Christopher Thomas 03:51, 27 May 2005 (UTC)

There are no references in any of the game products I own (which is all the rules sets from Basic up to 3.5). All editions of D&D that have Portable Holes as a listed magic item describe it as an extradimensional space. So, no, you couldn't use it to "dig up" anything from the ground you place it over, nor could you bury something you've placed into it,nor could you use it to pass through a wall or other barrier, because there is no described opening in the "other side" of the hole to exit the extradimensional space. Also, you couldn't use it to expose some character's innards and kill him, as the article suggests. Naturally a Dungeon Master can interpret his game any way he likes, but nothing in any of the rules sets implies that this is how extradimensional spaces function, and indeed, the idea is counterintuitive to the way other examples of extradimensional spaces function in the game. 66.134.65.66 17:58, 23 August 2007 (UTC)Greg Scarborough

Origin of the Hole

I know the Portable Hole didn't originate in D&D, as I remember a Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies cartoon about a scientist whose invention was stolen by a thief. In the cartoon, the Portable Hole was a black substance that could be pumped out onto a surface, where it begame a hole. The hole could then be picked up and placed as needed. In the end, the scientist makes one last hole, which he tosses on the ground in the path of his nagging wife. Unfortunately, the hole was too deep, as the Devil comes up and dumps her back on the floor, saying that it's "bad enough down there without her!"

Unfortunately, I forgot the name of the cartoon. SAMAS 21:39, 12 November 2006 (UTC)

The cartoon, of which you're thinking, is The Hole Idea. — Preceding unsigned comment added by ValamirCleaver (talk • contribs) 13:44, 16 August 2015 (UTC)

The first portable hole that I saw was Felix the Cat (created around 1920). His magic bag was also a portable hole and I suspect that the inspiration was originally a popular joke about what women kept in their hand bags. From that bag he took a portable hole to put onto a wall, floor or safe etc. I don't know if Majer Fleischer created the concept or if he took the idea from some other place other than the woman's handbag joke. Is there any reference to the concept in 19th century in literature or cartoons from that period ?

Warner Bro's used the Portable Hole concept in Looney Toons a lot but they are at least a decade later. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 213.121.18.62 (talk) 22:50, 29 June 2018 (UTC)

References

Portal - VG

Does anyone thing it would be worth linking Portal (video game) to this article? Elaverick 23:52, 19 August 2007 (UTC)

morph

morph (the brown plasticine guy (he might have been in smart)) has a portable hole which he uses to dispose of a radio81.108.233.59 (talk) 08:04, 22 July 2008 (UTC)

Other use of the term

I have heard a stick on tab with a hole in it, used in retail to make items that do not have a hole for placing on a peg peg-able, called a "portable hole." Should this usage be mentioned in this article? Wikipedia seems a little geek-heavy sometimes (although I understand why) and a little light on retail. IsaacSapphire (talk) 07:57, 1 October 2008 (UTC)

There's another item called a "portable hole" that is a metal stake with two loops attached to it. They are often pounded into the ground to hold up flagpoles or patio umbrellas. See http://midtown.net/dragonwing/porthole.htm US 71 (talk) 14:39, 4 February 2009 (UTC)

A yet another was invented here in paent n# 592,913 "Telephoning from cars". a "portable hole" is basically a piece of circuitry with a handle which can connnect a disonnected electric circuit. Staszek Lem (talk) 17:27, 2 July 2020 (UTC)

oops. It was a typo in the patent digest book. The full patent uses "portable pole" Staszek Lem (talk) 16:44, 10 July 2020 (UTC)

Removed PROD

I think it's clear that this is a notable topic. There's no doubt the article is a mess, and a magnet for unsourced trivia. But, WP:AfD is not for cleanup, and neither is WP:PROD. -- RoySmith (talk) 02:18, 2 July 2020 (UTC)