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computer speculation

Suggest it to the Japanese, now when they're working with human-looking robots.

There was a movie some years ago - I can't remember its name - which takes place in the future. Some guy has a household robot/love doll which broke down, and that model is no longer produced. He tracks down a warehouse and takes a long trip together with a (real) girl friend to obtain a replacement robot, using the personality chip from the old one. In the end, I think he falls in love with his girl friend rather than installing a robot again. Does it ring any bells? I am not able to locate it on IMDb. I remember I found the movie a bit silly, although an interesting future concept, in particular the part in the beginning when the salesperson shows him the new selection of female household robots, which look and act completely different from what he is used to. Much like how trends and functionality differs on other types of products from year to year.
 
Yep, it does ring a bell. Cherry 2000, with Melanie Griffith as the "tracker."

Remember near the beginning of the movie when "our hero" is trying to make a date at the bar? I always thought that a more interesting story would be how the society got to that point where lengthy legal negotiations were required just for a date.

Kent
 
Thanks. I was quite sure it was something either with Red, Max or Sonja, but the combinations (Red Max, Red Sonja, Max Headroom etc) were completely different movies.

If Sam had not lured his robot doll into the bubble bath, I suppose she would had kept functioning, and there had not been a race to get a replica. That should be a lesson not to misuse your electronic stuff in other ways than intended by the manufacturer!

Some years ago I read some android sex fiction (woo, a confession!) and one story was about a guy who had broken up with his girlfriend and bought a 2nd hand robot instead. The ex-girlfriend was upset and wanted revenge. She had an errand to her ex-boyfriend, who was not at home, only the robot. The ex found that the robot was sold cheap because it had a computation bug; if you made it compute too much aritmetic operations, it would overheat and eventually melt down. So the ex-girlfriend was friendly to her replacement, chit-chatted while the robot cooked dinner. The question was if the ex would stay for dinner, and the robot needed to adapt the recipe for one more person, i.e. calculate how much more of each ingredient was required. The robot thought hard, the ex encouraged her to try and after a while the robot got an overload and broke down permanently. The ex silently left the apartment to wait for her ex-boyfriend come home and see that his robot love slave unexpectingly was damaged beyond repair without no physical marks.
 
(. Women are evil! .)

If it had been in the real life, I'm sure one could replace the broken parts (change head?) or look for another unit, new or 2nd hand. Or maybe even consider to find a real woman. Maybe the author was inspired by the first few Pentium chips which had the multiplication bug, although I'm not sure one could make them overheat by triggering the bug.
 
What is the doll able to do in the first place, that makes use of a CPU?

There is a Swedish radio program that tries to look up and explain small issues; "this is how it works". They often call different places to ask questions. Some are plain silly (what was Jesus' surname?) while other are more serious (how do you take care of a dead elephant?).

Once the host called Mattel regarding a talking doll that learns the owner's name and says "I love you [Name]", translated in respective languages. The host claimed to have fallen in love with the (Swedish) voice, and wanted to find the girl who recorded the phrase. He called the Swedish office, the UK office, even customer service in the US back and forth, but without success. Either they keep it a secret, or nobody within the company really kept track of who they contract. The doll was a few years old too, so the records may have been stored away long time ago. One wished that the girl or woman would have listened and called in to say "it's me!".
 
carlsson said:
What is the doll able to do in the first place, that makes use of a CPU?
Click to expand...

This doll makes extensive use of robotics, especially in the head area. The arms move, the head moves, the lips move when she talks or eats, the eyes move around (and blink). She has three microphones built into her stomache, to detect which direction your voice is comming from when you speak to her, and she'll turn her head and look at you before replying. She has a vocabulary of over 150 different phrases, and has a real-time clock that can be programmed for bedtime, wake-up time, and meal times. She tells you when she's hungry, and then you must feed her or she becomes very fussy. There's a sensor in her mouth to detect whether you have actually fed her or not. I forget the rest of the features. but all in all, it's a pretty sophisticated bit of electronics to hand over to an 8-year-old to play with. I do recall it costing around $9.00 just to put the batteries in her. It takes 4 AA, 4 D-cells, and IIRC, a nine-volt all together.

--T
 
Terry Yager said:
The arms move, the head moves, the lips move when she talks or eats, the eyes move around (and blink). She has three microphones built into her stomache, to detect which direction your voice is comming from when you speak to her, and she'll turn her head and look at you before replying.
Click to expand...
Suggested hacks: make the doll roll her eyes when you speak to her, possibly even turning her face away from you.
She has a vocabulary of over 150 different phrases, and has a real-time clock that can be programmed for bedtime, wake-up time, and meal times.
Click to expand...
Out of the 150 phrases, limit it to only a few; like, well, duh. Make the doll go back to sleep at least twice after wake-up time, and refuse bedtime, maybe even have a meal when she should sleep.

Then you can sell the software as the Teenage Heather module.
 
Actually, her full name is Baby Heather Grow Up Doll, so I'm wondering if different age-appropriate software modules might not have been a part of the original design plan.

--T
 
Oh. But I'm sure they would not have selled the bratty, uncooperative teenager module. :) If you can make the doll get, or at least believe she gets pimples and look fat, it is even more authentic IMHO.
 
Other possible hacks:

Sit in the corner mumbling incoherently, shaking & twitching, and drooling on herself -- "Fetal Alcohol Syndrome" module.

Cry and cry all the time until stuck with a needle, then go unconcious for 8 hours -- "Crack-Baby Heather."

Fall into a Persistant Vegatative State -- "Shaken-Baby Syndrome" mod. (This mod comes naturally, if I accidently let the smoke out of 'er). Another variant of this theme might be "SIDS Baby Heather."

Refuse food, and throw up after being force-fed -- "Anorexic/Bulemic" module.

Threaten other dolls with physical violence, and demand thier lunch money -- "Gangsta Baby Heather."

Any other ideas, anyone?

--T

How about adding such phrases as "Hi, sailor" and "You wanna party?" -- "Baby Hooker Heather"...

(I know it's kinda twisted, but what do you expect from a grown man who plays with dolls)?

--T
 
vic user said:
this is most excellent!

please continue with this tangent!

chris
Click to expand...

Ok, you asked for it...

Cover her body with fur, make her bark at the moon and try to bite people. Only wake up once a month, when the moon is full -- "Howlin' Heather."

Never wear shoes, chew tobacco & spit a lot, speak with a drawl, and date her own cousins. Play only C&W music. -- "Hillbilly Heather."

Program her to suffer from numerous imaginary diseases, complain a lot and swallow only medicine. Read only out-dated magazines, and drive everyone else nuts playing elevator music, like in the doctor's office. -- "Hypochondriac Heather."

Hang out in locker rooms, exercize a lot, play disco music, watch workout videos, drink Gatorade, and only talk about dieting. -- "HardBody Heather."

Give her lots of tattoos & piercings, dress in black, dye her hair green, stay up all night & sleep all day, and only play heavy metal music...way too loud. -- "Headbanger Heather."

Follow her favorite band around from city to city, hang around ticket booths & auditoriums, sleep on the sidewalk, never bathe, and speak only in metaphors. -- "DeadHead Heather."

Ride a big chrome-plated motorcycle, dress in leathers, eat bugs, drink lots of beer, never speak, just belch & fart a lot, play only Outlaw music. -- "Harley Heather."

Hang out in cyber-cafes, drink Jolt cola & eat nachos exclusively, never sleep, speak only in words of four syllables or more, figure out her bill in binary, octal, & hex, and tip for whichever number is smaller. -- "Hacker Heather."

What d'ya think of "Hawaiian Heather"...? "Hoosier Heather"...?? Hiawatha Heather"...???

<groaning>...Ghawd, the possibilities are endless!

--T
 
The speak in tongue module may also come handy for the Saved by a Sect Heather.

Hit people with a hockey stick, make sex movies and go into a boxing career.. Heather Harding.

Uncontrollably lift her skirt in public, unbutton her blouse.. Flasher Heather.

Ride a VW Beetle.. Herbie Heather (did Disney really digitally post-production shrink Lindsay Lohan's breasts, or was it just a publicity stunt?)

I'd rather not go to extreme politics or racism, but Heil Heather also has a certain ring to it.. :roll:
 
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