office hours: round 1.

[foo_bar]

office hours daily. i'm here to help... i think.

(screened PCs with han)

Comments

[donotlick]

Kinda figured, with the whole dimension-bullshit.

And that is?

[foo_bar]

Copywriting code. But it's a problem we'll live with forever, I guess.

[donotlick]

Hah. Yeah, that ain't gonna change any time soon. Cyberlife has the whole world in their pocket thanks to that -- wouldn't be making billions if people could just make their own biocomponents or whatever they're called.

[foo_bar]

They created Connor, right?

[donotlick]

Yep. Sure did. Think he's some kinda new model or something.

[foo_bar]

That's just amazing to me. It's not unusual, that a company could create something good, and be awful. But it's disappointing.

[donotlick]

Well, androids're aren't all the same. Some of 'em go rogue and start killing people. Others just do shit like desk work or watching the kids.

[foo_bar]

Go rogue how? Like... a malfunction? Are people not taking care of them?

[donotlick]

Yeah, they call those models "deviant." Means they broke out of their programming and went against their orders.

Nobody really knows what causes it, but it's freaking people the fuck out.

[foo_bar]

Were the orders contradictory? Were they inconsistent with an android's internal programming?

[donotlick]

Shit, don't ask me, I've only ever seen one of those things and it was -- it was defending itself.

So yeah, it's fucked up, but androids aren't programmed to have self-preservation. They're not human.

[foo_bar]

[he weighs that, but... it's hard to say. He doesn't know what cyberlife's products look like, besides Connor. And he can't help but believe that whatever learning protocol they've got... probably could learn self-defense.]

Huh.

[donotlick]

Yeah, exactly. They're getting smarter.

[ Hank shudders. He doesn't like the sound of that. ]

They're perfect machines that are stronger, smarter and never need food or get tired. Like humans but better. They already made everything else obsolete, why not try humans next?

[foo_bar]

... But have you ever considered the androids are doing their best?

[donotlick]

.......

[ Hank stares at him. Long and hard and... real confused. ]

Androids don't "do their best." They do what they're programmed to do.

[foo_bar]

Yeah, and they do that to the best of their ability. But to make something that complex, you're asking it to really work within the bounds of some pretty contradictory programming.

Even crude AI does what it's told to do to the best of its ability-- and usually only goes astray after abuse from people taking advantage of that.

[donotlick]

It's kinda hard to call it an "ability" when it's something that was coded in from the start. They're not programmed to make mistakes, they're programmed for perfection.

[ Is he really having this conversation, he's gonna feel like such a dick in a few weeks. ]

Lemme put it this way. I could train for years on how to draw a perfect circle. And maybe I'd get it once or twice, but being human, I'd make mistakes. Androids all get it right on the first try. They don't gotta train or hope they'll do it right -- they just do.

[foo_bar]

Yeah, but when humans couldn't do it on their own, they made things that could help them draw circles perfectly. Why would you make something that doesn't do its job well?

Besides, you say that like that's something that really demonstrates the complexity and the perfection of an android's programming. There are imperfections and there are illogical or incompatible processes.

I think it's amazing that a computer can look at whatever mess we've given it, and run with it in ways we don't always expect.

[donotlick]

You're admitting they're tools, you know that?

[ He shakes his head. ]

They do that because somebody programmed them to. Which... I guess is why you're so in love with the idea, ain't it?

[foo_bar]

I never said that they weren't. But I know they're doing their best, when humans are imperfect creators.

Besides... You think there aren't humans who think of other humans as tools?

[donotlick]

Sure, they're perfect, But they got no creativity. No soul.

And yeah, I know some people can suck. Androids aren't like that. The ones I've seen are either a blank slate, real good at faking it or so fucked up that they start killing people. Not a whole lot of in between.

[foo_bar]

We're going to disagree on that one, eh?

[donotlick]

Pretty much, yeah.

[ He shrugs. He'll change his mind later, I promise!! ]

My world's different. I didn't grow up with androids like some of the people your age.

[foo_bar]

Well, to be fair.

Our worlds are literally different.

[donotlick]

[ You bring up a very good point, sir. ]

....Okay, how the fuck does that work, exactly?

I mean, maybe not "exactly." Use English, I'm not a rocket scientist.