Comic Discussion > QUESTIONABLE CONTENT
WCDT Strips 4006-4010 (20th-25th May, 2019)
cybersmurf:
Makes me wonder about two things:
How expensive is it to replace the battery in May's chassis? Both in parts, and in work involved (it may as well be that you need special tools or know how to do it). And could you replace the charging plug?
And would certain changes beyond simple repairs violate May's parole? it for sure won't void any warranty, since there's none left IIRC.
Also, dies running out of battery like that mess with an AIs internal clock?
Does it cause Amnesia? (I think memories aren't constantly streamed to storage, but what are the sync intervals?)
BenRG:
"My synthetic girlfriend went into safe mode after we had sex." Yeah, it does sound like something Erika would write an Oh Joy, Sex Toy! strip about, isn't it?
Okay, here's where I'd like this to go: I suspect that this is only the 'visible top' of the iceberg of just how defective May's chassis is. Fortunately, she now has a friend with deep pockets and a certain sense of responsibility to her. Partly because he's trying hard to be less of a douche and partly because there is a nice side to him once you get around the lazy entitlement issues.
So, I'm thinking that, after a comedic meeting with Faye, during which Sven has to convince her that he isn't trying to 'buy' May for a return engagement or something else similarly unethical, she and Bubbles agree to take a look. Pretty soon, the list of parts needing replacement gets very long. As May's chassis is long out of production now, only spare parts of extremely dodgy quality or third-party clones of suspect compatibility are available. Something has to be done, though; Bubbles says that it's only a matter of time before May can't even boot up because the state of the chassis systems will just keep kicking her into safe mode to stop CPU and drive damage.
So, Jeph gets to put in a time skip by having May boot up again a couple of months down the line, wearing a towel and a much more refined body. At some point, Faye mentions to her that they've still got her old chassis lying in the back room of Union Robotics because the guy from the scrap yard demanded that they pay him to take it away.
--- Quote from: cybersmurf on 22 May 2019, 22:55 ---Makes me wonder about two things:
How expensive is it to replace the battery in May's chassis? Both in parts, and in work involved (it may as well be that you need special tools or know how to do it). And could you replace the charging plug?
--- End quote ---
The minute I read 'proprietary charger', my mental alarm bells started ringing. It's probably very difficult indeed - Parts made only by the manufacturer that only work with that particular model.
--- Quote from: cybersmurf on 22 May 2019, 22:55 ---And would certain changes beyond simple repairs violate May's parole? it for sure won't void any warranty, since there's none left IIRC.
--- End quote ---
I imagine that, so long as any replacement chassis is registered with the Department of Corrections as her 'current abode', the bureaucrats won't care too much. So long as it isn't a combat model or something that would let her flee jurisdiction like a fighter jet, of course.
--- Quote from: cybersmurf on 22 May 2019, 22:55 ---Also, dies running out of battery like that mess with an AIs internal clock?
Does it cause Amnesia? (I think memories aren't constantly streamed to storage, but what are the sync intervals?)
--- End quote ---
I think that synthetics write to their local memory in real time. So, there might be a few lost/corrupted seconds if the system jumped onto safe mode during a write job but that's no different from the distorted memory a human may have if they faint.
Is it cold in here?:
A proprietary charging cable to me is perilously close to a civil rights violation.
Y:
--- Quote from: Skewbrow on 22 May 2019, 20:55 ---I guess in QC universe there's nothing unusual about a human seeking help for an AI friend whose battery ran out. The fact that the said AI happens to be nude may raise a few eyebrows. Anyway, Sven will need to find a blanket. And hope that May's chassis is not as heavy as Momo's (judging from her lack of buoyancy).
--- End quote ---
Sven has seen her naked so he wouldn't need a blanket if he just gets her cable from where she works (if it's still open). Or just get her back into her clothes. If it's an emergency however no precious time may be lost to prioritizing dignity over survivability.
ihaveavoice:
--- Quote from: traroth on 22 May 2019, 02:14 ---
--- Quote from: OldGoat on 22 May 2019, 00:02 ---Get the two of you cleaned up, dressed, and then head over to Union Robotics with May over your shoulder.
--- End quote ---
Or even better, respectfully wait until she decides to get up, then ask her respectfully if she wants to go to Union Robotics.
--- End quote ---
How could she get up without a charge?
--- Quote from: Is it cold in here? on 22 May 2019, 23:34 ---A proprietary charging cable to me is perilously close to a civil rights violation.
--- End quote ---
For real, it lines up with stuff about how our tech companies do business, but with an actual AI, that's at the very least holding someone's ability to remain conscious hostage (already horrifying), and since an AI is only actively "living" their life when they're powered on and never powering back on could basically be considered death, it's even worse than that. Imagine pacemakers or insulin pumps that you can only have serviced/changed at particular hospitals. If the nearest one doesn't work with your brand, you're SOL.
So...the comic works on a "heh, like phones" and a "oh god this sort of checks out with the perceived value/treatment of prisoners and paroled felons in our society" level. :psyduck:
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