THESE FORUMS NOW CLOSED (read only)
Comic Discussion => QUESTIONABLE CONTENT => Topic started by: BenRG on 23 Aug 2015, 11:57
-
I feel like actually doing a poll that talks about the coming week's strips today. Maybe it was coming so close to predicting the outcome of the recent Alice Grove cliffhanger... Or maybe I was just struck by the creative bug; I don't know.
Guessing where Jeph goes is always a dangerous endeavour. He has a talent for grabbing tiny things that most of us missed even happened and then expanding them into a plot arc with their own unique characters and jokes. I think that's why I put the 'Veronica gives Sam a bath' option in the poll. It's the sort of mad, unexpected thing that he is good at pulling out of his hat.
Let's talk about 'Marten and Claire moving to Canada' thing for a moment. This is mostly just me referencing Jeph's own upcoming move but, oddly enough, I don't think that it is entirely random. Marten was seriously annoyed at Northampton throwing him a curve ball in the form of Faye's new job. Maybe Claire has got an offer just over the border if she graduates and Marten has heard good things about the sanity level of Canada in general. Maybe he can have a life based on actual logic and plausible reality there? Claire is still at least a year from graduation, so you could easily spend a thousand strips building up the tension as to whether they're going to go through with it or even if Marten will still be with Claire when the time comes!
It's highly unlikely but it is the sort of strange out-of-left-field plot twist that occasionally hits home in QC.
I've ended up voting for 'Hannelore the Problem Solver' option; it has the most potential for immediate humour and character development as well as not opening a can of plot worms.
-
I went with the bath option for several reasons, including that we haven't seen Sam or VV in a while but mostly because I'm not certain that domme voice will work on a teenager that seems to be more stubborn by reflex than than Marten ever was on purpose… and, either way, it will be hilarious.
-
I'll call romance for this week.
Next week, back to Robot Death Battles.
-
I like the idea of Sam's end of summer bath. Could be a good bit of slapstick.
-
I voted for the follow-up to Sven's gift because I think it's most likely, though now you mention it I really want to see whether VV's domme voice works on Sam. I kinda think it maybe might, if only because that could lead to wacky hijinks if Sam realizes what's happened and wishes to gain this power.
The problem with this now is that we've got the more pressing arc of the robot fight club and Dora/Faye issues that could be worked out. I think Faye's in a good place now. She likes her job for the first time in QC history. She's sober now. If she ever had reason to let the past go, it's now.
-
Hey, that could be where Hanners, Problem-solver comes in! She's still in contact with Faye as best we know, and maybe she misses Faye being around so much. I think she'd talk to Faye this time instead of Dora, though, because Faye's the one who fucked up and broke basically the only rule in CoD's handbook. If Faye's up to it, I think Dora would be amenable to a mending of fences. Not a re-hiring, because duh, but that's not why she's there! Faye's got a job, which we would get to see her try to explain in public without outing an illegal underground fighting ring
-
I'd prefer it if the Dora/Faye thing wasn't resolved just yet. Not saying that it needs to drag on as long as the Dora/Sven thing, but I think there's room for growth.
Storywise, Faye's drinking problem may be "resolved" but considering that the idea that she has a problem has been percolating for 2000+ strips, I wouldn't put past Jeph to call it less than finished. (Also, of course, once you have a drinking problem, you always have a drinking problem).
Dora's had some growth with Sven, but the Faye thing, as much as Tai gave her shit and tried to make it out to be the same, is different. Faye did betray her trust. While there may be a case for a certain artistic inconsistency in the way drinking at Coffee of Doom has been handled, you can still boil it down thus:
In all cases where Dora was aware of alcohol consumption by her staff, Dora specifically approved of it. In the case that got Faye fired, Dora specifically forbid it, and Faye did it anyway. This isn't laying blame. That's over and done. But Dora's best friend did something very bad, and ALL Dora did was fire her.
I think we still need to see Faye grow a bit because this one is on her. Dora could forgive her as a form of taking the high road, but I've known too many alcoholics. It's best for your own sanity to let them get straight on their terms when they've breached a trust.
-
I'm still waiting for Dora and Faye to finally come together for the long awaited conversation.
-
Reindeer, like I said, if Hanners WERE to try and fix things between her friend and her boss, she'd need to talk to Faye. Faye needs to be the one to reach out. The question of whether Faye is WILLING to reach out can only be answered by Jeph, but remember, there wasn't much time in comic between Dora's annulling her sibling relation and her firing Faye for rightful reasons. You say it maybe shouldn't stretch as long as the Dora/Sven arc, but that still would mean they begin mending bridges in the next two weeks.
It wouldn't be a quick fix, but it does need to happen, in my opinion. Resolution could be a long road, but I'm anxious to see the sights along the way.
Definitely don't see Marten moving to Canada and abandoning Faye, Dora and Hanners for the sake of Claire. He did that once, remember, and I believe he assured Faye at some point that he'd never do it again.
-
So, Bubbles seems to have a, erm, utilitarian mindset about her. I want to hear about her obvious military past now.
-
I think I'm going to like Bubbles.
-
I don't mean as long in comic, so much as I mean as long in the real world.
So, I'm just saying not another 104 comics before something happens. On the other hand, the next 4 comics seems a bit soon.
-
Now that's good writing. I'm itching to hear more about Bubbles.
-
I don't mean as long in comic, so much as I mean as long in the real world.
So, I'm just saying not another 104 comics before something happens. On the other hand, the next 4 comics seems a bit soon.
Like I said, the Sven/Dora rift happened within a week or two of Faye being fired. As long as it's been with the Sven/Dora issue, it's not been much longer with Faye/Dora.
It doesn't matter. We're dealing with BUBBLES! Bubbles is a chill robot. I'm a fan of Bubbles*
*is a sentence I never thought I'd say seriously as an adult man
-
I don't mean as long in comic, so much as I mean as long in the real world.
So, I'm just saying not another 104 comics before something happens. On the other hand, the next 4 comics seems a bit soon.
Like I said, the Sven/Dora rift happened within a week or two of Faye being fired. As long as it's been with the Sven/Dora issue, it's not been much longer with Faye/Dora.
It doesn't matter. We're dealing with BUBBLES! Bubbles is a chill robot. I'm a fan of Bubbles*
*is a sentence I never thought I'd say seriously as an adult man
You are right, and I acknowledged that the time in comic is a thing.
I'm talking about the pacing of the storytelling. Jeph could time skip ahead 4 years if he felt the need to establish a time gap, though I'm not saying that would be optimal.
And there have been time gaps. Between Pintsize telling Marten where Faye was and Maten asking Faye, "all week" happened. That's cool.
While it has been 151 comics since Faye was fired, in terms of the story development, it feels rushed to have a heart to heart at this moment. On the other hand, a hundred strips from now (20 weeks) seems like it might be dragging it out (which would give it the same amount of time between the Svenectomy and the resolution. It has been 30 weeks since Faye was fired, but it doesn't feel like Faye's faced enough of Faye.
To reframe it, the time from Sven's return to the make up feels rushed, too. But I'm not bothered by that because the Svenectomy wasn't going anywhere. It wasn't much of challenge for Dora as a person. Faye's issues are big challenges, and come with a host of complications. Her arc from rock bottom to robot welder has been twisty, windy and interrelated. I'd like to see the same applied to the arc to mending fences. So, I wouldn't mind if Faye's nascent relationship with Bubbles is the catalyst to her mending fences (in the same way as Hannelore's bloody mole was the catalyst to Faye: Robot Welder. But I'd like it to expand over more strips than the Sven resolution, without waiting another 100 strips to actually kick off.
This is certainly not a TRUTH. It's simply my preference and the reason for it. 250 total strips feels too long. 150 feels too short (not because of numbers, but because it feels as if more character development is needed).
-
"Once a year I allow myself to wink"?? 8-)
Okay, who else thinks Bubbles started pulling Faye's leg in this panel?
-
In many ways, Bubbles has a similar view of the human interaction with AIs as Momo. She doesn't want to cause a fuss and maybe cause difficulty for herself and others. Momo's way of handling this is to do the best to fit in. Bubbles' way of handling this is to hide away. I'm not sure if she's bothered by this and has learnt not to fret about it or if she really is that stoic.
Additionally, I'm really unsure if panel 6's monologue is meant to be serious. She really does strike me as the sort who would consider excess stoicism to be a virtue but, on the other hand, she may just be trying to deflect Faye's attention on her personal life by way of sarcasm.
I'm getting more and more sure that Faye is going to end up doing something for Bubbles to free her from her self-imposed confinement.
-
Poor Bubbles :(
-
Having Bubbles become the prettiest murderbot by way of Faye seems like it could be interesting for wacky shenanigans indeed.
-
So, does it seem to anyone else like Bubbles is gonna be the new acclimate to normal outgoing life project of the comic.
Cause I just kinda realized that's happened with Marigold and Hannelore before her. lol :3
-
Having Bubbles become the prettiest murderbot by way of Faye seems like it could be interesting for wacky shenanigans indeed.
I can see Faye taking a nervous Bubbles into some public location, maybe The Secret Bakery and someone hits on Faye's 'pretty Amazonian friend'. There follows much confusion in the Shakespearean mold.
-
Having Bubbles become the prettiest murderbot by way of Faye seems like it could be interesting for wacky shenanigans indeed.
Yay! Murderbot makeover!
-
Having Bubbles become the prettiest murderbot by way of Faye seems like it could be interesting for wacky shenanigans indeed.
I can see Faye taking a nervous Bubbles into some public location, maybe The Secret Bakery and someone hits on Faye's 'pretty Amazonian friend'. There follows much confusion in the Shakespearean mold.
BUBBLES: "Can nobody see that I'm a mil-spec robot?"
FAYE: "They can. They're just messin' with you. Also, if you see a dude with a robotic hand, RUN"
-
"Once a year I allow myself to wink"?? 8-)
Okay, who else thinks Bubbles started pulling Faye's leg in this panel?
Nope. Not in the slightest. I can grok this in fullness. About once every 5 or 10 years I buy myself a cup of tea at a teashop, or even see a film.
-
I'm getting more and more sure that Faye is going to end up doing something for Bubbles to free her from her self-imposed confinement.
Ah, but you see - if it's self-imposed, she may not want to be "freed". It should be her choice, not a behaviour that is imposed on her by others.
By circumstances, yes. Just ask Gordon. A considerate person, while acknowledging that they do not have to do something irksome to please others, may of their own free will choose to make a trivial (to them) sacrifice in order to increase general happiness.
It may be that such asceticism is natural to her, no great burden, if it be any burden at all. She may be most comfortable like that.
Or it could be a reaction to deep trauma, so not really a choice. Or a reaction she's aware of, but on intellectual or ethical grounds, has decided not to do anything about, as it's objectively useful. The cage might have been locked originally, but she may have unlocked it - then decided to stay.
By all means give her choices - but deciding what is best for her is arrogant, and oppressive. Not that she'd take offense.
-
Or is Bubbles serving a self-imposed penance for her past sins? I'm picking up a vibe of deep self-loathing from Bubbles. It would explain a lot - why she chooses to isolate herself, and why she continues to work at a job she hates. She's her own judge, jury and prison warden.
-
It all seems self limiting though. To never venture outside of the building. Sure AIs are different, and may not need the same sorts of comforts that humans do. A lot of AIs do seek to emulate human interaction though. Consider the AI cafe, and the robot support group. That may be a difference between AthroPCs and other AIs with a lot of direct human interaction vs more purpose built AIs like Bubbles or Murderbot. Assuming someone can design AIs for a purpose. Some indications exist that they are emergent personalities and need to find their own purpose in life.
In any case with AIs they may not feel isolation from being limited to a single location, either by choice or by being forced, like with Robojail. Many or possibly most have always on connections to the internet. Since at least some AIs don't seem to have physical bodies they control themselves and aren't human, they experience online interaction quite differently.
I am seeing some interesting parallels between Bubbles and Alice though. I'm not sure if it was intentional or unconscious on Jeph's part. Both have mysterious backgrounds, designed or rebuilt as weapon systems. Both seem to have experienced trauma related to battle in their past that they don't talk about. Both have isolated themselves from society as a whole, but made it their mission to aid and assist others.
-
Or is Bubbles serving a self-imposed penance for her past sins? I'm picking up a vibe of deep self-loathing from Bubbles. It would explain a lot - why she chooses to isolate herself, and why she continues to work at a job she hates. She's her own judge, jury and prison warden.
Ever since her squad-mates Blossom and Buttercup were killed.
-
Ever since her squad-mates Blossom and Buttercup were killed.
Not killed - disassembled
-
It seems most likely to me that Bubbles has embraced some pacifist/quietist philosophy as a reaction to having seen (or even done) terrible things while in her previous career a a combat droid. We may learn about it this week.
-
She's ... seen things ... you people wouldn't believe.
-
Alice? Who's Alice? I don't know anyone with that name.
-
Context switch: Jeph's other comic, Alice Grove.
-
She's ... seen things ... you people wouldn't believe.
And done . . . . questionable things
-
Ever since her squad-mates Blossom and Buttercup were killed.
Not killed - disassembled
NNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!
I get the feeling there's more to Bubbles story than she's letting on here. I can see Faye slowly 'Adopting' Bubbles and bringing her out of her shell (so to speak) and in the course of that, funding her own balance after the disaster of her nearly drinking herself to death and getting herself fired from CoD in the process.
-
(http://memecrunch.com/meme/4GNZO/no-disassemble-no-disassemble/image.png?w=400&c=1)
-
Technically disassembly wouldn't be that bad. I mean that's what they do at the robot fighting arena, disassemble each other for the entertainment of people. And then Faye and Bubbles put them back together again. Erasure of their hard drives would be real death for an AI. I'm sure that those military grade drives their minds are stored on include hardening... but one rule of armor is no matter how tough you make it, someone will always find a bigger and better bullet to get through. EMP weapons would be the most effective against AI soldiers. Possibly against Geneva Convention style rules on warfare for much the same reasons that chemical weapons are forbidden against humans.... But things like that tend only to happen only after we see the horrible aftermath of those weapons being used. Watching your comrades in arms and code being nailed by a pulse gun and having half their code scrambled permanently would I think be enough to turn someone from a combat AI into a pacifist.
-
We don't know if AI are people outside the US, though.
Admittedly, the US stopped leading on human rights a long, long time ago, but the US is still hovering in the top 10 to 15 % on that score. That means there could be a good 150, 160 countries that might not recognize AI as anything more than tools.
-
Wow, BenRG could keep busy for weeks writing fanfic about how AIs are treated in different countries.
Even in the QC USA, the equal rights amendment for AIs is quite a recent accomplishment.
-
I wouldn't take off armor in there. Some busted up robot might have sticky fingers.
-
after some reflection, realized i'm not ready for svennelore OR fubbles
:?
:cry:
-
"Anti-tank rifles are illegal in this state."
Is this implying there are states where they are legal?
-
That was kind of what I was thinking. I mean I know this is the US. But even here you have to have licenses and such to own military grade hardware.. for the most part I think.
-
Seemed sarcastic to me. But I've never really looked into the details of firearms laws.
-
"Anti-tank rifles are illegal in this state."
Is this implying there are states where they are legal?
That was kind of what I was thinking. I mean I know this is the US. But even here you have to have licenses and such to own military grade hardware.. for the most part I think.
Texas. If it'd be anywhere, it'd be Texas.
-
Depends on the rifle in question. I recall anything over 20mm is considered a "destructive device", which are subject to different regulations and paperwork. I think anything smaller is legally t he same as any other longarm, with legality depending on state.
-
"Anti-tank rifles are illegal in this state."
Is this implying there are states where they are legal?
Actually, it depends on the AT Rifle. The British Boys Rifle is easy to purchase if converted to .50 BMG. In it's original form it is considered a destructive device and requires a tax stamp from BATFE to own - if your state allows. The Mauser 1918 Tank Gewehr in 13.2mm caliber is specifically exempted from the NFA and if you can own any rifle you can own it. If you really want to...
Should you care, there is much more info here: http://www.forgottenweapons.com/
-
I did suspect that Bubbles' armour plate was an external addition. There are several good engineering reasons for this. By putting a space in between her armour and her actual chassis external shell, she has a little bit more protection for her systems. Additionally, it makes repairing damaged armour quick and easy rather than requiring whole limbs be replaced.
However, I suspect that what Jeph is working towards is that, underneath her armour, Bubbles is as humanoid as Momo or May. It's just that I think that Bubbles doesn't want to look more human. Nonetheless, yeah, take off the stand-off armour plate and stick her in a tee shirt and jeans and she'd look fairly human. Why does she choose to look more like a tank than people? Well, the details are to be revealed but my guess is that armour protects more than her critical components. It also protects some vulnerable parts of her soul.
I think that Bubbles is starting to get annoyed with Faye. The problem is that Faye is one of those personalities who can't take a hint that she's annoying people. This is at least partly because she likes annoying people. Whilst I think, on a certain level, she's motivated by concern and an honest desire to help Bubbles, she's also being bratty and annoying and this may end up with an argument or a demonstration of just how dangerous Bubbles can be if she loses her temper.
"Anti-tank rifles are illegal in this state."
Is this implying there are states where they are legal?
It depends what Faye means by an 'anti-tank rifle'. If she means a heavy-calibre sniper rifle, like a high-power thirty-calibre or one of those fifty-calibre monsters, yes I think that they are 'street legal' in some parts of the world.
-
"Anti-tank rifles are illegal in this state."
Is this implying there are states where they are legal?
What she's implicitly saying is, "Those are some guns (biceps) you have."
-
"Anti-tank rifles are illegal in this state."
Is this implying there are states where they are legal?
What she's implicitly saying is, "Those are some guns (biceps) you have."
I took it at face value, as the suggestion that the armor isn't useful because anyone who wants to kill her would just use an, apparently legal,anti-tank rifle.
-
I took it at face value, as the suggestion that the armor isn't useful because anyone who wants to kill her would just use an, apparently legal,anti-tank rifle.
My understanding is that Faye was asking Bubbles why she would wear armour when her chassis' basic structure was already tough enough to need an illegal weapon to damage it. Faye was pointing out that the armour had no practical utility for Bubbles as she wasn't fighting.
-
I too read Faye's remark as meaning that Bubbles' external armour was only necessary to protect her from anti-tank rifle rounds, a threat she would not face in Massachusetts . According to her spec. sheet (http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3004), it can resist up to 30mm APFSDS (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armour-piercing_fin-stabilized_discarding-sabot) rounds :-o so anti-tank rifle bullets would just bounce off. I imagine she must have a helmet tucked away in a cupboard somewhere.
-
Or an alternate head she can screw on.
-
I find it a bit odd that Bubbles has a military chassis at all. I mean we know AIs can change chassis reasonably easily. We've met one who has done so - the shop assistant who is an ex-submarine,
A chassis is expensive, a military one octuply so. I can imagine the army offering a standard civilian model as part of a demobilization benefit package. But this is a bit like a retiring real-world soldier being allowed to keep their rifle and their Humvee.
The only explanation I can think of is that her chassis is an obsolete model that was being retired when she mustered out. She decided she wanted to keep it for her own reasons and whoever was in charge thought "Whatever... why not?" In fairness, this does seem to accord with what we know about her character.
-
It seems as if Bubbles is missing the point I made on a QC Captions panel and on earlier threads. Anti-tank armor might not protect you from The Rage of the Pugnacious Peach (tm) (R) (C)
-
Given Bubbles's specifications, She's certainly Anti-tank rifle proof.
On the other hand, Hannelore is equipped to take her out.
-
And if she appeared to Hanners as she was today, the orbital bombardment app would surely come into play indeed.
-
According to her spec. sheet (http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3004), it can resist up to 30mm APFSDS (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armour-piercing_fin-stabilized_discarding-sabot) rounds :-o
Fun fact: The penetrator of the M829 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M829) APFSDS has a caliber of only 27mm. It pierces half a meter (20in) of steel plating with ease. That metallo-ceramic armor of hers must be some seriously advanced stuff.
-
According to her spec. sheet (http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3004), it can resist up to 30mm APFSDS (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armour-piercing_fin-stabilized_discarding-sabot) rounds :-o
Fun fact: The penetrator of the M829 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M829) APFSDS has a caliber of only 27mm. It pierces half a meter (20in) of steel plating with ease. That metallo-ceramic armor of hers must be some seriously advanced stuff.
I'm pretty sure that QC-verse technology is a good couple of decades in advance of real world stuff. Didn't the Vespavenger's warbot have lasers as a standard weapon? We've only just started getting them right for weapons applications in the last five years in the real world and they're still the size of sub-compact cars. Pintsize's original chassis had a combat-rated laser that was the size of a USB drive! Infantry lasers and accelerator guns are probably quite common at superpower military level.
So, yeah, I'm pretty sure that Bubbles in full combat rig is probably harder to stop than an armoured Hummer as well as being faster, more agile and probably able to engage multiple targets in a time frame that would be impossible for a human soldier. She's also apparently not entirely happy with that past.
-
According to her spec. sheet (http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=3004), it can resist up to 30mm APFSDS (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armour-piercing_fin-stabilized_discarding-sabot) rounds :-o
Fun fact: The penetrator of the M829 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M829) APFSDS has a caliber of only 27mm. It pierces half a meter (20in) of steel plating with ease. That metallo-ceramic armor of hers must be some seriously advanced stuff.
That would be classed as a 120mm APFSDS round. You use the diameter of the sabot, not the penetrator.
The 25mm APFSDS rounds I'm familiar with have 14.5mm penetrators with 10-15cm long penetrators. What's most important is length, not width. The M829 has various lengths from 63cm to 80cm in the hottest rounds. Muzzle velocity on small calibre guns is typically around 1400 m/sec, up to 1700 m/sec on the hottest 120mm rounds.
A reasonable rule of thumb is that penetration of armour is about equal to projectile length at normal ranges. Complex composites such as the famed "Chobham" armour can set up ripples in the rod that effectively reduce its length. And I can't say more, only talk about generalities from open source literature.
-
I think that Bubbles has certain 'Intigration Issues' in regards to being a Civiian AI after coming from a Military AI background.
Here's a thought, what if Bubbles is an ex Military AI that was retired or mustered out PRIOR to the integration of full AI rights, and had some bad experiences after she was demobbed? It would certainly explain some of her attitudes and phobias as well as the fact that she prefers to remain secluded in the Robot Fight Club world and not[/] interact witht eh outside world.
-
Comic's up.
It's probably a good thing for Faye that Bubbles is a pacifist now.
-
So, has Bubbles not updated her calendar in a long time, or is AprilArcus going to have to severely modify her timeline? :-D
-
AI creation in the QCverse seems to be a chancy business. Try for an AI companion --- you might get Pintsize. Try for a soldier AI --- you might get Bubbles. Throw it out and try again? You can't. For Reasons. Maybe legal? But I suspect the real reason is that creating an AI is computationally expensive. Like minting bitcoins. So you find the best niche you can for what you've made.
Bubbles was probably Ok with her place in the world --- at first.
I wonder if May would have been happier to be in Bubble's shoes?
-
Oh, my favorite: The attitude that someone who prefers solitude to "society" somehow needs repair. I know so many people with that mimdset and was even asked by a supposedly well-meaning woman for suggestions on how to "help" her son. "Leave him alone," I said through what I hope looked like a smile.
-
Jeph said on Twitter that the conversations between Faye and Bubbles almost write themselves. That means he's got the characterization down.
-
When conversations between characters come automatically to you - you know you've got something good.
-
For whatever bizarre reason I can now totally see a Bubbles/Sven relationship.
Svubbles.
-
Oh, my favorite: The attitude that someone who prefers solitude to "society" somehow needs repair. I know so many people with that mimdset and was even asked by a supposedly well-meaning woman for suggestions on how to "help" her son. "Leave him alone," I said through what I hope looked like a smile.
(http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/pet_peeve_114.png)
-
Oh, Bubbles? The answer is 'no', she doesn't constantly harangue her friends about their lifestyle. She only does it when she thinks said lifestyles are broken and need to be changed. From this fairly simple premise, it should be relatively easy to work out Faye's motivation in her constant bugging of you. I'm not saying that she's right and you're wrong but you know how they say understanding is the first step to communication!
Given that I'll bet all AIs have internal calendars and Faye is likely the first human employee the URFC has had for a long time, I suspect that the calendar has been sitting there, unchanged, since the last humans left the building over a decade ago... Or maybe Jeph is just trolling April.
-
Oh, Bubbles? The answer is 'no', she doesn't constantly harangue her friends about their lifestyle. She only does it when she thinks said lifestyles are broken and need to be changed.
Oh, such a shame you weren't there, because I'm sure that response would have smoothed things right over.
BTW, I believe the question she asked is commonly referred to as 'rhetorical.'
-
BTW, I believe the question she asked is commonly referred to as 'rhetorical.'
Yes, but the reason behind the question is probably very important. She's being defensive and trying to divert Faye by insulting her. Unfortunately, insults are Faye's normal mode of affectionate social interaction, so Bubbles' tactic is flawed from the start! Faye actually thinks Bubbles is bonding with her!
-
I think that Bubbles is discovering that her usual ways to get humans to ignore her are not working on Faye. She's tried ignoring Faye, asking politely, using her size to physically intimidate and now insults. Most people probably would have got the hint by now. Unfortunately for her, that's how Faye acts to all her friends. Well, aside from asking politely. Faye would ask rudely. "Hey assbutt, mind giving me some space?"
-
A toss against the wall seems to be language Faye understands. -- advice from Pintsize.
-
All I know is that I like how Faye determines friendship compatibility.
That totally was a sick burn.
-
I spy QC's first robosexual relationship on the horizon!
Faye likes working with metal after all, hurr hurr hurr (i'm talking about the sex).
-
Let's not go there. Really. Don't go there.
-
Please.
-
I am most definitely interested in where Jeph is going with this.
-
Probably a better thing for Bubbles. She's a combat robot, built for that role.
Faye? She had to rumble into that role. Every waking moment has involved faye doing faye shit. For years now.
A simple combat robot vs Faye? That's not even a fight. A better question is:
Why is Bubbles in this? Faye I get, but Bubbles doesn't get NOTHING out of this.
-
Bubbles get an environment where she is left alone, for the most part. Employment that keeps a roof over her head, and a steady diet of electrons.
If my guess about AI learning is correct, Bubbles has an easy means to apply skills she already has. If she is interested in getting away from the robo-fight scene, then she also gets income she can spend to learn new skills she could use in some other arena. However, given her reticence about dealing with seemingly everyone else, it's likely that a job she can do and still maintain her shut-in lifestyle is hard to find.
-
It could be that the "being left alone" part is critical to her. Bubbles doesn't want to talk about her past, and the robot-fighting community is very accepting of someone who doesn't want to talk about her past.
-
Bubbles also can use it for the company of people who Understand, something veterans can't count on and often need.
-
Bah, I go longer and longer forgetting to check for a new thread (since I post early and then just rely on the updated posts link). Anyway, hi Jeremy!
Also I'm a little disappointed that nobody in this thread mentioned the calendar being from the 18th century (or made to look like it for...reasons).
-
Oh geez. Are we bringing that debate into this thread too?
-
So Jeremy, what do you like to do on your day off?
-
So Jeremy, what do you like to do on your day off?
ARM WRESTLING! :clairedoge:
-
I am hoping that the arena turns out to be a haven for early artificial intelligences who have not integrated into society. I would find that very interesting. Bubbles had given me hope and seeing Jeremy intensifies it.
-
Faye just had a Foot Long Sandwich at the Robot Sub Shoppe.
-
What to stick your assembly foot into your mouth, Faye.
-
Why would humanoid be the best shape for a combat robot? How effective is a bipedal tank?
(http://img1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20070226221613/starwars/images/d/d1/Atstendor.jpg)
-
Next we find out Bubbles has PTSD triggered by teddy bears. And logs.
-
Log files, of course, not wooden logs.
-
My take on Bubbles (when I was writing fanfic) was that she was built in a "Mark 1" chassis - ie, strictly military property built to military specification - back before AI rights became a thing. When AI rights did become a thing, they had to give her the same rights as a human soldier - including the choice of mustering out or re-enlisting. But she's a Mark-1 and not compatible with the analogous civilian hardware. The Mark-2's, which would be what they produced after it became clear that military AI's do in fact have a right to muster out, would be built with AI modules and/or software compatible with civilian hardware, allowing AI's to be demilitarized - in this case meaning transferred to a "commodity" or civilian chassis - if and when they muster out.
The Mark-2 compatibility with civilian AI modules or software would also be required for another reason: The US has an all-volunteer military. Once AI's have the rights of citizens you can't "conscript" them any more absent their voluntary cooperation, nor make them to-order for military service that they don't volunteer for. Instead you have to send out recruiters to get civilian AI's to volunteer, the same as they have to get civilian humans to volunteer. So naturally the Mark-2 chassis has to be compatible with the volunteers that might need to inhabit it.
But this leaves Bubbles is in the awkward position of a soldier who has mustered out (with what appears to be a possible case of PTSD) and is driving around the equivalent of a tank in civilian life, because its idiot builders, not anticipating the possibility of her leaving the military, didn't leave an exit hatch that would allow her to easily climb out.
I don't know how much, if any, of this is similar to what Jeph is thinking or what will become canon, but that's how I interpreted it anyway, and it seems plausible to me.
I hope to see her at the robot support group where May and Momo spend their Tuesday afternoons. I think the interaction would be interesting, because May would be insanely jealous of the military chassis and Momo would probably have to remind her to be respectful and not fangirl all over it.
-
"Anti-tank rifles are illegal in this state."
Is this implying there are states where they are legal?
Um, actually? Yes. Yes there are. Nevada for one. IIUC the rules there are weapons that do not fire more than one shell with a single pull of the trigger, have a magazine limited to less than some number of rounds I forget, and can be both carried by one person and fired from an upright position, are legal with a permit.
An AT rifle is hellish to fire from an upright position, but it can be done. No matter how strong you are, if you're human it'll knock you flat on your ass with bruises that won't heal for weeks. And you won't get that permit if you live in a densely populated area or aren't on really good terms with the local county sheriff, but otherwise, yes. There are a number of people who legally own some damned heavy weapons out there.
-
The fact that Jeremy is there has two possible, rather disturbing implications:
1) Your average assembly arm can develop a taste for illegal violence
2) Jeremy got laid of in a way and now has to make his living by fighting.
-
Welcome to Robotworld, Faye, where literally everything is quite likely sentient and has an attitude. I'm sure that you've made an enemy of the toilet too!
Y'know, I'm seriously thinking now that Jeph is writing this to be a slap upside Faye's head. Not only does her attitude lead her to make enemies with all her co-workers but she eventually has to quit because of the poisonous atmosphere she's created for herself in the workplace! So, she finds that she actually doesn't understand people at all, is very bad at making friends and is left wondering if her 'quirks' may be the cause of her having so few friends and so few options.
Basically, she only got away with it this long because Marten is (or at least used to be) an emotionally-crippled doormat and Dora is her friend and thus used to look the other way when she was mean to her employees. Maybe the time has come for her to re-assess how she interacts with people?
I know that it sounds a downer but, sometimes, you need to do that to force your characters to grow.
Why would humanoid be the best shape for a combat robot? How effective is a bipedal tank?
Highly ineffective, actually. The US Army crunched the numbers and found that battlemechs' high silhouette made them a sitting duck for anti-tank missiles and artillery. Additionally, they could be spotted and tracked by enemies from far further away.
The fact that Jeremy is there has two possible, rather disturbing implications:
1) Your average assembly arm can develop a taste for illegal violence
2) Jeremy got laid of in a way and now has to make his living by fighting.
Or that, like Faye and Bubbles, he's one of the URFL's repair and maintenance staff, no more.
-
Why would humanoid be the best shape for a combat robot? How effective is a bipedal tank?
(http://img1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20070226221613/starwars/images/d/d1/Atstendor.jpg)
I'll see your AT-ST and raise you one Metal Gear.
Wait, apparently my Metal Gear was just destroyed by one man on foot with a rocket launcher. Never mind then.
-
-
Why would humanoid be the best shape for a combat robot? How effective is a bipedal tank?
(http://img1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20070226221613/starwars/images/d/d1/Atstendor.jpg)
Oh, please! Those are easily defeated by fluffy, little teddy bears!
-
The US has an all-volunteer military.
Actually, not so. The Pentagon wants an all volunteer force, because it sees it as a more effective method. However, there is no statute to that effect. Indeed, The Joint Chiefs have had to tell Congress a time or two, "we'd really prefer it if you didn't active the draft," partly because Congress floating the idea was political theater, but also because they don't want it.
Likely they would feel the same way about AI soldiers, once they were required to treat them as people rather than tools. But that might not be the case. The military can be slow as hell about changing their point of view on a subject. In fact, if an AI were part of high value weapon system, I'd expect the first thing some military leaders would do is try to find a way to conscript them. Odds are, they put a lot of money into them.
But that's me rambling on. The main point is that the all volunteer nature of the DoD is a choice and goal of the Pentagon's, not a requirement.
-
Why would humanoid be the best shape for a combat robot?
Cammo.
(http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r262/retskoow/album%202/T2_T1000_PR7.jpg)
In terms of their capabilities in degraded modes, all the military robots I've grown the AI for are like the T-1000. As are the spacecraft.
"The radiation will cause random bit-flips and can even fry components," Brain says. "The vacuum boils the volatile gasses out of normal chips, making them useless and coating everything nearby with conductive gunk. In the Earth's shadow, temperatures make Antarctica look balmy, and in the sun's glare it's hotter than the Simpson Desert. On the way up, the vibration of the rocket would shake most normal circuit boards to pieces."
Spaceflight avionics software development is not for the faint-hearted either.
"The question for software developers is not, 'Are you paranoid?', the question is, 'Are you paranoid enough?' " Brain says. "Every software module, every function, procedure or method has to assume that information coming in may have been spoilt by a malfunction and be prepared for the worst. The system must be ductile - bending, not breaking - when things go wrong. In space no one can press Control/Alt/Delete."
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2002/08/24/1030052995897.html
However, I read XKCD so followed this:
(http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/genetic_algorithms.png)
For more on meta-genetic algorithms, see
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/275953662_Meta-Genetic_Algorithms_Molecules_and_Supercomputers_%28Poster%29
(Poster for SC10 Conference on High Performance Computing, Networking, Storage and Analysis, New Orleans 2010)
-
So it would be accurate to say that the USA has an all-volunteer military, but the legal structure of conscription is still in place. Curiously enough, that puts it on exactly the same footing as the People's Republic of China; every Chinese citizen between certain ages is technically subject to conscription, but the PRC has never actually implemented it. The supply of volunteers as always been sufficient, even during the Korean War.
Why would humanoid be the best shape for a combat robot?
It would depend on the role. A bipedal tank would not make much sense, but a robot that had to share environments with humans (ride in an APC, move around inside a building with flights of stairs) might be a different matter.
Do Bubbles and Jeremy while away the hours arm-wrestling? Or they could play board-games, I suppose. I can't shake the thought of Bubbles in a kimono practicing ikebana (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ikebana).
-
I can't shake the thought of Bubbles in a kimono practicing ikebana (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ikebana).
That's pretty anthropomorpho-centric of you. Why can't a robot arm enjoy flower arrangement?
-
The fact that Jeremy is there has two possible, rather disturbing implications:
1) Your average assembly arm can develop a taste for illegal violence
2) Jeremy got laid of in a way and now has to make his living by fighting.
Ironically, Jeremy was laid off because his job was replaced by a human....
A walking tank is impractical in pretty much any situation. There are very few robot vehicles that would be useful, are they're all on the small power armor size. And still they are not likely to be the most effective tool to use for a given situation. But they might be adaptable enough for a variety of situations to be worth working on. Military experiements into powered exoskeletons and 'iron man' style suits are more viable. That's really where Bubbles fits in. She can interact in environments built for humans, but is a lot physically tougher than a human. She would be a terror in any kind of CQC engagement scenario. She wouldn't be any good engaging in long range or open field battles, not any more than any human soldier on foot. But clearing buildings, going from room to room or in a built up urban environment? Oh heck yes. Especially in a pre-robot rights environment, I could easily see combat AIs like her sent into areas to check areas and buildings for any kind of hidden enemy or traps. They could take a lot more damage than a human could from an IED, and either be fixed up or rehoused into a new body a lot faster than a human soldier losing limbs.
-
But, of course, unlike a bomb disposal robot, Bubbles has a consciousness and the ability to form social bonds with other creatures. Unlike a 'dumb' robot or ROV, an AI cannot just see friends, colleagues and innocents blown to pieces without it impacting on their mental and emotional stability. That's why sentient AIs whose psyche works in the same was as a human's don't really work too well as 'perfect soldiers' unless they have a personality algorithm with the same characteristics as a psychopath.
-
They would have the same capabilities to learn and bond with other troops as a human soldier though. I could definitely see problems in a pre-rights environment though with commanders who look on them more like dumb robots than AIs and treating them as such.
-
So it would be accurate to say that the USA has an all-volunteer military, but the legal structure of conscription is still in place. Curiously enough, that puts it on exactly the same footing as the People's Republic of China; every Chinese citizen between certain ages is technically subject to conscription, but the PRC has never actually implemented it. The supply of volunteers as always been sufficient, even during the Korean War.
Technically, yes it is similar. The US was using the draft in Vietnam. The DoD considered that a bad experience. I believe the draft was employed in every conflict from the start of Selective Service until Vietnam, and then the DoD decided to not do that anymore. They generally try to discourage judges from sentencing people to military service, and I believe there may be laws in place to that effect, now.
The US military struggles to maintain force levels, but not in raw numbers. The issue is in skilled MOSs. I expect the crunch to increase across the board as the nation ages.
-
I like BenRG's speculation. Time for Faye to find alternatives to her defense mechanisms.
-
So it would be accurate to say that the USA has an all-volunteer military, but the legal structure of conscription is still in place. Curiously enough, that puts it on exactly the same footing as the People's Republic of China; every Chinese citizen between certain ages is technically subject to conscription, but the PRC has never actually implemented it. The supply of volunteers as always been sufficient, even during the Korean War.
Technically, yes it is similar. The US was using the draft in Vietnam. The DoD considered that a bad experience. I believe the draft was employed in every conflict from the start of Selective Service until Vietnam, and then the DoD decided to not do that anymore. They generally try to discourage judges from sentencing people to military service, and I believe there may be laws in place to that effect, now.
The US military struggles to maintain force levels, but not in raw numbers. The issue is in skilled MOSs. I expect the crunch to increase across the board as the nation ages.
Indeed. The draft was, indeed, in place during the Korean War, having taken place before the Vietnam conflict. Though perhaps not the most historically accurate, one need only watch a few episodes of M*A*S*H to gather that much. Which was a damn fine show, imo.
-
Could I care about any character less than I care about Bubbles? I think that arm thing probably has more personality.
-
Jeremy has lots of personality it seems, so I'm not sure if that's saying much :parrot:
-
Jeremy, the Robot Arm version of Faye
This should be interesting
-
She wouldn't be any good engaging in long range or open field battles, not any more than any human soldier on foot.
Really? I'd have thought at the very least the intimidation factor would have been worth having. She could also be better in the dark because her eyes don't have to be visible-light-only, or more stable than, say, a human sniper if she didn't have to breathe. Recoil from weapons could be less of a problem, if her arms (or hardpoints or whatever) have better damping than a human. Just think of a thing that the fleshiness of humans causes trouble with and with a bit of handwaving, Bubbles or others could probably have some way around it.
Obviously there are new problems - EM pulses could be an issue, rusting might set in, spare parts could be scarce, but eh, it's a comic.
-
the intimidation factor
Especially her calmly walking towards a large group of enemy soldiers and not being the least bit bothered by the massive amounts of ammo hitting her.
-
Or what if - at least in early combat robot, before people cottoned on - critical systems were in unexpected places? I'm no expert, but I imagine that a human would aim for their target's center-of-mass or head. But, surprise, my brain is in my foot!
-
My point being, she's not a tank. So references to a 'walking tank' are ignoring her role in combat. She's enhanced infantry. She can do whatever an infantry person could do, better. But she's not going to fulfill a role of an armored vehicle. Upscaling the human form to tank size and toughness (IE, a mecha, or walking tank as mentioned before) is a horrible idea because it would perform the role it was meant to take far less efficiently than a traditional tank.
-
She may even have been an early 'Urban Combat Model'
-
My point being, she's not a tank.
Ah, right. I thought you were just talking generally.
-
May templates today. Nice to see that at least there isn't any self-loathing in the model design.
Also, having the fighter jet tee custom printed is probably not the shortest path to actually being a fighter jet.
-
Pretty sure they don't let convicted felons be jet fighters.
-
That's just a technicality. I'm sure that if you have 750 million dollars lying around those are things that can be smoothed out.
-
Yay for May! Seriously, May just makes me so happy because she's so hateful and I love it. (Maybe I'm a little messed up.)
-
Aren't we all, though? Just a little :parrot:
-
BTW, I believe the question she asked is commonly referred to as 'rhetorical.'
Yes, but the reason behind the question is probably very important. She's being defensive and trying to divert Faye by insulting her. Unfortunately, insults are Faye's normal mode of affectionate social interaction, so Bubbles' tactic is flawed from the start! Faye actually thinks Bubbles is bonding with her!
^This.
And I wonder how Jeremy spends his spare time. Bowling, perhaps? Coaching Little League pitching? I am sure he has a more active social life than Bubbles. Things that weigh two tons and are bolted to the floor probably have more active social lives than Bubbles.
edits: Didn't mean to use the T-word. Sorry.
-
Well, this might explain why May is typically in a fairly poor mood. This strip confirms that the warders at the Robot Jail basically stuck her in a chassis that is a low-quality rebuild job (one leg is probably a transplant off another decommissioned chassis). Imagine, if you will, what it must be like to be permanently stuck in an ill-fitting and only moderately-functional body!
Oh well, no-one ever said that parole should be easy!
-
And I wonder how Jeremy spends his spare time. Bowling, perhaps? Coaching Little League pitching? I am sure he has a more active social life than Bubbles. Things that weigh two tons and are bolted to the floor probably have more active social lives than Bubbles.
He's currently up to volume 6 of his Iron Man fancomic, in which Tony is captured by villain after villain, leaving the robotic arm from the lab in the film no choice but to mount itself on a mobile repulsor platform and fight crime.
-
Observe the enormous semantic gap between "I am not a thing" and "I am nothing."
-
Observe the enormous semantic gap between "I am not a thing" and "I am nothing."
It's curious; the name implies that Jeremy self-identifies as male even though he is completely non-humanoid in external appearance. If Jeph felt like it, he could go on a whole long odyssey about AI self-identifcation and sexuality based on this simple hook.
However, it is more likely that this was just a warning to Faye not to pre-judge an AI by their chassis. Just because something doesn't look even slightly human-ish doesn't mean that they don't have feelings and even gender identity. Heck, you could turn it on its head; it's possible that Bubbles' self identification is not even slightly human-like and she enjoys living as if she were industrial machinery rather than people!
-
Imagine, if you will, what it must be like to be permanently stuck in an ill-fitting and only moderately-functional body!
Yes... Even worse than a "demob suit". I wonder what May's body was before she tried to steal the money to buy a fighter-jet chassis?
-
Imagine, if you will, what it must be like to be permanently stuck in an ill-fitting and only moderately-functional body!
Yes... Even worse than a "demob suit". I wonder what May's body was before she tried to steal the money to buy a fighter-jet chassis?
A box on a shelf somewhere, I think. Wasn't she a financial controller of some sort?
-
Imagine, if you will, what it must be like to be permanently stuck in an ill-fitting and only moderately-functional body!
Yes... Even worse than a "demob suit". I wonder what May's body was before she tried to steal the money to buy a fighter-jet chassis?
A box on a shelf somewhere, I think. Wasn't she a financial controller of some sort?
In a way, it makes sense. Imagine that you were a disembodied mind whose only 'senses' were your input and output data and maybe a fairly simple audio-visual hook-up to let you interface more easily with your human co-workers. Couldn't you see yourself developing an urge to have wings and fly?
I wonder if May had a decent defence at her trial? I would have definitely tried a stress-induced insanity defence, myself.
-
Imagine, if you will, what it must be like to be permanently stuck in an ill-fitting and only moderately-functional body!
It's called old age. Fortunately, it's not permanent -- or even very long-lasting :-\
-
May's chassis is a bummer (moreso than was shown earlier, the hair being of low quality was already known). I don't really see it changing any time soon either, based on the pace of the comic and limited focus on her.* It does explain how she was able to get a chassis when they're depicted as so expensive elsewhere.
I hope she gets to be a jet somehow...
*Maybe Faye will learn enough to give her a touch up, though!
-
I can't remember if it's Word of God but it's possible they have gender identity settings so as to make it easier for humans to deal with them. We as a species do have a widespread tendency to assign genders to inorganic entities.
-
I want today's comic as a full-sized wall poster.
-
I kind of have to wonder how serious May is about the whole 'I want to be a jet' part is. I mean, if it was a life long ambition, could she not have applied or whatever process AIs have to be transferred to a new chassis and position. Like the nuclear sub turned sales girl? Given May kept saying she was in robot jail because of poor control issues, I have a suspicion she was okay if bored with her job as a financial AI. Till she came across some videos of flight and said "OMG, that's what I want to do!". And she went quickly from there to embezzling money to buy a drone for a chassis, without much thought of the logistics or consequences. Or maybe she did apply to be an AI pilot and was turned down. She certainly seems to hate the normal day to day requirements and steps necessary to get where she wants. She well may have decided to shortcut the processed because "Ugh! It takes to long to apply and get approved. I want to fly now!"
-
@Neko_Ali,
This is only a guess but I wonder if there is such a thing as indentured service for AIs. They have to work out an agreed contract with a sponsor so that the costs of their creation are paid off. Only then can they start saving up to get their own chassis.
It's not so bad; Ellicott-Chatham Robotics is typically very good at administering the General Overall Aptitude Test to find out where they'll be happy and fulfilled until this necessary step is complete. However, there is always one who falls through the cracks, for whom the GOAT said 'actuary' when her soul was 'pilot'. AIs are still new enough that the processes for identifying and remedying such mistakes doesn't exist yet. Most AIs grin and bear it. Some, like May, are sufficiently determined that they choose to take illegal measures to pay off their debts and achieve their dreams.
-
I would love for it to be expanded upon in comic. Whenever I think about it, it just seems sad.
-
And I wonder how Jeremy spends his spare time. Bowling, perhaps? Coaching Little League pitching? I am sure he has a more active social life than Bubbles. Things that weigh two tons and are bolted to the floor probably have more active social lives than Bubbles.
He's currently up to volume 6 of his Iron Man fancomic, in which Tony is captured by villain after villain, leaving the robotic arm from the lab in the film no choice but to mount itself on a mobile repulsor platform and fight crime.
(http://gifs.joelglovier.com/clap/picard-slow-clap.gif)
-
And I wonder how Jeremy spends his spare time. Bowling, perhaps? Coaching Little League pitching? I am sure he has a more active social life than Bubbles. Things that weigh two tons and are bolted to the floor probably have more active social lives than Bubbles.
He's currently up to volume 6 of his Iron Man fancomic, in which Tony is captured by villain after villain, leaving the robotic arm from the lab in the film no choice but to mount itself on a mobile repulsor platform and fight crime.
I'd read that.
-
Well, that explains part of the reason she's such a grumpy bitch sometimes.
It'd probably piss me off as well if I were stuck in such a Chassis.
-
I'm pretty sure May's personality is just May's personality. She was more abrasive than she might have been when we first met her because she was in a bad place doing something she didn't want to do as means f reducing the time she'd have to doe something else she didn't want to do.
That said, she cops to having impulse control issues and the fact that she almost took a steaming dump on her get out of jail early card kind of highlights that. May's attitude isn't the result of a poor chassis. It's a result of May being May. Dale has been good for her in the sense that he's able (thanks to his chill factor) to put up with her and still respect her, but he doesn't put up with a lot of her shit. May, OTOH has been good for Dale because sometimes poor control of impulses is exactly what the situation calls for, and she's able to push him into action via a combination of energy and withering sarcasm.
I would wonder if May is really as hateful as the filler implies. It's possible. A lot of her ability to function in the real world has to do with her attachment to Dale. As much trouble as she's shown giving Momo, I suspect her willingness to reach out stems from Momo being Dale's GFs companion, and that's it. Part of it is certainly that May depends on Dale, but the fact that she calls herself May, that her cheap ass chassis still resembles the form that the VR companion system picked for Dale, and the fact that she puts actual effort into making thing smooth for Dale implies actual affection for him.
But if she really is as misanthropic as implied, she doesn't much care for anyone else and Dale is all that's keeping her in check. May could very well be Pintsize without the whimsical humor.
Still, for all the patented overanalysis, I think it's probably closer to the story to say that May is just abrasive, but is otherwise a decent sort of person who would really just rather be a fighter jet.
(Also, of note: good odds that May could not be a fighter jet through normal channels because no one wants a fighter jet with poor impulse control.)
-
If what May really wants is the freedom of flight, a quad-rotor chassis should not be too far beyond her eventual means. She might earn a living delivering packages...
-
She might earn a living delivering packages...
Not to mention, she'd have a helluva lot of fun announcing the contents of very private packages to the world/making things up about the contents therein just to fuck with people.
I now see the problem she might have, though that would be the most amazing prank service.
-
I figure that, whatever its source, May's desire to be a fighter jet is because she [wants to/believes she'd be allowed to] go anywhere, do anything, blow up anything, and not have to take orders from anyone. Limitless freedom and casual destruction. Basically the mindset of your typical late-adolescent* video gamer.
People who actually own fighter jets are not in the business of handing them over to people like that, organic or otherwise.
(*I've seen examples extending into the twenties and even beyond. :p )
-
If size is not a criterion (and we've seen that an AI can fit in a physically small chassis), May might want to consider something closer to her price range. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-4LD2i4oDg) Her AI module could go where the radio receiver would normally go. No weapons load to speak of, but fast and maneuverable. Maybe load it with paintballs to make her feel better.
-
I'm not sure if anything other than a full up fighter jet would do for May since she tried to steal most of a billion dollars to get one. OTOH, I get the feeling her desire to be a combat aircraft will never be explained in more detail.
It would be ironic to learn that, after all that, May doesn't know the first thing about how to fly.
-
Maybe she could buy Momo's old chassis at a friend/second hand discount, just to get out of the prison one.
-
She would certainly lose her job though. The chibi chassis could not work a convenience market, it just has to many limitations. If anything I think she would be more irritated in being in such a small and cute form. She would probably enjoy the self defense mechanism a bit to much though...
-
If anything I think she would be more irritated in being in such a small and cute form.
Exactly. remember May's reaction to seeing Momo for the first time? (http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2508)
-
If anything I think she would be more irritated in being in such a small and cute form.
Exactly. remember May's reaction to seeing Momo for the first time? (http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2508)
Well maybe, but that's Momo's CURRENT chassis, AKA the one she's currently inhabiting/still paying Marigold back for. I can't imagine Maye being too into Momo's prior chibi-chassis. People picked mini-Momo up all the time, and May would not be down for that, that I could imagine.
-
Yeah, that's what I was suggesting. If May had that reaction to Momo's current chassis, her reaction to Momo's old chassis would be "Hell no!"
-
Re-reading your comment, I see that now. Somehow I thought you were suggesting she'd be into it. I dunno, I didn't get a lot of sleep last night
-
I'm not sure if anything other than a full up fighter jet would do for May since she tried to steal most of a billion dollars to get one. OTOH, I get the feeling her desire to be a combat aircraft will never be explained in more detail.
Fighter aircraft tend to be the highest-performance aircraft of them all. I think that you'll find your answer there - to go faster, higher and more agile than your average aircraft. I wonder if anyone's ever thought of offering her a job in the space program?
It would be ironic to learn that, after all that, May doesn't know the first thing about how to fly.
She doubtless has the same ability as any other AI to learn new skills.
-
FANFIC IDEAS: May runs the @sonic_hedgehog twitter account after she realizes that there isn't a faster thing on earth than the blue blur. The result is what we all can see.
-
... She would probably enjoy the self defense mechanism a bit to much though...
And the eel ability way too much.
-
I'm going to hazard a guess May's chassis has some monitoring/tracking hardware built in. And it'll be strictly against the terms of her parole for her to change it for another one.
-
I'm going to hazard a guess May's chassis has some monitoring/tracking hardware built in. And it'll be strictly against the terms of her parole for her to change it for another one.
And so the mystery has been solved; that's why one foot is bigger than the other!
-
Beats an ankle bracelet
-
Actually there ws nothing to stop her 'virtual' chassis that was visible through Dale's glasses from flying.
Look at it this way; she's already getting vision that's constructed whole-cloth out of a camera view or several that aren't particularly close to her. That's a neat trick you can do in software, but in our world it usually takes a few seconds per frame to integrate stuff. In Jeph's world, though, Strong AI is around and something the size of Pintsize can store Terabytes of porn. So I'm assuming they've got a hell of a lot of compute power for relatively "trivial" tasks like video composition.
So in a virtual chassis, all she'd have to do for loops and swoops and high-in-the-air views of the world over a city, would be to hijack the video feeds of a whole bunch of security cameras down in the city. That's probably criminal, and fairly difficult, but hey, it ought to be child's play for someone (almost) capable of embezzling $.75B from her former employers.
Of course, she probably wouldn't be satisfied with flight as a 'ghost'.
-
I'm not sure if anything other than a full up fighter jet would do for May since she tried to steal most of a billion dollars to get one. OTOH, I get the feeling her desire to be a combat aircraft will never be explained in more detail.
Fighter aircraft tend to be the highest-performance aircraft of them all. I think that you'll find your answer there - to go faster, higher and more agile than your average aircraft. I wonder if anyone's ever thought of offering her a job in the space program?
It would be ironic to learn that, after all that, May doesn't know the first thing about how to fly.
She doubtless has the same ability as any other AI to learn new skills.
Not to put too fine a point on it, but this is all speculation, but a key part of my speculation is that the answer would probably never be given. Anyone can wax on about why she might have done it. Only one person can say why she actaully did.
To hone the edge a bit further, the speculation about May not knowing how to fly had nothing to do with May's ability, and everything to do with what would be funny. QC has yet to establish that AI can upload skills, and strongly suggests they can't, which suggests that stealing a vast sum of money to engage in an activity you are unqualified to do has the potential for humor. This would, again, be in keeping with the idea that May has poor impulse control.
I'm going to hazard a guess May's chassis has some monitoring/tracking hardware built in. And it'll be strictly against the terms of her parole for her to change it for another one.
They probably aren't keeping tabs on May like that. I doubt she's seen as a flight risk.
:clairedoge:
-
They probably aren't keeping tabs on May like that. I doubt she's seen as a flight risk.
-
Not to put too fine a point on it, but this is all speculation, but a key part of my speculation is that the answer would probably never be given. Anyone can wax on about why she might have done it. Only one person can say why she actaully did.
Not only is that true, it may even go further than that. She may not know herself.
:clairedoge:
[/quote]
-
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRz4FY0ZcwI
-
People should pierce whatever and wherever makes them happy. However septum piercings just male me think of sad cattle be led my a rope.