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It's nothing except proof that you can get a sufficiently compulsive personality to buy anything

A 'funny' novelty motorised toy with lowbrow toilet humour

The QC universe's version of the Tesseract

A genie's trap; what would be Pintsize's three wishes anyway?

Something out of the factory's 'defective' bin

A device for summoning Spookybot

Corpse Witch's backup drive is hidden within; Bubbles last hope!

A Chekhov's Gun for a story with genetic engineering, a lost city on the moon and freaky glowing-eyed girls

It has an audio chip hidden in it: "My name is Charles Augustus and, if you are hearing this, I am dead."

Veronica knows what it does and I don't think Claire will ever be able to touch it again!

Other (Please specify in your comment)

[OldGoat]

Come on, people, we all know how Winslow's chassis will look like:

Makes comedic sense.  Mild mannered, humble Winslow ends up as Hunk Bot, sort of an AI Elliot.

[Thrillho]

The synthetics do have a network of relationships with each other, a rich and varied set.

And therein lies the raw material for Jeph to turn into strips for our amusement (and T-shirts and books and mugs for us to buy for his enrichment).

Moderator Comment

This isn't a debate. When we request to stop the shipping, please stop the shipping.

We are aware that the shipping rule may be a tad unclear and we are working on that, but when the line has been drawn it's pretty binary.

[OldGoat]

The synthetics do have a network of relationships with each other, a rich and varied set.

And therein lies the raw material for Jeph to turn into strips for our amusement (and T-shirts and books and mugs for us to buy for his enrichment).

This isn't a debate. When we request to stop the shipping, please stop the shipping.

We are aware that the shipping rule may be a tad unclear and we are working on that, but when the line has been drawn it's pretty binary.

Please expand upon how agreeing with Cold and expanding upon his comment be construed as "shipping," or even as debate.

(Yes, I'm pushing the boundaries.  Old bastards tend to to that when presented with arbitrary and capricious exercises of authority.)

[pwhodges]

Another old bastard (me) would point out that it's neither arbitrary nor capricious - and your saying that doesn't make it so; it's a line we've been doing our best to stand by consistently since December 2010 (see "Conduct in this Forum"), and it's been discussed at length several times over that period.

[OldGoat]

Another old bastard (me) would point out that it's neither arbitrary nor capricious - and your saying that doesn't make it so; it's a line we've been doing our best to stand by consistently since December 2010 (see "Conduct in this Forum"), and it's been discussed at length several times over that period.

Please describe how this exchange (with another moderator) constitutes "shipping":

The synthetics do have a network of relationships with each other, a rich and varied set.

And therein lies the raw material for Jeph to turn into strips for our amusement (and T-shirts and books and mugs for us to buy for his enrichment).

and how this

The synthetics do have a network of relationships with each other, a rich and varied set.

And therein lies the raw material for Jeph to turn into strips for our amusement (and T-shirts and books and mugs for us to buy for his enrichment).

This isn't a debate. When we request to stop the shipping, please stop the shipping.

We are aware that the shipping rule may be a tad unclear and we are working on that, but when the line has been drawn it's pretty binary.

is relevant.  That, Sir, is indeed arbitrary and capricious.  I will address this with you further in private.

[Kugai]

Just so long as he doesn't wind up looking like Data, I'm not  concerned

[DSL]

Ironic that an AI seeks a new housing in a brick-and-mortar (or at least a stick-and-drywall) shop, and not on chassis dot bod.

Of course, that would obviate try-before-you-buy and also a few story possibilities.

Who's got the popcorn? Trade you a can of Vernor's.

[DSL]

No, wait -- never mind ... Given a good enough connection, an AI could easily shop online for a new chassis.

All the AI has to do is upload him/herself into the new bod remotely and, if the bod is to the bot's liking, conclude the transaction and, as another sort of salesperson would say, "drive this baby home."

This also eliminates the need for

(click to show/hide)

SHIPPING

[Near Lurker]

Softboy just screams "Winslow."

[Method of Madness]

I've heard people use the term, and despite looking it up on urbandictionary, I'm still not sure what a "softboy" is.

Edit: Oh, ok, now I've just read a few articles about softboys and holy shit, I hate this fucking world.

[wlewisiii]

I hope this trend of the AI characters getting human-sized bodies doesn't lead to Pintsize getting one. Pintsize having opposable thumbs and a longer gait is, I'm pretty sure, the very thing prophesied to bring about Ragnarok.

Fenrir...  < shudders >

[Method of Madness]

Only if someone gives him espresso.

[cesium133]

I've heard people use the term, and despite looking it up on urbandictionary, I'm still not sure what a "softboy" is.

Edit: Oh, ok, now I've just read a few articles about softboys and holy shit, I hate this fucking world.

Could you give a summary so I don't have to wade through UrbanDictionary?

[shanejayell]

Is it wrong that I want one of the bodies to look JUST like Clinton? 

[Method of Madness]

I've heard people use the term, and despite looking it up on urbandictionary, I'm still not sure what a "softboy" is.

Edit: Oh, ok, now I've just read a few articles about softboys and holy shit, I hate this fucking world.

Could you give a summary so I don't have to wade through UrbanDictionary?

Urban dictionary wasn't helpful, it was basically just a weird combination of a "nice guy" and a fuckboy. I'm not really sure if that's helpful, because now that I think about it, I still don't know if I understand what a softboy is. It's just not a good thing to be, apparently.

[blt]

I've heard people use the term, and despite looking it up on urbandictionary, I'm still not sure what a "softboy" is.

Edit: Oh, ok, now I've just read a few articles about softboys and holy shit, I hate this fucking world.

Could you give a summary so I don't have to wade through UrbanDictionary?

Urban dictionary wasn't helpful, it was basically just a weird combination of a "nice guy" and a fuckboy. I'm not really sure if that's helpful, because now that I think about it, I still don't know if I understand what a softboy is. It's just not a good thing to be, apparently.

Jeph often refers to Elliot as a soft boy and as "the softest boy" (it was even on his shirt once I think) so I don't think I can be that bad.

[Mark7]

Am I seeing a subtle change in the art style in today's strip?

[shanejayell]

So basically a 'bottom.'

Huh.

[SmilingCat]

Ironic that an AI seeks a new housing in a brick-and-mortar (or at least a stick-and-drywall) shop, and not on chassis dot bod.

On the other hand, given the wacky antics he's seen other AIs get into, and knowing that AIs are involved deeply in the internet, maybe he's not sure it's safe to be buying a new body online.

He might end up with a chassis full of moray eels.

[War Sparrow]

So basically a 'bottom.'

Huh.

I think it might be a "friends with benefits" dude, only with feelings? Some deep research 5 seconds of Google is giving me a range between "Nice Guy" and "FWB who cuddles" and I cannot keep up with kids and their slang these days. But apparently, neither can kids these days, so..win?

In relation to the comic, I hope he goes for the Deluxe Regular Boy Custom Limited, because it sounds like a race car.

[MrNumbers]

Winslow would do excellently in a Soft Boy McElroy

[MrNumbers]

I've heard people use the term, and despite looking it up on urbandictionary, I'm still not sure what a "softboy" is.

Edit: Oh, ok, now I've just read a few articles about softboys and holy shit, I hate this fucking world.

Could you give a summary so I don't have to wade through UrbanDictionary?

Urban dictionary wasn't helpful, it was basically just a weird combination of a "nice guy" and a fuckboy. I'm not really sure if that's helpful, because now that I think about it, I still don't know if I understand what a softboy is. It's just not a good thing to be, apparently.

Sorry for the double post:
Soft boy, and that model in particular, is a reference to Griffin McElroy who does the My Brother My Brother and Me podcast and now TV show, Rose Buddies podcast, and a ton of shows on Polygon.com including such series as Car Boys. Jeph references him a lot recently.



The "soft boy" in question.

It's legitimately an homage to him, and Griffin uses it as a flattering term for a genuinely nice, gentle, positive person.

[comicalArchitect]

I'm seriously so excited to see human Winslow. My guess is that they'll continue on Momo's trend by having his chassis look somewhat young; it would be weird to see an adult with Winslow's personality.

[Perfectly Reasonable]

This is a science fictional universe. AIs can develop relationships that make sense to them, but have no resemblance to human ones. (Ok Jeph, there's your challenge.)

Petite purple-haired sales rep looks like she's wearing a chassis similar to Momo's.
Looks like we don't get to see Charlotte today. Dang.

[QuestionableIntentions]

What would really be interesting of course would be chassis that change personality or intelligence a la Eclipse Phase

[St.Clair]

Shout out to Eustace "the Boy" Boyce, recently returned to the living world.

[brasca]

Is it wrong that I want one of the bodies to look JUST like Clinton? 

No more than me wanting one of the chassis to resemble Ardent which come to think of it would be an ideal fit.  Ardent is a boy although the pants wearing promise Winslow made could be a bit murky since the Ardent model's default is red boxer briefs. 

[Truec]

Needs more military surplus chassis.

[BenRG]

Today, Hannelore learns something important: There are no such things as 'regular' body forms. 'Average' and 'normal' are very much subjective definitions; in the end, every body form has its own unique touches. This is a concept that Hannelore should have learned from the near-infinite permutations of coffee but I can understand why she might never have thought that applied to bodies!

It's interesting that there seems to be so much interest in humanoid bodies that it has driven such a large market of options. Maybe we're looking at a major development in AI culture: A large proportion of them want to move away from being 'brains in appliances' and become 'regular people' which, for a variety of social reasons, they associate with being in a humanoid chassis.

FWIW, I'm expecting Winslow to ultimately choose the 'Arthur Dent', an unremarkable (other than by being tall) and plain-looking male form chassis whose default expression is 'mildly confused'. No significant special features to speak of; something tells me that Winslow isn't the sort of guys who is interested in a 'tricked out ride' with all of the potential problems that brings in terms of reliability.

[badbum61]

The Soft Boy needs to look more like this:

[HiFranc]

What went into choosing which model got the solar charger?  Why not all?

These chassis options are way more specialized than what Momo chose from to get her current one. I wonder if this is a different shop, or if the market has simply changed that much in the intervening years however long it's been in-universe.

Sounds more like a set of stereotypes based on a marketing/polling company options.

[nicodb]

So, the winslow is trying for something new now after ages of being fluffy? http://www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20170802#.WYQ1zojyiUk

[JoeCovenant]

I just realised...

He's going to end up as...

"The Winslow Boy!"

(Oh come on! I'm not the ONLY auld git in here!!)

[pwhodges]

Global Moderator Comment

We have no in-comic reason to be shipping the robots at present. Winslow wants another body, end of. Not everything is about sex or its precursor relationships.

I should clarify that this was a reinforcement of IICIH's preceding comment as a general principle.  It was not intended to be a criticism of OldGoat's immediately preceding post, which is fine.  I apologise for not making that clearer.  Of course not all relationships lead to sex, nor should we too easily assume that.

[JimC]

(Yes, I'm pushing the boundaries.  Old bastards tend to to that when presented with arbitrary and capricious exercises of authority.)

Wouldn't it be better manners to step back from the boundaries? I know people like to argue that if you don't like continual shipping or whatever you shouldn't participate in the forums, but there are plenty of places where participants can ship to their hearts content, and this is clearly labelled as a place where folks who object to it won't have to see it. Its hard to think of any rules that are not arbitrary and capricious at the boundary if you examine the boundary point closely enough.

Personally I've found the recent outbreak of shipping rather irritating, and its made me consider participation. Can it not be argued that if for those who don't like the rules here there are any number of places they might go, but for those who do like the rules then there are no other places where they exist? And if so, if I seek to bend or break the rules at every opportunity, am I guilty of failing to act with reasonable consideration for other people?

[St.Clair]

We have no in-comic reason to be shipping the robots at present.  Winslow wants another body, end of.  Not everything is about sex or its precursor relationships.

I should clarify that this was a reinforcement of IICIH's preceding comment as a general principle.  It was not intended to be a criticism of OldGoat's immediately preceding post, which is fine.  I apologise for not making that clearer.  Of course not all relationships lead to sex, nor should we too easily assume that.

(emphasis added)

I would love to see fandom assume that a hell of a lot less, but it seems inevitable.
(The assumption that banging is inevitable, I mean. )
As a result, I actually find it rather tiresome.
(Also a bit depressing, that so many people's main or sole interest in a given work seems to be "so when are they gonna ****?")

[JimC]

(Also a bit depressing, that so many people's main or sole interest in a given work seems to be "so when are they gonna ****?")

Even more depressing if you are the author I suspect.

As I grow older and older,
And totter toward the tomb,
I find that I care less and less,
Who goes to bed with whom.

[Cornelius]

However, honestly, I can't see Momo and Winslow wanting to leave their humans unless there was some extreme social pressure to do so. Given this and given that I'm not sure Pintsize and May are sufficiently organised to be able to have their own household, it's more likely that Jeph will find some other solution (possibly a move to a bigger house for Marten & Co.).

As for that, if I remember correctly, Hanners once mentioned that it was her dream for all of them to be living together in one manor, with her as the elusive shut-in in the east wing. Which, considering her family and the disposable income that goes with it, is not as impractical as it seems.

Now, whether all characters involved would be interested in giving up their own space and freedom, that is a different question.

Interesting factoid of the day, concerning the suggestion of a Mr. Proper chassis for Winslow: the inventor of Mr. Proper later joined a monastery, and became the abbot.

[SmilingCat]

What went into choosing which model got the solar charger?  Why not all?

Honestly, I suspect solar power generation would be insufficient for an anthroPC's needs. Thus a solar charger would be more of an expensive gimmick than something that would be standard on all models. 

Also, it fits the gag.

[Ztyx]

I don't know of anywhere where the timeline has been established, and I suspect it runs more on Comic Book Time.

Also, Bubbles wasn't born as a combat unit. She was a volunteer that wanted to serve, suggesting that she had a life before that, and presumably a different chassis.

The timeline was last updated in November of 2015.

You make a good point, that Bubbles could have had formative experiences before receiving a humanoid body.  But it also sounds like she has had that body for quite some time, in-strip.  And it is a very convincing human-looking body aside from the coloration and being a muscular giant, both of which were intentional and I assume not the only type being made.  Yeah, continuity kind of suffers there.

On the other hand, since she was part of a military test project to see how AnthroPC would do in the military, it's not very unlikely that they also kept modding or changing out her chassis during the entire time, both as technology evolved and as things came up through testing.

"Bigger body is more imposing, can carry more, and is still no more suspectible to being hit since an arm wound doesn't take out the entire soldier as on a human" - new chassis that is as big as transport vehicles can handle.
"Integral armor gets more expensive or time-consuming to fix, and can be occasionally too bulky" - rebuild, more motile torso and external armor plates
"Some fellow troopers have mentioned trust issues or cooperation problems because harder to read AnthroPC" - new cutting edge head with more emotive ability.

Etc. The point being that just because she probably did at least one year in service, she doesn't have to have started out looking like she did when mustering out.

[Cornelius]

Also note that she claims that her program ran parallel to the one that developed Pintsize's current chassis.

[flondrix]

So I wonder if Momo and Winslow and Jeremy - and the increasing number of background humanoid chassis - are occurring in the context of an AI social movement towards anthrocization?

Jeremy and Seven may have two arms, two legs, and an upright torso, but they are unmistakably proudly Robot.  No face, no attempt at "passing".  In some ways Pintsize is more "humanoid" that they are.

[Method of Madness]

MrNumbers, thanks! Griffin McElroy is amazing and I need to watch/listen to more of his stuff. Glad to know this is the reference.

[Magniras]

So I wonder if Momo and Winslow and Jeremy - and the increasing number of background humanoid chassis - are occurring in the context of an AI social movement towards anthrocization?

Jeremy and Seven may have two arms, two legs, and an upright torso, but they are unmistakably proudly Robot.  No face, no attempt at "passing".  In some ways Pintsize is more "humanoid" that they are.

I dont think chassis choice has anything to do with passing as human, given the skin color choices that AI have, but more to do with pre/post-singularity purpose. Jeremy and Seven are both industrial AI, and their new chassi reflect that. Pintsize probably is more human than the two of them will ever be becuase pre-singularity, he was designed to be as human as possible. Same with Momo, Winslow, and Bubbles.  May is an outlier, because she didnt get a choice in her chassis, but I'm willing to bet that she'd have something totally inhuman, like a satellite or a drone.

[USS Martenclaire]

The second chassis is actually part of a package deal. It comes with three other male chassis that yell out "BROS, BROS, BROS!" at applicable moments.

[Cornelius]

I dont think chassis choice has anything to do with passing as human, given the skin color choices that AI have, but more to do with pre/post-singularity purpose. Jeremy and Seven are both industrial AI, and their new chassi reflect that. Pintsize probably is more human than the two of them will ever be becuase pre-singularity, he was designed to be as human as possible. Same with Momo, Winslow, and Bubbles.  May is an outlier, because she didnt get a choice in her chassis, but I'm willing to bet that she'd have something totally inhuman, like a satellite or a drone.

I quite agree; after all, Pintsize is still, despite everything, a companion AI.

As for May, she's made it quite clear she wanted to be a fighter jet.

[JimC]

Whats the betting that the sales lass has picked Hannelore either as who she is or at very least being a high value customer and is starting with the top of the range models? I imagine, for example Hanners has no need to stick to the budget brands of clothing and is identifisble as having significant resources even before she gets out her unobtanium American express card..

Its an argument, BTW, against Ellicot-Chatham being much involved with chassis manufacture, since if they were wouldnt the two of them be looking at whats new and superior in next months model range rather than going to the local retail.

Cant help thinking Winslow might be better of with generic androgynous chassis with accessories for gender identity. Its just struck me that Winslow's "I think Im a boy" has two entirely different meanings - in Brit English anyway - depending on intonation.

[Case]

Not everything is about sex or its precursor relationships.

[imWACCo]

What is "boyces"?

[flondrix]

Whats the betting that the sales lass has picked Hannelore either as who she is or at very least being a high value customer and is starting with the top of the range models? I imagine, for example Hanners has no need to stick to the budget brands of clothing and is identifisble as having significant resources even before she gets out her unobtanium American express card..

I doubt that Hanners buys top-of-the-line, just-out-of-Paris clothing.  That's not who she is.  I suspect that her clothing is selected for antimicrobial properties, or ability to be machine washed in scalding hot water.  Would she even be aware of what is fashionable this week?

On the other hand, I suspect that every AI recognizes Hannelore Ellicott-Chatham on sight.

Cant help thinking Winslow might be better of with generic androgynous chassis with accessories for gender identity. Its just struck me that Winslow's "I think Im a boy" has two entirely different meanings - in Brit English anyway - depending on intonation.

He has been without visibly recognizable gender for some time.  I interpret his statement as meaning that he wants to be recognized and treated as male for a change.  And if it turns out he doesn't like it, Union Robotics is just a couple blocks away.