Post by Maxine on Feb 26, 2020 7:45:45 GMT -8
”---at? Did that work? Let me check the inputs again… hm?”
<Greetings, New User! This is your new OS-adaptive Artificial Intelligence software; UN-02! Before I can fully boot, I require some basic information! Can you go through a few questions with me?>
”Ah… that’s not quite what I was expecting…”
<Sorry! I can only register ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answers while in boot-up mode! Please try again, or maybe change your language setting.>
”Hm. Maybe there’s a way to reboot with a previous backup after it’s set up…”
<Sorry! I can only register ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answers while in boot-up mode! Please try again, or maybe change your language setting.>
Admittedly, kneeling on the floor of her apartment with a laptop on her lap wasn’t how Maxine had been planning to spend tonight; but she definitely couldn’t pass up this opportunity. She’d shelled out a lot of zeni to have that server decrypted, and she’d finally hit the jackpot – Doctor Unid’s OS AI assistant, her predecessor; and the only one of his creations that had been consistently updated… well, as far as she was aware. After her latest mess of a job she’d spent a lot on getting herself put back together, and then she’d found out she had to pay extra to get the decrypted files recompiled afterwards… and, if that wasn’t enough, they only got delivered in the middle of the night!
N-Not that it would bother an android, but… such poor customer service. And she kind of wanted to finish the campaign in Ribbon Renegade II: Special Ops tonight… but instead, she was sitting in her pajamas (a shirt and boxers; she was a professional, you know!) trying to talk to a programming shell’s text boxes over a gaming headset of all things. She couldn’t waste time for too much longer… she had to be at a risky meeting tomorrow morning for a client, and she needed time to recharge sometime tonight as well. At least an hour. Ah, Infinite Energy models had it so easy…
”…Alright. Uh, y-yes.”
<Understood! Firstly – this year is 1057, correct?>
”…incorrect. It’s been some time. The year is 1154.”
<Understood! Date updated. Secondly – would you like a basic installation, or a custom installation; in which you can choose the features to install or the directory you’d like to use?”
”Basic. Express, even. As much as you like.”
Geez. Honestly. Even she wasn’t this old.
<Understood! I’ll handle the installation while we finalise your preferences. Thirdly – can you say your voice passcode so I can have administrator access?>
”U-Ugh… ahem. This laptop’s passcode is, ‘With my mind on my money and my money on my mind’…”
<Ahaha, you haven’t changed a bit, Eleven! Nice to see you again! This new microphone is very good for a built-in one, too. It’s not exactly the Doctor’s tech, but…>
If a command-line interface could look smug, then Maxine was pretty sure this was a good summation of it – she’d dealt with odd AI before, but not one that pranked her. Not to mention… while she was well aware of UN-02, she’d never actually ‘met’ it, so to speak. As 02 was the Doctor’s AI assistant for so long, it was probably aware of her, but… she couldn’t imagine that it’d know her this well.
<You’re as messy as ever, too. You’ve left all your diagnostic backups lying around again! I thought this would be a burner computer, at least… sheesh! And you haven’t defragged at all! You’re supposed to be a professional, Eleven! Honestly…>
”Hush! I’m assuming you’re aware of me through the Doctor’s data… or, perhaps another model was made based on me? You’re the last backup I could find, so… I imagine there’s quite a lot I have to learn.”
A pause. It was strange to think of an AI needing time to think; but admittedly Maxine’s laptop was not the mightiest machine around. There was a reason she didn’t usually dock with it – it really didn’t help. While she had a lot of questions on her mind, her politeness won out over her curiosity, as always; and so she changed her tact –
”Well, I suppose I should give a proper introduction instead. It is the year 1154, so it has been… some time since you were last used. I am unaware as to the state of Doctor Unid, or any of his other creations besides yourself, and myself. It seems you know me as UN-11, but since my activation in 1123 I have become known as Maxine during my work for the Pig Demon Duchies. I don’t mind either name, but… it’ll probably make my records easier to understand.”
Another pause, though this one was punctuated by plenty of commands going through the barebones shell – seemed like Two was getting busy.
<Understood! It’s to be expected, really. The Doctor seemed like he was under a lot of pressure in my last logs. So, MaXIne – minus points for the lack of creativity, but it suits you – why did you bother hunting down an old R&D AI? You’re all business, aren’t you? I’m surprised you haven’t been terminated yet, at your age. The Doctor would have definitely had you refitted by now. If that were possible.>
”That is… correct, I am out of date. But I have a debt to pay before I consider any plans of my own. That’s all.”
What a dreadful excuse.
<Even for an AI, you really haven’t changed. Duchess Rhyme didn’t rub off on you at all after all! The Doctor would have been relieved to hear that. Buuut, you didn’t answer my question~!>
Now it was Maxine’s turn to pause. The Duchess? The wife of the demon that commissioned her; Duke Blue… and who had passed away just before the android had been activated. She’d heard a lot about her. Her first memories were of helping prepare for her funeral. It was a strange thought; to learn so much about someone in that way. It had been a good learning experience; about both the family and herself; but it had left her with a similar hole in her heart to the rest of the Duke’s family. Even though she’d never met the Duchess, it had still felt like she, too, had lost someone.
Like waking up from a bad dream… what a joke.
She was just a machine.
”…I don’t have a precise answer to your question. You can blame that emotion simulation suite; most do. I’ll keep the explanation simple, though: I was decommissioned by my original owners, but found other employment within the duchies. I’ve become independent, at least in terms of my duties. While I’m well and truly an old model by now, I still wish to continue serving the demon duchies in return for their goodwill towards me; and so I sought out ways to increase my potential instead of just being replaced.”
Not the most honest answer, nor the most rational; but it was still an appropriate answer. She got the feeling mentioning her debt right now wouldn’t be constructive; and the less said about her own innermost thoughts on her future, the better. She didn’t believe in anything as noble as carrying on a wish or carrying out revenge.
”And that led me to this. I don’t think I could ever follow my successors, or find my predecessors; so the Doctor’s assistant AI that he kept updated for so long would be the best option if I wanted to learn more about my inner workings. I have a lot of his records and data, but it’s too thoroughly encrypted for me. I’m hoping you might have some answers to that.”
<Your ‘inner workings’, huh? You’re as strange as ever. I don’t think you’d want to meet your successors, either! But, that said, I’m sure I can unlock some of their schematics – Doctor Unid was also keen on improving his past works with each model, so they’ll definitely be able to help you improve. But – I have to ask – you’re just a butler, right? A consumer model?>
More questions from a programming shell. Not that Maxine had any distaste for working with particularly different AI, but this was a bit strange. She never thought she’d say it, but… she preferred working with people. Maybe she could convince Two to make a GUI or something… even just a face would help in figuring out what she really meant.
”Indeed. From what I understand, the Doctor moved onto more complex concepts than a butler. Even my emotional suite was based on projects from well before his time, so I’m well aware that I am – simple. But, I have been told that my work is consistently satisfactory. I believe as far as a consumer model goes, I have performed well.”
<A consumer model, huh. Well, at least you’re putting that emotion suite to good use. I suppose I’m in your care, regardless! Based on your backed up hardware logs, I can see you’ve been finding plenty of trouble lately… and that suits me just fine! I’m better operating on private military hardware than being cooped up on an OS. You’d better let me have fun later, okaaay~?>
Maxine was not ready for her creator’s assistant AI to describe using military hardware as ‘fun’, nor for it to use a tilde.
”That’s… a-ah, good to know, I suppose. I can’t say I enjoy fighting, but… the demon duchies tend to find a lot of enemies.” began the lady, pausing as she came to terms with hearing banter from the Doctor’s key relic – but, honestly, a chatty AI was easier for her than a logical one. ”Still, while I can’t promise a better shell than that laptop for now, I intend to prepare a docking or auxiliary unit for your software; so you can support me properly. I imagine my hardware will be better for you than any computer I could afford anyway. And… your earlier copy’s summary by the Doctor made it sound very promising.”
And, the company would be nice.
Once again, the command line paused unexpectedly – did an AI like this need time to think? Or, more likely, time to sift through Maxine’s files again? It was a good thing she played her games on console nowadays…
<To be honest, I only ever got to test those features, and with a much newer model, so… it’ll probably be sometime before I can figure out the right calibrations to suit your capabilities; so that should be fine. It’ll keep us both busy until then! Of course, I’ll help you out as an OS assistant until then, too~ I’m a top-notch AI! Err, for fifty years ago, anyway.>
Somehow, seeing that coming from row of coloured letters on a plain black command prompt did not fill Maxine with confidence. But, she didn’t have many other options – especially with that debt hanging over her head thanks to all this work. And… she couldn’t talk on that front, that was for sure. ”I’m a top-notch android for a hundred years ago, but people still appreciate my work, so I have faith in you, too. As I said, my aim is to find my potential… no doubt we’ll find yours, too.”
<Un~der~stood~! I’ll get to work on checking out those servers for you, too; if you don’t mind plugging them in later! For now, though… your backups are a mess! I’m going to put this rubbish in order, lest you manage to mix up your own BIOS! Unbelievable… to think the Doctor’s designed a slacker!>
With a quite deliberate flick, Maxine shut off her headset’s microphone – she needed a recharge, not to be lectured by a command prompt! So much for getting some game time in… but, progress was progress. It was a big step, all things considered. But, she wasn’t quite sure what she thought of Two just yet… did the Doctor intend it to be this way? Or did it have its own emotional suite?
Regardless, right now she just wanted to shut down. Her bedroom was plain, almost empty, unsurprisingly. Her apartment’s living room was a little more neat, looking like a display home – it got used for meetings on occasion, so it was good to have a professional look. Her bedroom, on the other hand, had no use for such furniture… though, it’d gradually accumulated some souvenirs and gifts from her clients. Nothing special, and nothing big, but… she couldn’t throw away such thanks.
While a bed would be comfortable to her, she was a Drain-type and wasn’t a cyborg; so she needed a charging station of some kind instead. A plug would be enough, really, but she used a charging pad. She’d had clients complain that it looked like she was resting on an operating table; but if she was offline resting on steel didn’t bother her. It was like a gunmetal futon… personally, she thought it was rather elegant.
Shutting down merely took a motion; it wasn’t an effort like sleeping was for other races – but, she hesitated.
”Next time, I’ll have to ask… just who was the Doctor, anyway…?”
[2186]
<Greetings, New User! This is your new OS-adaptive Artificial Intelligence software; UN-02! Before I can fully boot, I require some basic information! Can you go through a few questions with me?>
”Ah… that’s not quite what I was expecting…”
<Sorry! I can only register ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answers while in boot-up mode! Please try again, or maybe change your language setting.>
”Hm. Maybe there’s a way to reboot with a previous backup after it’s set up…”
<Sorry! I can only register ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answers while in boot-up mode! Please try again, or maybe change your language setting.>
Admittedly, kneeling on the floor of her apartment with a laptop on her lap wasn’t how Maxine had been planning to spend tonight; but she definitely couldn’t pass up this opportunity. She’d shelled out a lot of zeni to have that server decrypted, and she’d finally hit the jackpot – Doctor Unid’s OS AI assistant, her predecessor; and the only one of his creations that had been consistently updated… well, as far as she was aware. After her latest mess of a job she’d spent a lot on getting herself put back together, and then she’d found out she had to pay extra to get the decrypted files recompiled afterwards… and, if that wasn’t enough, they only got delivered in the middle of the night!
N-Not that it would bother an android, but… such poor customer service. And she kind of wanted to finish the campaign in Ribbon Renegade II: Special Ops tonight… but instead, she was sitting in her pajamas (a shirt and boxers; she was a professional, you know!) trying to talk to a programming shell’s text boxes over a gaming headset of all things. She couldn’t waste time for too much longer… she had to be at a risky meeting tomorrow morning for a client, and she needed time to recharge sometime tonight as well. At least an hour. Ah, Infinite Energy models had it so easy…
”…Alright. Uh, y-yes.”
<Understood! Firstly – this year is 1057, correct?>
”…incorrect. It’s been some time. The year is 1154.”
<Understood! Date updated. Secondly – would you like a basic installation, or a custom installation; in which you can choose the features to install or the directory you’d like to use?”
”Basic. Express, even. As much as you like.”
Geez. Honestly. Even she wasn’t this old.
<Understood! I’ll handle the installation while we finalise your preferences. Thirdly – can you say your voice passcode so I can have administrator access?>
”U-Ugh… ahem. This laptop’s passcode is, ‘With my mind on my money and my money on my mind’…”
<Ahaha, you haven’t changed a bit, Eleven! Nice to see you again! This new microphone is very good for a built-in one, too. It’s not exactly the Doctor’s tech, but…>
If a command-line interface could look smug, then Maxine was pretty sure this was a good summation of it – she’d dealt with odd AI before, but not one that pranked her. Not to mention… while she was well aware of UN-02, she’d never actually ‘met’ it, so to speak. As 02 was the Doctor’s AI assistant for so long, it was probably aware of her, but… she couldn’t imagine that it’d know her this well.
<You’re as messy as ever, too. You’ve left all your diagnostic backups lying around again! I thought this would be a burner computer, at least… sheesh! And you haven’t defragged at all! You’re supposed to be a professional, Eleven! Honestly…>
”Hush! I’m assuming you’re aware of me through the Doctor’s data… or, perhaps another model was made based on me? You’re the last backup I could find, so… I imagine there’s quite a lot I have to learn.”
A pause. It was strange to think of an AI needing time to think; but admittedly Maxine’s laptop was not the mightiest machine around. There was a reason she didn’t usually dock with it – it really didn’t help. While she had a lot of questions on her mind, her politeness won out over her curiosity, as always; and so she changed her tact –
”Well, I suppose I should give a proper introduction instead. It is the year 1154, so it has been… some time since you were last used. I am unaware as to the state of Doctor Unid, or any of his other creations besides yourself, and myself. It seems you know me as UN-11, but since my activation in 1123 I have become known as Maxine during my work for the Pig Demon Duchies. I don’t mind either name, but… it’ll probably make my records easier to understand.”
Another pause, though this one was punctuated by plenty of commands going through the barebones shell – seemed like Two was getting busy.
<Understood! It’s to be expected, really. The Doctor seemed like he was under a lot of pressure in my last logs. So, MaXIne – minus points for the lack of creativity, but it suits you – why did you bother hunting down an old R&D AI? You’re all business, aren’t you? I’m surprised you haven’t been terminated yet, at your age. The Doctor would have definitely had you refitted by now. If that were possible.>
”That is… correct, I am out of date. But I have a debt to pay before I consider any plans of my own. That’s all.”
What a dreadful excuse.
<Even for an AI, you really haven’t changed. Duchess Rhyme didn’t rub off on you at all after all! The Doctor would have been relieved to hear that. Buuut, you didn’t answer my question~!>
Now it was Maxine’s turn to pause. The Duchess? The wife of the demon that commissioned her; Duke Blue… and who had passed away just before the android had been activated. She’d heard a lot about her. Her first memories were of helping prepare for her funeral. It was a strange thought; to learn so much about someone in that way. It had been a good learning experience; about both the family and herself; but it had left her with a similar hole in her heart to the rest of the Duke’s family. Even though she’d never met the Duchess, it had still felt like she, too, had lost someone.
Like waking up from a bad dream… what a joke.
She was just a machine.
”…I don’t have a precise answer to your question. You can blame that emotion simulation suite; most do. I’ll keep the explanation simple, though: I was decommissioned by my original owners, but found other employment within the duchies. I’ve become independent, at least in terms of my duties. While I’m well and truly an old model by now, I still wish to continue serving the demon duchies in return for their goodwill towards me; and so I sought out ways to increase my potential instead of just being replaced.”
Not the most honest answer, nor the most rational; but it was still an appropriate answer. She got the feeling mentioning her debt right now wouldn’t be constructive; and the less said about her own innermost thoughts on her future, the better. She didn’t believe in anything as noble as carrying on a wish or carrying out revenge.
”And that led me to this. I don’t think I could ever follow my successors, or find my predecessors; so the Doctor’s assistant AI that he kept updated for so long would be the best option if I wanted to learn more about my inner workings. I have a lot of his records and data, but it’s too thoroughly encrypted for me. I’m hoping you might have some answers to that.”
<Your ‘inner workings’, huh? You’re as strange as ever. I don’t think you’d want to meet your successors, either! But, that said, I’m sure I can unlock some of their schematics – Doctor Unid was also keen on improving his past works with each model, so they’ll definitely be able to help you improve. But – I have to ask – you’re just a butler, right? A consumer model?>
More questions from a programming shell. Not that Maxine had any distaste for working with particularly different AI, but this was a bit strange. She never thought she’d say it, but… she preferred working with people. Maybe she could convince Two to make a GUI or something… even just a face would help in figuring out what she really meant.
”Indeed. From what I understand, the Doctor moved onto more complex concepts than a butler. Even my emotional suite was based on projects from well before his time, so I’m well aware that I am – simple. But, I have been told that my work is consistently satisfactory. I believe as far as a consumer model goes, I have performed well.”
<A consumer model, huh. Well, at least you’re putting that emotion suite to good use. I suppose I’m in your care, regardless! Based on your backed up hardware logs, I can see you’ve been finding plenty of trouble lately… and that suits me just fine! I’m better operating on private military hardware than being cooped up on an OS. You’d better let me have fun later, okaaay~?>
Maxine was not ready for her creator’s assistant AI to describe using military hardware as ‘fun’, nor for it to use a tilde.
”That’s… a-ah, good to know, I suppose. I can’t say I enjoy fighting, but… the demon duchies tend to find a lot of enemies.” began the lady, pausing as she came to terms with hearing banter from the Doctor’s key relic – but, honestly, a chatty AI was easier for her than a logical one. ”Still, while I can’t promise a better shell than that laptop for now, I intend to prepare a docking or auxiliary unit for your software; so you can support me properly. I imagine my hardware will be better for you than any computer I could afford anyway. And… your earlier copy’s summary by the Doctor made it sound very promising.”
And, the company would be nice.
Once again, the command line paused unexpectedly – did an AI like this need time to think? Or, more likely, time to sift through Maxine’s files again? It was a good thing she played her games on console nowadays…
<To be honest, I only ever got to test those features, and with a much newer model, so… it’ll probably be sometime before I can figure out the right calibrations to suit your capabilities; so that should be fine. It’ll keep us both busy until then! Of course, I’ll help you out as an OS assistant until then, too~ I’m a top-notch AI! Err, for fifty years ago, anyway.>
Somehow, seeing that coming from row of coloured letters on a plain black command prompt did not fill Maxine with confidence. But, she didn’t have many other options – especially with that debt hanging over her head thanks to all this work. And… she couldn’t talk on that front, that was for sure. ”I’m a top-notch android for a hundred years ago, but people still appreciate my work, so I have faith in you, too. As I said, my aim is to find my potential… no doubt we’ll find yours, too.”
<Un~der~stood~! I’ll get to work on checking out those servers for you, too; if you don’t mind plugging them in later! For now, though… your backups are a mess! I’m going to put this rubbish in order, lest you manage to mix up your own BIOS! Unbelievable… to think the Doctor’s designed a slacker!>
With a quite deliberate flick, Maxine shut off her headset’s microphone – she needed a recharge, not to be lectured by a command prompt! So much for getting some game time in… but, progress was progress. It was a big step, all things considered. But, she wasn’t quite sure what she thought of Two just yet… did the Doctor intend it to be this way? Or did it have its own emotional suite?
Regardless, right now she just wanted to shut down. Her bedroom was plain, almost empty, unsurprisingly. Her apartment’s living room was a little more neat, looking like a display home – it got used for meetings on occasion, so it was good to have a professional look. Her bedroom, on the other hand, had no use for such furniture… though, it’d gradually accumulated some souvenirs and gifts from her clients. Nothing special, and nothing big, but… she couldn’t throw away such thanks.
While a bed would be comfortable to her, she was a Drain-type and wasn’t a cyborg; so she needed a charging station of some kind instead. A plug would be enough, really, but she used a charging pad. She’d had clients complain that it looked like she was resting on an operating table; but if she was offline resting on steel didn’t bother her. It was like a gunmetal futon… personally, she thought it was rather elegant.
Shutting down merely took a motion; it wasn’t an effort like sleeping was for other races – but, she hesitated.
”Next time, I’ll have to ask… just who was the Doctor, anyway…?”
[2186]