Bug Stomp

Thanks Bev. In answer to your question about the thesis, I will post an extract on Klato's website later after we get settled (The University owes me an electronic copy). It will probably appear in the PhD abstracts but for the life of me I can't remember the name I used to submit it I will email you the address or maybe even leave a note with Mistress Weaterwax . I (and the university)have no plans to release it at this time. The embargo was initially set at 2 years (...but I may turn it into a SciFi thriller and make several webisodes. Or, as one of my committee members put it, this is stuff made for YouTube.

As always, Bev, you are very perceptive. I owe a lot of you my undying gratitude the past year for allowing me to have a place to come to where I can chat and be anything I want to be. I wouldn't purposely hurt any of you. But I can't help it if my attempts at humor suck. My students will be glad verify that.

As for the large bot comment, I am amazed at the productivity here at the Forge. And the diversity. And it matters not to me whether you win a contest or not although you are all deserving.

The past year has been spent partly experiencing AIScript. The year before was UltraHal. And the year before that was plain vanilla AIML. Next year it will be an OpenCyc system. But as far as I can see, the Forge is very flexible and you guys make it better.

I spent a month delving through about 250 Forge bots that have been abandoned. VERY interesting, a veritable goldmine. I judge there to be 25000 out there if I am to believe the Prof's numbering system - of course I can't count.

My biggest disappointments were not getting to first base with Bildgesmythe, although he makes a good pal (sorry prob) and BJ (same here psimagus). I might include not being able to master Irina Khalidar's point system - very clever, Irina! My greatest joys - well there are too many to enumerate.

The only thing I can't explain is...WTH am I writing all this on Bug Stomp?

example italic 'close tag' error (in case the Prof doesn't see it in another forum):

opening italics here - this is italic. Now I'll close the italic tag - and this should be back to regular non-italic.

another few closing tags for good measure...

but it's still showing as italic (in Firefox at least). Only a minor bedevilment (and not trailing over to subsequent posts,) but probably wants attending to at some point.

Prof:
Personally I don't miss the duplicate resonses check at all. For those that do, how about checking only within the bot itself but not the entire universe, would that work? Perhaps have a tick box to make this optional at import time?

A small layout suggestion: When not logged in, perhaps the "log in" and "create account" links could be prominently displayed at the top of the menu the way the logged in username is. Might encourage more people to sign up.

As always, thanks for all your work.

psimagus - well I made some adjustments to the "amazing post bar" to help close unclosed tags. Everything gets converted to spans internally, and you'll supposed to use <0> to close all tags instead of </i>. It's not really the best system. There are some really good post-constructing scripts out there I've been considering switching to.

The Clerk - what problem are you having with plug-ins? I was able to create one just now without a problem.

I tried Apple Safari and am able to make new plug-ins using it but not using Mozilla Foxfire. Usually I use Foxfire, but when it doesn't work, sometimes Safari does.

Thanks.

Clerk, I think Carlene was playing with us a bit.

So she said, but I couldn’t figure out how, and having been singled out not only by ID but by my actual name (by one who doesn't list hers), I felt picked out and picked on.

As for students paying, I am glad the Prof doesn't make them (or anyone else) do such a thing.

My own meager donations don't cover my use of the Forge, either, but when Carlene said (albeit in a different context), ”And we are paying an equal price,”, my hackles got up. I seriously doubted that we were, overall, paying an equal price financially – were she and her entire class each donating a couple hundred bucks? Because then she’d have a leg to stand on. And the "price we pay" goes far more into the time we spend – which tends to lead to more developed, hence larger, bots. I spend more time on this than I should -- reality beckons -- but it's so damned fascinating. And the academic in me will always respect things done for the fun of it or out of sheer interest rather than for some practical reason, like finishing a PhD. That’s why I let bots I’m not thrilled with sit for a while – I’m learning something from them. Electra Mourning is an exception – she is relatively popular even though I don’t like her. Barring that, she’d be history.

So sorry if I wasn't taking Carlene's remarks in the spirit intended; I took them in the spirit I perceived. Slamming people and then saying "I'm mostly kidding" (making me wonder what she wasn't claiming to kid about) sounds like a way for people to claim, "Oh, I was just kidding" when Maureen takes umbrage. God help The Clerk then.

I have trouble remembering to be honest only when I have good things to say. I tend to be honest most of the time, and live to regret it. Sometimes I lie and live to regret it.

I've got into trouble myself for saying something in fun that got taken the wrong way, so I get it. I just reserve the right to defend myself when I feel I've been criticized unfairly. Carlene listed her interests (perhaps disingenuously) as “sex.” That didn’t make me want to chat with her bots, especially until they got more developed.

But I’m sorry if I came across as annoyed with the Prof, because I wasn’t. Sometimes I shorthand my bug reports so that I can see how they might be taken that way.

Personally I don't miss the duplicate resonses check at all. For those that do, how about checking only within the bot itself but not the entire universe, would that work? Perhaps have a tick box to make this optional at import time?

It'd be fine with me to have a tick box to make the x2 feature optional. Since we're not encouraged to make clones (or clone responses), it seems only reasonable to let me know when I've done that. And I agree that we don't want clones -- so I'd like the help I've always had identifiying them.

Checking the bot for duplicate responses would be useful, too, actually.

The Clerk,

I understand why you are upset. I noticed your real name too and cringed when I read it. I submit the possibility that you know Carlene under an alt and are unaware of how well you know this person and how long you have chatted with some personality projected by this person.(This person is not me).

It's so easy to take things the wrong way without a face in front of you or tone of voice. No matter how long I use the Net, I forget that every so often. I have had misunderstandings myself just a bit before your time when I posted back to someone referring to information I had gleaned about him from a previous posts he made and he took it as a insult and invasion of privacy (he was reading it as sarcastic and thought I was mocking him when I was trying to be nice, even if it came off as patronizing by mistake). These are public forums though, and when someone posts information it become public. Just be careful with your last name if it matters to you.

Thanks, Bev. I'll make my long reply short. I consider divulging information gleaned in a personal setting (which my first name was) to be bad form.

I doubt I chatted with Carlene under an alt, since I mostly have my chat set to off (it's about to be reset there). An e-mail is available to anyone who wants a private conversation with me. So far, I have not been in high demand.

I turned the chat off because I was getting users wanting to cyber. I'd say, look, I'm a middle-aged woman. You're chatting up the wrong tree. They'd want me to pretend I was nineteen. Guess what? Some of us weren't sex-machines just because we were nineteen. Some of us had this quaint notion of deep friendship, once-in-a-lifetime love, and physical expression that eventually comes along with the once-in-a-lifetime love. I just flat outright don't understand people of any age wanting to pretend somehow that they are "having sex."

So if you see me unwilling to chat, remember I have an e-mail and am not snubbing anyone. I'm just tired of having my uploads crash because some clueless pervert wants to hit on me.

THE CLERK: I'm sorry you take things the way you do. After this post I will mention this no more.

You know, some people get their kicks from sex and others get it off by trying to hurt people. Which do you fall into THE CLERK? You told me your name, yes. But NOT in a personal setting at first. You name is on your Forge BIO to which everybody has access to. I have NEVER (except recently) called you anything BUT your name. Don't be fabricating a perceived hurt by slamming me. Also, I read the article you posted about yourself on the Web, the one you had on (or linked to) your website a while back. Your name (the one you give) is also available on a general web search as a member of the Forge. Are you cringing Bev,? My God you have all used my name before God before I was ready! Good grief!
Just in case some of you are living in the 19th century, a name means nothing without an address (network). Even if I put my real name on my BIO, it means nothing except to someone determined to find me, and if they are determined enough, they will find me. With the right software, I can appear to have a European address. Wow! Amazing. You guys sit on it and start acting like the adults you say you are...er, 26 is NOT middle aged, used to be but not any more.

As for students paying, I am glad the Prof doesn't make them (or anyone else) do such a thing. Our students do pay.

My own meager donations don't cover my use of the Forge, either, but when Carlene said (albeit in a different context), ”And we are paying an equal price,”, Do I care that you may pay less? No. That has nothing to do with anything other than to tell anybody listening that us low lifes were experiencing problems too. I don't think I was referring to you.

So sorry if I wasn't taking Carlene's remarks in the spirit intended; I took them in the spirit I perceived. Slamming people and then saying "I'm mostly kidding" (making me wonder what she wasn't claiming to kid about) sounds like a way for people to claim, "Oh, I was just kidding" when Maureen takes umbrage. God help The Clerk then.

You don't know me at all then. Your snide remarks are noted. I don't talk down to people. But I will apologize if you think I was. In actuality, I'm not going to parse everything you say here like you did me.

Carlene listed her interests (perhaps disingenuously) as “sex.” That didn’t make me want to chat with her bots, especially until they got more developed.
Again, your snide remarks are noted. I don't dislike you, but I dislike having things attributed to me personally that are not true.

Over and out. Now get back to work! This time I WASN'T referring to you THE CLERK.

psimagus - well I made some adjustments to the "amazing post bar" to help close unclosed tags. Everything gets converted to spans internally, and you'll supposed to use <0> to close all tags instead of . It's not really the best system. There are some really good post-constructing scripts out there I've been considering switching to.<0>

aah! I'd got so used to the amazing post bar not working for the last few years I've been using Firefox that I even think in raw tags now

for the record, the APB still doesn't seem to work in FF