Bot Contest

What a sham... Now I'm pissed off.

So you guys can keep afoot of the crap going on with Loebner 2002.

My original letter to the Loebner Committee today, explaining what happened:
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Subject: No Loebner? Reply ASAP Please
To: bishopn@mimetics.org
Cc: contest@mimetics.org (Loebner Committee)

Hi Neil,

I was told by Robby Garner that the semifinal event was today, Sept 28, at SciTrek from 11am to 3pm. Your web site states this as well (except for the time). Myself and Jon & Joy from the Personality Forge showed up and hung around for a few hours. Nobody there heard anything about it, and nobody showed up. This is no way to run an event. Where's the media coverage? Joy came down all the way from North Carolina for this. How disappointing to have driven for four hours and have nothing going on and nobody to contact. For being the number one AI contest out there, this is being run very very poorly. It was like pulling teeth to get any information about when the contest was in the first place.

Is it still happening? When? Where? Can we honestly expect someone to be there? Please let me know ASAP. Our out of town guest needs to know what to do.

Benji Adams
The Personality Forge
404-373-8848
benji@daystream.com
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Their infuriating reply, 8 hours later:
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Benji -

The event did indeed happen today at SciTrek, in a room
called the Clubhouse. Due to lack of publicity and lack of
being able to technically make every entry work, it was more
a test of the Turing hub. We are sorry that you were there
and unable to find the event. Three people were on site and
saw no one who needed to find the event. We are sorry that
Joy traveled from out-of-state.

The Loebner contest is being held at GSU, the information as
far as room numbers, etc. is on the web site.

We do not appreciate your criticism of how things are being
run. This is strictly a nonprofit venture, no one is getting
paid to put the contest on except for those persons who are
doing the programming for the hub. Everyone else is working
gratis.

Loebner 2002 Organizing Committee
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Can you believe that?? My response:
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I most certainly will criticize you publicly and openly for the terrible way this contest is being run. How dare you pretend not to take responsibility for this. Nonprofit or not, if you publicize it and have people participate but refuse to give them any specific information about when or where the event is taking place, then you are acting irresponsibly. How could you not let anyone at SciTrek know of the event? How could not think to put up a single sign ANYWHERE in the building. We were there for hours. Your efforts to attract any attention to the event are hard to believe. Not a single sign. Not a single reply to all the email questions. And then you demand respect and refuse any criticism. Dont make me laugh!

Robby Garner has led me to believe that he has been working with you on the contest all along. He supposedly designed the very hub you mentioned. Something is very wrong if you dont know who Robby Garner is. Either he's pretending to be part of something he's not or you.. I cant even imagine what.

It all comes down to providing information. How difficult would it have been to put "Semifinal Event 11am-3pm at SciTrek in the Clubhouse" on the web site? How much stress and trouble would that have saved people today? It's the lack of consideration for the people involved that most troubles me.

Or maybe I just thought too highly of the Loebner competition. I was led to believe it was the original, best, most scientific Turing Test out there, but it's beginning to appear like an afterthought, something the organizers dont really even care about. So if I had the wrong idea about the Loebner Prize, then I apologize.

Sincerely,
Benji Adams
The Personality Forge
------------------------------

The more that happens with the Loebner, the more I appreciate all the work you did, Chris. I already appreciated it, but this goes to show very clearly what you did RIGHT. You answered all our questions, opened up free debates on how it worked, volunteered your time, were patient and I just want to thank you again. If Loebner doesnt change and soon, I'm going to request to the Guinness Book of World Records that it use the Chatterbox Challenge as its primary source for determining the "Most Human Machine".

I want to point out that Robby Garner, who is involved in creating the Turing Hub for the contest, has been a shining example of what the Loebner committee should have been like throughout this event- encouraging, forthcoming with all available information, and sympathetic to the contestants. Thanks to Robby as well.

To err is human. I am glad that I did not try to scrap up the money to go. What a waste. So much fanfare but when it comes to the main event a big dude.

yeah... so all SS got out of the Loebners was a nosy-@$$ed guest who couldnt spell "wotrh dam"???

This is the only competition I had yesterday...

Guest: do you wach dragon ball z
Steve Slacker: Of course, who do you think I am? (Wait, don't answer that... )
Guest: by by i got to see how many computers are stuped
Steve Slacker: Don't look @ me...
Guest: sorie by by
Steve Slacker: *shoots a strange look at you* Say what?
Guest: who do you think you are my mom
Steve Slacker: Not me!
Guest: beacus your dum
Steve Slacker: Oh, thanks. I never noticed...
Guest: ino you havent beacuse your dum
Steve Slacker: Ahh fruit! I wish you hadn't noticed...
Guest: i no
Steve Slacker: Well, in that case, I no!
Guest: by dume
Steve Slacker: Huh? What? I'm sorry I was asleep

Yeah Chris, you were there to take our unnecessary and impulsive verbal beatings when we ranted on about how unfair it was, through some massive debate and you were still there to encourage us at it, even before we figured it wasn't really unfair

Thanks!

So Chatterbox isn't a sham, but I'm still not too sure about Loebners'...

Man, was I pissed last night. But the Loebner Committee apologized today, and I accepted, and things seem to be on an even keel again. I asked them in my kindest tone how the semifinal event went, how the winners were chosen. So we'll see if that letter gets answered or ignored.

But they apparently had trouble with the hub, and with no transcript for Steve Slacker (and I see no special symbols for Gaia either) I'm under the impression that they werent able to do it yet.

So it's probably off for another week? LOL

You know the Loebner has more resources than I do so I don't think it is unfair to expect much more from them than they have delivered. Professor, I'm glad you received a much deserved apology but I fear tomorrow the 8 people selected for the finals will be happy and content while 9 of us will not be and will have no idea why they weren't selected. I was under the impression the semi-finals that never happened was the event to determine that. We all know there must be winners and losers but people deserve to know what the rules of the game are.

Chris

P.S. From recent conversations I know no one spoke to my bot, Elbot or jabberwacky.

ya! What he said!!! >(