giles@ucf-cs.UUCP (Bruce Giles) (07/03/84)
As someone who was very vocal in his opinions concerning the orginal `Valentina' short story in *Analog* in May (?), I feel I should post my response to `The Crystal Ball' in the August issue. Better, but still needs improvement. >>>> Beginning mild spoiler <<<< >>>> Beginning mild spoiler <<<< What I feel is the most glaring deficiency in the novella is the fact that all of the characters still seem one-dimensional. Exactly one character, Steve Schiwetz, has changed/grown. We are told that he previously lost his job from "buffoonery, clownish behavior, insubordination." Later, when confronted with is past, he admits "nothing builds discipline like poverty." If he had changed *in* the story, I would call that two-dimensional. But, since the change occured *before* the story picks up, it still seems somewhat one- dimensional. The new lawyers and `hackers' are also somewhat more palatable in this story. In fact, Nathan Daniels/Harley 5000 and Roy Stark/Trig are now `establisment'. But, once again except for Steve Schiwetz, everyone seems to have fairly straightfoward roles. As a perfect example, the above two programmers are told to erase Valentina, but when they find out it is intelligent, they go against their boss's order and let it free. When their boss finds out, we find out "they're hidin', like any smart hacker would if he was in the trashfile on the boss's directory." While that is a possible behavior, I can think of another, *very* appropriate response for them. (I refrain from mentioning it for fear of ruining the suspense.) Of course, it would mean risking their jobs for a greater goal.... My impression, quite simply, is that the story is a two-dimensional matrix of one-dimensional characters. (Not *pure* white and black hats, but disappointing few greyish hats). Finally, a needless suspense `gadget' is the fact that Valentina still risks permanent `death.' Since they first formed the corporation, one of their immediate goals should have been obtaining a home base for Valentina. That way, there would be no question of Valentina, Inc., stealing services from other companies (which is occuring now, as she is using their computers & communication lines without paying for them). Furthermore, because of the facilities to produce backup copies of it, Valentina could take far greater risks at the cost of occasionally being reconstructed from backup tapes. >>>> Beginning major spoiler <<<< >>>> Beginning major spoiler <<<< A last, but lethal flaw in this story concerns Valentina testifying in court. I can envision AI programs eventually testifying in court, but I can definitely not envision any sane trial judge allowing testimony over a terminal connected to a world-wide computer network. If an AI program were allowed to testify, almost certainly the court would require (1) no other terminals or communication lines connected to the machine, (2) expert testimony that the operating system present was the minimum required to run the machine, (3) the purge of all other files throughout core and disk space, and (4) expert testimony that the AI program was not modified to provide `convient' answers. A court would *not* allow a terminal to state `I am a AI program' when hundreds to thousands of users were connected to the network at the same time! After all, how is it (the court) to know that someone in Idaho Falls (or any other place) is not controlling the terminal in the courtroom? Yet, the judge finally said, "The witness, in my opinion, is competent, Gentlemen. I'm going to let the jury hear her." ave discordia going bump in the night ... bruce giles {decvax, duke}!ucf-cs!giles university of central florida giles.ucf-cs@Rand-Relay orlando, florida 32816