Re: AIs and such...

In a message dated 97-07-17 16:27:40 EDT, you write:

<< The idea for the thread was to try and come to some group consensus
on a
use
 of AI in the FT universe. This would give anyone wanting to write
scenarios
 or fiction a common ground. I'm not sure that special rules need to be
 brought in, except perhaps for disallowing certain classes of ship from
 having to make morale checks.	>>

IMHO:
I don't see that there is a need to decide whether or not there are AI's
in
the FT universe. The main problem is that there does not seem to be
ageement
on what kind of behavior one should expect from an AI. Some think they
will
be genius human stuffed in a box. some think they will be someone
progamed
(ie: people with no free will) to be what ever the author wants them to
be
(in spite of whether the programing instructions are contradictory.)
Everyone
I've heard on this thread has a different idea what an AI is! So the
question
is how can you have special rules for AI's if no one can agree on what
kind
of personality an AI has?

As it is now everyone can ascribe to AI's whatever is needed to fit them
into
the present FT universe(or not as the case may be!) Any rule set would
raise
more problems than it would solve.

Tom Hughes

"God is dead" - Nietzsche
"Nietzsche is dead" - God