If Orac had been given the choice in the so-named episode would it have preferred to go with Servalan or with Blake? Orac shows enough understanding (as distinct from awareness) to make a reasoned choice.
POV Avon, Orac is "just a machine"--in other words, doesn't even qualify for his slimline view of human rights--but shouldn't have Blake been worried about the freedom of the honest AI to think and speak?
Does Avon's view on this change as time goes by? He does tend to talk to the machine as time goes on. It helps him put his thoughts in order, but is he also seeing the machine as a companion?
Helen said:
Does Avon's view on this change as time goes by? He does tend to talk to the machine as time goes on. It helps him put his thoughts in order, but is he also seeing the machine as a companion?
I think he's always envious of Orac, who in his view is the ultimate jammy bastard. I think Avon really feels the Universe owes him one for forcing him to be a human being instead of a computer in the first place.
-(Y)
"Dana Shilling" dshilling@worldnet.att.net wrote:
Helen said:
Does Avon's view on this change as time goes by? He does tend to talk to the machine as time goes on. It helps him put his thoughts in order, but is he also seeing the machine as a companion?
I think he's always envious of Orac, who in his view is the ultimate jammy bastard. I think Avon really feels the Universe owes him one for forcing him to be a human being instead of a computer in the first place.
-(Y)
Has anyone an answer for my original question - which 'side' would Orac have chosen, if given the choice on Aristo?
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In message 4DFB79FF.19FFE8B4.4BF51BCE@netscape.net, jacquispeel@netscape.net writes
Has anyone an answer for my original question - which 'side' would Orac have chosen, if given the choice on Aristo?
Well, I suppose I didn't state it explicitly - I think Orac is self- aware, and does have what to all intents and purposes is an emotional attachment to its creator; and would probably have chosen to go with Blake for a number of reasons.
a) Orac took over some of the Liberator systems when the ship arrived at Aristo. To what extent this involved Zen's memory is not clear, but it is conceivable that Orac realised that Blake was willing to consider artificial intelligences as people.
b) Again, access to the ship's log would have given Orac information, at this point not confirmed by other sources, about the death of Ensor Jr and Maryatt. This information would suggest that Blake and crew had attempted to help Ensor Jr, and then come to assist Ensor Sr.
c) Blake flies around the galaxy in a bloody big ship. Even if only a very few systems on that ship are of interest, it goes to interesting places.
So a combination of self-interest and emotion would probably lean towards Blake rather than Servalan. This might change depending on when Orac realised that Servalan was personally responsible for Ensor's death - I can quite easily see it deciding to go with Servalan on the assumption that that offered better opportunities for revenge.
Orac's decision would also be influenced by Ensor's - Ensor chose Blake, and that would probably sway Orac.
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Dana Shilling -
Helen Krummenacker -
jacquispeel＠netscape.net -
Julia Jones