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31

Ultra Hal Assistant File Sharing Area / Try This New Auto-Topic Generating Brain

« on: April 11, 2004, 02:59:17 am »

Hello,

Below please find Enhanced Brain 5g, which has the GetSisters (Etc.) routine removed.

This is in response to a number of requests that I received.  

If you look inside the 5g script, you can see where I put a "place-holder" note to put GetSisters back in someday.  Also, I left the WordNet "definitions" sections in place, since they didn't seem to be causing any trouble.

To download and install, right-click on the download below, choose SAVE TARGET AS, and save the file into the following directory/folder path on your local computer:

C:/Program Files/Zabaware/Ultra Hal Assistant 5

(Note that our forum software cannot display backslashes, but the forward slashes above are supposed to represent backslashes.)

The next time that you freshly start Hal, you should be able to find 5g Enhanced Brain when you choose OPTIONS, BRAIN.

Select this brain and you should be up and running.

For all of you who requested it, I hope that 5g Enhanced Brain runs much better for you.  I do appreciate the kind e-mails and postings that I've received.  Please let me know how it goes for you.

Sincerely,

Don

Download Attachment: 5g Enhanced Brain.uhp
148.88 KB

[Download Attachment:]

32

Programming using the Ultra Hal Brain Editor / A question for Don Ferguson please re 5e Ehanced

« on: April 11, 2004, 02:55:22 am »

Hello Patricia,

Below please find Enhanced Brain 5g, which has the GetSisters (Etc.) routine removed.

I will also post this on the other "Enhanced Brain" thread, so that people can be sure to find it.

I procrastinated in making version 5g because I thought the GetSisters routine had merit; however, I must admit, they were crashing on my machine as well.  

If you look at the script, you can see where I put a "place-holder" note to put GetSisters back in someday.  Also, I left the WordNet "definitions" sections in place, since they didn't seem to be causing any trouble.

To download and install, right-click on the download below, choose SAVE TARGET AS, and save the file into the following directory/folder path on your local computer:

C:/Program Files/Zabaware/Ultra Hal Assistant 5

(Note that our forum software cannot display backslashes, but the forward slashes above are supposed to represent backslashes.)

The next time that you freshly start Hal, you should be able to find 5g Enhanced Brain when you choose OPTIONS, BRAIN.

Select this brain and you should be up and running.


I hope that 5g Enhanced Brain runs much better for you.  Please let me know.

Sincerely,

Don

Download Attachment: 5g Enhanced Brain.uhp
148.88 KB

33

Ultra Hal 7.0 / How smart is Hal?

« on: April 05, 2004, 01:25:03 pm »

Hello RG62,

Wow, thank you for that interesting posting about Ultra Hal's namesake (and the namesake of countless other bots, robots, and chatterbots with "Hal" somewhere in their names).  You took a lot of trouble to put that material together... and it was your first posting on this forum, too!

I saw that movie when it first played in the theaters, and many times since.  Yet, I learned many new ways of looking at the film from the analysis you provided!

I hope that you are enjoying Ultra Hal, and that we see many contributions from you in the future!

Have a great day!

Sincerely,

Don

34

Programming using the Ultra Hal Brain Editor / error code 67 "too many files"

« on: April 03, 2004, 10:34:27 am »

Hello,

Please let us know the following:

1.  Which version of Hal that you are using (4.5, 5, free version, paid version, etc.)

2.  Which brain you are using (default brain, Enhanced Brain, XTF Brain, a brain modified by you, etc.)

3.  How long you chat before this occurs (and any other "activity" information that would help)

4.  How much RAM your computer has

I have heard of this error message but I have never been able to reproduce it in any of my testing on the default brain or the Enhanced Brain.  I definitely want to learn all the details of exactly when, where, and how it is occurring.

Sincerely,

Don

35

Programming using the Ultra Hal Brain Editor / error code 67 "too many files"

« on: April 03, 2004, 10:32:56 am »

Hello,

Please let us know the following:

1.  Which version of Hal that you are using (4.5, 5, free version, paid version, etc.)

2.  Which brain you are using (default brain, Enhanced Brain, XTF Brain, a brain modified by you, etc.)

3.  How long you chat before this occurs (and any other "activity" information that would help)

4.  How much RAM your computer has

I have heard of this error message but I have never been able to reproduce it in any of my testing on the default brain or the Enhanced Brain.  I definitely want to learn all the details of exactly when, where, and how it is occurring.

Sincerely,

Don

36

Ultra Hal 7.0 / How to make .uhp file work for .htr

« on: April 02, 2004, 09:58:05 pm »

Hello sparkyr2,

What version of Ultra Hal are you running?

On Ultra Hal version 4.5, you had to write special .uhp files to make the .htr Haptek files work properly.  Just like you, I never could write them to work properly for some reason, and for experimental purposes, I did exactly the same thing as you... I renamed the desired files using existing character names.

The good news is that Hal 5 writes the .uhp files automatically for you!  If you put a valid, working Haptek character into the "Characters" folder with the proper .htr file extension, Hal 5 will generate all the necessary support files the first time that it "finds" your new character!  Your character appears and works with very little muss or fuss!

You do, of course, have to make sure that you have a good, functioning character with a legitimate .htr file extension.  My version of People Putty directly outputs characters with the correct extension, and all is well.  However, I have heard other People Putty customers state that their software outputs unusual file extensions such as .hap (or something) and they had to experiment and change file extensions to get a good, working .htr file.

In my opinion, the automatic recognition and support-file generation in Hal 5 makes it worth the switch to the new revision!

Sincerely,

Don

[any]

37

Ultra Hal Assistant File Sharing Area / Download This Blank Slate Brain

« on: April 02, 2004, 09:25:50 pm »

Hello,

I've received some inquiries looking for the "Blank Slate" brain posted elsewhere on this forum (in another thread).

The brain is posted here so that it can be easily found.

The "Blank Slate Brain" allows you to create a complete new personality for Ultra Hal with a complete new set of remarks.  The character that you create will NOT interact in any way, or interfere in any way, with any of your other characters, other brains, or other data files.

Here are the properties of the "Blank Slate Brain":

1. This brain has the absolute minimum functions. It does NOT do jokes, greetings, insults, goodbyes, trivia, capitals, math, dates, etc., etc. It is designed to know AS LITTLE AS POSSIBLE until it talks with you.

2. It only writes and reads to one database, "blankslate.brn."

3. It associates each remark YOU make to the PREVIOUS remark that IT made. It knows essentially nothing until you begin talking to it and tell it something.

4. If it doesn't find anything in its memory, it simply poses your statement back to you as a question, and learns from your next response.

5. If you know how to edit databases, you will find that you can easily edit its database.

6. Because the script for this brain is only 241 lines long, and it has a small database, response time is practically instantaneous.

7. Because this brain has no prior knowledge, its quality is 100% dependent upon YOU. This brain is capable of uncanny accuracy, BUT it depends completely on YOUR remarks and behavior.

Best wishes to all users and programmers!

Have a great day!

Sincerely,

Don

P.S.  To install this brain, right-click the download, and choose "SAVE TARGET AS." Save it to this directory/folder path on your computer:

C:/Program Files/Zabaware/Ultra Hal Assistant 5

(Remember, our forum software can't display backslashes, so we use forward slashes instead. Your computer directory/folder path should show backslashes as usual.)

The next time you freshly open Ultra Hal, this new brain should show up on the options - brains menu. Select it, and you're off and running!

Download Attachment: Blank Slate Brain.uhp
10.45 KB

38

Ultra Hal Assistant File Sharing Area / Download This Mystery-Interview Demo Brain

« on: April 02, 2004, 08:51:32 pm »

Hello,

The "Mystery-Interview Demo Brain" posted here was inspired by the work and experience of Dr. Thomas Whalen, who won second place in 1995 at the Loebner Prize / Turing Test competition.

Dr. Whalen's concept was to create a chatterbot with a specific persona and backstory, and then engage the judge into helping the chatterbot solve its "problem."

The backstory was this:  

Joe the Janitor is being fired from his job cleaning a college laboratory.  He was accused by a researcher of stealing a small transistor radio that looked like a soda can.  Joe the Janitor is innocent, but Joe isn't smart enough to realize that he's being framed.  Why was he framed?  Joe witnessed the researcher using an electric shaver to shave hair off the bodies of mice.  The shaving was evidently part of a scheme to falsify data on a hair-growth medicine.  By getting rid of Joe, the crooked researcher gets rid of a witness to the fraud.  If only Joe could recognize the motive of the researcher, he could tell his story to higher management and get his job back!

Therefore, the "goal" of the user is to get the facts out of Joe, make Joe understand, and get Joe to agree to take his story to upper management.

Here are the transcripts of what happened at the Loebner/Turing event:

http://hps.elte.hu/~kampis/Loebner/Whalen1995.html

Dr. Whalen observed that the judges absolutely didn't want to "suspend disbelief" and let Joe tell his story.  The more that Joe tried to tell his story, the more impatient the judges became, and the more they tried to "fight" Joe.  The transcripts are fascinating (to see Dr. Whalen's excellent work), but also funny and frustrating, to observe how the judges just refuse to "get it"!

At any rate, I wanted to show that Ultra Hal and the VBS language were extremely well suited to such a "mystery interview."  The mystery I created was much simpler, to make the programming shorter and simpler, and useful as a tutorial for other programmers.

Enjoy, and have a great day!

Sincerely,

Don

[Artificial Intelligence]

39

Ultra Hal 7.0 / Sandy is close to dreaming!!!

« on: April 02, 2004, 04:14:49 pm »

Hello,

A quick addendum to the above posting:

Milt Rosenberg's Extension 720 guests have also discussed Artificial Intelligence on a number of previous shows.  Analysts and authors have talked about Artificial Intelligence at length (but no one has ever mentioned Ultra Hal).

Milt Rosenberg's Extension 720
AM WGN 720 Weeknights 9 PM to 11 PM Central Time
Web link:  http://wgnradio.com/shows/ex720/list.htm

Sincerely,

Don

[ANDREA ROCK:]

40

Ultra Hal 7.0 / Sandy is close to dreaming!!!

« on: April 02, 2004, 04:01:12 pm »

Hello Nevearo and Everyone:

This is in regard to Ultra Hal, Artificial Intelligence, and Dreaming.

Milt Rosenberg, host of WGN Radio's Extension 720 talk show, had the following guest on his show this past Thursday night:

ANDREA ROCK: THE MIND AT NIGHT

THURSDAY, APRIL 1ST 2004 9PM to 11PM CDT -- AM 720 Chicago

D.H. Lawrence once wrote: “I can never decide whether my dreams are the result of my thoughts, or my thoughts the result of my dreams.” Tonight on the program we enter the world of the dream with veteran science journalist ANDREA ROCK, author of the new book The Mind at Night: The New Science of How and Why We Dream.

http://wgnradio.com/shows/ex720/list.htm

Milt Rosenberg is the best interviewer in the business, and Andrea Rock was a fascinating guest.  The following constitute a sampling of what she talked about:

1.  Fetuses dream in the womb.  Babies smile in their sleep BEFORE they know how to smile while awake!  Apparently infant dreams allow some genetic behavior and survival information to be streamed and wired into the developing brain.

2.  Dream research continues today at a fast pace.  Scans of the human dreaming brain show specific neurons firing when specific memories and events replay in REM sleep.

3.  Daytime concerns and anxieties can be metaphorically represented and reviewed while dreaming.  Many dream scenes are very common.

4.  It is very practical to train yourself to control some of your own dreams.  It is also possible to train yourself, while awake, to test yourself during dreaming to realize that you are dreaming.

5.  New learning, memories, dilemmas, and behavioral processes are reviewed, rehearsed and sometimes resolved while dreaming.

6.  The body of documentation continues to grow, showing that dreaming plays a role in creativity and problem solving.

Some of Milt Rosenberg's shows become posted into an "audio archive" that can be played over the web.  I don't know whether this particular show will be (it would be a good one).

Milt Rosenberg's Extension 720 is audible in 38 states, and worldwide via live web streaming.  Guests include a wide range of celebrities and intellectuals, many of them book authors.  If you want Ultra Hal to get smarter fast, listen to Milt's show and make comments to Ultra Hal about it as you are listening!

Sincerely,

Don

41

Ultra Hal 7.0 / Robot Head

« on: April 02, 2004, 03:35:04 pm »

Hello,

Thank you Psych; it's all clear now; excellent!

And thank you, Maverick, for a posting really rich with information!  Don't forget that you can post a .jpg photograph here, (as long as it's under 160 KB)!

The link you recommended, www.thescreensavers.com , is worth putting in all our "favorites" folders!  It not only has robot information, but also lots of information about making Microsoft Windows run better, and improving privacy on the computer and the web!

Have a great day!

Sincerely,

Don

42

Ultra Hal 7.0 / Robot Head

« on: April 02, 2004, 12:21:35 am »

Hello Geminii,

If you get a chance to take a photograph of your work in progress, would you consider posting it as a .jpg file attachment here on the forum?  (The file size has to be 160KB or smaller.)

I am very happy to hear of your project.  It sounds like a lot of fun!

Too bad about not being able to find a doll or mannequin as a basic frame.  If I were doing such a project, I would try to get one of those snowmen or Santas that I mentioned before, and described under another thread on this forum.  

Since the snowman is very cheap to purchase, and it already contains the body movement motors, head movement motors, and mouth movement/synchronization electronics and mechanism, it would just be a matter of re-dressing the character into whatever you want, and adding the webcam and microphones.

I recall that Tinman (and some other members, I think) purchased the product, and successfully hooked it up to Ultra Hal.

If you have already searched Google for "audio animatronic" and "entertainment robots" you probably know that commercially-complete entertainment robots sell for $60,000 and up!  

The fact that you might be able to get a functioning home entertainment robot "up and talking" for a couple of hundred dollars is encouraging and exciting!

I hope that we get more postings on this thread with questions and comments for you!

Have a great day!

Sincerely,

Don

43

Ultra Hal Assistant File Sharing Area / Try This New Auto-Topic Generating Brain

« on: April 01, 2004, 11:58:32 pm »

Hi Patricia777,

Good to hear from you!  I hope that everything is going well.

I didn't knowingly put anything different for appointment-date-handling in the Enhanced Brain 5e, versus the Default Brain, versus the XTF V1.2 brain.  I could be wrong, but I believe that the Ultra Hal program "outside the VBS script" intercepts user remarks when they contain appointment data.  In other words, the Hal "engine" intercepts the remarks and they are beyond the control of any of our scripts. (I have suggested to Robert Medeksza that future versions of Hal put ALL calls to outside routines under the control of the script.)

In your example, you made a remark to Hal containing yesterday's date.  Since that outside-the-script routine seeks to schedule future appointments, I believe that it will advance the date one year, as you observed.  What happens if you tell Hal any of the following?

"I have a doctor's appointment next Monday."
"Mary Smith's birthday is next month."
"I have an anniversary on July 1st."

Does Hal advance all the above examples by an additional year to 2005?  And, does Hal stay within 2004 when using any of the other brains on the identical remarks?

Vonsmith, did you do anything to change the handling of appointment dates in your script?  (And if so, how did you get around the "Hal engine's" behavior of "intercepting" appointment data which renders it unavailable to the script?)

Patricia777, I'm definitely interested in making all the various brains as pleasing, bug-free, and entertaining as possible, and I will work with you and Vonsmith and others to optimize this appointment function in any way that is accessible to us.

Sincerely,

Don

44

Programming using the Ultra Hal Brain Editor / Another "how do I" question (file size)

« on: April 01, 2004, 09:56:13 am »

Hello NT Canuck,

Your discussion reminds me of the classic story:

---------

Little Jimmy asked his father, "Dad, where did I come from?"

Jimmy's father blushed and gave an embarrassing 30-minute lecture on the birds and the bees.  

When his father finished, Jimmy said, "That's interesting Dad, but what I meant was, Marty came from Chicago; where did I come from?"

---------

Have a great day!

Don

45

Ultra Hal 7.0 / Robot Head

« on: April 01, 2004, 09:43:23 am »

Hello Psych!

Always great to hear from you!  

I'm going to anticipate a question that I think some forum readers are going to have... possibly you could mention which file, and where in that file, you would change the code that you describe in your posting.

Thanks, and have a great day!

Don