What to do when your robotic dog won't behave

Chicago Tribune ^ | July 11, 2003 | Charles Storch

[Nachum]

Samantha Stewart has owned Patton for a few months, and she is concerned because her robot dog gets temperamental, sits and whines a lot and disdains playing with his ball. The 27-year-old graduate student from Aurora has come to the Sony Gallery in Chicago hoping for a cure.

Otis Gates, a traveling vet-shrink-Mr. Goodwrench-sales rep for Sony's Aibo line of entertainment robots, hooks Patton to a laptop computer for a diagnostic exam. Head, legs, sight, hearing, speaker, lights, sensors, camera check out fine. Gates' snap diagnosis: Patton is just going through a stage -- unfortunately it happens to be the one known as Crybaby Aibo.

[Nachum]

"Bark Bark Master, welcome to the matrix.."

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[RoughDobermann]

What to do when your robotic dog won't behave

Remove the batteries? Bitter Apple ain't gonna work...

[theDentist]

W o o f .

[Constitution Day]

I think they need to invent a feline model & sell 'em in a 12-pack for crazy cat ladies! ;^)

[Drammach]

You can't fool me..
That's a Pig.. ;oP

[KarlInOhio]

Yes ... well I think I can definitely say that your cat Aibo badly needs to be confused.

[theDentist]

I guess the only way to be sure is to cook 'er up!

[Cicero]

It said that Hildabeast is already registered, but with another password.

[KarlInOhio]

Binder, 53, is an Aibo luminary. He and his wife own 25 of the robots, which he believes is the largest private collection. The Rancho Cordova, Calif., plant engineer estimates he has invested about $40,000 in Aibo, including accessories and memorabilia.

(snip)

"Intellectually, I know these guys are machines -- I am an engineer, after all -- but when I start playing with them they bring out the child in me," he says.

He acknowledges getting emotional each time he has had to ship one back to Sony. "When I send them to the vet for repairs and when the FedEx ambulance picks them up, I cry," he says.

I think we have found the Aibo equivalent of the crazy cat lady.

[martin_fierro]

This woman ought to just trade in the (*&$# dog for one of these.

[theFIRMbss]

Whenever any
of my dogs act up, I have
Milla Jovovich

come to the house and
give the quarrel-some canine
a kick in the head.

[tophat9000]

Come on fella, Reboot for me, Reboot....Good dog!

[LizardQueen]

I think they need to invent a feline model & sell 'em in a 12-pack for crazy cat ladies! ;^)

Or sell them to Border Collie owners -will give the dogs something to herd...

LQ

[Jay D. Dyson]

"We love Aibos! Their wires are so tasty!" (*urp!*)

[mrsmith]

When robots go bad...

"Hey sexy Mama, wanna kill all humans?"