Larian Studios Forums General Chat Machines vs. the Personal Touch

I've been thinking lately, do we rely on machines so much that it makes life meaningless?

At work, I run a lottery syndicate. Each fortnight, people hand me $5 entry and I buy a heap of tickets and see if we all win. I have detailed spreadsheets that keep track of the cash flow, the tickets that give us the highest probability of winning, and whether out tickets win. It's all very efficient and accurate. I don't even need to pick the ticket numbers myself! All I need to do is mark who's paid and write an e-mail to them giving them our numbers.

I'm starting to wonder if I've got it all wrong.

I thought the whole idea of things like lottery was to be a fun game of chance wth cash prizes. Instead I've turned it into a mechanical money-sucking process, at least as far as my work is considered. The entrants probably get more joy out of it, receiving numbers thast they can check on Saturday night. Incidently, it took over nine months to win anything.

I thought about my rune work and how I would never let machines be involved in anything I do seriously. They show results. I put in the personal effort and give it all of myself. The effort is rewarded.

I think this goes with everything we do: using calculators for simple problems that we know we could solve if we just focused for a second; pitch-moding singers voices because they can't hit the right notes; being unable to close your deceased spouse's account because the computer requires they do it in person. Have we lost the human touch? Are we too lazy to bother with any magic in our lives?


I was inspired by Killerzzz Sing a little song thread. I thought this was a much better use of time than "post your favourite lyrics". Put in the effort, don't just cut and paste! You will feel so much better about yourself. Singing is fun, even if you do suck at it. A cut and paste job, well, we might as well just open yet another song lyrics database...

Without the machines we would lose a lot of time and we would not have any free time to do things with our "personal touch".

Barta

Actually it is sad that we rely so heavily on machines. I know when the computers go down at work, we just sit there staring at each other. The whole office can't even function. It's just too bad we aren't allowed to leave for the day! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/biggrin.gif" alt="" />

maybe u should join HEF in lottery runs. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/biggrin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/up.gif" alt="" />

very valid points, HEF. but i kind of agree with Barta as well as computers do help me in some ways to free up my time so i can do things that i like which i do with personal touch.

Fav Lyrics versus Sing A Little Song is a valid comparison but one which is quite hard for me to join as i hardly listen to music with vocals. when i do post in Fav Lyrics, it's usually lyric that reflect my emotion at the time of post.

what i think is worse than automation versus personal touch is that people can't get out of their work mode even after work. most people i know carry that back home & mix it with their role at home.

i am guilty of that sometimes. after managing to go back home early (thanks to the computer for making my work short & more efficient), i would sometimes feel like i want to go back to the lab to do some more stuff. really lame, huh?

"Put down your weapons.....you have 15 seconds to comply" <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/winkwink.gif" alt="" />

I hate computerized telephone systems with menus and no people answering the phone.

Computers just great <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> They give us places like the Larian Forum <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/winkwink.gif" alt="" />

And i hate the thinking about a world without a Coffeemachine <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/suspicion.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/biggrin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/winkwink.gif" alt="" />

I'm not saying that machines should be removed from our lives, just that we should consider how we use them and why. For instance, the coffee machine. What do you prefer to drink: a coffee from an espresso machine where you (or the barrista) have put the coffee in the perculator and steamed the milk yourself; or a coffee from a machine where you press the button and out comes the complete beverage in 15 seconds?

Machines are great as tools, but I feel that they are beginning to take over our lives, and in a way, make them very dull. Without computers, there would be no Larian forum. Also, without the people's input there would be no Larian forum. In this case, machines are necessary and positive tools and they can enhance our lives. Now we just need to find the line between social benefit and Internet addiction. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/winkwink.gif" alt="" />

Like Clelaw said, phone robots. Can you imagine if you only ever spoke with drones on the phone with no life in their voices? Sure the companies might be saving money, but they don't make any positive impression on their customers. Happy customers are one of the key points in business. Why can't we have a bit of fun when dealing with day-to-day business?

Well in belgium the first hart valve operation with a robot was performed. The surgeon was in the room next door with monitors and joysticks. Now personally i would like the human touch here. But it was shown that the robot with joysticks was more accurate, left less complication and the patient was out of the hospital in 1 week instead of 2.

So give me machines if it give better results. If the result is the same i'll tak human hands everyday

I think there should be more to it than bare efficiency - at least in the part we consider 'private life'.

When is the last time any of you have seen a manuscript in its literal meaning - manually written! If you get a handwritten letter, would you be pleased and recognize that someone was caring for a personal touch - or would you curse about having to decipher handwriting instead of easy readible fine print? (Which would be so much more efficient and time saving <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/evilgrin1.gif" alt="" />)

When somebody asks you the phone number of a friend - can you tell him off hand, because you know it by heart from regular dialling, or do you have to take out your mobile and look, because the only thing you remember is that he is Number 56 in the menue (or that he is somewhere in the menue, if you could only remember under which name/surname you saved him, and how was his last name spelled again?)??

Those who say that machines can be more efficient, or facilitating life, or giving us time to do other, more pleasant, things, are right in a way - IF...

...if we think about, and remember, why we are using technology.

Because HEF is right also, I believe, in too many instances we automatically use technology without thinking about it, and without realising what we are losing (the ability to memorize for instance, see above), or worse - the ability to live without it. Great regional power blackouts can give you surprising insights! (do you know where in your household a torch lies? With batteries still working? Or candles? And where is a lighter, you modern healthy, non-smoking man? And is there fuel/gas in it? - Got any matches, anyone?)

@ Glance -> i can walk in the dark. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/biggrin.gif" alt="" /> *crashes into things* <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ouch.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/memad.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/silly.gif" alt="" />

I was walking through a dark wood nearby, along a quite broad way. Although I know this way for ages (literally ! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/delight.gif" alt="" /> ) it was a totally new experience, since EVERYTHING was COMPLETELY dark ! I had to rely on senses I didn't know that they exist. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/winkwink.gif" alt="" /> (Well, I knew, but had hardly ever had the NEED to use them. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/winkwink.gif" alt="" /> )

To me, this is something everyone should do at least once in his or her life. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/winkwink.gif" alt="" />


(Apart from the fear to actually meet strangers I wouldn't want to meet. Robbers, for example.)

Point: Freaking automated phone systems...I cant describe how frustrated these damn things make me! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/memad.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/memad.gif" alt="" />

I hate those automated phones too. The way I get around it is that I never push any buttons when it says to (or speak very softly when it is voice activated) then the phone system always defaults to an operator. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/biggrin.gif" alt="" />

we are a race of tools, man has always been working on finding ways to make things easier, more effective, it started with tools as sharp rocks it are now completely automated miniscule and gigantic machines.

Other mammals as chimps show the same behaviour.

It's who we are, and what we'll become the first bionic arm was just introduced litlle more than a week ago, the person looks like a half robocop, and that's how we'll prolly end up.

Take joy in the old ways, but you won't stop this evolution.