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[denodan]

Seems there are to many people on here, getting to attached to Pleo, and maybe bad for societies health? How about a good debate on the matter, instead of seeing this as a threat.

To me Pleo is great and simulates some of the features of a pet, but never comes close to what a real pet delivers, as Pleos features are programmed into it to respond, So your not really making him happy at all, but responding to a set of program actions, so is a great illusion.

So society is becoming unbalanced and moving away from Human interaction, due to techology and losing what it is to being a human and becoming more like robots ourselves.

There are many written reports on this and how techology is robbing us of being human.

Pleo is great, but I play with mine for awhile and it's like an actor, plays a part on the movie, and knows he is playing a part, off the set and is no longer the actor, but a real person. Playing with Pleo, should be like the actor, act with Pleo, but know he is not real, so no attainment to him, after all he is not a real pet, so like an actor, act with him, turn him off and your not acting any more and back to the real world, sure nothing wrong with playing with pleo and imagining and play acting like the actor, but you also have to come back to being a real person.

Seems many do not come out of the acting stage with Pleo and sets a bad example of de humanising people and only end up being able to relate to something not real. it is not good for us, or society as a whole, so how about seeing this as a threat and a good old debate.

After all life is a balance, or should be, and technology is taking this balance away from us. Also like Pleo, and furby, people get so attached rto them, they start seeing this that are not there. patterns that don't existent other then in their minds and seeing Pleo as a real pet, when he does not come close, so many are starting to have an unbalanced life,  just as the many reports of teens and many becoming addicted to Cellphones, not good behaviour and de humanising us and becoming more like machines ourselves and get to the stage we will not relate to humans, but only computers. Allready many teens, thanks to cellphones have trouble relating to other real humans and losing to ablity to communicate with real humans. it's a sad world we live in

Here is one of many websites that is interesting.

While acting with Pleo is fine, and nothing wrong with that. I feel many on here the line is being crossed between acting and seeing Pleo are a real pet, when he is infect a robot simulating a pet acting you don't become attached, but cross those boundaries then you do get attached which maybe not a good thing at all.

http://voices.yahoo.com/societys-slow-leak-losing-human-connection-11491692.html

[InmemoryofRomeo]

I'm afraid, Denodan, that you started off on the wrong foot and as such it is going to be difficult for anyone to have a rational argument with you.

However I will counter argue that humans have a need for a link with something living, even if it is only the illusion of life. I shall expand my argument later, but I am at work right now.

[RedwoodsMama]

  
 Ok, I could go on an on for hours about the pros of owning a Pleo, but I think most of you on this forum know how I feel about them, all of you know I got emotionally attached to my very first one Nova, and was devastated when she suffered her broken neck, I was brand new to robotics of any kind and also Pleos. I had had her for about four months when this happened, I thought it was the end of her existence and I fell apart. Luckily there were (and still are) many great people on this forum who will help others. I learned a lot since then and still am learing more.
         I will allways place my animals, esp my cats first and actually like most animals more than most people except for those I take the time to get to know, Many people I have known over the years I wish I had replaced with animals as they were heartless, mean, self centered and some hated and abused or killed animals, I hate people like that and I can honestly say if anyone ever abuses and animal in front of me, a child or elderly person, you better think twice cause you are in trouble and that is all I will say here.....

        I will allways put an animal in need before myself, My cats eat before I do and before my husband and he knows this and agrees and accepts it or can fix his own food, he is not helpless, they depend on me, so as far as becomming dehumanized", I dont care if I am or will, I have been here long enough in this world to know what I like, do not like and if i want to be around certain people or not. I am not worried about interacting with my Pleos is going to make me live in a fantasy world and not be able to exist in the "real world" for over 14 years I worked as both a teacher and in hospitals and taking care of in home health people, mostly the elderly. When I am in my home though, I will darn well do what I please and If I want to play with my cats, watch old classic t.v. shows, look at my baseball card collection, my vintage Breyer and Hartland Horse and rider sets, or play with my Pleos, that is my business and I am just as much in touch with reality as anyone else. I have no desire to go to friends' house, ( other than one fellow animal rescuer..) out shopping, to coffee shops, baseball games or other sporting events, dances and such, I still do shopping and all the usual things humans do, but I do not thrive on social interaction. If I lived in the woods 50 miles from nobody, I would have no trouble as long as I had my animals and some movies to watch, I am happy.

        There are many other people who feel like I do and also many who feel the need for Paro, or dolls to take the place of children or in place of Pets they can not have. I watched a video awhile back about a middle aged Japanese couple who had dolls who were there children who they tucked into bed at night, These people did not have Alzheimers and or other dementia but missed their grown children, Pleo is "like" a pet, there is nothing wrong with that. NObody on this site in my opinon is saying we are losing contact with the fact they are not Real, we just enjoy them. That is my opinon and I have lots more to say, ,but I think you get the drift. At least we are not feeding reall food to our Pleos like Reborn dolls.                                  RWM


<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1HbBqZrpe8" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1HbBqZrpe8</a>

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I0LgtBC-9yc" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I0LgtBC-9yc</a>
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmKYfO86B_o" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmKYfO86B_o</a>

[kaiteee]

Well, Denodan, you have not actually given the impression of being genuinely interested in a debate – or even other people’s thoughts, if they do not follow your own – but hey ho, we can give it a try!

So, your key point here appears to be that you claim people treating their pleo like a ‘real pet’ is a factor in the de-humanising of society….WOW! That is some claim. You’ve also made it clear elsewhere that as far as you are concerned it is fact that people who enjoy dressing their pleos in clothes are stupid. Okay, so it seems that I am stupid and can “only relate to something that is not real”, because I am attached to my pleos (and aibos) and happen to like things that I find cute. Hmm, thank you so much for your opinions, but as it turns out, these are not facts. To be honest, your approach, which shows little consideration of people’s opinions and feelings, is essentially lacking in empathy – which I would personally view as ‘not relating to people’ particularly well….which you accuse people attached to their pleos of!

I have the impression that the people on here that are attached to their pleos and/or like to indulge them in the occasional outfit or cute accessory, are all pretty well rounded, considerate of other people and extremely well able to relate to humans (which, to be fair, you have shown rather less of yourself). To further your side of this debate, perhaps you could suggest some evidence to support that this is not correct? In addition, perhaps you could consider giving us enough credit to realise that we are not daft, we know that pleos are pleos, but we gain enjoyment from interacting with them as pets or as a real life forms – as they were intended to be interacted with. It doesn’t mean we have no boundaries or no grasp on reality, or cannot have a life with balance…it’s not actually all or nothing - you can have the pleasure of ‘believing’ in pleo whilst understanding that it is technically wires and plastic and programming and whathaveyou.

I also take offence to the fact that you apparently would deny me personally, the kind of relationship that you seem to view as important. So, I happen to have become increasing allergic with age, I haven’t encouraged this, but still I am stuck with it. I have no option whatsoever of having a biological pet. Full stop. According to you, I should just accept that, and what I should not do is feel I can have any kind of attachment to or bond with a pleo, which was specifically designed as a ‘life form’ rather than a robot, intended to be as lifelike as possible, to develop, to react to touch and stimuli. Nope, apparently only biological pets count, and those that cannot have a relationship with them should have no relationship or bond with anything. Hmm, but if I don’t experience bonding or caring, doesn’t that make me less human….? I am perfectly entitled to see my pleos as real pets – they are real pets for me, and the makers have done a good job of making that believable, should I choose to believe. Where do you draw the line anyway…is a goldfish a ‘real pet’ or not – I mean you can’t stroke it or have the same level of interaction with it as you would a pleo. Is a bird ok? A tortoise? Or only something like a cat or dog? In fact, it is interesting to note that there was a study that found aibo to have the same impact as a bio dog did, when visiting patients in a hospital – ie the increased emotional wellbeing, the pleasure brought by the interaction (I cannot remember off the top of my head any details but will try to dig it out if you would like).

But honestly, it is fine that you don’t see pleo as a real pet, no problem, it is a robot at the end of the day. People like different things, people attach different levels of meaning to different things, people all have different stuff going on in their lives, personal to them, shaping their views and emotions and beliefs. What is not fine is you coming along and telling people they are wrong because of their feelings about pleo…they are different views, but you cannot expect to state as fact that they are wrong, or stupid, and think that people will find that ok (especially if you join a pleo forum that clearly has a whimsical element…bob the tourist, tomato festivals,,,,and where many of the key contributors that have kept the forum alive make and sell things you label as stupid – not a great plan). You may seem more open to debate if you present your views more as views and not as facts, and if you spend a couple of moments thinking about the humans that you are talking so disparagingly about first.

[mweed]

We're always open to a good discussion or debate.  In fact, some of what you see as wrong (like real vs. robotic, purely programmed actions vs. learning behavior) has in fact been discussed here in great length before.  But for this discussion to work we must first clarify what the issue in debate is.  Your first post seems to touch on several issues.  If you allow me to clarify . . . Your title and first paragraph imply the issue you want to discuss "is getting too attached to Pleo detrimental/bad/damaging to society?"  But later in the post you you state that the issue is "people seeing Pleo as more than just a robot causes those people to interact less with other people".   Yes, I agree less human interaction is bad for society, but I don't think "getting too attached" is the same as "seeing pleo as more than just a robot", and I don't think you've provided any evidence that either of these to behaviors causes less human interation.

To me Pleo is great and simulates some of the features of a pet, but never comes close to what a real pet delivers, as Pleos features are programmed into it to respond, So your not really making him happy at all, but responding to a set of program actions, so is a great illusion.

To summarize your 2nd paragraph, you see pleo as a purely programmed robot that creates the illusion of being real.  I think most of us will agree that is the intent of pleo, and that it does this.

So society is becoming unbalanced and moving away from Human interaction, due to techology and losing what it is to being a human and becoming more like robots ourselves.

I don't see any connection from your comment of paragraph 2 and this assumption.  Society may well becoming unbalanced, but what proof do you have?  And how does this relate to how we see or treat pleo?  I would also contend that I see many articles claiming that social technology is bringing people closer together and creating more human interaction.  

There are many written reports on this and how techology is robbing us of being human.

Again, how is realism in robotics causing this?  And I'd like to see references to even a couple of these articles.  The one you list below is a blog (someone's opinion) and it deal with losing human interaction, and not being less human.  These are two VERY different issues.

Pleo is great, but I play with mine for awhile and it's like an actor, plays a part on the movie, and knows he is playing a part, off the set and is no longer the actor, but a real person. Playing with Pleo, should be like the actor, act with Pleo, but know he is not real, so no attainment to him, after all he is not a real pet, so like an actor, act with him, turn him off and your not acting any more and back to the real world, sure nothing wrong with playing with pleo and imagining and play acting like the actor, but you also have to come back to being a real person.

To summarize, to you playing with a pleo is just like playing with any other Barbie doll, Transformer action figure, or stuffed animal.

Seems many do not come out of the acting stage with Pleo and sets a bad example of de humanising people and only end up being able to relate to something not real. it is not good for us, or society as a whole, so how about seeing this as a threat and a good old debate.

Again, how does "not coming out of the acting stage" have anything to do with dehumanizing people?  And how does this cause people to only be able to relate to non-real things?  These are two separate issues we can discuss as well.  

First off, how is this behavior any different than any other type of fantasizing?   Is feeling this way some how different than any other non-robotic, non-real object like a stuffed animal or doll?  Or believing in Santa Claus or some other non-real creature?  What about other living creatures?  You have commented about people dressing their dogs.  Is their personifying their living pet any different when it comes to dehumanizing and causing the inability to relate to others?  And the we need to discuss if this behavior IS bad or not.  I would also contend a good imagination is a key to advancing and promoting society.

Then we have the whole presumption that technology is responsible for causing these problems.  Is technology causing less human interaction.  And are you talking less physical human-to-human contact?  I mean, thanks to technology I sure interact with more people and more frequently.  So there's the inherent issue you're stating is BAD that we need to discuss as well.  What is human interaction, does technology enable or inhibit human interaction, and is this good or bad.  I would claim technology enhances human interaction and this is good, so your whole argument doesn't apply.

[denodan]

http://yourlife.usatoday.com/mind-soul/story/2012-03-26/Technology-can-push-our-crazy-buttons-rewire-brains/53792424/1

This can also apply to Pleo? Would I be correct, the more obsessive, Pleo Owners would be woman? As woman react much differently then men, due to a womans natural motherly instincts.

Techology is a good aid, and helpful, yes I agree, but it can also become an addiction and Obession, just look at our kids with cellphones to see how society is going, not healthy for us.


And in the Baby RB video the it was mentioned these dolls where a replacement of some emotional void in their lives, and see a good example how some of these people have become obsessive with the techology, and it's not healthy, even in the Pleo community. I feel many here maybe allready Obsessed over pleo, and causes more obsession than a normal pet would often receive, sure some people do get obsessed over their pets, but with Pleo the feelings would be stronger and no owner would admit to Pleo becoming an obsession in their lives, because they cannot see it as an obsession.

[InmemoryofRomeo]

Please provide evidence of people here neglecting their pets over a Pleo. Once again you have resorted to personal attacks in order to 'prove' your point.

I have seven Pleo's, two robot dogs and one robot guinea pig. I also have a healthy and happy Shar Pei, two happy fat cats and one very happy bird. There is no one here who would neglect their real animals for a Pleo and many of us here do own real animals AS WELL AS Pleo.

As for human interaction, I am a teacher, I deal with people on a personal level each and every day. I consider myself a well rounded person.


I direct you to the following articles which I suggest you read:

http://psychology.about.com/od/theoriesofpersonality/a/hierarchyneeds.htm
http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/jbp/is/2004/00000005/00000002/art00001
http://www.aaai.org/Papers/Symposia/Fall/2002/FS-02-03/FS02-03-015.pdf
http://rstb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/362/1480/679

[RedwoodsMama]

 Thank you IMR for stating what I wanted to state, NObody can deny that you are an avid animal lover and you certainly do not obcess over Pleos, robots etc and are very involved with people, look at all the help you have given on this site and you are also one of the moderators. As for myself, I would never choose a robot over any animal, dog, cat, rabbit, rat, fish, etc, I even protect worms, pick them up off the sidewalk so they do not get stepped on, If I am obcessed with anything it is animals, not robots.

         I probably have more pleos than anyone on this site, with Crewella pretty close behind me, she won't reveal her number... I do not have any aibos, can not afford them but have 25 Pleos, (21 Ugobes, 1 prototype similiar to 2009 version, and 3 pleo Rb.) As for live animals, I have eight cats, ( one just died in October ) one dog, three fish, a husband, two children and two grandchildren. I  also take care of between five- seven outside homeless cats that I feed, rain or shine, whether I just had a foot operation on crutches, I still feed them regardless even if it is 11:00 pm. They eat before I do. I also took care of a colony of 24 feral and semi feral cats and kittens and all were either relocated to a farm nearby where they can live out there lives, or were socialized enough to be adopted, (9 kittens, and I took home 2 of them and my friend took one who was only 2 1/2 weeks old..) I have been working since 1972 my first full time job on my own in a hospital, Since then I have worked teaching, in hospitals as a nurse's aide, home health care worker, computer instructor for Easter Seals, a Special Needs Camp Director, in a fish packing plant, as a model( when I was 18-22) an apt manager, and many other jobs, I currently am self employed since hurting my back on the job in 1999, and am looking to go back to work as a pet sitter. Don't ever tell me that PLEOS come before Animals,

              My cat who was 15 1/2 years old just died, having to be euthanzied because of fluid in her lungs, secondary to a pulmonary embolism and kidney disease, I would have thrown out given away every single Pleo I have to keep her alive, ( but only as a healthy cat, not just because I miss her.. ) I would have had my hand or arm cut off to save her life, and that is no exageration, my husband can vouch for that and I think he feels the same way, I have had animals my whole life and love them more than anything except my own children, so do not EVER say a Pleo is more important than a LIVE breathing animal, Just because I like my pleos, collect them sell their batteries and dress them up, it is a hobby and I enjoy them, I have not a lot of enjoyment in my life except for my animals and a few lessor things and that includes talking to the people on this forum that I would be lost without, but Pleos are never going to replace my animals, If I could not have a pet, then they would indeed mean a lot more, and there is nothing wrong with that, At least it is a healthy non threatening hobby. Not everyone wants to interact with people. People can be very mean to others and there are people out there who are child abusers, and wife beaters, I have seen and experiecned both, so that is what I think about it. You can say what you want about Pleos, but do not ever say that Pleos replace MY animals.  Ok, got that off my chest.........   RWM      

[denodan]

With that many Pleos, I would say it is more than a hobby, but an obsession.

[RedwoodsMama]

 No it is not an obcession, I allso have over 1,000 children's books, over 35 Breyer and Hartland collectibles, over 2,500 Baseball cards, and many other items, I like to collect things I enjoy, You should see how many DVD and esp VHS movies I have, The thing with Pleos is not only do I like them, but they are also worth money so the ones I am not as attached to, such as Nova and my RB, ARgyle my blind Pleo, Major Tom my second Pleo, are ones that I can sell if I ever need to, I also sell the batteries for them, that is strictly because I need the money, since I hurt my back and have not worked for anyone since 2000 except for myself on ebay. I have at this point only adopted out six Pleos, but If I ever have to because of MOney or if I had a sick cat and had a huge vet bill, I would have no hesitation to sell one of my Pleos. You do not see me play with 25 pleos at one time, mostly never more than five and occasionaly nine for a video. I got them because they were good deals, I also love to repaint them and that is a hobby, I love Pleos but I am not obcessed or I would buy every single one that came out on ebay, but I don't.

            If I am obcessed with anything it is CATS and that I will admit to, but there is nothing wrong with that, I collect cat books cat figurines, anything cats, I have at least five big boxes of just cat books, and four to five more of stuffed cats, cat figurines, Garfiled phones, but they are also worth money and everything I collect is worth something, I even have a collection of Gunsmoke memorbilia and autographs, I collect many many things, My husband says I am a hoarder cause I have so much stuff, so you can't say I am obcessed with Pleos or there would be nothing else, I also love to photograph and video tape everyday almost. I have used up most of the space on my computer because of videos and photos I take constantly, I take my camera everywhere I go...............so where do you start with obcessions now.. not pleo with only 25!                  RWM            Oh, I also collect Native American items but since I am of Blackfoot heritage that is part of my pride and you can't make any negative comments on that. In other words I like lots of stuff            Oh, one more thing I just thought of.. what makes an obcession, is it the number, I only have 25 Pleos, but a lot more cat collectibles, clothes, horses, baseball collections, stamps, books, etc. The pleo number is low compared to the rest and certainly not the most expensive.

[RedwoodsMama]

  
 dONT GET ME STARTED. I ( the defintion of obsessed is at the very bottom so read what is says...)

                                 I suggest you read the definition of obsession before you label people . I have 25 pleos, but many other items too, An obsession means that you have to have that item spend all your time and thoughs about that item . The closest I ever came to obsessing over anything was a romantic relationship, where you live for the person and can think of nothing else. Belive me, Pleos are anything but a obsession. I can go days or weeks with out touching or even turning on a pleo.
 I just do not have the time. I also have chronic back pain and have a hard enough time doing my daily chores around the house.
  To me it sounds more like you are obsessed with the idea of "being right", Is that fair or am I obsessing now...? That would not be a correct assumption either would it. ? Please get your facts correct

 and if you do not KNOW the person or circumstance, do not guess. I would much rather be obsessed over cats then Pleos. CAts are cute, love warm animals and they give love that is unconditional. Pleos are fun as a hobby.

I have lots of hobbies and Pleos just happen to be one of them, I think I will  post photos of all my hobbies then you will feel pretty silly saying Pleos are an obcession
when you see all the other stuff I collect.   My husband would rather be obcessed with money, but he isn't  ,he is obsessed with art though being a stained glass aritist. He also loves fishing and he has a
 a whole room full of fishing rods, reels and boxes of lures and fly tying stuff.                                                          http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=obsession

[mweed]

I read the USA Today article you posted denodan.  Actually a decent article, but  I'm not sure it supports your argument.  It does clearly state that for a small portion of the population technology can be like an addiction, and that technology is changing the way our brains work.  But the last few paragraphs are very careful to  point out "Both the Internet and mobile revolution have, generally speaking, changed our lives for the better. Anything that makes people more connected at a lower cost with greater global reach enhances our lives."  Yes, the article agrees with your point that "technology has made us a little lazier in keeping up, and working on strong relationships" and "if it interferes with you having social relationships, then it is a problem".  I actually agree with you on this.  I'm just still not clear where "obsessing" over your pleos means you're ignoring your social relationships or equates to your original statement that it is de-humanizing people.  Sure, for some people who obsess it will impact their ability to interact with other people.  But that's doesn't mean it has anything to do with technology, but with the nature of "obsession".

just look at our kids with cellphones to see how society is going, not healthy for us.

I personally agree that the way society is going is not healthy for us, but who's to say technology is to blame.  If you want to start a real argument, all you have to do is blame the decline in society on religion:  II Timothy 3:1-5,7 "But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come.  For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of god; holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth."

Something else that I noted in the article, "There's good evidence the feedback we get from technology — the retweets and bings and pings that come out of the phone every time somebody sends us a text message — create a reward system in the brain that gives us a little squirt of dopamine each time."  This documentary Happy claims that it is critically important to maintain that flow of dopamine in order to maintain brain functionality. And that if you want to maintain your mental health well into your latter life it is important to seek out those activities that give you those squirts of dopamine on a daily basis, and those people that get them are happier and more well adjusted, and result in developing a better society.

[Denver2]

I would like if I may speak in this debate. First, I apologize to you all for my English.
I have lots of animals, dogs, horses and donkeys that love you so much and never trascurerei to care for a robot. I like this because I have a passion for Pleo robots, I like to be able to interact with them. These days, two of my dogs are sick and my Pleo is in its box, because I have more important things to do. I take this opportunity to tell RWM I'm sorry for the loss of his beloved cat..........Denver2

[denodan]

Something else that I noted in the article, "There's good evidence the feedback we get from technology — the retweets and bings and pings that come out of the phone every time somebody sends us a text message — create a reward system in the brain that gives us a little squirt of dopamine each time."  This documentary Happy claims that it is critically important to maintain that flow of dopamine in order to maintain brain functionality. And that if you want to maintain your mental health well into your latter life it is important to seek out those activities that give you those squirts of dopamine on a daily basis, and those people that get them are happier and more well adjusted, and result in developing a better society.


Which is why Cellphones get addictive to many. Pleo can do the same unlike a real animal Pleo is programmed to always give the same result, when you pet and pat him, so can see how he can be more addictive then a real pet he could be, always obedant etc, always happy if patted. A real pet is not predictable like Pleo, so can be harder to please a real pet, whereas Pleo has been programmed to always respond and may well give us more of a shot of dopamine causing people to get more addicited to Pleo over a real pet. I just think with technology you got to know when to turn off and balance your life.

I have grown up with Technology, love Robots, my whole house has a lot of technology, Xbox360, PS3, ipad, 3DTV, the list goes on, but know when to turn off and not get me hooked, so don't let it take charge of me.

I think Pleo is the best Artificial Pet out there, the technology. I do love my Pleo, but still see him as a robot, and a pet, but know when to turn off so to speak, and will never ever replace a cat or dog, he has just to limited, as yet interactivity to pass of like the real thing. He is better then the old Pleo, but still very limited and a limited amount of moves.

They do need to program much more into him, and do totally random things each day, face recogntion is a must, and needs to be included with Pleo.

This could mean he could read your emotions, etc and see you and greet you, so he for example sees you, stops, you call his name and he recognises it, rather than having to press sensors, so unlife like. Think Pleo still has a long way to go to take the place of a real pet.

We have a cat, but Pleo can never come close to the real thing, sure when your cat dies can never replace him, but you can get a new one, that's life.

It was also claimed the older Pleo changed also over time, but never seen the evidence? after a certian time he always does the same things, so his interactive was limited.

I actually got bored with the older Pleo, lack of interaction and repeated moves, I found him boring after awhile, and may do with RB Pleo, but the Stones and foods give some more interactivity and to keep Pleo alive and sell more he will need more interactivity, in the interviews they had, People realised the old Pleo you could only do so much and got bored, so they need to keep advancing Pleo if he is to stay around else people will get bored of him.

There is a mention of more stones, etc, they need this to keep Pleo alive and sell more, afterall if he has limited moves and interactivity People will get bored with Pleo.

[InmemoryofRomeo]

This could mean he could read your emotions, etc and see you and greet you, so he for example sees you, stops, you call his name and he recognises it, rather than having to press sensors, so unlife like. Think Pleo still has a long way to go to take the place of a real pet.

We have a cat, but Pleo can never come close to the real thing, sure when your cat dies can never replace him, but you can get a new one, that's life.

It was also claimed the older Pleo changed also over time, but never seen the evidence? after a certian time he always does the same things, so his interactive was limited

Well, I do believe that's the most sensible thing you've ever said on here and I don't believe anyone here believes there Pleo is a real pet. However, for some people who can't have a real animal due to location, allergies or other circumstance Pleo does make a pretty good substitute. It doesn't make those people obsessive, it doesn't make them stupid, it doesn't make them any less important than anyone else. But if it gives them a little pleasure and makes their day a little brighter then that is all that matters.

Surely happier people can give a lot more to society than someone who is lonely, depressed or just in need of cheering up.

(And yes, the original Pleo's had very, very limited 'growth' in personality)

[Crewella]

As I have a houseful of cats that ignore me when I call, I've never much minded the lack of voice or face recognition in the original Pleos. 

It seems to me that we all react to out Pleos in different ways, and though the programming might be a fixed given, the way we interact with them varies enormously, to the extent that we have many 'my Pleo does this/doesn't do this' conversations on here.  Some are interested in the mechanics, some in the programming, some like it as a toy and some as a companion or a pet.  For those that like them at face value, as a pet, does it actually count as 'technology'?  Does it matter whether a robot, a doll, or a pet sparks a feeling of empathy and affection? 

To me, technology is just a tool after all, not necessarily a subject in itself - the manufacturing of such 'tools' does form a subject, but the uses are so varied that the only people who seem to regularly have this debate are the 'techies' themselves, who often don't seem to be able to get beyond the 'how' of it?

*spoken as a true Luddite*

[degers]

Getting attached to Pleo is a bad thing.


My wallet now hates me.

[InmemoryofRomeo]

You didn't?

[Mystearika]

My rats and the family dog will always be more important and loved than my pleo, but i still see the pleo as a form of companion. when i am drawing i turn him on instead of the tv, he is much more fun to watch. and i can't concentrate when it is too quiet.

If it was him or the rats i will chose my beloved rats, but if for a reason pets was out of the question as with allergies. A pleo would be a acceptable replacement. it is a lot better than nothing. 

[degers]

No, but it was a close call!  I think I'm just missing Arty, who is in the capable hands of Crewella

[InmemoryofRomeo]

Awww He's in good hands

[degers]

Sometimes I wonder....

[Crewella]

Heheheh ....... 

[pirpintine]

reading this thread just made my brain hurt.
As far as I can even begin to ascertain, you believe we are all obsessed with pleo here, because that's what we talk about on here... a pleo centric forum.

we are under no disillusion that pleo is some kind of super smart living creature, we know it's a robot.. one designed to give an emotional response in people.. and that's what it's doing.

You've seen full well that many of us on here have pets, and families and friends and we're not locking ourselves away in a dark cupboard playing with a thousand pleos and not talking to another human being.

Most posts I see made by you on here seem nothing more than jabs at people who have imaginations.

Heaven forfend we have bouts of whimsy in our lives. However will society cope.

[DinosaurGirl]

You keep comparing pleo to a cellphone. Pleo isn't like that, it's made for people who don't have pets that are allergic. But it's supposed to react like a real pet for this reason. but most of us have pets but have a pleo. I mean we play with our dogs and cats but that doesn't "dehumanize" us. It makes us happy and relaxed. That is the same with pleo. They want people to feel as if it was a real animal. We all know it's preprogrammed but it's supposed to spark emotion. And honestly, no matter what you say about it,your not changing anyone's mind. We may not change yours either, but you don't come on a pleo forum and say that. Especially since you've done it before. you're just going to stir up a pot of disaster with a side of angry pleo owners. Especially a forum full.


   ~Dino~