General RPG DiscussionDiscussion of all RPGs and non-system-specific topics. DM/GM/player issues, settings, etc. Rules discussion belongs in one the forums below.
"Dr. Dobbs reports that Alex Waibel, professor of computer science and language technologies at Carnegie Mellon University, has developed an iPhone application that turns the iPhone into a translator that converts English speech into Spanish, or vice versa. Users simply speak a sentence or two at a time into the iPhone and the iPhone will respond with an audible translation. 'Jibbigo's software runs on the iPhone itself, so it doesn't need to be connected to the Web to access a distant server,' says Waibel. Waibel is an leader in speech-to-speech translation and multimodal speech interfaces, creating the first real-time, speech-to-speech translator for English, German and Japanese. 'Automated speech translation is an expensive proposition that has been supported primarily by large government grants,' says Waibel. 'But our sponsors are impatient to see this technology become more widely available and we, as researchers, are eager to find new revenues that will help us extend this technology to more of the 6,000 languages now spoken worldwide.'"
Just remember this the next time you're playing a cyberpunk or sci-fi game. There's practically no reason to put skill points into other languages, since any decent cell phone will probably be able to translate a dozen languages at least.
I need to reread the rules for Eclipse Phase to see if they bother with languages.
__________________ Ryan "RangerWickett" Nock
Author of the War of the Burning Sky serialized novel, free at EN World. Part Two, The Irons Have Tolled, now available.
[/i]Just remember this the next time you're playing a cyberpunk or sci-fi game. There's practically no reason to put skill points into other languages, since any decent cell phone will probably be able to translate a dozen languages at least.
I need to reread the rules for Eclipse Phase to see if they bother with languages.
Spoken like a tourist.
Speaking the language on the ground, preferably like a native, is always more useful then even the best translator.
__________________ We can lick gravity, but sometimes the paperwork is overwhelming. - Werner von Braun
Right now you have no idea how lucky you are that I am not a sociopath. - A sign seen above my desk.
Never confuse movement with action. - Ernest Hemingway
Speaking the language on the ground, preferably like a native, is always more useful then even the best translator.
Agreed. Go to babelfish and ask it to translate something into a language you speak. You'll probably be horrified.
Even if the translation is very good, there is no way it can capture things like nuance and humour which are often language specific. Japanese for example contains a truckload of homonyms and they love to make puns useing them. You'll never get that from a translator app.
EDIT: But yeah, tech is getting crazy cool. ^^
__________________ -Andor
"Congratulations. You just invented 'negligent regicide.'" - Schlock Mercenary
Just remember this the next time you're playing a cyberpunk or sci-fi game.
Because, we all know that when you're under automatic weapons fire, and you need to get the tactical plan across to your allies-of-the-moment, what you want to have to do is whip out your cell phone.
Because, we all know that when you're under automatic weapons fire, and you need to get the tactical plan across to your allies-of-the-moment, what you want to have to do is whip out your cell phone.
C'mon... It's cyberpunk! Everyone has their cell phone surgically implanted in their cheeks!
__________________ -Andor
"Congratulations. You just invented 'negligent regicide.'" - Schlock Mercenary
C'mon... It's cyberpunk! Everyone has their cell phone surgically implanted in their cheeks!
but it muffles incoming calls when you'e sitting...
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Into the Land of Black Ice (retired) - An arctic PbP adventure in the mysterious frozen lands of Oerth
Penance of the Damned (retired) - A planar chat-based game, set in Hades, where the PCs began as larvae
Beneath the Pinnacles of Azor'alq (retired) - A mid-level PbP campaign set within the Dramidj Ocean Heirs of Turucambi - An entry-level chat-based game set within the waters of Turucambi Reef in the Oljatt Sea Nature of the Beast (in design) - A sylvan adventure where the adventurers are forest animals.
I'd actually prefer, for novelty's sake, ocular implants that put subtitles over my vision, instead of acoustically translating.
__________________ Ryan "RangerWickett" Nock
Author of the War of the Burning Sky serialized novel, free at EN World. Part Two, The Irons Have Tolled, now available.
I'd actually prefer, for novelty's sake, ocular implants that put subtitles over my vision, instead of acoustically translating.
Too distracting. You would be unable to monitor body language simultaneously and therefore lose information. The fact that human "language" is actually so multi-modal is why it's so rich.
[/i]Just remember this the next time you're playing a cyberpunk or sci-fi game. There's practically no reason to put skill points into other languages, since any decent cell phone will probably be able to translate a dozen languages at least.
Sure. One sentence at a time. Have you ever transcribed normal speech? It doesn't work that way. I figure we can dispense with learning other languages about the time we are able to get computers to write translation software and create passable jokes and poetry.
__________________ Ryan "RangerWickett" Nock
Author of the War of the Burning Sky serialized novel, free at EN World. Part Two, The Irons Have Tolled, now available.
Because, we all know that when you're under automatic weapons fire, and you need to get the tactical plan across to your allies-of-the-moment, what you want to have to do is whip out your cell phone.
If they don't understand what you're saying...shoot LOUDER!
Seriously, if you're in a sci-fi game, any tech we have today can be projected to an advanced/robust/smaller version tomorrow.
the fact that an iPhone translator app is coming out, means that in a future game, it is easily justifable that a better version of that technology will exist.
Your bluetooth in-ear monitors will automatically supprese noises that are too loud (exactly why IEMs are used by rock bands) and mix in the correct level of ambient sound you need, including replacing the alien's speech with the translated version.
Each element of what I just said exists today. And the technology to do so will get even smaller and faster. So all it has to do is be merged together as the OP indicates it is starting to begin.
When I started my career as a professional translator about twelve years ago, a lot of my colleagues were worried about the impact of machine translation on the profession. It soon became clear, though, that there's nothing to worry about at the moment. Language is too complex and contains too many subtleties and variations for the computers we have now to replace human translators. It's like asking a machine to think. Sure it may be possible some time in the future, but it will require a major breakthrough first.
Another problem is speech recognition. I've spent a lot of time trying to attune my speech recognition software to my voice, and it's still nowhere near perfect. It's OK for simple words and commands, but anything like a sentence spoken at your normal speed of conversation generally gives hilarious results.
Combine the two, and your DM won't even have to come up with any enemies for you to fight: you'll be arguing and fighting with your allies instead.
__________________ Old gamers never say die. They say 1d20.
If they don't understand what you're saying...shoot LOUDER!
*snrk!*
Quote:
Each element of what I just said exists today. And the technology to do so will get even smaller and faster. So all it has to do is be merged together as the OP indicates it is starting to begin.
The technology to emit electromagnetic pulses that fry electronics also exists today, and will be made smaller. Thus, reliance on electronics in high-stress, violence-prone situations is... a strategy of dubious wisdom.
I think that sort of tech will be a boon for business, but not so much for the stuff that happens in most RPGs.
*snrk!*
The technology to emit electromagnetic pulses that fry electronics also exists today, and will be made smaller. Thus, reliance on electronics in high-stress, violence-prone situations is... a strategy of dubious wisdom.
There is also technology to protect and harden electronics from that vulnerability, which also continues to improve.
For different reasons, I still agree that fighters need to be prepared to operate without the handy gizmos.
Location: “Over the Hills and Far Away” - (TDY in Florida - "Home" is Michigan)
Posts: 1,547
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hadrian the Builder
There is also technology to protect and harden electronics from that vulnerability, which also continues to improve.
Yup. Shielding materials, diode boxes, and not so much for EMP - but Radio Frequency Filters.
I could see miniaturized versions of diode boxes and RF filters, and materials science developing better shielding materials - possibly even active shielding like your own personal magnetic field/shield (just like the Earth).
__________________ Mark "El Mahdi" Armstrong - Semper Operor Verus
". . . after all, that is why we're here. Kill the last bad guy and then there's cake." - Major General Jack O'Neal
"Don't Just Do It, Just Do It Right!"
"Right, without Reason, is unmitigated Foolishness."
"If you make a mistake, Acknowledge It, then make it Right."
Location: “Over the Hills and Far Away” - (TDY in Florida - "Home" is Michigan)
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Umbran
Historically, defense always lags offense. It is easier to break something than it is to protect the thing from breaking.
So true.
Like with the aforementioned EM problem, such defense is common in military systems, but virtually unknown in civilian systems. Pretty much everything we use today has some form of electronics in it, and every single one of them is vulnerable to EM and large RF signals. That's what made the show Jericho so interesting.
As with so many things, it seems it takes some kind of problem or disaster to prove the need for something before the expenditure is considered worth it.
In a future, cyber punk type setting, I'd probably make the assumption that such events have happened, and as a result, all electronics have some kind of protection built into them. But there will more than likely, always be a difference between civilian and military grade hardware.
__________________ Mark "El Mahdi" Armstrong - Semper Operor Verus
". . . after all, that is why we're here. Kill the last bad guy and then there's cake." - Major General Jack O'Neal
"Don't Just Do It, Just Do It Right!"
"Right, without Reason, is unmitigated Foolishness."
"If you make a mistake, Acknowledge It, then make it Right."
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