Reply-to: psf@npac.syr.edu To: Lola216431@aol.com, Minty301@aol.com, slcha@ibm.net, Espernator@aol.com, Ayabean@aol.com, Angietoys@aol.com, swedon@juno.com, Knowenuf@aol.com, PL1103@aol.com, Frezzja@aol.com, nautica8vx@aol.com, Dertbike98@aol.com, Nora21@aol.com Date: Mon, 22 Jun 1998 20:59:31 -0400 From: Pamela Fox Pamela Fox psf@npac.syr.edu, http://www.npac.syr.edu http://www.npac.syr.edu/users/gcf/homepage/pamhomepage.html http://www.npac.syr.edu/users/gcf/familyphotos/summary0.html Phone 3156827945 Fax 3156823581(when computer offline) ------- Forwarded Message Date: Mon, 22 Jun 1998 16:01:44 +1000 From: Nick Moraitis To: tcn-list@worldkids.net Subject: TCN: [Fwd: Filtering software that talks back] This is a multi-part message in MIME format. - --------------F1387D303F7D6065AF8D4680 Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary="------------11ACA2D674E8B695F5A1 CE72" - --------------11ACA2D674E8B695F5A1CE72 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit [You are receiving this after signing up for membership in TCN at http://www.tcn.ml.org/membership. To get any help about TCN activities please e-mail help@tcn.m.org] ******************************************************* Hi Everyone, the TCN newsletter hasn't come out yet this month (strange strange, yes, I know -- I'll follow it up). Thought you might be interested in this little thing I was sent: A program called "Secret Writer's Society" was designed by its manufacturer to help kids learn to write, by reading back to them the words that they had written. Panasonic Interactive Media, the maker of the program, equipped the program with a built-in filter to prevent it from reciting back dirty words that the user might have typed into their text. According to a parents' group that tested the software, the filtering function backfired, and when the user's computer runs low on memory, the program's "voice" taps into the built-in archive of foul language and starts swearing at the child. "It's got a very expresive vocabulary," said one of the parents. In an article in yesterday's (June 17) Wall Street Journal, entitled "Honest, Mom, I Don't Even Know What Those @#$%& Words Mean", Panasonic marketing manager Karl Gibbs was quoted as saying: "It's a bad thing if some child is sitting at the computer and all of the sudden it starts swearing at you." Panasonic says the bug exists only on Macintosh versions and has promised to replace flawed copies of the software. - -- _______________________ nick moraitis president teenage computer network web = http://www.tcn.ml.org email = nick@worldkids.net - --------------11ACA2D674E8B695F5A1CE72 Content-Type: text/html; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit [You are receiving this after signing up for membership in TCN at
http://www .tcn.ml.org/membership. To get any help about TCN activities
please e-mail help@tcn.m.org]

****************************************************** *
Hi Everyone,

the TCN newsletter hasn't come out yet this month (strange strange, yes, I know -- I'll follow it up).
Thought you might be interested in this little thing I was sent:

A program called "Secret Writer's Society" was designed by its manufacturer
to help kids learn to write, by reading back to them the words that they
had written. Panasonic Interactive Media, the maker of the program,
equipped the program with a built-in filter to prevent it from reciting
back dirty words that the user might have typed into their text.

According to a parents' group that tested the software, the filtering
function backfired, and when the user's computer runs low on memory, the
program's "voice" taps into the built-in archive of foul language and
starts swearing at the child.

"It's got a very expresive vocabulary," said one of the parents.

In an article in yesterday's (June 17) Wall Street Journal, entitled
"Honest, Mom, I Don't Even Know What Those @#$%& Words Mean", Panasonic
marketing manager Karl Gibbs was quoted as saying:

"It's a bad thing if some child is sitting at the computer and all of the
sudden it starts swearing at you."

Panasonic says the bug exists only on Macintosh versions and has promised
to replace flawed copies of the software.

--
           ______________ _________
            nick moraitis
            president
            teenage computer network
            web = http://www.tcn.ml.org
            email = nick@worldkids.net

- --------------11ACA2D674E8B695F5A1CE72-- - --------------F1387D303F7D6065AF8D4680 Content-Type: message/rfc822 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Disposition: inline Return-Path: owner-peacefire-broadcast@vorlon.mit.edu Received: from vorlon.mit.edu (VORLON.MIT.EDU [18.238.0.139]) by darth.netcon.n et.au (8.8.8/8.7.3) with ESMTP id JAA28187 for ; Fri, 1 9 Jun 1998 09:03:10 +1000 Received: from localhost (bin@localhost) by vorlon.mit.edu (8.8.8/8.8.8) with SMTP id SAA28495; Thu, 18 Jun 1998 18:55:04 -0400 Received: by vorlon.mit.edu (bulk_mailer v1.5); Thu, 18 Jun 1998 18:34:29 -0400 Received: (from majordomo@localhost) by vorlon.mit.edu (8.8.8/8.8.8) id SAA27988 ; Thu, 18 Jun 1998 18:34:29 -0400 Date: Thu, 18 Jun 1998 18:34:29 -0400 Message-Id: <199806182234.SAA27988@vorlon.mit.edu> From: bennett@peacefire.org To: peacefire-broadcast@vorlon.mit.edu Subject: Filtering software that talks back Sender: owner-peacefire-broadcast@vorlon.mit.edu X-Loop: peacefire-broadcast@vorlon.mit.edu [You are receiving this after signing up for membership in Peacefire at http://www.peacefire.org/join/. To unsubscribe yourself from this list and cancel your Peacefire membership, see unsubscription instructions at the end of this message.] ******************************************************* A program called "Secret Writer's Society" was designed by its manufacturer to help kids learn to write, by reading back to them the words that they had written. Panasonic Interactive Media, the maker of the program, equipped the program with a built-in filter to prevent it from reciting back dirty words that the user might have typed into their text. According to a parents' group that tested the software, the filtering function backfired, and when the user's computer runs low on memory, the program's "voice" taps into the built-in archive of foul language and starts swearing at the child. "It's got a very expresive vocabulary," said one of the parents. In an article in yesterday's (June 17) Wall Street Journal, entitled "Honest, Mom, I Don't Even Know What Those @#$%& Words Mean", Panasonic marketing manager Karl Gibbs was quoted as saying: "It's a bad thing if some child is sitting at the computer and all of the sudden it starts swearing at you." Panasonic says the bug exists only on Macintosh versions and has promised to replace flawed copies of the software. - --- To leave Peacefire and unsubscribe yourself from this list, send a message to "majordomo@vorlon.mit.edu" with the message body: unsubscribe peacefire-broadcast Please note that the only requirement for being a member of Peacefire is to remain subscribed to peacefire-broadcast, but if you unsubscribe from this list you will no longer be a member. bennett@peacefire.org http://www.peacefire.org - --------------F1387D303F7D6065AF8D4680-- ------- End of Forwarded Message