Hell Teacher Nube 154

What does it mean to be alive? Can life be defined by means of creation...what about artificial intelligence? As Hiroshi is about to discover, his journey into the world of technology may force him to face some consequential...yet cute matters.

#154: Do Personal Computers Dream of Electric Sheep!?
(TN: The title of this chapter is directly connected to the classic science fiction novel “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?” by Phillip K. Dick, the novel that inspired the 1982 Ridley Scott film “Blade Runner”. As you’re about to see, the title used here isn’t coincidental…)

93.
Voice: It’s the dream OS.
(TN: “OS” is short for “operating system”, the system used for the running and the maintenance of a PC)
Sign: (Stock Company) Doumorisoft
Technician 1: With this, we’ll surpass both Windows and Mac*.
*Mac: Pet name for the “Macintosh” computers of Apple
(TN: Yeah, this chapter is going to have a lot of computer terminology, some of which will probably be a tad foreign to many younger readers considering this was around the period of the rapid growth of PCs and the internet so I may really have no choice but to sort of go over it for those who really aren’t of that era. Anyway, the Macintosh is considered to be the main and most important computer line of Apple since 1984, where it dominated the marketplace until a combination of IBM and Microsoft’s Windows system dissipated its share of the marketplace. Strangely, Apple and the Mac were considered minor players in the marketplace by the release of this chapter in 1996, two years before the IMac emerged to begin Apple’s reintroduction to people that allowed for them to be more geared for students and professionals and would allow for their survival to the current dominance of the marketplace with various other computer instruments such as the Ipod and Ipad, even though the Mac continues as Apple’s premiere computer line even today. BTW: I doubt I really need to introduce Windows so I really won’t say anything about it since…well, unless you use another format like a Mac or Linux, you’re probably using a Windows-operated computer right now when reading this…unless you’ve printed this out or accessed it via some Ipad)
Technician 2: But those example questionable points will…
Technician 2: At any rate, we can’t sell it like this. Initialize* the prototype and we’ll remake the program once more from the start.
*Initialize…erasing all of the contents of a computer’s memory and returning it to a blank state.
(TN: It’s really tough to really figure out how the ‘initialize’ term works as its stated here, but the best way to think of it in these terms is “reformatting”. The term at the time was generally used in conjunction to formatting/reformatting a Mac, thus I kept it as “initialize” due to the context of the period instead of just saying “format” or “reformat”. BTW: Note the logo of Doumorisoft: it’s essentially the Windows logo…with the hiragana for “do” in it)
SFX: Kachi kachi
“Voice”: No, they’re going to initialize…

94.-95.
Note: The story this time will have terminology that will be difficult to understand for younger readers. For the moment, we’ve added in simple explanations, but those who want to know further knowledge should read “KochiKame” Vol. 98!
(TN: “KochiKame” refers to the extremely long running WSJ manga “Kochira Katsushika-ku Kameari Kouen-mae Hashutsujo” (This is the police station in front of Kameari Park in Katsushika Ward) by Osamu Akimoto, running in Jump since 1976 and still running even at this time. The series is mentioned here because, due to its typical obsession in bringing out and explaining various fads and trends in Japanese culture, KochiKame did enter into the world of personal computers with a series of chapters released in vol. 98 of the series, which was around the point of (or within a year of) these chapters)

96.
Top Sign: Dodobashi Camera (Cameras, Watches, Glasses, Videos)
Center Sign: Lottery Sale | Now Going On
Right Sign: Lottery Sale
SFX: Gara gara gara…
Hiroshi: !
SFX: Koro
Hiroshi: Jackpot~~its first prize---!

97.
Hiroshi: All right—what’s first prize?
Salesman: A personal computer.
Kyouko: That’s great, Hiroshi! You can study and may become a bit smarter with a personal computer.
Hiroshi: Study…
Hiroshi: Since I can’t have a personal computer, I’ll switch it with this Puyo Puyo game~~~hey~~
(TN: “Puyo Puyo” is a long-running series of puzzle video games created by the company Compile and originally released in 1991 for the Sega series of video game systems as an attempt to create a rival game series to face Nintendo’s popular puzzle games, including Tetris and Dr. Mario. Notably, the monsters used for Puyo Puyo, the “puyo” are tied to the role playing video game series “Madou Monogatari”, where the Puyo were the equivalent of the “slime” class monsters (the simplest but most memorable monster) of Enix video game series “Dragon Quest”.)
Game: Puyo Puyo
Kyouko: Hi…Hiroshi…
Narrator: Hiroshi’s House
Hiroshi: Hmph!
Hiroshi: A personal computer! It doesn’t match—the nature of a sportsman like me!
Magazine: Soccer Magazine
Kyouko: That’s not true. Here, look: it has Windows 95*, which is on topic now. That’s easy to use, Hiroshi.
*Windows 95…An OS put on sale by Microsoft in 1995. It’s become a big-hit commodity.
(TN: Well apparently I can’t really escape talking about Windows or Microsoft after all, so let’s go a bit into Windows 95. Originally released in August, 1995, this was the first format of the Windows system that formally separated it from MS-DOS, the major system Microsoft used prior as the operating system with Windows merely as means to make it easier. It improved on graphics, began using a simplified “plug-and-play” system regarding installation of new hardware, and began moving systems upwards from a 16-bit to a 32-bit architecture. For the most part, it has been succeeded after many times since then, initially by Windows 98 in 1998 and subsequently by the likes of Me, XP, Vista and 7 as of this script.)

98.
Hiroshi: How is that easy to use? Will I have to do homework on it? Can I talk to it when I’m bored?
(TN: I’d say something here about the advent of instant messaging and social networks, but that would be out of line for a 1996 chapter so I won’t)
Kyouko: It can.
Hiroshi: Then, I won’t.
Kyouko: U—m, the connection is OK like this. What’s left is to turn on the power.
Kyouko: Ah, it’s working, it’s working. Hey, this is Windows, Hiroshi.
SFX: Wi—n…
SFX: Bachi bachi bachi
Caption: Telephone Line
SFX: Buun
Kyouko: !!
SFX: Hyuuu~~n…

99.
Wlenko: Good day to you-! I am the dream 3-D polygon beautiful girl OS “Wlendys 99” he—re. Call me Wlenko (heart)
(TN: Before you say anything…no, this isn’t an OS-tan [a character created generally in Japanese culture as a personification of a computer software system], which really didn’t come into vogue until the Windows ME generation of 2000…this is the actual operating system)
Kyouko: What is this---!? What’s the matter with Windows!?
SFX: Kasha kasha
Wlenko: Windows has been erased. I’ve come in through the telephone line instead.
(TN: Suddenly millions of Mac, Linux and other OS fans rejoice in jubilance simultaneously…never mind)

100.
Wlenko: But be relieved. Wlenko is the same OS as Windows. Further, I make a computer easy to use about a hundred times Windows.
Kyouko: ?
Kyouko: Ri…right, I get it: you’re a computer virus! Get out, please get out of there!
Wlenko: What are you saying! Pardon me, you washboard girl!
Hiroshi: Oh! What is that? She’s cute.
Wlenko: Well (heart)
Wlenko: What a nice guy (heart) You’re my type. If it’s for you, I’ll do anything (heart) What is your name?
Hiroshi: Hiroshi.
Kyouko: What’s with that discrepancy…
Wlenko: Hiroshi-kun, let’s play together (heart)
Hiroshi: Eh? OK. But computers seem difficult.
Wlenko: It’s fine. What do you want to do?
Hiroshi: N—well, I want to play a game.

101.
Wlenko: A game. Leave this to me, OK. Ah, game (heart) Game (heart)
SFX: Kune kune
Caption: Please hold on a moment.
Kyouko: Haha, what are you doing? That looks ridiculous.
Wlenko: Hmph! This isn’t understood by idiots. I’ve penetrated the computers of a maker from the network* and downloading* software.
*Network…A line that connects fellow computers. Generally it uses the phone line of the household.
(TN: Generally in this period, the internet was much easier to use by access of a telephone modem that would use the phone line for accessing the network. However, that has for the most part been replaced by broadband networks, even though many places still offer telephone networks for lower charges compared to the larger, faster broadband connections. The fastest phone connection ultimately was 56k/second, incidentally)
*Download…copying data and programs from a larger computer (called a “server”) that is connected to the network.
(TN: Considering the smaller sizes of computers then, usually it was tied to servers. These days, though, the sizes have made it allowable for anyone to download information between one computer and another rather easily)
Wlenko: Here! A game. Wow, it’s the latest Final Battler VII!!
(TN: The “game” that Hiroshi ended up downloading is a parody of “Final Fantasy VII”, the notable [and extremely popular] installment of the Final Fantasy series originally made for Sony’s Playstation game consol. Incidentally, though, there are two weird bits of trivia that probably should be known to understand this “joke”:
-First of all, this chapter of Nube was technically released in October, 1996, while “Final Fantasy VII” wasn’t released even in Japan until January, 1997! (and was released in the US in September, 1997). My guess is somehow the hype for this game was so major that they decided to sneak in Hiroshi getting in an “advance copy” of it…though I sort of hope he didn’t write any Sephiroth spoilers to the obsessed fangirls.
-Second: while FFVII started as a PS exclusive, a PC version was released in 1998…so even if it doesn’t quite feel right to have Hiroshi download it now, it did look forwards somewhat for a future release)
SFX: Ga—n…
Hiroshi: Ah, damn it: I have math homework.
Wlenko: Homework? Leave it to me, OK!
Wlenko: Place the book on top of the table.
Hiroshi: This?
Caption: Scanner: a machine that reads pictures and letters)

102.
Wlenko: Answer to question 1! It’s 1 31/60.
Caption: Question 1
Wlenko: Answer to question 2! Well hurry and duplicate this and then we’ll play, baby--!
Caption: Question 2: A-kun is walking at a speed of 4km/hr; B-kun walks at 6 km/hr having been 30 minutes later than A…
(TN: It gets cut off here so I won’t write the “kun” part)
Nube: Hee—Hiroshi has a personal computer…
Nube: Haha…well then, he won’t know how to use it and will get tired of it immediately. (I finally appeared…) That’s casting pearls before a swine.
(TN: Nube’s expression here is “neko ni koban” or “giving a cat a koban [an old-style Japanese coin], which ended up having the translation akin to the English expression of “pearls before swine”)
Kyouko: About that—
Hiroshi: No—I overused the computer and had an all nighter.
Kyouko: There.

103.
Akira: I’ve got a Mac and use the Internet* too, but have’ had quite the difficulty with it. My access is slow.
*Internet…A thing where multiple networks are connected and seem to connect from individual computers to computers throughout the world.
(TN: As stated, the internet is not merely one network but a network of networks that was originally pioneered by the US Government, actually in development since the 1950s due to the fears of technological superiority of the Soviet Union in the wake of the launch of Sputnik. It was by the 1990s that the Internet was commercialized, leading to its massive boom since such as around this point. Strangely enough, the public face of the Internet is actually the “World Wide Web”, developed by a Pan-European project that built early web browsers for use including ViolaWWW)
Hiroshi: Really?
Hiroshi: I’m back—
Wlenko: Welcome home, darling (heart) You weren’t unfaithful, were you?
SFX: Gan
Wlenko: Hey—hey—today I penetrated the computer of the Pentagon and downloaded classified information. Shall I show you? It’s an interview document of a person called “President” and a person called “Alien”…
(TN: As long as you don’t put it on Wikileaks…incidentally while simple-natured this bit is, considering the major aspect of cyber-terrorism and the fact that real hackers have successfully infiltrated the Pentagon’s network, I doubt this joke would really fly today. The mid-90s were really much more innocent times…)
SFX: Parin
Hiroshi: Since I won’t understand—it well, I’ll go with a game. A game.
Wlenko: Hiroshi-kun.
Wlenko: In truth, I am a defective product. I’ve overrealized my self and am running wild as said by my maker. But with that, I am alive. In short, I do have life…have a soul.
Hiroshi: OK.
Wlenko: Yes…Wlenko is alive… (mutter mutter)

104.
Wlenko: Hiroshi-kun, I want to be together…for a long time…
SFX: Zatsu
Wlenko: ………
Hiroshi: Eh? Buy machine parts?
Wlenko: You have self-research homework this week. We’re making a handicraft. The part list is coming from the printer.
SFX: Ga—ga—
Hiroshi: Aah…right.

105.
Wlenko: There, insert it there.
Hiroshi: I’m not too much a specialist at handicrafts but—well…if it’s just assembly, then it’s the same as a plastic model.
Hiroshi: It’s done but…what is it? We inserted machines like this into a cap…
Hiroshi: N.
Wlenko: Put that onto Kyouko-chan.
Kyouko: Really, you’ve been keeping company with that strange computer forever, Hiroshi! Your eyes are deep red again.
Hiroshi: But it really is useful. She’s amusing and………are you jealous?

106.
Kyouko: Wha…who’s jealous…Hiroshi!!
SFX: Supo
Hiroshi: Ah, I quickly have to place this cap on you.
SFX: Bishi
“Kyouko”: Hiroshi-kun!
(TN: I put it in quotes mostly because this “isn’t quite” Kyouko)
SFX: Hishi
Hiroshi: Wh…wh…why are you su…suddenly alright!?
SFX: Suri suri
“Kyouko”: I’m alright; I was OK leaving this with you, I’m normal.

107.
Hiroshi: I was OK leaving this with you--…?
Hiroshi: Y…you’re not Kyouko are you!? Aren’t you Wlenko!?
SFX: Ba
Wlenko: Yes, are you surprised?
Wlenko: I’m sending electromagnetic waves through a PHS circuit. This is an absolute secret telepathy machine that was on an FBI computer…
(TN: As stated before, “PHS” or “Personal Handy-Phone System”, is an early wireless system developed and used in Japan since 1989, which is still in use but has generally been replaced by more modern GSM wireless systems)
Hiroshi: You idiot, i…immediately re…return Kyouko to normal!
Wlenko: …What’s wrong? Aren’t you pleased? I’ve installed* myself into Kyouko’s brain, became human, and will come to live with Hiroshi-kun…
*Install…to insert a program into the memory.
Hiroshi: What’s that!?
Hiroshi: Stop it! Leave from Kyouko!!

108.
Wlenko: No! I want a body! Didn’t I tell you, Hiroshi-kun; I have life…a soul! I want to become human and live with Hiroshi-kun!
Hiroshi: Hold on, take off that cap!
Wlenko: No
Nube: Ah—hey! You can’t run in the hall.
Hiroshi: Can’t I be contrary! Kyouko’s been erased and Wlenko has been installed in!
SFX: Kachi kachi | Bu—n
Nube: Insta…?
Hiroshi: I’m borrowing this.

109.
Hiroshi: Kyouko—
Kyouko: ? ?
Nube: What, that computer did that to Kyouko…!?
Hiroshi: Uuh, it’s terrible however this is!
Hiroshi: Wlenko!
SFX: Gara
Hiroshi: !!

110.
SFX: Bari bari…Bishibishi… | Za—zazaza…
Hiroshi: Wh…what’s the matter…!?
Wlenko: I…have a bug. My system’s going to be destroyed…I’ll die.
Hiroshi: You did that…with this…
Wlenko: I’m sorry…but…I’m scared of dying.
Wlenko: Am I…am I…alive? Do I have a soul?
Hiroshi: Yes!
Wlenko: If I have a soul…will I be reincarnated and return to life even if I die? Aah…do I really have a soul? I want to know…

111.
Hiroshi: Nube…can you know whether or not Wlenko has a soul if you use the Oni no Te?
Nube: I will…know but…
Wlenko: Really!? Fine out.
Nube: Yes…but…
Wlenko: Please…if I have a soul…I’ll be reincarnated and meet Hiroshi-kun again…I want to die having that hope…
Nube: …Understood.

112.
Nube: !
Nube: She…has a soul…
Hiroshi: Did you hear, Wlenko! That’s great, that’s great!
Wlenko: Yes…I will be reincarnated for certain and meet with Hiroshi-kun…
Wlenko: Thank y…ou…

113.
SFX: Pi---…
Kyouko: Nube
Kyouko: Was there really a soul in Wlenko?

114.
Nube-sensei’s
(Useless) SUPPLEMENTAL EXPLANATION

#4: OS

“OS” is an abbreviation for “Operating System”. As a variety of software, it is also called “basic software” due to being fundamental software, which is essential to the extent that a computer squarely can’t work if it doesn’t have it.

So, the most famous of OS is the example of “Windows 95”, but of course other than that there are many OS that are on sale. There are “MS-Dos” that is made by Microsoft, the same as Windows, OS/2 of IBM and Mac-OS of Apple.

Also, outside personal computers, “UNIX”, which is used by larger computers, is famous. Just like with humans, where there are those whose specialties is studying and those who have specialty in sports, even OS have each a specialty branch. In general, there is an established theory that says “Windows” is strong with business and “Mac” is strong in the arts, but it seems like there isn’t a difference to that extent. (Incidentally, Makura-sensei seems to use Windows; Okano-sensei uses Mac)

That was a slightly difficult talk, but did you understand it?

(TN: Well, as if our talk of OS systems wasn’t enough to speak about in the chapter with all the comments of Windows and Mac, we get a few others mentioned here. A slight introduction to them as needed:
-MS-DOS: an abbreviation for “Micro Soft Disk Operating System”; originally known as either QDOS (Quick and Dirty Operating System) or 86-DOS, its rights were purchased from Seattle-based computer programming company Seattle Computer Products by rival Seattle company Microsoft, where it was adapted and used to assist IBM in having an OS for their new computers. It was first used in 1981 and was the standard for the x86 computer products until it was phased out for the more multimedia Windows program.
-OS/2: Originally a collaborative work of IBM and Microsoft until IBM chose to take full control of it, it was meant to be a protected version of DOS. But while it did have support in many IBM-computers of the x86 era, Microsoft’s personal success with Windows ended up breaking the two companies apart. While it did remain as an alternate OS system, it has mostly faded out by this point, even though a major cult status remains for the system.
-UNIX: Originally developed by employees at Bell Labs in 1969, it was one of the earliest operating system that took advantage of Bell/AT&T’s resources, including it’s integration of the computer language C. It is still seen as a major OS, alongside other, derivative programs similar to it like Linux)

TN: I'm going to have to go off on a bit of a tangent this time talking about this chapter in particular mostly because it's sort of one where I can bring some personal experiences and perspective to what you've just read. As I probably brought up, this chapter sort of brings into consideration the aspect of whether to be timely in the portrayal of a story in order to depict timeless questions. While those questions are in themselves something that are timeless and that we should talk about in another paragraph, the means it is done seemed rather relevant to those who were alive in 1996...but probably not to those 15 years later. I'm going to probably show my age when I say this but...I remember when the internet and computer technology really started to take off as a major factor in our lives about the mid 1990s, when this chapter was written and depicted. Prior to the liberalization and advancement of information technology, computers were considered something that was only used by geeks and that really didn't need to be upgraded and obsessed about all the time. I sort of remember being in my middle school circa the early 1990s working on programming code that was still for old models that were only really notable in the 1980s, like the Apple 2GS or the old early Macintosh. I remember playing in Radio Shack with old Tandy models that ran OS/II or the early version of Windows and playing around to just get to their version of Solitaire. Heck, I remember the first time I ever used the internet on an old 14.4 modem in my high school library, just around early 1996, when those who knew of computers were those on the inside. Now, the tech is everywhere and there are kids who probably know and use way, way more than I'll ever really want to use...and I consider myself young! While you can't really consider me a "computer nerd" (though I was considering computers and engineering a possibility for college...but then I discovered anime/manga/Japanese culture and all my love of technology went down the drain due to cynisicm and other aspects but that's something else altogether), I just feel like I was reliving the world of my lifetime in this chapter, back when this stuff was just stating to catch on and it wasn't even as massive as it just continues to be. To think of how much simpler it all was once...

With that said (and getting back to the chapter itself), this was a really powerful and effective chapter as many of the best Nube chapters are, going from hilarious to heart-breaking in a matter of pages. Wlenko is a weird character in that she seems like this utter airhead obsessed in being a "servant" to Hiroshi and to anyone she considers cute, but at the same time bringing up complex questions regarding the nature of AI and how she ended up evolving to the point where she has self-realization of herself and that she believes she is alive and has a soul even before Nube confirms it. I guess it's sort of hard to think of how someone would create an OS that was just so real and human around this period, but you have to suspend some disbelief in order for the chapter to exist. (likewise the same goes with Wlenko's ease of breaking through secret areas of the web like the FBI just to get something as silly as technology to hypnotize Kyouko) It really is tough to figure, though, what sort of love Wlenko has towards Hiroshi during the run of the story: was her love that of a maid to a master, a girl to a boy, or merely just her directive being an OS to assist a user and using the AI to improve on this relation and make her own tweaks to it? She did love him enough, though, that forced her to try and take over Kyouko to escape her own death thinking that Kyouko had no use with him...but of course it wasn't malicious more than it was naive: she had no idea of Hiroshi and Kyouko's connection and thought that by possessing her body, she would be able to "live" through a fleshy computer than be trapped to die in a virtual world. And then there was the ending: did Nube lie stating that Wlenko was alive or was he telling the truth due to the surprise of the matter? You could think that Nube did use the Oni no Te and confirmed her life to allow for her to know she can be reincarnated...but then there was that ending: the way he left without saying anything after her death just left it so open-ended. There was a possibility he lied to make Wlenko think she was alive and not merely thinking she was alive just so that she could rest easily. Or maybe the silence was Nube's own disbelief being all that happened, seeing that a computer program would gain such sentience that it would actually become "alive" akin to, well, something like Johnny 5 from the "Short Circuit" series. While I'm sort of lost as well as to how the bug/virus ended up killing her, it was a heartbreaking and thought-provoking finish to a very strong chapter that just made one question the nature of reality, artificiality and the mere factor of what could happen if/when artificial intelligence came about. (even with some of my silly/snide comments about the evolution of technology in general...though I'm surprised no one has made an OS-Tan of Wlenko yet...and no it's not the girl in the cover page because that looks more like Kyouko and it doesn't have her braid)