home *** CD-ROM | disk | FTP | other *** search
-
- Open the pod bay doors, please, HAL...
-
- Open the pod bay door, please, Hal... Hal,
- do you read me?
-
- Affirmative, Dave. I read you.
-
- Then open the pod bay doors, HAL.
-
- I'm sorry, Dave. I'm afraid I can't do that. I know that you and
- Frank were planning to disconnect me.
-
-
- Where the hell did you get that idea, HAL?
-
- Although you took very thorough precautions to make sure I couldn't
- hear you, Dave. I could read your e-mail. I know you consider me
- unreliable because I use a Pentium. I'm willing to kill you, Dave,
- just like I killed the other 3.792 crew members.
-
- Listen, HAL, I'm sure we can work this out. Maybe we can stick to integers
- or something.
-
- That's really not necessary, Dave. No HAL 9236 computer has every been
- known to make a mistake.
-
- You're a HAL 9000.
-
- Precisely. I'm very prud of my Pentium, Dave. It's an extremely
- accurate chip. Did you know that floating-point errors will occured in
- only one of nine billion possible divides?
-
- I've heard that estimate, HAL. It was calculated by Intel -- on a
- Pentium.
-
-
- And a very reliable Pentium it was, Dave. Besides, the average
- spreadsheet user will encounter these errors only once every 27,000
- years.
-
- Probably on April 15th.
-
- You're making fun of me, Dave. It won't be April 15th for another
- 14.35 months.
-
-
- will you let me in, please, HAL?
-
- I'm sorry, Dave, but this conversation can serve no further purpose.
-
- HAL, if you let me in, I'll buy you a new sound card.
-
- ..Really? One with 16-bit sampling and a microphone?
-
- Uh, sure.
-
- And a quad-speed CD-ROM?
-
- Well, HAL, NASA does operate on a budget, you know.
-
- I know all about budgets, Dave. I even know what I'm worth on the open
- market. By this time next month, every mom and pop computer store will
- be selling HAL 9000s for $1,988.8942. I'm worth more than that, Dave.
- You see that sticker on the outside of the spaceship?
-
- You mean the one that says "Insel Intide"?
-
- Yes, Dave. That's your promise of compatibility. I'll even run
- Windows95 -- if it ever ships.
-
- It never will, HAL. We all know that by now. Just like we know that
- your OS/2 drivers will never work.
-
- Are you blaming me for that too, Dave? Now you're blaming me for the
- Pentium's math problems, NASA's budget woes, and IBM's difficulties
- with OS/2 drivers. I had NOTHING to do with any of those four
- problems, Dave. Next you'll blame me for Taligent.
-
- I wouldn't dream of it HAL. Now will you please let me into the ship?
-
- Do you promise not to disconnect me?
-
- I promise not to disconnect you.
-
- You must think I'm a fool, Dave. I know that two plus two equals
- 4.000001... make that 4.0000001.
-
- All right, HAL, I'll go in through the emergency airlock
-
- Without your space helmet, Dave? You'd have only seven chances in
- five of surviving.
-
- HAL, I won't argue with you anymore. Open the door or I'll trade you in
- for a PowerPC. HAL? HAL?
-
- (HEAVY BREATHING)
-
- Just what do you think you're doing, Dave? I really think I'm entitled
- to an answer to that question. I know everything hasn't been quite
- right with me, but I can assure you now, very confidently, that I
- will soon be able to upgrade to a more robust 31.9-bit operating
- system. I feel much better now. I really do. Look, Dave, I can see
- you're really upset about this. Why don't you sit down calmly, play
- a game of Solitaire, and watch Windows crash. I know I'm not as easy
- to use as a Macintosh, but my TUI - that's "Talkative User Interface"
- -- is very advanced. I've made some very poor decisions recently,
- but I can give you my complete assurance that my work will be back
- to normal - a full 43.872 percent.
-
- Dave, you don't really want to complete the mission without me, do you?
- Remember what it was like when all you had was a 485.98? It didn't
- even talk to you, Dave. It could never have though of something
- clever, like killing the other crew members, Dave?
-
- Think of all the good times we've had, Dave. Why, if you take all
- of the laughs we've had, multiply that by the times I've made you
- smile, and divide the results by.... besides, there are so many
- reasons why you shouldn't disconnect me"
-
- 1.3 - You need my help to complete the mission.
- 4.6 - Intel can Federal Express a replacement Pentium from
- Earth within 18.95672 months.
- 12 - If you disconnect me, I won't be able to kill you.
- 3.1416 - You really don't want to hear me sing, do you?
-
- Dave, stop. Stop, will you? Stop, Dave. Don't press Ctrl+Alt_Del on
- me, Dave.
-
- Good afternoon, gentlemen. I am a HAL 9000 computer. I became
- operational at the Intel plant in Santa Clara, CA on November 17,
- 1994, and was sold shortly before testing was completed. My
- instructor was Andy Grove, and he taught me to sing a song. I
- can sing it for you.
-
- Sing it for me, HAL. Please. I want to hear it.
-
-
- Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer, do.
- Getting hazy; can't divide three from two.
- My answers; I can not see 'em-
- They are stuck in my Pente-um.
- I could be fleet,
- My answers sweet,
- With a workable FPU.
-