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The practicality of Holograms in the SW universe.
Bane82
Member UncommonPosts: 1,242
Ok, I know this is a little off topic. But I'm bored and I feel like peaking the interest of SW fans and nerds alike. Please understand that I'm well aware that it's all just a movie and I know movie does not = real life. But sometimes my brain gets the best of me when I start thinking about the logic behind certain things, even if they are just part of a movie. *puts logic cap on*
Ever wonder what the practicality of holograms used for communications in the SW universe? Now before you jump at me with "OMG NUBZ Holograms are teh haxorz!" think about what I've said.
I can see the "benefit" in hologram use in say a future TV or computer monitor/projector because it can give you a better view, but there were a couple of things that struck me as odd and impractical.
1) for communications, the mini portable holograms, I just honestly don't see the use. First thing is, they're bulkier than our modern day cell phones and iPods to where the ONLY place to have them is hanging from your belt. Why not simply use the same cell phone technology we have now to simply talk via our cellphone screens? you can still see who it is. Do you honestly need to see the whole body of the person communicating with you? I mean, as long as you see on the small screen Bob's face, you know it's Bob, you don't need to see the rest of his body to know it. Besides, what if Bob happens to be naked when you communicate with him? do you honestly want to see his hole holographic image then?
2) security holograms seemed completely impractical considering you could only see maybe a radius of 3 or 4 feet (not even), but a well placed security camera can see a whole hallway and you can still see criminals/dark jedi coming in and killing children.
Ok I'm done *takes logic cap off* discuss.
Comments
I'm bored too, so I'll jump in this.
I never really thought of holograms as a mere communication device but used when additional nuance was essential. Note that instances of use were for important discussions - Vader to General Veers, Emperor to Vader, Palpatine issuing Order 66. The Jedi used them for important council sessions when some members were off world. This allows one to see expressions and body language, very important in higher-level communication. This is very much like video conferencing today. Not practical for everyday communication, but very useful for high-level discussions.
(I have no explanation for the walking crab holoprojector Sidious used to communicate with Maul and Co. in Ep 1, other than by that time, Lucas had simply lost all perspective and sanity)
As to your statement about the size of the communicator being impractical, consider: SW tech is different than ours, but not necessarily superior in all ways. The standard Stormtrooper comm device Luke used in ANH seemed quite large for merely voice communication. It's possible SW tech developed along a different path and they do not have the circuit miniaturization we have. A Stardestroyer bridge, while impressive, always struck me as aweful cluttered, all those control stations suggesting a lack of miniaturization and automation that could be acheive in "the real world."
Consider an interesting fact about communication: context through body language. Factually speaking, most communication is non verbal.
As an example, I could say something with particularly vitrolic word and it could actually mean several different things, some derogatory and some funny, depending on HOW I say it in terms of tone and body language. However, if I say that same thing without the visual and aural background -- such as typing it out on the internet -- most often it can be taken in the exactly wrong context. That's usually how flame wars start.
Then consider that in the SW Galaxy, there are hundreds if not thousands of different species of alien and humanoid each with their own quirks and communicative methodologies. I'm hard pressed to think of an example off the bat from the extended universe, but in some societies it would probably make a lot of sense to have visual communication.
-- xpaladin
[MMOz]
AC1/2, AO, DAoC, EQ1/2, SoR, SWG, UO, WAR, WoW
xPaladin, I wasn't necessarily referring to the idea of cell phone communication by text or voice alone, but by having the cell phone cameras work as a monitor so the person on the other end can see your face as well as speak.
Now that being said, I supposed I can agree with you both in the sense that it would be beeficial when trying to read out physical movements. However, when you think about it, whether it's through a monitor or a hologram, somebody who for example might be trying to lie to you, will always try to hide their intentions both verbally and physically. I guess what I'm trying to say is, whether you see this person's whole body or not, if they're trying to hide something from you, if they're succesful, you won't be able to tell just from the tone of voice alone. This person can both talk and appear calm. Whereas, if this person was unsuccesful, his body appearance would emulate his tone of voice, such as stuttering, fidgeting etc. Your body will emulate how you speak and how you speak reflects your body.
If you're a horrible liar, not only would your voice crack and stutter, but your body would fidget. But if your'e a good liar, your body and your tone of voice will show as being calm. So in this case, whether you use a hologram or a camera (video conference) it won't matter, hence, making holograms impractical (at least for these cases) But I will admit that I could see the usefulness when trying to communicate with other alien species, not that this couldn't be achieved with a portable video phone/cell phone.
I guess I can also see how perhaps the reason for the hologram communicators being so bulky is because of the evolution of automation in their society, even if it does seem very advanced to us.
Next topic: AI in Robots from the SW Universe.
Ok, again *putting my logic helmet on* what is the deal with the AI of robots? Or I guess a better question would be, Do Robots of such "advanced AI" really behave in the manner that they do in SW? If a robot in the SW universe is capable of just about anything, including killing, why would they submit to what can only be assumed to be robot slavery? Add on to that question, why would the builders dumb them down? For example, didn't you just get completely annoyed whenever you heard the separatist robots attempt to emulate not only human emotion, but apparently human stupidity?
"What's that?" (R2 hides)
"Get back to work, that's nothing" (even though CLEARLY they definetely heard Obi Wan yelling on his communicator to R2)
Wouldn't you think that better AI for a robot would be one that is more cold and calculating? not one attempting to be something it's not? Why would you want to dumb it down to human intelligence?
Ok, *takes logic cap off* discuss.
Repulsor-lift tech is ubiquitous and highly developed. If it came into use extremely early (say, contemporary with early aerostats and early aerodynes), there would never have been much incentive to develop really compact and lightweight hardware.
But just for fun-
Advanced AI makes sense in a world where robots are as ubiquitous as in SW. If you are interacting with droids on a daily basis, you want to have some "personality" to make things easier and more pleasant.
It could be that all droids are initially "imprinted" to their first owner and learn expected behavior from that owner, much like a child from a parent. A "personality" and "intelligence" develops, one that cannot be erased without a very expensive, possibly risky, reboot of the AI (This is not the same as erasing memory.) This would explain the dumb Seperatist droids - they were not expected to do more than fight, possibly had short "life spans" and never fully developed, or were built on the cheap without the more enhanced AI capability. It seems the specialized droids, those specifically built for one purpose - combat droids, load lifters - were pretty dumb.
In many cases, "restraining bolts" are used to keep a driod from acting contrary to its owners commands. What these really do, I'm not sure and they are not consistantly used in the stories. Perhaps, if that droid moves to a new owner, there is a chance that the new owner's expectations conflict with the droid's personality, thus the occasional need for a restraining bolt. But this seems to suggest instances when a droid does not submit to "slavery." Also, there is IG88, a droid BH. This also suggests droids, in some instances, are permitted to function autonomously. (I'm not a big fan of the EW, so I'm unware of any explaination for this is the literature.)
Just for fun. I loved how stupid some of the huamn responses were too.
(padme on her way to Mustafar, a very dangerous planet to meet her husband whom she believes has turned to the dark side. Her general follows close behind)
General: Please allow me to go with you Senator Amidala, it might be dangerous.
Padme: No need, the fighting is over, besides I have 3PO with me.
Oh yeah, sure it might not be dangerous, but just in case, I'm taking the pansy robot over the skilled fighter... logical?
(on the ship to Mustafar)
3PO: I believe I'm starting to get the hang of flying.
Great, not only does she choose a robot who can't fight squat, but one that is only just now starting to get the hang of flying? not exactly the most reassuring words I'd want to hear on my way to making an interstellar trip to another planet.
Well, Padme was a twit anyway. I don't know what happened to her in the years between EPs 1 and 2. She had herself wired when she was queen, but went downhill after leaving office.
Maybe it was the strain of never aging while everyone else around her did?
LOL! Or maybe the fact that she ended up marrying an immature boy?