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Lillian, the Virtual Librarian

posted by John on 04:07 PM September 25th, 2006
from the oranges-and-peaches dept. Kelly writes "Meet Lillian, the Virtual Librarian, online. According to her creator:

I was unable to get her to "understand" the name of various major towns in England, or even the suggested town of Bury; perhaps others will have better luck. My exchange fared little better -- it reminded me of that old Interview with the Search Engine. We're a long way from Vox. Trackbacks:

Search Engine with a Friendly Face 2 comments Introducing Ms. Dewey, a marginal quality search engine with a sultry guide, played by Janina Gavankar. Are AI and this "Naked News" approach to information services the wave of the future? News For Library Geeks: Court Holds AI Was Practicing Law w/o a License, Librarians Next? Joe Hodnicki writes "Web-based AI system that helped users prepare bankruptcy filings made too many decisions to be considered a clerical tool. Maybe the software app should take (a) some online law school classes and/or (b) the bar exam. Link to the full text of the opinion provided at Law Librarian Blog."

We already let people search for themselves, how long before the reference interview is conducted by machines? Earlier this year one of the Google founders was quoted saying, "We have some people at Google who are really trying to build artificial intelligence and to do it on a large scale -- it's not as far off as people think." Many reference desk questions are already technical support queries, is it a sign of things to come? News For Library Geeks: Miss Manners in Second Life A recent NPR video story examines some of the social behavior in Second Life.Libraries are starting to develop a presence in Second Life, although not everyone is on soldon theconcept yet.Are virtual libraries (and librarians) like this the wave of the future? This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted. Lillian, the Virtual Librarian | Log in/Create an Account | Top | 4 comments | Search Discussion Threshold: The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.

Lillian
(Score:2) by Kelly (3955) on Monday September 25, @04:44PM (#26877) Lillian's cute. When I saw her this AM, I don't think she had glasses. Now, late in the PM, she does. Unfortunately, still can't get her to find "Bury" or any other city in UK.
Re:Lillian
(Score:2) by Sheilah (168) on Tuesday September 26, @08:12AM (#26882) Well, she recognized Leeds. And if you hit the back button after several lines of conversation, she will repeat it all, backwards. That is quite a talent. [ Parent ]
Re:Lillian
(Score:2) by birdie (56) <info@inmybook.com> on Tuesday September 26, @09:26AM (#26883)
( http://www.inmybook.com/ | Last Journal: Thursday July 19, @08:27AM ) I couldn't get to understand Leeds or Manchester or London or Brighton. Maybe you need to be more localized? [ Parent ]
Lillian doesn't have the answers
(Score:2) by birdie (56) <info@inmybook.com> on Thursday September 28, @05:40PM (#26910)
( http://www.inmybook.com/ | Last Journal: Thursday July 19, @08:27AM ) Lillian's a big pain.Here's a bit of our conversation, transcribed:
You: when is the library open
lillian: Say again?
You: when is the library open
lillian: Why have you said the same thing twice?
You: cause you didn't understand
lillian: Sorry, I didn't understand. Could you re-phrase it? I can only talk about things to do with library access and books
You: I want a book
lillian: Why have you said the same thing twice?
You: I want a book on mushrooms
lillian: Say again?
You: I want a reference book of mushrooms
lillian: Sorry, I didn't understand. Could you re-phrase it? I can only talk about things to do with library access and books
You: mUSHROOMS OF THE FOREST
lillian: Say again?
You: mushrooms of the forest
lillian: Say again?
You: MUSHROOMS OF THE FOREST
lillian: Sorry, I didn't understand. Could you re-phrase it? I can only talk about things to do with library access and books

and on and on about shitakes, portobellos, etc. etc. etc.

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Lillian doesn't have the answers