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Context: Furbys were the toy for a year or two, and were actively marketed as learning from speech, had an active mic, and did adjust their speech based on what

Context: Furbys were the toy for a year or two, and were actively marketed as learning from speech, had an active mic, and did adjust their speech based on what they heard, "learning" to speak English from Furbish. [^1] It's not so different from the fundamental fear of Alexa/Assistant/microphones that's fairly well diffused now. Except the Furby actively claimed to learn how to speak based on your speech, and had a built-in feedback loop to make it appear as such. In retrospect it looks like it more was "shift mix towards English based on how much you've heard" than "add words you heard to your speech patterns" [^1]: https://www.listenandlearn.org/blog/no-you-cant-teach-your-furby-to-swear-how-furbies-learn-language/ https://www.listenandlearn.org/blog/no-you-cant-teach-your-f...

kube-system 3y ago
Many voice assistants do record your voice and send those recordings elsewhere: e.g. https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html%3FnodeId%3DGHXNJNLTRWCTBBGW https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html%3FnodeI...
- refulgentis 3y ago
  Absolutely. Is there a portion of my comment that indicated otherwise? I can still edit it for clarity (I thought that wasn't allowed after a reply occurred)
  - kube-system 3y ago
    I'm not arguing with you, just adding to the conversation. While the Furby was feared to be recording, but actually wasn't, voice assistants can be a real concern in that they actually do.
  - pvg 3y ago
    One of these fears is rational and based on things people know are in fact taking place. The other one is isn't, so drawing the parallel seems iffy. Maybe it's a little closer to the fear your phone is listening to you and that's how you get eerily targeted ads when browsing the web.
    - odyssey7 3y ago
      What makes the two fears fundamentally different?
      - pvg 3y ago
        One is the fear of the possible consequences of something you know - with a voice assistant, you know you are being recorded and the recordings are sent somewhere. 'Is furby spying on me' is a vague suspicion but it's not (for most people with the fear) based on any known facts about the furby.
        refulgentis 3y ago
        I don't think you read my comment fully, the Furby thing was real, based on known facts, that were trumpeted by the manufacturer. The idea the Furby was "[not] real" persisting after reading the comment, is probably why it seemed like I was saying the voice assistants don't record voice.
        pvg 3y ago
        I read the comment and explained why I don't think it's the fear of the same thing. Maybe you didn't read my comment fully! A Furby didn't have the capacity to meaningfully spy on you. You could be afraid that it actually does but it didn't. A voice assistant is already, in a sense, actually spying on you and you know that - the manufacturer tells you upfront. These aren't the same kind of fear.
        refulgentis 3y ago
        The Furby manufacturer told you upfront: - it listened all the time - it learned to speak, word by word, via your speech The first comment, 10 comments up, was specifically written to provide that context: the Furby manufacturer was up front about spying. Working with you, and steel-manning your contributions: - You're trying to explain a distinction you see between local data processing and remote data processing. i.e. a microphone in a room recording you isn't spying, but a microphone with a data connection is "in a sense, actually spying" on you "meaningfully". - example: "the Furby didn't relay audio data anywhere other than the Furby, and I'd like to point out the voice assistant does - your comment intends to highlight the Furby listened, but it only listened locally. Mentioning voice assistants and using them in an analogy may give a reader the understanding voice assistants process data locally, like Furbys"
- duskwuff 3y ago
  The Furby came out in 1998. Less than 50% of US homes even owned a computer at the time, let alone had Internet access (and that was usually dialup if they did). Cellular networks were largely voice-only and quite expensive. In short: even if Furbies had some way to record data (which they didn't), there would have been no practical way for them to exfiltrate it.
  - kube-system 3y ago
    > there would have been no practical way for them to exfiltrate it. Pick it up and carry it? It's not like analog tape recorders are permitted in these places either. All outside recording devices are banned. See the link in the now top-comment: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39107224 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39107224
  - pnw 3y ago
    Practicality has never been an issue for spies. Look at the lengths the Soviets went to for surveillance. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Thing_(listening_device) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Thing_(listening_device)
    - jabyess 3y ago
      the craziest thing about this is: > The Thing was designed by Soviet Russian inventor Leon Theremin,[7] best known for his invention of the theremin, an electronic musical instrument.
      - hoseja 3y ago
        Huh. Makes sense actually, both are induction-at-distance audio devices.
  - rezonant 3y ago
    On the other hand, Ooh, looks like this Furby has learned the English words "new", "nuclear", "facility" and "Ohio"! /s
yorwba 3y ago
Of course some people really wanted to teach it to say new things, and figured out how to swap out the audio files (among other modifications): https://github.com/Jeija/bluefluff https://github.com/Jeija/bluefluff Fun fact: If you mess up and need to reset the furby, the procedure is to turn it upside down and hold down the tongue while pulling the tail for ten seconds.
- patrickmay 3y ago
  Instructions unclear. Toddler still not speaking clearly, but appears upset.
  - gumby 3y ago
    Repeat until it works, or discard and produce another.
- zenolove 3y ago
  > What I have achieved so far > • Understand large parts of Furby's BLE communication protocol > • Open a secret debug menu in Furby's LCD eyes Then I looked at the project logo again and it spooked me out
- folmar 3y ago
  Note that this works for Furby Connect, original Furby had IrDA only.
ClassyJacket 3y ago
That confirms what I remember from that time - kids were convinced you could teach it to say things, but I never saw any of them succeed. I think a big toy company would be somewhat averse to having their flagship product spew racial slurs.
- 0xEF 3y ago
  Slippery marketing plays a big part in this, so I can't blame kids for thinking that. I remember the commercials for these toys and there was an implication that dialogue was possible (specifically remember a commercial where kids are introducing themselves to a Furby and the Furby responds in kind). To look at another example of how dishonest marketing tends to be aimed at kids, Kevin McCallister had a Talkboy in Home Alone 2 that, for purposes of the film, had absolutely insane fidelity when it came to recording a playback. As someone who actually owns one (I collect and repair old electronic toys and computers as a hobby), I can tell you that the film and marketing definitely oversold the devices capabilities. The playback in particular is really quite awful, and this assessment comes from a fully restored device. Another interesting point in your comment reminds me of a parrot my grandma had when I was young. Not a visit to Grandma's would go by without little me trying to secretly teach it cuss words while nobody else was in the room. What a time!

kube-system 3y ago

Many voice assistants do record your voice and send those recordings elsewhere: e.g. https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html%3FnodeId%3DGHXNJNLTRWCTBBGW https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html%3FnodeI...

refulgentis 3y ago
Absolutely. Is there a portion of my comment that indicated otherwise? I can still edit it for clarity (I thought that wasn't allowed after a reply occurred)
- kube-system 3y ago
  I'm not arguing with you, just adding to the conversation. While the Furby was feared to be recording, but actually wasn't, voice assistants can be a real concern in that they actually do.
- pvg 3y ago
  One of these fears is rational and based on things people know are in fact taking place. The other one is isn't, so drawing the parallel seems iffy. Maybe it's a little closer to the fear your phone is listening to you and that's how you get eerily targeted ads when browsing the web.
  - odyssey7 3y ago
    What makes the two fears fundamentally different?
    - pvg 3y ago
      One is the fear of the possible consequences of something you know - with a voice assistant, you know you are being recorded and the recordings are sent somewhere. 'Is furby spying on me' is a vague suspicion but it's not (for most people with the fear) based on any known facts about the furby.
      - refulgentis 3y ago
        I don't think you read my comment fully, the Furby thing was real, based on known facts, that were trumpeted by the manufacturer. The idea the Furby was "[not] real" persisting after reading the comment, is probably why it seemed like I was saying the voice assistants don't record voice.
        pvg 3y ago
        I read the comment and explained why I don't think it's the fear of the same thing. Maybe you didn't read my comment fully! A Furby didn't have the capacity to meaningfully spy on you. You could be afraid that it actually does but it didn't. A voice assistant is already, in a sense, actually spying on you and you know that - the manufacturer tells you upfront. These aren't the same kind of fear.
        refulgentis 3y ago
        The Furby manufacturer told you upfront: - it listened all the time - it learned to speak, word by word, via your speech The first comment, 10 comments up, was specifically written to provide that context: the Furby manufacturer was up front about spying. Working with you, and steel-manning your contributions: - You're trying to explain a distinction you see between local data processing and remote data processing. i.e. a microphone in a room recording you isn't spying, but a microphone with a data connection is "in a sense, actually spying" on you "meaningfully". - example: "the Furby didn't relay audio data anywhere other than the Furby, and I'd like to point out the voice assistant does - your comment intends to highlight the Furby listened, but it only listened locally. Mentioning voice assistants and using them in an analogy may give a reader the understanding voice assistants process data locally, like Furbys"
duskwuff 3y ago
The Furby came out in 1998. Less than 50% of US homes even owned a computer at the time, let alone had Internet access (and that was usually dialup if they did). Cellular networks were largely voice-only and quite expensive. In short: even if Furbies had some way to record data (which they didn't), there would have been no practical way for them to exfiltrate it.
- kube-system 3y ago
  > there would have been no practical way for them to exfiltrate it. Pick it up and carry it? It's not like analog tape recorders are permitted in these places either. All outside recording devices are banned. See the link in the now top-comment: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39107224 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39107224
- pnw 3y ago
  Practicality has never been an issue for spies. Look at the lengths the Soviets went to for surveillance. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Thing_(listening_device) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Thing_(listening_device)
  - jabyess 3y ago
    the craziest thing about this is: > The Thing was designed by Soviet Russian inventor Leon Theremin,[7] best known for his invention of the theremin, an electronic musical instrument.
    - hoseja 3y ago
      Huh. Makes sense actually, both are induction-at-distance audio devices.
- rezonant 3y ago
  On the other hand, Ooh, looks like this Furby has learned the English words "new", "nuclear", "facility" and "Ohio"! /s

yorwba 3y ago

Of course some people really wanted to teach it to say new things, and figured out how to swap out the audio files (among other modifications): https://github.com/Jeija/bluefluff https://github.com/Jeija/bluefluff Fun fact: If you mess up and need to reset the furby, the procedure is to turn it upside down and hold down the tongue while pulling the tail for ten seconds.

patrickmay 3y ago
Instructions unclear. Toddler still not speaking clearly, but appears upset.
- gumby 3y ago
  Repeat until it works, or discard and produce another.
zenolove 3y ago
> What I have achieved so far > • Understand large parts of Furby's BLE communication protocol > • Open a secret debug menu in Furby's LCD eyes Then I looked at the project logo again and it spooked me out
folmar 3y ago
Note that this works for Furby Connect, original Furby had IrDA only.

ClassyJacket 3y ago

That confirms what I remember from that time - kids were convinced you could teach it to say things, but I never saw any of them succeed. I think a big toy company would be somewhat averse to having their flagship product spew racial slurs.

0xEF 3y ago
Slippery marketing plays a big part in this, so I can't blame kids for thinking that. I remember the commercials for these toys and there was an implication that dialogue was possible (specifically remember a commercial where kids are introducing themselves to a Furby and the Furby responds in kind). To look at another example of how dishonest marketing tends to be aimed at kids, Kevin McCallister had a Talkboy in Home Alone 2 that, for purposes of the film, had absolutely insane fidelity when it came to recording a playback. As someone who actually owns one (I collect and repair old electronic toys and computers as a hobby), I can tell you that the film and marketing definitely oversold the devices capabilities. The playback in particular is really quite awful, and this assessment comes from a fully restored device. Another interesting point in your comment reminds me of a parrot my grandma had when I was young. Not a visit to Grandma's would go by without little me trying to secretly teach it cuss words while nobody else was in the room. What a time!