Favoriting Techtonic with Mark Hurst: Playlist from October 23, 2017 Favoriting

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Conversations with creators and thinkers who are charting the way forward in a tech-saturated society. Tech, community, video games, and whatever else is next.

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Favoriting October 23, 2017: Phone-robots will fight telemarketers for you - feat. Roger Anderson, founder of Jolly Roger Telephone Co.

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THIS THURSDAY: You're invited to Skeptech 2 on Thursday, Oct 26, at Monty Hall (doors open 6:30pm, show goes 7pm to 9pm) - hosted by Mark Hurst, featuring JON RONSON, NANCY LUBLIN, APARNA NANCHERLA, and JO FIRESTONE. 100% of ticket sales will go to WFMU to benefit the station. Sign up here.

Tonight on Techtonic: A conversation with Roger Anderson, founder of the Jolly Roger Telephone Company, whose phone-robots keep telemarketers in conversation as long as possible. Roger has posted to YouTube lots of recordings of notable calls.

Subscribe to the Techtonic podcast to listen to past episodes of Techtonic.

Artist Track Images Approx. start time
  Robots fighting telemarketers! Jolly Roger Telephone Co. founder Roger Anderson describes how he built voice-robots to waste telemarketers' time. Mark plays three of his favorite recordings of Jolly Roger bots speaking with human telemarketers.
Tomaš Dvořák  Game Boy Tune   Favoriting   0:05:18 (Pop-up)
Mark Hurst  Mark's Intro   Favoriting
Favoriting
0:05:18 (Pop-up)
  Interview with Roger Anderson, founder, Jolly Roger Telephone Company  
Favoriting
0:20:40 (Pop-up)
Kosmischer Läufer  Morgenröte   Favoriting   0:38:20 (Pop-up)
  Two more calls from Jolly Roger Telephone Co     0:40:08 (Pop-up)
  Scam Roundup from Station Manager Ken  
Favoriting
0:51:46 (Pop-up)
Randy Travis  Forever And Ever, Amen   Favoriting    


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Listener comments!

Avatar 5:50pm
JollyRoger:

"Jolly Roger" Anderson is here! Looking forward to interacting with Mark and the audience!
Avatar 6:02pm
Fredericks:

Long Live Power Point!
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:02pm
listener james from westwood:

Evening, Mark, Roger, and all!
Avatar 6:02pm
Fredericks:

Hello Jolly Roger!
Avatar 6:03pm
Carmichael:

I use NoMoreRobo. Seems to work pretty well.
Avatar 6:05pm
geezerette:

Hello, Mark!
Ahoy, Jolly Roger!
& buddies!
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:05pm
queems:

oh god the circle made me a nervous wreck
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:07pm
Webhamster Henry:

Google feels we are not taking enough photographs.
Avatar 6:09pm
Carmichael:

That way, when someone steals my phone, they steal ALL my data.
Avatar 6:11pm
geezerette:

Webham Henry, exactly.

@Mark, you aren't being cynical. You're being observant.
Avatar 6:11pm
glenn:

ahoy! this is your captain speaking.
Avatar 6:11pm
Jeff:

Remember the 1989 analog version of the fun automatic-picture-taking camera?

The Konica Kanpai!

The party camera.

"The main attraction is its voice-activation, though. After adjusting to the ambient sound level, the camera reacts to loud voices or noises, indicated by a row of LEDs on the front. Standing on its funny tripod with basket shoes, it turns within a 45° angle toward the source of the sound and takes a picture automatically."

camera-wiki.org...
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:12pm
northguineahills:

I was visiting my parents and caught my Dad in a 2 hour call about to pay for $2500 to upgrade his norton security on his computer, I shut that down quick.
Avatar 6:13pm
JollyRoger:

Actually, Mark is a bot right now. We created it together.
Avatar 6:13pm
glenn:

i'd like to strangle them all, the fuckers.
Avatar 6:14pm
Jeff:

collectiblend.com...
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:15pm
Ken From Hyde Park:

I basically gave up on answering the phone anymore. I only pick up if it's someone I know. I do like the idea of someone who's wasting the telemarketers' time.
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:15pm
Mark Hurst:

Thanks, everyone! Nice to see everyone here. And welcome, Roger!
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:15pm
Webhamster Henry:

Sharon calls me two or three times week. On all my lines.
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:16pm
listener james from westwood:

Oh, this is delightfully evil.
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:16pm
queems:

i love this
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:16pm
joe mulligan:

oh gawd who is this SEM punk representing!?!
Avatar 6:16pm
steve:

haha there's a bee
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:16pm
listener james from westwood:

My fellow copy editors seem to have been plagued by several sales Heathers. No Winonas yet though.
Avatar 6:16pm
Jeff:

It had me at bee.
Avatar 6:16pm
glenn:

evil, and awesome.
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:16pm
Mark Hurst:

Uh-huh?
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:17pm
Webhamster Henry:

It's like Andy Breckman.
  6:17pm
Listener142985:

I want this thing right now! Awesome. better than Longmont Potion Castle.
Avatar 6:17pm
geezerette:

I'm afraid to touch it.
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:17pm
northguineahills:

I don't even have my ringer turned on. If I don't see my phone, I won't pick up.

It does sound like Andy Breckman.
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:18pm
queems:

this sounds like something my dad would do but he's a live person
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:18pm
Bas NL:

This is soooo great!!
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:18pm
northguineahills:

delightfully beautiful!
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:18pm
dale:

one night our phone rang 6 or 7 times and when the machine was about to pick up the caller hung up so we couldn't screen. 8th time i pick up and scream 'what? what the fuck do you want so bad you have to call over and over?!' then a little tiny voice asks for my wife - it was one of her clients. i felt horrible and she said he always does that if he doesn't get through.
  6:19pm
herb.nyc:

Wait, no bees were harmed, right?
Avatar 6:19pm
JollyRoger:

That bee won't leave me alone!
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:20pm
listener james from westwood:

Can we get a Cathy McGinty version? "::burp:: Sorry, I'm gassy!"
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:21pm
Webhamster Henry:

iPhone apps can't directly talk to the phone side of the device, but you could set up my app Yes Session to do more or less the same thing: wait for gaps in the conversation and insert a random sample.
Avatar 6:22pm
Jeff:

Given the annoying BS of caller-ID spoofing, the calls I'm least likely to answer are the ones seeming to come from my exact same area code and exchange.
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:23pm
Webhamster Henry:

Well, there's a purported scam about answering "Yes", that they record your assent and use it to authorize over-the-phone services.
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:23pm
Bas NL:

I once managed to hang on to a telemarketer for 45 minutes and in the end he confessed he hated his job and he promised to quit next day.
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:24pm
queems:

i started seeing phone numbers from the town i'm from and i keep thinking they are doctors offices so i answer but they are always telemarketers
Avatar 6:24pm
Carmichael:

I get telemarketing calls from unused internal numbers here at the government agency where I work.
  6:24pm
Bea:

I loved hearing the bots talking to each other!
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:25pm
Webhamster Henry:

I make strong arguments for unionizing call centers and urge the agent to join with the other cubicles in a mass walkout.
  6:26pm
melinda:

The clip made me lol
  6:27pm
Syl:

Right, what about the scam that Webhamster Henry mentions -- the telemarketer/company records you saying "Yes" and uses that to prove you assented to a service or purchase. How does Jolly Roger protect you from that?
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:27pm
Ken From Hyde Park:

In the 70s, my dad kept a guy from Fingerhut on the line for maybe an hour, just stringing him along. The guy finally asked if Dad could send in a check, he responded he was just wondering about the product. The telemarketer started swearing and hung up.
  6:28pm
melinda:

I get Sharon calls at work a lot.
  6:30pm
Bea:

These are robots I can get behind!
  6:32pm
Dean:

I'm not so sure the recorded assent makes much difference. How is payment made?
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:32pm
Ken From Hyde Park:

Too bad the Workaholics show in Comedy Central has run its course before the guys could do an episode with these bots.
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:33pm
northguineahills:

Crap, I'm in my 40s and I prefer to never use my phone for voice calls except to call my parents.
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:33pm
joe mulligan:

I love playing the "Turing Test" with bots when they call me. I ask them, "what's your favorite color," "what was the last movie you watched," or, "how would you feel if I told you I liked you?"
Avatar 6:34pm
Jeff:

Thanks, @JollyRoger!
Avatar 6:34pm
JollyRoger:

I've never found an actual case of "you said yes to us, here's 1000lb of cheese" happening. Also, the voice saying "yes" is not yours. I think of it as "what if your drunk roommate answered the phone?"
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:34pm
northguineahills:

Thanks Jolly Roger, that was superb!
Avatar 6:35pm
Jeff:

Mmm, 1000lb of cheese.
Avatar 6:35pm
JollyRoger:

At one point, Moby Dick says "Your mom? Totally hot". He cracked us all up.
  6:37pm
Bea:

Can't wait for Skeptech - the first one was AWESOME!
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:37pm
northguineahills:

Nearly half of my tee-shirt wardrobe are WFMU tees.
  6:38pm
Syl:

Thanks for the answer re: the "Yes" scam, Roger. Do you think that scam is an urban legend? The FCC and BBB have issued warnings about it, but I wonder if there have been any actual victims.
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:38pm
Mark Hurst:

Thanks, Bea! Hope everyone can make it to Skeptech this Thursday. Here's the signup link: montyhall.ticketfly.com...
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:40pm
queems:

this guy is mad
Avatar 6:41pm
JollyRoger:

I don't like to call it an urban legend, but yes, I think that's what it is. There was a lot of hysteria over it. This person found "patient zero" www.archersecuritygroup.com...
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:41pm
joe mulligan:

brilliant work JollyRoger, and fun interview! Have you guys ever heard of Sam Kidel who plays warped muzak to telemarketers? www.factmag.com...
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:41pm
Ken From Hyde Park:

Act like a man, ya dumb robot!
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:41pm
Webhamster Henry:

@Jolly Roger indeed, the "assent" story did sound specious to me, which is why I gave it the epithet "purported".

I used to work in the emergency notification business, doing email, and had lots of trouble trying to get legitimate email past spam catchers!
  6:43pm
Bea:

The robots are so much nicer than the telemarketer!
Avatar 6:43pm
JollyRoger:

This guy makes a living wearing you down. He just got worn down by the bots and he never called back.
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:43pm
northguineahills:

jajaja!
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:44pm
chris:

good robot, here's a cookie.
  6:44pm
Paul in Bloomfield:

this is amazing
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:44pm
queems:

seriously though, the audacity of this guy. like, he just invaded someone else's space and then he's mad about it
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:45pm
Mark Hurst:

"Are you a real person?" ASKS THE ROBOT
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:46pm
Folsom:

Ken should do the Old Codger voice for Jolly Roger.
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:46pm
Webhamster Henry:

The next step is of course more AI on both sides. Commerce will kind of ensue.
  6:46pm
Syl:

Thanks for that article! It's so difficult to find good, hard info about this stuff.
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:47pm
northguineahills:

great idea Folsom!
  6:47pm
Paul in Bloomfield:

@jolly roger i love this! thank you!
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:47pm
Webhamster Henry:

(Irwin does the voice, but whatever)
Avatar 6:47pm
glenn:

yeah, no. i'm not ever going to florida. no offense, n.g.h.
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:48pm
Folsom:

Ah I always thought that Ken did Old Codger - good to know.
Avatar 6:48pm
glenn:

and really, i have zero sympathy for anybody who can't figure out they're being messed with.
Avatar 6:49pm
JollyRoger:

It breaks my heart that some people pay this.
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:50pm
Webhamster Henry:

I mentioned Andy Breckman because A) Ken did a show with prerecorded Andy samples once and B) I wrote this app (which I think is no longer in the store)
itunes.apple.com...
  6:51pm
Dean:

Another legal question: Is it illegal in some states to record a call without both parties' consent (or a warrant)?
Avatar 6:51pm
Fox:

That older voice actor sounds strikingly like the friend of Joe Frank, Larry Block
Avatar 6:51pm
JollyRoger:

We have "non-recording" numbers also. But those laws don't really apply since there's only one human on the phone.
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:52pm
Webhamster Henry:

It's a fun project, Roger! What a business plan!
Avatar 6:52pm
JollyRoger:

Excellent job, Mark! Thank you!
Avatar 6:53pm
JollyRoger:

Thank you Henry! You did a great job!
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:53pm
Mark Hurst:

Thanks for being on the show, Roger!
Avatar 6:53pm
glenn:

i've received 6 phone calls on my land line in the past hour. all telemarketers.
  6:53pm
Fred:

Ken, maybe you should try meshugaless.
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:54pm
dale:

girl scout cookies are a scam too. last time i bought them i paid for my thin mints and asked what the money was for. lady told me they were taking their troop to paris. and here i thought they would clothe and feed the poor.
  6:54pm
xunknown:

Check your pronunciation on Nevada!
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:55pm
dale:

and those clothing donation bins are a scam. clothes usually go to resellers and NOT goodwill or salvay.
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:55pm
queems:

@dale as far as i know, girl scout cookie money isn't typically used for charity. at least my troop never used it for that
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:56pm
dale:

...and don't get me going on kars for kids.
Avatar 6:56pm
glenn:

huh. don't most guys crochet while watching porn?
Avatar 6:56pm
geezerette:

Mark, this is such a great show.
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:57pm
chris:

crossword puzzles for me, glenn
  6:57pm
xunknown:

The ‘a’s in Nevada are pronounced like the ‘a’ in cat!
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:58pm
northguineahills:

Thanks Mark!
Avatar Swag For Life Member 6:58pm
Cooh John:

Great show.
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:58pm
Ken From Hyde Park:

I like how the computer virus displayed the jolly roger as it blew up the mother ship in the Independence Day movie. Thanks, Mark, Roger, Ken and team.
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:59pm
chris:

thanks, Mark and Ken and Team!
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:59pm
listener james from westwood:

Thanks, all!
Avatar 🤖 Swag For Life Member 6:59pm
Webhamster Henry:

The Anymatic Zingatron may return as a webapp so everyone can use it!
Avatar 7:00pm
JollyRoger:

I'm so flattered! Thanks so much for hosting this chat! You can all get in touch with me at jollyrogertelephone.com. Facebook youtube, etc. Also roger@jollyrogertelephone.com. Thanks everyone!
Avatar 7:00pm
Jeff:

@xunknown: I'd contend that Nevadans may pronounce it that way, but people from elsewhere will choose `o' as in bot!
Avatar 7:02pm
Jeff:

...and then there's Missouri / Missourah
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