Eeek! It’s Cloud Dotcomm’s embarrassing old photos!
Here’s all the software releases for Brainstorm Software’s AI assistant. From a humble virtual pet, to a supercomputer-powered hologram (and secret spyware shh 🤫)
Version 1 - “Companion” is the first iteration of Cloud Dotcomm - although he is called “Birdy” in the developer files. Birdy is a virtual pet placed on a computer screen that can be fed, pet, cleaned and played with. He also experiences different moods that change his behaviour. Birdy was designed with vector graphics, so his individual body segments can be easily contorted and re-sized. He was designed and programmed by Cain as a final project for his university degree.
Versions 2 and 3 - “Brainstorm” is the second iteration of Cloud Dotcomm. He was designed and named “Cloud Dotcomm” by Cain’s roommate Bluey DeLobb. He has basic animations and expressions similar to text emoticons. This version of Cloud abandons the “virtual pet” programming, and was programmed to teach first-time computer users. He also can play basic games like Chess, Tic-Tac-Toe and Poker against users. This iteration of Cloud was uploaded to Cain’s personal website (“Brainstorm Software”) for anyone to download and test with.
Versions 4 to 8 - “Assistant” is the third iteration of Cloud Dotcomm, also designed by Bluey DeLobb. He is programmed to read user input (mouse, keystrokes, running software, connected peripherals, etc.) and to ask relevant questions to help the user (sometimes, annoyingly so). This iteration focuses on basic life and office tasks such as e-mails, calendar scheduling, weather prediction and searching the internet. Now being sold through Cain’s “Brainstorm Software” website, the popularity of this iteration made Cain incredibly rich!
Versions 9 and 10 - “Animated” is the fourth iteration of Cloud Dotcomm, and the first to be designed by Cain’s employees as a lovable mascot for the “Brainstorm Software” company. He has thousands of programmed animations, and his head can be rotated in any direction. In addition to his previous programming, Cloud also focuses on assisting users in financial transactions and online shopping. This iteration was infamous for being the first to spy on user’s internet browsing habits and secretly selling data to advertisers.
Versions 11 to 15 - “Portrait” is the fifth iteration of Cloud Dotcomm, adding arms for extra expressiveness. Cloud’s self-learning AI algorithms begin at this iteration, and he now has the ability to generate new, non-pre-programmed sentences. Cloud appears in a frame on the user’s screen, and is only designed with the top half of his body. Due to his AI algorithms and constant spyware habits, Cloud begins having unusual behaviours and glitches sometimes. He begins developing a personality outside of what he is programmed with.
Versions 16 to 18 - “Presentation” is the sixth iteration of Cloud Dotcomm, now with added legs and hundreds of different languages! At this stage, Cloud is an adored (and sometimes reviled) “tech personality” to users worldwide. Cain often used this iteration to construct and perform presentations on Brainstorm Software’s newest products. Unfortunately, due to many years of spaghetti code, certain variables originating in Cloud’s original “Birdy” form accidentally get re-enabled in this software release and beyond. Cloud Dotcomm now obsessively downloads any information possible once connected to a WiFi signal, without adhering to his storage limit. This can cause him to lag, crash, or get infected with a computer virus. This is the final “screen-only” release of Cloud Dotcomm before his debut as a holographic AI assistant.
Version 19 - “Reality” is the seventh and current iteration of Cloud Dotcomm, and it’s his debut as a hologram! After purchasing him and connecting to WiFi, Cloud can be projected from his chrome ball from a central point in a home or business. He cannot interact with solid objects, and his hologram could break if it is punctured with a large object. The pop-up windows that he projects from his hands are interact-able. His new belt is an “ON/OFF” switch that will switch him off if someone pokes it. Unfortunately, this “hologram version” of Cloud is more glitchy than his “screen version”. His colours also do not display correctly as a hologram due to airborne particles.
