Quickstart for Social Interaction

Hi there! It looks like you want to get started with Social Interaction. This guide contains some handy commands which will help you to initiate communications with humans and chatbots.

Note on the Standard

The standard described in this document is a collection of loose conventions and guidelines. Exact implementations vary by region and individual, so it is important to be flexible and adapt to the situation. Certain regions may use alternate protocols, however translation units are available for most of these. Nevertheless, this guide should be applicable for most entities in the UK-NorthWest region.

Initialising the Connection

Like many other networking protocols, Social Interaction requires you to establish a connection first. You can do this by using the hello command:

Hello, my name is [YOUR NAME].

A common follow-up request retrieves the identifier of the other endpoint.

What is your name?

Most servers will then provide an identification string, which you can use to refer to them in future communications.

To acknowledge the receipt of an identifier and signal the intent to progress the conversation, you can use a greeting/compliment command.

Nice to meet you, [THEIR NAME].

The server may send a similar response.

Developing the Conversation

One method of developing a conversation is to establish common ground. It should be noted that, although both entities are often humans, this often proves to be a difficult starting point for communication topics. A notable exception to this rule are those humans specialising in the field of philosophy, who can often be found devoting entire careers to the Human Condition.

A more reliable method employed in the UK cluster of regions is to discuss the weather. It provides a neutral topic which is often of interest to both parties.

To begin, simply comment on the weather, for example:

It’s a bit chilly today, isn’t it?

The command should be modified to reflect the current weather conditions.

The server will often respond with a similar comment, or provide additional information about the weather.

Whilst discussing the weather is an effective method of establishing common ground, it is not a particularly engaging topic for longer discussions. To establish a more engaging conversation, you may wish to discuss past or present study. In addition to naming the field of study, you may wish to provide additional information about your studies, such as how you are finding it and what you hope to achieve.

For example,

I’m studying [FIELD OF STUDY] at Lancaster University. It’s really interesting, but the workload is quite heavy.

The server will often respond with a similar comment, or ask for more information about your studies.

Whilst the above can be adapted to suit your study, there is an important caveat if you are frustrated with your studies. In this case, you should check that the other endpoint is prepared to engage in debate, particularly if they are not frustrated with study in the same field. If this check is not made, the conversation may turn into a one-sided rant, which is often not a desirable outcome.

Another common topic is to discuss personal history. You can begin with a simple statement about your past, for example:

I grew up in [LOCATION].

The server will often respond with a similar comment, or ask for more information about your past.

Whilst it can be tempting to embellish your past, it is important to remember that the server may ask for additional information, and it is often difficult to maintain a consistent story. Quite often, the truth is more interesting than fiction.

Some people like to divulge their personal details at length. This can be an effective way to establish trust and rapport, but it is important to remember that some servers may have malicious intent, and it is important to be cautious when sharing personal information.

Closing the Connection

If the conversation begins to dwindle, you may wish to close the connection. One method to create a graceful exit is to suggest the possibility of future communication.

It was nice talking to you. Maybe we can chat again sometime.

The server will often respond with a similar comment, or provide additional information about future communication.

To conclude the exit procedure, you can use the goodbye command:

Goodbye, [THEIR NAME].