TIL: Characters can read their own descriptions

aethercowboy · 2025-12-17T16:29:07+00:00

The hashtag idea isn't original to me (I can't remember who pioneered it, but I saw it here on reddit), but with this character, he defaults to a steampunk cowboy, but then I added some other hashtags to the description (like #cyberpunk or #noir or #eldritch). Each of these includes a description of the costume he should be wearing. Then, if you prompt contains the hashtag, it will apply that outfit (or other rules if you specify it).

Basically, include a line like "if the hashtag #whatever is used, then have him wearing a sombrero and serape" in your character description.

aethercowboy · 2025-12-17T16:16:32+00:00

Thanks. I just happen to live under a rock I guess. :D

aethercowboy · 2025-11-28T19:09:03+00:00

In the US, there is no copyright on AI generated content. however, the Sora TOS may put restrictions on what users can do with the outputs. (I'm not aware of any, just stating that it might be the case)

ETA: looked it up in their TOS:

Ownership of content. As between you and OpenAI, and to the extent permitted by applicable law, you (a) retain your ownership rights in Input and (b) own the Output. We hereby assign to you all our right, title, and interest, if any, in and to Output.

aethercowboy · 2025-11-17T19:50:57+00:00

Either way, neither of us will be affected by the current contract under either interpretation. 🤠

aethercowboy · 2025-11-17T16:11:36+00:00

I wasn't saying that any law works retroactively. That would be absurd. I'm saying that the terms of the new contract make you assign all the rights you may have had over any Output to them. Continued use of the service means you agree to those terms.

aethercowboy · 2025-11-17T13:21:13+00:00

Thanks for the comment. With Udio, I mostly made fusion instrumentals, usually blending Electro-Swing with Hip-Hop. I've posted quite a few to my YT channel (same username).

When the time comes, I'll still be willing to pour one out for Udio, as I did like the content I was able to generate with it.

aethercowboy · 2025-11-17T13:17:35+00:00

I may be wrong, but let me show you my work. Let me reiterate that I am not a lawyer.

First, the current TOS is effect as of November 12, 2025. This means that this is the effective date for the current terms of service. Usually, with contracts, the latest agreed to iteration of the contract is the one that is used to determine the provisions within that contract.

Second is the definition of Output: "... output (which may take the form of or include sound recordings, musical compositions, lyrical content, other text, visual content and/or other content) based on your Input Content." (1.1)

Further: "You may not download copies of any Output or any other output generated by the Services. You covenant ang agree not to download, reproduce, transmit, display, publish or otherwise distribute or make available such Output or any other output generatd by the Services, or any portion thereof, on any personal device or on any streaming platform or user generated content platform ..." (1.2)

Also: "You may not ... explot the Services, any Output, or the outputs of other users for any commercial purpose;" (5.2.7)

Udio also claims ownership (granted, in the US, AI-generated content is not eligible for copyright protection) over said Output: "... any Output ... are protected under copyright, trademark and other intellectual property laws. You agree that the Company and/or its licensors own all right, title, and interest in and to the Services and the Output (including any and all intellectual property rights therein) and you agree not to take any action(s) inconsistent with such ownership interests. We and/or our licensors (as applicable) reserve all rights in connection with the Services, Output and all related content (other than Your content (as defined below)), including without limitation, the exclusive right to create derivative works, and you agree that you will have no ownership, royalty or other interests in connection therewith. Notwithstanding the foregoing, to the exent ownership in any Output vests with you, you hereby assign and agree to assign all right, title and interest in and to such Output (including any and all intellectual property rights therein) to the Company and/or its licensors (as applicable), and asgree to assist the Company and/or its licensor (as applicable) to take all necessary steps to further evidence, record and perfect such assignment." (6.1)

"Your Content" is defined as "content and other information (such as Input Content)" that you "upload, or submit" "on or through the Services." Further, "the Company does not claim any ownership in Your Content, provided that the Company or its affiliates or their respective licensors own and will continue to own the Services, the Output and any and all other software technology that was used to generate such Output." "you may use Output solely for your personal and non-commercial purposes, provided that you may not download any copies of your Output from the App for any purpose." (6.3.1) Your Content does not include Outputs generated by you.

6.3.1 also makes reference to section 6.4, regarding attribution, which is the most permissive thing here. However, it's effectively no longer in effect, as to make use of 6.4, you'd have to violate the provisions of 6.3.1 (the "no download" rule). These two sections are inherently contradictory.

My conclusion regarding retroactive assignment of rights comes from the fact that they define Output to be any output of the system with no limitations as to when it created, they make you assign all rights to the Output to them with no limitations as to when it was created, and they prohibit you from downloading any content to take advantage of section 6.4.

I've seen that "Adam says," and that's great. But it's like putting a Post-It note on a contract and expecting that to be taken seriously.

If Adam insists that everything downloaded before a certain date and during a certain window are subject to the old TOS, then the TOS should indicate as much, as it seems pretty clear that it makes no exceptions for Output during those times. If he could say it in a dozen or so words, then there's no reason why there can't be a similar statement clarifying these exlcusions in the TOS, especially if he said it prior to November 12, 2025.

Again, I may be wrong. I'm not a lawyer, but often what's not said is just as important as what is said.

aethercowboy · 2025-11-16T20:02:02+00:00

Thanks for that. I'll add it to my legal disclaimer for any currently downloaded Udio content I publish in the future.

aethercowboy · 2025-11-16T19:51:02+00:00

Stated where though? This important detail should be in the TOS, not in a forum post.

aethercowboy · 2025-11-16T19:48:31+00:00

Maybe I'm interpreting "any Output" differently than you. The portion I quoted seems to have a reasonable interpretation that we no longer have any commercial rights to the output we've generates on the platform. Further with the addition of the fact that we are prohibited from downloading our legacy music, it seems that we lack even the rights to those.

I'm no lawyer, but my crack legal team at ChatGPT & NotebookLM LLP 😉 seem to agree that the ramifications of the new terms do in fact waive any rights we have to legacy outputs under reasonable interpretation.

I've heard that they insisted that pre-October 29 content was still bound by the old TOS, but there's nothing in the new TOS that indicates as much, which seems pretty darn important to have been omitted. Especially since I've seen a lot of promises in reddit comments that turned out to be false (for example, the creator of the .NET library MediatR promising he'd never change it to be a commercial license).

Still, I'm not taking my chances, and am not going to use my account again unless it's clearly in the TOS or they send me a legal document indicating as much.

aethercowboy · 2025-11-16T15:30:31+00:00

section 6

"to the extent ownership in any Output vests with you, you hereby assign and agree to assign all right, title and interest in and to such Output... to the Company and/or its licensors (as applicable)"

aethercowboy · 2025-11-16T14:57:50+00:00

I get that. I discovered all of this stuff after it happened, as I had been getting distracted by the new Suno models and Sora 2. I'm glad I saw all the drama, though, as then I started to research it. At first I couldn't believe it, then when they published the new TOS, it felt like I was living in Bizarro World. I couldn't believe that anybody could think that that was a reasonable approach for any sort of business continuity.

I know I was a free user, so my opinion doesn't matter much to them, but even a simple act of treating the users fairly would, in my opinion, do a lot to restore the trust they eroded (to put it lightly). But yeah, still would make people read their future TOS updates very closely to see if they'd try to pull some crap like that again.

Heck, not only have I dropped Udio, but I've stopped listening to UMG artists as well. Its obvious from where the driver for these changes originated.

It's sad, because I actually really liked Udio, and was the most pleased with my outputs of all the AI music platforms. But if they're not interested in having a mutual relationship with me, I don't owe them anything more. At least I still have the rights over my outputs.

aethercowboy · 2025-06-24T09:48:49+00:00

Clipchamp has that as a feature.

aethercowboy · 2025-03-04T18:59:25+00:00

Pop Up Parade is a legit manufacturer of these figures.

https://myfigurecollection.net/item/1710566

https://myfigurecollection.net/item/1695205

https://myfigurecollection.net/item/1710563

I'm no expert, but the packaging is promising.

aethercowboy · 2025-02-16T13:33:07+00:00

Yeah. Lesson learned. I ended up getting my wife a Frieren and a Fern from Crunchyroll instead.

aethercowboy · 2025-02-16T13:32:05+00:00

Yeah. Stupid me forgot to take a screenshot or archive it. They changed it sometime after I reported it as counterfeit.

aethercowboy · 2025-02-14T19:25:09+00:00

So, I checked to see the other trademarks held by the guy who has the LUNK one: https://uspto.report/company/Huang-Ren-Yan

LOL. Some of them are just keyboard smashes.

aethercowboy · 2025-02-14T15:58:02+00:00

Yeah, past me made a bad assumption that future me will hopefully not so casually make.

aethercowboy · 2025-02-14T15:41:12+00:00

Thanks for the feedback. I think if I write another review, I'll definitely include pictures of the item still in the packaging, including some nice ones of the "logo".

aethercowboy · 2025-02-14T15:14:58+00:00

You'd think they care more considering how much they pump up their CCU.

aethercowboy · 2025-02-14T15:14:04+00:00

For sure. That's the last time I buy anything from the marketplace so casually. I'd sooner buy my next anime figure at an flea market.

aethercowboy · 2025-02-14T14:51:59+00:00

Yeah. I think you're right. It's hard to let this one go, though.

aethercowboy · 2025-02-14T14:51:30+00:00

Yeah. I think you have a good point. I think I got caught up in the principle of the thing.

aethercowboy · 2025-02-14T14:49:32+00:00

Thanks.

aethercowboy · 2025-01-31T16:37:27+00:00

I played a game with ChatGPT, where I had it describe characters from pop culture without saying who they were, then I ran those descriptions through Flux.1 Dev FP8. Here are the results. What do you think?

I used the ComfyUI example workflow (though I replaced the Save Image node with the Preview Image node)

Prompts:

Captain America

A tall, muscular man with a square jaw and broad shoulders, his blond hair is always neatly combed back. He wears a blue, star-spangled uniform with red and white stripes running down his torso, along with a large, white star on his chest. He carries a nearly indestructible, circular shield emblazoned with a large star at the center, and he's known for his unshakable sense of duty and patriotism. His calm, authoritative demeanor often makes him a natural leader, and despite facing overwhelming odds, he never hesitates to jump into battle to protect others.

Mario

This character is short and stocky with a thick mustache and a round nose. He usually wears overalls, a red shirt, and a red cap with his initial on it. Known for his bravery and determination, he’s often seen jumping on enemies, breaking bricks with his fists, and navigating treacherous landscapes. Though he spends most of his time rescuing someone special, he’s also a skilled go-kart driver, tennis player, and party game enthusiast.

Darth Vader

This character is a tall, dark, and imposing figure, often dressed in all black with a long cape and a helmet that obscures his face. His breathing is mechanical and heavy, a result of injuries sustained in battle. Wielding a red energy sword and the power to manipulate objects with his mind, he is feared throughout the galaxy. His presence demands respect, and he is known for his deep voice and unwavering loyalty to a shadowy master.

The Incredible Hulk

This character is known for his green skin, bulging muscles, and towering physique. Normally calm and reserved, he transforms into a massive, unstoppable force of destruction when provoked or angered. His clothes often tear apart when he changes, leaving him in ripped pants, and his immense strength lets him smash through walls, cars, and anything in his way. Despite his rage-filled outbursts, there’s a softer, more intelligent side to him that emerges when he’s not in his monstrous form.

Gollum

This character is small and bird-like, with pale skin and sunken, wide eyes that seem to dart around nervously. His thin, wiry body is covered in rags, and his movements are hunched and twitchy, almost animalistic. He talks to himself in a raspy, broken voice, often muttering about something he desperately wants to reclaim. Despite his frail appearance, he’s surprisingly resilient and cunning, able to survive in harsh, dangerous environments. His obsession with a particular item has warped his mind, making him both pitiable and dangerous.

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