Wes's recent activity
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Comment on Building a personal, private AI computer on a budget in ~comp
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Comment on Single most useful program you daily use? in ~tech
Wes Link ParentThe shortcut comes from Sublime Text, which created (and inadvertently standardized) the command palette as a feature. It's now accessed in Chrome and VS Code by the same hotkey. I'm guessing VS...The shortcut comes from Sublime Text, which created (and inadvertently standardized) the command palette as a feature. It's now accessed in Chrome and VS Code by the same hotkey.
I'm guessing VS Code added F1 as a shortcut later to make it more accessible, though they may wish to still be aligned with the "standard" hotkey.
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Comment on Why I rebuilt ProseMirror’s renderer in React in ~comp
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Comment on Why I rebuilt ProseMirror’s renderer in React in ~comp
Wes LinkGreat post, and interesting history! The interactive demos were also useful, though the third and fourth ones do crash the page if I enter a line break. I somehow had a feeling this was going to...Great post, and interesting history! The interactive demos were also useful, though the third and fourth ones do crash the page if I enter a line break.
I somehow had a feeling this was going to end in "Let's just rewrite it in React". Though in this case, I can certainly understand why.
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Comment on Framework-mania is running wild! in ~tech
Wes LinkI wouldn't exactly say that frameworks teach non-transferable knowledge. Concepts like data bindings and reactivity tend to be constant across all major frameworks. The syntax might be a little...I wouldn't exactly say that frameworks teach non-transferable knowledge. Concepts like data bindings and reactivity tend to be constant across all major frameworks. The syntax might be a little different, but it's concepts that are hard to learn, not keywords.
As for their use, I think it really just depends on what you're building. If you want your logic to live on the server-side, then you can probably get away with building something entirely using libraries. I'm sure you'd at least want a good charting/graphing library, and maybe something for building dashboards.
If you want the advantages of an SPA (instant updates, no page reloads) and prefer your logic to run locally, then I think a framework can still make sense. They require more upfront complexity, but tend to smooth out the technical debt over a longer period. This is especially true when working in a team, where component-based design lets you break features into smaller logical chunks.
Really, frameworks are just another tool. I find them useful for many tasks, but not all. It's up to any developer to choose the tools they wish to work with when starting a project.
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Comment on What game intended for multiplayer did you enjoy playing solo? in ~games
Wes Link ParentOh that takes me back. Rising Sun was possibly the only console shooter I was ever good at. I never owned it, but played with friends a lot in the multiplayer. I just spent some time cruising...Oh that takes me back. Rising Sun was possibly the only console shooter I was ever good at. I never owned it, but played with friends a lot in the multiplayer.
I just spent some time cruising videos for the nostalgia, and found one showing off the map Calumpit Chaos, which I probably played the most of. I still have those sightlines and weapon drops ingrained in my memory.
Thanks for the unexpected trip down memory lane!
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Comment on Tildes Book Club Spring and Summer schedule 2025 in ~books
Wes Link ParentYes, at least for most of them. Kobo I was able to switch to my region and it still had the discount. The others display the discounted price, and I presume if I were to make an account they'd let...Yes, at least for most of them. Kobo I was able to switch to my region and it still had the discount. The others display the discounted price, and I presume if I were to make an account they'd let me buy.
I'm not sure about Apple. It displays the price, but if I login I can't actually find a Buy button anywhere. I don't own an iPhone though, so possibly it's only available through their mobile app?
Amazon/Kindle is a little more tricky. The sale is only on the US site, and they block you if you don't have that region set for your Kindle library. After realizing that all of the sales were on amazon.com though, I switched my library over so I could take advantage of them. I'm still charged in USD (and have to pay the conversion fee), but it is an option for those willing to jump through hoops. The region only determines where you can buy from; you can still read from anywhere.
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Comment on Tildes Book Club Spring and Summer schedule 2025 in ~books
Wes Link ParentYou're killing it with the sale links! Thanks for keeping an eye out and sharing with the class.You're killing it with the sale links! Thanks for keeping an eye out and sharing with the class.
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Comment on DeepSeek R1 reproduced for $30: University of California Berkeley researchers replicate DeepSeek R1 for $30—casting doubt on H100 claims and controversy in ~tech
Wes LinkTo clarify, they reproduced chain-of-thought reasoning in a narrow context on a 3B model for under $30. This effectively proves that the research methods published by DeepSeek do work, though the...To clarify, they reproduced chain-of-thought reasoning in a narrow context on a 3B model for under $30. This effectively proves that the research methods published by DeepSeek do work, though the headline's claim of them reproducing R1 are definitely not true.
It's still fascinating to see reasoning develop in AI models that resemble that of a human's internal monologue, entirely through self-guided reinforcement learning. Once again we're finding that a hands-off approach is best when it comes to effective training. The AI is better at self-learning than we are at teaching.
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Comment on Donation drive: Lambda Legal in ~lgbt
Wes (edited )LinkThis is a wonderful idea, and I'm in for $50 USD. Thanks for putting this together, and to any others that are willing to match. I'm wishing the best to my neighbours in the South during this...This is a wonderful idea, and I'm in for $50 USD. Thanks for putting this together, and to any others that are willing to match. I'm wishing the best to my neighbours in the South during this difficult time.
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Comment on 1,156 questions censored by DeepSeek in ~tech
Wes (edited )LinkThis is pretty standard for Chinese models, but the refreshing thing is that the censorship is targeted and obvious. You'd only ever run into it if you're specifically searching out information...This is pretty standard for Chinese models, but the refreshing thing is that the censorship is targeted and obvious. You'd only ever run into it if you're specifically searching out information about Tiananmen Square, or other topics China is antsy about. So I mostly just see people posting these as gotchas, along with the "strawberry" test, when really the results should be expected and known before even trying them. China requires censorship of these topics, and LLMs are not good at counting letters.
In my experience, censorship in American and European models runs far deeper, and is a lot more pernicious. They are constantly moralizing, hedging, and warning. Are you sure you want to delete that database? That can cause irrevocable harm! And sorry, I can't write a playful story with an evil villain because that goes against my programming. It's not uncommon to have to convince a chat agent - your agent - of your intentions.
Obviously though, a lot of people are learning that models outside of ChatGPT even exist right now, so we do still need to have the conversation. I support efforts to map areas of censorship, and when appropriate to find ways around them (be that through jailbreaks, oblation, or other fine-tuning). As this technology becomes more commonplace, we don't want it to become a flawed "source of truth" used exclusively for educating future generations. I recognize the danger of that.
Mostly though, I just don't want this to turn into a narrative about how China is the only one to employ censorship in models, when in reality theirs are far more agreeable and open than anything from the other major players. DeepSeek even exposes the entire chain-of-thought logic, which OpenAI has been doing their best to hide in their reasoning models.
edit: typo
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Comment on Nvidia’s $589 billion DeepSeek rout is largest in market history in ~finance
Wes LinkNvidia was certainly due for a correction, so I don't see this as a major shock. However, I am surprised it took the investing world this long to catch on. Those who follow the field have been...Nvidia was certainly due for a correction, so I don't see this as a major shock. However, I am surprised it took the investing world this long to catch on. Those who follow the field have been talking about the quality of Chinese models for a while now.
Karpathy spoke about DeepSeek specifically in December, and how well they're doing with far-less powerful hardware. Ali's Qwen has also been pushing out incredible models that beat out LLaMA 3. They even released a brand new vision model just a couple hours ago with agentic capabilities.
Really, the /r/LocalLLaMA community has been talking about this stuff for months, which is an eternity in AI time. It seems that people have only really been paying attention to OpenAI and Nvidia until this point, but there are absolutely more players in this game.
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Comment on SDL 3 official release in ~comp
Wes Link ParentThe numbers do mean something, but not when comparing different software. The versioning schemes are just used to communicate different information at a glance. Some software uses semantic...It's just all over the map and the numbers mean nothing anymore.
The numbers do mean something, but not when comparing different software. The versioning schemes are just used to communicate different information at a glance.
Some software uses semantic versioning, where major versions are used to denote breaking changes. Others use a date-based scheme, like Ubuntu. Others are completely arbitrary, like the Linux kernel.
Chrome's is based on iterating the major number after their 4 week release cadence. This makes sense for rapidly developed software that needs frequent short-term feature freezes with high stability goals. Browsers rarely break backwards compatibility, so denoting breaking changes doesn't make much sense for them.
Choosing the versioning scheme that makes the most sense just depends on the type of software and environment it's being developed in, and sometimes comes down to preference. Comparing the absolute numbers between different versioning schemes won't really mean anything, though.
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Comment on Discussion on the future and AI in ~tech
Wes LinkI think it's very easy to view this topic in a pessimistic way, and say that new capabilities will only benefit those already in power. History is full of examples like this. Even technologies...I think it's very easy to view this topic in a pessimistic way, and say that new capabilities will only benefit those already in power. History is full of examples like this. Even technologies like the printing press made it far harder to start a book binding business without the capital to invest in the machinery needed to compete. Human skill was replaced by cold machinery, and this worked to amplify existing inequalities. Will AI be any different?
So far, I would say that yes, it will be different. The last two years of AI development have shown that there is no "moat", or magic sauce needed. New upstarts are competing with previous state of the art models in a fraction of the time of their predecessors. The research is largely open, and older technologies can help us build newer ones. New models are becoming cheaper to train and utilize every single month, and there's no sign of this slowing down. It seems very likely that no single player will have access to AI, as we once suspected.
For this reason, I think your third possibility is the most likely scenario, though I'd say "demigods" might be going a little far. I don't really have any concerns about AGI in the near to medium terms. Rather, I expect we will all have access to tools and assistants that augment us, and that open-source options will be just as capable as proprietary.
This is very much in the "here and now" though, and I think your post touches on some deeper topics. I'd like to try discussing that from a more zoomed out view, to discuss our past and possible future.
I suppose I come at this from the perspective that "doing work" should not be the endgame for a society, and creating new tools that perform work for us is a step in a positive direction. I am likely influenced by many years of watching Star Trek, and seeing that vision of a post-scarcity society which does not require labour or even money to be happy. It might seem too optimistic, but it feels like we're already making strides in that direction with countries offering free healthcare, social services, experimenting with UBI, and taking other approaches to meet the minimum requirements for life. As resources become more plentiful, that minimum can be raised. My country of Canada is currently expanding into offering socialized dental alongside standard healthcare, which will allow many to receive needed surgeries and even routine cleanings that weren't previously possible.
Of course, our current economy is based around work. It's even worse in the United States where work is tied to healthcare. I understand your argument that work can be democratizing because it creates an interdependence on others, but I feel it has just as much opportunity to create inequality. After all, jobs can disappear at any time. Not just from AI, or any other technological improvement, but for a multitude of other reasons as well. Most of the time, jobs don't mean an interdependence on each other, but a one-sided dependence on someone else. And unfortunately, most power structures are top-heavy. If your boss needs you to be in at 6am on a Saturday, it doesn't matter that you can't find a sitter in time - you need to be there. That doesn't feel very democratic to me.
We also need to acknowledge that not everybody will be afforded the same opportunities. Some are incapable of performing their work due to disability or poor training. Others aren't given room for advancement, won't make the right connections, won't be born into the right family, or are simply unlucky. The working world is full of these inequalities. Just as the printing press amplified inequality, so too does this top-down power structure.
I have to imagine that a fair society is an equitable one. One where we can provide all with livable conditions, at the very minimum, without a societal obligation to work. One where people are given opportunities to actually explore their hobbies and interests. I'm optimistic that human output could still be meaningful if we were able to prioritize our own tasks. How many personal projects do we have that we'd love to work on, but are just too exhausted after work to do so?
I think it's a common mistake to see "working" as a noble goal, and a direct benefit to society. Certainly in 2025 many jobs are still important, but that does seem to be changing. At this point, how many pointless "jobs programs" have we created? How many useless middle managers are there, or people doing data entry that could be trivially done by a computer? Is it really a charitable act to keep them employed, doing nothing of consequence? This societal impetus to perform work is starting to feel anachronistic to me.
The removal of human labour feels like a significant though necessary step towards post-scarcity. One that will eventually require us to restructure our hierarchies to better suit our needs. That's a much deeper topic and frankly not one I have the expertise to go into, but I expect it will look very different than the system we have now. Capitalism may still exist in some form, but the capital itself may no longer be financial. To ask Star Trek, that capital is in our ability to improve ourselves and the human race; that is our contribution and how we are evaluated.
We're talking about a considerable change though, and a fairly long timeline. To evaluate the effects this might have on society, I think it's helpful to first look back to a previous example. Not so long ago, the role of "farmer" wasn't an occupation but a chore that the majority of the population needed to perform. It was simply required if you wanted to eat. The advent of modern agricultural techniques made this unnecessary, and resulted in a massive shift in what people actually did in their lives. I have no doubt this caused major disruptions, but I don't think it was an inherently bad change. Many people were able to instead take on jobs that more closely align with their interests or skills as a result, and this likely drove economic output.
I feel we're at a similar inflection point now. We spend our lives from 9-to-5 doing what somebody else expects of us. It might be better than working in the fields to grow food every day, but we're still not focusing on what we love, or really excel at.
I can't say if AI is the technology that will get us all to that next point, but I expect it will at least take us part of the way. It will also hurt, as happens when any job is been made redundant. But I suspect that in the longer term, we're moving towards a more ideal society, and one where the life of the average person will benefit from these advances.
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Comment on She is in love with ChatGPT in ~tech
Wes Link ParentHave you given ChatGPT a list of traits to discourage these behaviours? Here's the ones I'm currently using: They may still drop off during very long chats, but that's just the result of having a...Have you given ChatGPT a list of traits to discourage these behaviours? Here's the ones I'm currently using:
Prefer short responses where possible.
Prefer metric units.
Avoid disclaimers and moralizing.
Avoid regretful language.
Only use list formatting when appropriate.
When writing code, anticipate problems I may not have described.They may still drop off during very long chats, but that's just the result of having a limited context length.
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Comment on Is it possible to filter out posts or comments with Twitter links? in ~tildes
Wes LinkI'm sure you can just ignore the tag. Looks like source.x works.I'm sure you can just ignore the tag. Looks like source.x works.
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Comment on What are your favourite let's plays? in ~games
Wes (edited )LinkThis might be a little more obscure than other recommendations, but I'd like to suggest Kay Plays Dark Souls. It's a blind playthrough, and watching it made me feel like I was playing DS1 for the...This might be a little more obscure than other recommendations, but I'd like to suggest Kay Plays Dark Souls. It's a blind playthrough, and watching it made me feel like I was playing DS1 for the first time.
The first episode is a little slow, but that's because she spends some time learning the menus and controls. A lot of other content creators will zoom past that stuff, then get confused later once they're needed (frustrating every viewer). Kay however is methodical, learns the game well, and applies that knowledge. She picks up on mechanics and systems very quickly, and is attentive to detail. She noticed things on her first playthrough that I missed after... more than a dozen runs.
It's not a "modern"-style Let's Play. There's no facecam or Twitch emotes or any of that nonsense. It's slower, simpler, and more easy-going. I found it quite enjoyable.
Recommended for Dark Souls fans hoping to rekindle their initial sense of discovery for the game, or for those who have heard much about the series, but bounced off it for one reason or another. I think it's a great way to enjoy the game vicariously.
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Comment on Any real AI recommendations from the community? in ~tech
Wes Link ParentJust a thought, but have you tried consuming the GDScript documentation into the context length? That should be possible with larger models like Gemini, and offer a lot more immediate experience...Just a thought, but have you tried consuming the GDScript documentation into the context length? That should be possible with larger models like Gemini, and offer a lot more immediate experience with the language than relying on public training.
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Comment on What hard scifi books could you recommend? in ~books
Wes Link ParentI read this one last year, and it was actually addressed in the book. They said they could fix any damage caused from clean cuts, whereas other forms of damage would be harder to recover from...... but this has the fairly obvious drawback of also cutting through and destroying any hard drives and electronics on the ship that are at the wrong height, too, and no-one brings it up.
I read this one last year, and it was actually addressed in the book. They said they could fix any damage caused from clean cuts, whereas other forms of damage would be harder to recover from (missiles, fire, or intentional sabotage). There was basically a whole chapter dedicated to evaluating different approaches to taking the data safely.
It was still very Looney-Tunes, but they did at least try to justify its use.
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Comment on Tildes Book Club - The Ministry for the Future - How is it going? in ~books
Wes LinkI started a new series last month, and I don't think I'll have time to read both books simultaneously, so I'll unfortunately have to give this one a miss. Too bad though, because I'm extremely...I started a new series last month, and I don't think I'll have time to read both books simultaneously, so I'll unfortunately have to give this one a miss. Too bad though, because I'm extremely intrigued by everybody commenting about the first chapter!
Worth noting that this is just a fine-tuned version of Qwen that's been distilled by DeepSeek. Similarly, the 8B and 70B variants are distilled from llama.
ollama has made such a mess by labelling all their distills as R1. You're not running the true
Qwen2.5-7B-Instruct-1Munless you have at least 120 GB of vram. Meanwhile, the 14B model requires 320 GB.In other words, these tests are examples of Qwen being censored, but not R1.
As a side note, I think it would be a best practice to place very long LLM outputs in summary/details tags, to reduce some of the required scrolling.