skybrian's recent activity
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Comment on If you let AI do your writing, I will come to your house and kill you in ~tech
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Comment on Use AI this election in ~society
skybrian Link ParentI think you can take this article at face value as being his honest opinion, though you might disagree. I don't think it needs a content warning. I suppose a warning that he's controversial might...I think you can take this article at face value as being his honest opinion, though you might disagree. I don't think it needs a content warning. I suppose a warning that he's controversial might be in order, but it has nothing to do with the article.
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Comment on If you let AI do your writing, I will come to your house and kill you in ~tech
skybrian Link ParentNowadays, they can also look things up, which significantly improves accuracy. That is, you’re likely to interact with a chatbot that can do web searches. It doesn’t help if the web search has bad...Nowadays, they can also look things up, which significantly improves accuracy. That is, you’re likely to interact with a chatbot that can do web searches.
It doesn’t help if the web search has bad info, though.
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Comment on Use AI this election in ~society
skybrian Link ParentThe Scott Alexander quote comes from this article. I encourage people to read the article for yourself and then go back and see if you think Torres is being fair. My conclusion is that that Torres...The Scott Alexander quote comes from this article. I encourage people to read the article for yourself and then go back and see if you think Torres is being fair. My conclusion is that that Torres is too biased to take seriously, but at least they’re willing to link directly to what they’re criticizing.
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Comment on Use AI this election in ~society
skybrian (edited )Link ParentDefinitelyNotAFae has repeatedly criticized Scott Alexander on Tildes and you should not take her word on this. For example, he is not a white supremicist. Perhaps I should go around warning about...DefinitelyNotAFae has repeatedly criticized Scott Alexander on Tildes and you should not take her word on this. For example, he is not a white supremicist. Perhaps I should go around warning about her, but we’ve had this argument before and it’s tedious.
Edit: slandered -> criticized
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Comment on If you let AI do your writing, I will come to your house and kill you in ~tech
skybrian Link ParentWell, they can, but it's usually through a funhouse mirror. Real life is rarely story-shaped.Well, they can, but it's usually through a funhouse mirror. Real life is rarely story-shaped.
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Comment on If you let AI do your writing, I will come to your house and kill you in ~tech
skybrian Link ParentYes, but I think the people who maintain all those apps and websites are responsible for putting it there. For most websites, they are the AI providers' customers. For Google, they are themselves...Yes, but I think the people who maintain all those apps and websites are responsible for putting it there. For most websites, they are the AI providers' customers. For Google, they are themselves an AI provider. I hope this trend ends soon.
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Comment on Actually useful MCPs in ~comp
skybrian (edited )Link ParentUh, I haven't tested with it. But I'm just working on my own personal websites and I'm unlikely to do anything fancy that would break Firefox. I should check that sometime.Uh, I haven't tested with it. But I'm just working on my own personal websites and I'm unlikely to do anything fancy that would break Firefox. I should check that sometime.
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Comment on Actually useful MCPs in ~comp
skybrian LinkI'm not using any yet. I might use the Playwright MCP except that on exe.dev, the agent already has Chrome integration.I'm not using any yet. I might use the Playwright MCP except that on exe.dev, the agent already has Chrome integration.
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Comment on Use AI this election in ~society
skybrian Link ParentI'm interested in where it got its information, rather than just a summary. If, hypothetically, someone asked who I support, I'd want it to be based on something factual. (Admittedly, newspaper...I'm interested in where it got its information, rather than just a summary. If, hypothetically, someone asked who I support, I'd want it to be based on something factual.
(Admittedly, newspaper endorsements are opinions, but I read them because they often have interesting context for their choices.)
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Comment on If you let AI do your writing, I will come to your house and kill you in ~tech
skybrian Link ParentI agree for Google. It seems like they could have kept the AI stuff on a separate website, available to people who are curious about it, and avoided a lot of backlash? For the other AI labs, if...I agree for Google. It seems like they could have kept the AI stuff on a separate website, available to people who are curious about it, and avoided a lot of backlash?
For the other AI labs, if people go to their website or download their apps, I think that counts as opting in rather than being forced?
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Comment on British Columbia property owners cry foul after $1 billion indigenous land-rights ruling in ~society
skybrian LinkFrom the article: [...] [...] [...] [...]From the article:
(Bloomberg) — Not far from the Vancouver airport lies an industrial zone of plain, grey warehouses bordered by the Fraser River and serviced by a steady procession of trucks.
Two centuries ago, a village of the Cowichan people occupied the site, their presence and name recorded by a ship’s captain surveying the region. Now the neighborhood is the centre of a fight over Indigenous rights that has property holders across British Columbia wondering if they truly own their land.
The province’s Supreme Court in August ruled the Cowichan have title to 800 acres (3.2 square kilometers) of the industrial zone in the city of Richmond — land worth about $1.3 billion. Far from settling the issue, the ruling has triggered a backlash that is reshaping politics in famously liberal British Columbia, as conservative politicians demand the government uphold property rights. The issue is reverberating nationwide, with Liberal Prime Minister Mark Carney telling the House of Commons in April the government “fundamentally disagrees” with the decision.
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Although the decision is being appealed, its effects were immediate.
Richmond’s mayor wrote to property holders, warning their ownership was in question. The affected zone’s biggest developer, Montrose Property Holdings Ltd., said the judgment prompted a lender to pull out of talks to fund a new warehouse. It has also been blamed for scuttling an offer to buy a nearby hotel. Paul Sullivan, a principal at tax consultant Ryan ULC, called the few homes in the zone “currently unsaleable.”
Adding fuel to the controversy, a higher court four months later issued a ruling that means the province must bring all its laws into compliance with a 2007 United Nations declaration on the rights of Indigenous peoples worldwide.
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British Columbia in 2019 passed a law to comply with the UN declaration, with officials thinking they would have years or decades to bring provincial laws into alignment. Instead, the province is now exposed to “a tidal wave of litigation” and “unlimited legal liability,” in the words of BC’s left-wing premier, David Eby, who was the province’s attorney general when that law — known as DRIPA — was passed.
“We know that the vast majority of our laws are not compliant,” he said in an interview. The December decision, he said, means that “any law at any time, any statutory decision could be challenged and overturned.”
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While the Indigenous land rights issue has touched a raw nerve across Canada, it’s most acute in British Columbia — largely due to unfinished business.
Unlike in much of Canada, the British Crown never signed treaties with most of BC’s 204 First Nations. That means their legal relationship to the modern state is still in flux, and their traditional territories remain unceded. The provincial government says it wants to sign treaties now, rather than fight the nations in court. It’s in talks with 29 groups, according to its treaty commission.
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The August ruling, in what has become the longest-running court case in Canadian history, left unresolved the question of how to reconcile Indigenous title with private ownership. Instead, it ordered BC to negotiate with the Cowichan.
Thomas, the Lyackson chief, said her nation isn’t interested in taking anyone’s house. Instead, the group wants to participate in the Vancouver area’s economic future and is still trying to figure out what to do with the land title. The day after the ruling, which also recognized Cowichan fishing rights, fishers were back out on the water, she said.
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British Columbia property owners cry foul after $1 billion indigenous land-rights ruling
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Comment on Senior Ukrainian commander sees imminent 'turning point' in war in ~society
skybrian Link ParentI see that trend too, but perhaps they could hold out until something new shakes things up? Suppose Putin dies?I see that trend too, but perhaps they could hold out until something new shakes things up? Suppose Putin dies?
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Comment on Corporations can vote in some Delaware elections, judge says in ~society
skybrian Link ParentMaybe, but that depends on the town's specific rules, which we don't know. I'm skeptical that such legal trickery would work. Even if it did, I'd guess it only works once.Maybe, but that depends on the town's specific rules, which we don't know. I'm skeptical that such legal trickery would work. Even if it did, I'd guess it only works once.
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Comment on If you let AI do your writing, I will come to your house and kill you in ~tech
skybrian Link ParentMaking the hardware deterministic even when being used concurrently doesn't seem impossible in principle, though? Assuming someone made it a priority.Making the hardware deterministic even when being used concurrently doesn't seem impossible in principle, though? Assuming someone made it a priority.
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Comment on If you let AI do your writing, I will come to your house and kill you in ~tech
skybrian Link ParentSeems to me this is like the difference between watching the Olympics and watching a movie where olympic athletes are characters. The movie is all fakery, but it may have other storytelling...Seems to me this is like the difference between watching the Olympics and watching a movie where olympic athletes are characters. The movie is all fakery, but it may have other storytelling virtues. You might still enjoy it.
Also, it seems rather odd to look to fiction for accurate insight into the human condition? Fiction authors are allowed to make stuff up and they do it all the time.
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Comment on If you let AI do your writing, I will come to your house and kill you in ~tech
skybrian Link ParentI think that works for Apple since they have such a strong product line. They can probably wait a year or two and launch a better product after AI improves. Also, there are probably a lot of other...I think that works for Apple since they have such a strong product line. They can probably wait a year or two and launch a better product after AI improves. Also, there are probably a lot of other companies that could avoid getting caught up in it right away and let other companies be the guinea pigs. Companies that write Internet-facing software will probably still need AI to fix all their security bugs, but they don't need to change everything else.
But when I said "arms race," I was thinking of the AI labs themselves. They're in a very competitive industry and they could get left behind if they don't release better models.
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Comment on Use AI this election in ~society
skybrian LinkI do use AI, but in a more mundane way. I asked ChatGPT to find newspaper endorsements. I might use it to find in-depth articles about candidates. Basically I'd use it as a search engine.I do use AI, but in a more mundane way. I asked ChatGPT to find newspaper endorsements. I might use it to find in-depth articles about candidates. Basically I'd use it as a search engine.
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Comment on Use AI this election in ~society
skybrian LinkFrom the article: [...]From the article:
I’m not saying AI is superintelligent or can decide better than you can. I’m saying that if you - like me - spend an hour or so doing research before voting on local seats, AI can aid that research very effectively. And if you don’t do that research - because you weren’t willing to waste an hour on it before - AI makes it so much faster that you might want to start.
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This was a good enough experience that if I didn’t have an hour or two to do this properly, I would trust Claude’s endorsement over competing cheap-and-fast ways to determine my vote (party-line, newspaper endorsements, NGO endorsements, who has the funniest name). And given that I did spend two hours doing this properly, I think I’m about 50% happier with my choices than I would have been without AI.
The free LLM's aren't as good as the more expensive ones at staying on track. I have a ChatGPT subscription (not the fancy one, the $20/month one) and use it with the default set to "Thinking." It consistently does many searches before answering. This takes a while, so I do something else and then come back. When I ask it questions about an open source project, it often downloads source files.
I haven't been impressed with Gemini, but I haven't signed up for anything extra beyond having a Google account, so maybe there are better versions. Google's pricing and AI product line confuse me so I haven't bothered.
I agree that there's little point in continuing conversations with an LLM for long. That's especially true of the free ones.