slade's recent activity
-
Comment on Chicago Sun-Times prints summer reading list full of fake books in ~tech
-
Comment on Chicago Sun-Times prints summer reading list full of fake books in ~tech
slade Link ParentI've seen people jump to that conclusion because the writing is high quality, and they're used to people real people typing poorly, as though a human putting effort into content is a myth.I don’t know what it was about your comment that they saw as a “tell”, but I didn’t see it, and I think this is just going to happen for a while.
I've seen people jump to that conclusion because the writing is high quality, and they're used to people real people typing poorly, as though a human putting effort into content is a myth.
-
Comment on What are the rules of this subreddit? in ~tildes
slade Link ParentNow I wonder what would happen if you linked this post there. Probably nothing.Now I wonder what would happen if you linked this post there. Probably nothing.
-
Comment on Jim Butcher and his “Dresden Files” series have survived the darkness in ~books
slade Link ParentSame. I went back and watched it later and still didn't hate it. I dunno, I liked the casting a lot and I felt Bob was a pretty good addition. But again, I saw the show first. I might feel...Same. I went back and watched it later and still didn't hate it. I dunno, I liked the casting a lot and I felt Bob was a pretty good addition.
But again, I saw the show first. I might feel differently otherwise. I know I had a really hard time seeing Murphy as the tiny blonde in the book and not the actress cast for the show.
-
Comment on Hit hardest in Microsoft layoffs? Developers, product managers, morale. in ~tech
slade Link ParentIt was a reply to you. I'm not sure what happened there. I'm still finding my tildes legs. But yeah it agree with everything you said. I didn't think it's a viable long term strategy, because...It was a reply to you. I'm not sure what happened there. I'm still finding my tildes legs.
But yeah it agree with everything you said. I didn't think it's a viable long term strategy, because monopoly breeds complacency and eventually, as you said, something that eventually falls over. But it does seem like how these things tend to go and I suspect AI will be similar.
Or in five years that work out the kinks and really can do it with AI.
-
Comment on Hit hardest in Microsoft layoffs? Developers, product managers, morale. in ~tech
slade Link ParentI would only caveat that by saying that as a knowledgeable engineer, I do get great results out of AI. But that's because I'm looking at the code it produces and telling it to retractor until it's...I would only caveat that by saying that as a knowledgeable engineer, I do get great results out of AI. But that's because I'm looking at the code it produces and telling it to retractor until it's nicely organized and looks like something a human would write.
I know the day is coming when I'm told that that is no longer valuable. And that is my biggest value prop to a hiring manager.
-
Comment on Hit hardest in Microsoft layoffs? Developers, product managers, morale. in ~tech
slade LinkI've been saying for a bit now that I'm not afraid of AI doing my job effectively. I'm afraid of someone giving it to AI anyhow. I work with a product owner who regularly brings me code be created...I've been saying for a bit now that I'm not afraid of AI doing my job effectively. I'm afraid of someone giving it to AI anyhow.
I work with a product owner who regularly brings me code be created through "vibe coding". It always looks amazing in the outside, but so far the code has always been a lot of disjointed spaghetti with unnecessary complexity, and always always always some flaws. But it doesn't matter if I go into detail or stay light; the minute I explain to him why the results may not be usable or scalable, in can tell that he thinks I'm just making things up to protect my job. Because he can find AI to tell him I'm wrong whenever he wants me to be, it's now a daily struggle to explain to him that (a) I happily use AI when it helps, but (b) I don't use it where it doesn't help, and of not helpful having a product owner repeatedly asking me to justify why I can't just upload their code into a magical bucket and it works.
It's like the top is expecting more for less which rarely goes well.
It depends on how you define "goes well". If the hall is quality software written thoughtfully and with intent, you're right, it won't go well. If the goal is produce mediocre software that people have to use because you have a successful monopoly, then it will go brilliantly.
So cut the workforce down to a the minimum amount capable of producing a minimally acceptable product. The entire consumer base is worse for it, as are the people who could've done a better job for a comparatively small amount of money. But the C suite will have carved back a penny of profit and it will be a raging success to the small number of people positively effected by it.
The only happy alternative is companies like Microsoft paying more than the minimum for a product that is better than the minimum, but ultimately making the same sales as before. They would have no reason to do that other than to make people's lives better, pride in craftsmanship, that kind of thing. Things that are not rewarded by capitalism and thus don't belong in the boardroom.
-
Comment on Norwegian chess grandmaster Magnus Carlsen was forced into a draw Monday by more than 143,000 people worldwide playing against him in a single, record-setting game in ~games.tabletop
slade Link ParentWould that include interviewing for president?It would be interesting to do this for everything like a job interview--where 150,000 people are feeding in how to respond to a subjective question which determines a culture fit...
Would that include interviewing for president?
-
Comment on Thoughts on thinking in ~health.mental
slade Link ParentI needed this. AI has been messing me up and I can't tell how much of this is real and how much of that is me overreacting. Your post grounded me a little.I needed this. AI has been messing me up and I can't tell how much of this is real and how much of that is me overreacting. Your post grounded me a little.
-
Comment on Observation: Video links go unwatched in ~talk
slade Link ParentDoes pacing of the show matter? I feel like modern programming is optimized for a demographic that consumes a lot of short form content. There are some shows that I watch and they make sense while...I can read for hours on end and lose all sense of time, but I can't sit through a TV episode without taking several breaks to process it.
Does pacing of the show matter? I feel like modern programming is optimized for a demographic that consumes a lot of short form content. There are some shows that I watch and they make sense while I'm watching scene to scene, but if I pause and try to remember how plots developed or how characters and up in the situation they ended up in, I can't. It's like the scenes are enjoyable and make enough sense, but the narrative is incomplete and I don't even notice until I pause.
With reading I can pause, reflect, reread, and yes sometimes skip. That makes it infinitely better for me for anything that evokes complex thoughts.
-
Comment on ‘Sesame Street’ heads to Netflix with streaming deal for PBS children’s series in ~tv
slade Link ParentI'm skeptical that that is their goal, as opposed to just scooping up money from parents who are running out it of options. But I'll admit that's an emotional response, and hope I'm proven wrong.There's no way that 11 minutes of Sesame Street holds the same amount of value in childhood development that the hour-long episodes did.
I'm skeptical that that is their goal, as opposed to just scooping up money from parents who are running out it of options. But I'll admit that's an emotional response, and hope I'm proven wrong.
-
Comment on The 'deprofessionalization of video games' was on full display at PAX East in ~games
slade Link ParentYeah, I've watched many beloved franchises get swallowed whole by AAA studios. In my own personal opinion, big budget game development has never been good for gamers. I'm not sad to see it...Yeah, I've watched many beloved franchises get swallowed whole by AAA studios. In my own personal opinion, big budget game development has never been good for gamers. I'm not sad to see it struggling. Maybe gaming doesn't need to be a megaindustry caught in a cycle of bloating itself so it can fund its bloat.
-
Comment on A programming language made for me in ~comp
slade Link ParentI love typescript for being JavaScript compatible, which makes it compatible with lots of products that produce js bindings. Typescript takes things you hate about JavaScript and fixes them.I love typescript for being JavaScript compatible, which makes it compatible with lots of products that produce js bindings. Typescript takes things you hate about JavaScript and fixes them.
-
Comment on Introducing Codex [OpenAI] in ~tech
slade Link ParentI live in daily existential crisis. I'm 45. I have kids. I'm not sure what I'll do for a living if the one thing I'm really good at dries up.I live in daily existential crisis. I'm 45. I have kids. I'm not sure what I'll do for a living if the one thing I'm really good at dries up.
-
Comment on Georgia woman shares how she survived three weeks lost in the California Sierra Nevada mountains in ~life
slade LinkWow. She was well prepared with the knowledge and skills to survive. Also probably a but of luck. But it's such a roller coaster story to end on the note that she hadn't been to the doctor yet and...Wow. She was well prepared with the knowledge and skills to survive. Also probably a but of luck. But it's such a roller coaster story to end on the note that she hadn't been to the doctor yet and is trying to sort out healthcare expenses.
-
Comment on I don’t care whether you use ChatGPT to write in ~tech
slade Link ParentI wonder if some of the lost nuance is in the specifics of how AI is used. Like a calculator or search engine, it can be used as an oracle or as a tool. If you simply ask ChatGPT to write you an...I wonder if some of the lost nuance is in the specifics of how AI is used. Like a calculator or search engine, it can be used as an oracle or as a tool.
If you simply ask ChatGPT to write you an article, then I don't expect it to be if any quality. You're asking it to surface things that have already been written and asking it to do nothing novel with it.
If you write an article and ask ChatGPT to make your writing better, and that's all it does, then I have to second guess my first instinct to say that you're writing "doesn't count". The content is what you put into the process; it's yours and usually the content is where the value lies.
If you used AI to make the content more palatable, does that take away from the value? My answer depends on whether the presentation is part of what you're claiming to have done, or if it's just a detail. A good example would be if you're writing prose (I think using AI beyond grammar corrections would devalue your work). A counter example would be if you're writing a professional letter or instruction manual; things where presentation is a matter of practicality and effective communication.
In the latter cases, I think AI is the correct tool to involve - not as an oracle but as a guide to help your communication reach the widest possible audience. You might ask AI simply to be a critic and tell you things about your writing that you should improve; I wouldn't write off the results of this kind of AI collaboration. And as a significant side bonus, using AI this way (not having it rewrite your work, but advise you on rewriting you work) makes it an educational tool instead of something that drives communication skills into atrophy.
My thoughts on the likelihood of humans at large using it this way is another story...
So.... I agree with not reading something nobody took the time to write, but where I'm much less dismissive is in equating any use of AI anywhere in the process with the worst/laziest case scenario.
-
Comment on How do you decide what to cook on a normal day? in ~food
slade LinkI like to cook but since having kids I usually let Mom have the quiet time in the kitchen, and what we eat is usually some compromise between what the kids will eat and what we want. Either that...I like to cook but since having kids I usually let Mom have the quiet time in the kitchen, and what we eat is usually some compromise between what the kids will eat and what we want. Either that means we cook two dinners or we eat Mac and cheese for dinner.
I know a lot of parents just tell their kids to eat what they're given, but my wife and I fully negotiate with terrorists. We have no problem with that.
-
Comment on My experience running my phone in greyscale for the past several weeks in ~health.mental
slade Link ParentWorking in software myself, and it breaks my heart. I grew up very naive about how business works, and had all of these visions of the future of technology. This was in the early 90s, and I would...Working in software myself, and it breaks my heart. I grew up very naive about how business works, and had all of these visions of the future of technology. This was in the early 90s, and I would dream about a time when we could talk to anyone anywhere, with video, and it wouldn't matter where you were.
But it was different. In my imagination, this technology was a faceless product like a hammer or a chainsaw. Complicated, but just a thing you buy off the shelf and then use.
I didn't imagine it having a bunch of apps and notifications. I didn't imagine it becoming bigger with non-techies. I didn't imagine it becoming capitalized to death.
Now, I don't want any of it. I'm hyper aware of the many dark patterns employed against people to trick them into wanting things that do not enrich them in any way. I can't watch a simple program with my four year old without him being exposed to multiple layers of advertising along the way, because there doesn't exist a single streaming service that just lets you ask for what you want to watch and watch that thing.
*shouts at clouds*
-
Comment on If you could travel back in time and bring one thing back to the modern day, what would it be? in ~talk
slade Link ParentI don't think it would work out. If you tried to sell it then the obvious question would be whether yours is real or the one in the Louvre. Even though yours would be real, due to not aging or...I don't think it would work out. If you tried to sell it then the obvious question would be whether yours is real or the one in the Louvre. Even though yours would be real, due to not aging or would probably get misidentified as a fake.
Then the time police would come for you.
-
Comment on Uber to introduce fixed-route shuttles in major US cities designed for commuters in ~transport
slade Link ParentI can't speak for anyone but myself, but I believe them because they match my own experiences and understanding of economy. I expect companies to seek maximum profit allowed by law, or lose in the...Why should a reader believe your assertions just because some stranger on the Internet posted them?
I can't speak for anyone but myself, but I believe them because they match my own experiences and understanding of economy. I expect companies to seek maximum profit allowed by law, or lose in the marketplace to a competitor that does. The same way I expect water to flow downhill and fire to spread.
Wouldn't they have to have been open about their use of AI at some point in the comment for that to be likely? Otherwise it would just be a hidden detail of their writing process and not driving anything home.