*Edit*: here at least, I am clearly not isolated!
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@hedders @neil I’ve been pondering this recently, too. I’m as much against the generative/LLM material being used in lieu of that created by humans as anyone else, but the knee jerk reaction of many people towards “AI” as whole now is grating on me.
AI is bloody brilliant, it’s doing incredible things with computers, from running my home central heating more efficiently, to modelling crowd behaviour at football matches, and predicting heart attacks.
@hedders @neil But Big Tech is selling us a dream of general AI that isn’t a reality just yet, and the consumers don’t know enough about the technology to understand that.
The negative sentiment towards AI in general is, imho, undeserved. And it’s all because the shite they’re selling at the moment is so dodgy. It’s a real shame.
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@Jaimieserotica @FrazzledBrynn Oh, so much this!
I often hear that "AI will mean the end of lawyers" but, for now at least, it just means more work for me :)
@neil @FrazzledBrynn
Paralegals are already being let go in droves. Client facing/court-heavy roles like family and crime are probably safe for the time being but if I was a conveyancer I'd definitely be re-training without delay... -
@neil I find AI images a really strong flag that I'm not going to want to read an article.
I suspect at least part of the problem is that "experts" will tell you that a web page *has* to have an image to represent it (because that's what algorithms want), and people are panicked into finding *something* to fill that void.
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@unchartedworlds @neil @booktrail welcome from anyone. Thank you for the heads up
"Against the Grain" by James C Scott was a paradigm shifter to me last year!
DEBT follows right after: https://mastodon.acm.org/@nobody/116232495598467927
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@rubyjones @ahnlak @neil and Unsplash. And Wikipedia commons. And more besides I'm sure. There's just no need to use slop images, really.
@noodlemaz @ahnlak @neil Oh, yes, others exist, although I still find Pixabay the best.
Perhaps a good time to plug my article, 'Create your own book cover - without generative 'AI' which is full of free or cheap resources 😉
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@unchartedworlds @neil @booktrail welcome from anyone. Thank you for the heads up
@sephster @unchartedworlds @neil @booktrail If you like Scifi you could take a look at @mcrscifi 's previous list : https://mcrscifi.wordpress.com/previous-scifi-books/ Any book that scored over 4 is great over 3.5 is good. (IMHO)
One that falls just outside your 'last year' is Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh which I loved and was constantly wrong footed by.
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@neil @rubyjones libraries are also great! I get loads of ebooks from mine.
And authors support them too. Reading is very accessible thanks to them :)Sorry for flurry of replies
@noodlemaz @neil True, and libraries give authors monies, at least in the UK - get signed up to ALCS https://www.alcs.co.uk even if you're not a UK author.
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@rubyjones
Basically, yes to everything you've said Ruby. This is the issue going forward. People don't care. They will when it impacts them negatively but, of course, by then it's too late.
@neil@Jaimieserotica @neil Some do - like Neil, but it bums me out how many don't.
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*Edit*: here at least, I am clearly not isolated!
Perhaps I am increasingly isolated in holding this position, but I have no interest in reading "AI"-generated slop.
I love reading.
I read people's blogs and toots and whatever *because people wrote them* and I want to read their own thoughts and opinions.
I buy books, and read numerous different authors. I like finding new authors, bringing new ideas, styles etc.
Same with "AI" images. I'd prefer no image at all.
@neil Yes, I particularly dislike the trend of sticking a slop image at the top of a blog post just for the sake of it.
Pre-“AI” it was often stock images and silly even then but worse now. (I’ve heard it originated in SEO/marketing advice but seems to have spread beyond corporate blogs.)
If there isn’t a real image actually connected with the subject matter, then the post doesn’t need an image. Slop adds nothing (less than nothing, even).
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*Edit*: here at least, I am clearly not isolated!
Perhaps I am increasingly isolated in holding this position, but I have no interest in reading "AI"-generated slop.
I love reading.
I read people's blogs and toots and whatever *because people wrote them* and I want to read their own thoughts and opinions.
I buy books, and read numerous different authors. I like finding new authors, bringing new ideas, styles etc.
Same with "AI" images. I'd prefer no image at all.
@neil This whole push for AI has had the opposite affect on me. Initially I liked it and used it, but that only lasted a few months. I went from not reading any books to reading something like 20 last year. Politics, History, Fiction, Horror... and I have continued reading this year. This year I've added art to my hobbies and although I don't think I'm that good, I see humanity in the flaws. I believe there is a use for AI, but it's not in the hands of the general public and it shouldn't be replacing genuine creativity.
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@sephster @unchartedworlds @neil @booktrail If you like Scifi you could take a look at @mcrscifi 's previous list : https://mcrscifi.wordpress.com/previous-scifi-books/ Any book that scored over 4 is great over 3.5 is good. (IMHO)
One that falls just outside your 'last year' is Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh which I loved and was constantly wrong footed by.
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*Edit*: here at least, I am clearly not isolated!
Perhaps I am increasingly isolated in holding this position, but I have no interest in reading "AI"-generated slop.
I love reading.
I read people's blogs and toots and whatever *because people wrote them* and I want to read their own thoughts and opinions.
I buy books, and read numerous different authors. I like finding new authors, bringing new ideas, styles etc.
Same with "AI" images. I'd prefer no image at all.
@neil You are definitely not alone in this. I also add AI music to the pile of things I do not wish to interact with. And even partially AI-coded software, which is getting tough.
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It completely wrong footed me multiple times. I thought I knew what sort of book it was and where it was going, and it subverted those expectations time-and-again.
A great corrective for people (like me) who have read too much old scifi - as was a Half Built Garden - which I also loved.
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@neil best book you read last year? Looking for recommendations
I'm limiting myself to authors who sell direct, without DRM in the case of ebooks. But not necessarily books I read in the last year
Si Clarke's Devon Island Mars Colony series is about creating a colony on Mars. Not much physics, but lots about the human practicalities and difficulties.
Si Clarke's Starship Teapot series is odd-ball, humourous sci-fi. Reminds me of Douglas Adams.
Elliott Hay's Vigilauntie Justice series is about a bunch of old ladies doing whatever is needed to keep their community safe.
All the above are available at https://whitehartfiction.co.uk/ The author (one person, two pen names) is on fedi at @clacksee
Dharma Kelleher writes queer crime fiction. I've read some of her Jinx Ballou books and can recommend them, but I haven't read any of her other books.
https://dharmakelleher.com/I've read and can recommend Michael W Lucas' git murder novels, which are crime fiction set at tech conferences. He's also written tech books and (I think) sci-fi.
https://www.tiltedwindmillpress.com/
@mwl -
@neil I find AI images a really strong flag that I'm not going to want to read an article.
I suspect at least part of the problem is that "experts" will tell you that a web page *has* to have an image to represent it (because that's what algorithms want), and people are panicked into finding *something* to fill that void.
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@sephster @unchartedworlds @neil @booktrail If you like Scifi you could take a look at @mcrscifi 's previous list : https://mcrscifi.wordpress.com/previous-scifi-books/ Any book that scored over 4 is great over 3.5 is good. (IMHO)
One that falls just outside your 'last year' is Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh which I loved and was constantly wrong footed by.
@steely_glint @unchartedworlds @neil @booktrail @mcrscifi thank you so much. Added to my reading list. Love sci fi although I haven't read too much
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I'm limiting myself to authors who sell direct, without DRM in the case of ebooks. But not necessarily books I read in the last year
Si Clarke's Devon Island Mars Colony series is about creating a colony on Mars. Not much physics, but lots about the human practicalities and difficulties.
Si Clarke's Starship Teapot series is odd-ball, humourous sci-fi. Reminds me of Douglas Adams.
Elliott Hay's Vigilauntie Justice series is about a bunch of old ladies doing whatever is needed to keep their community safe.
All the above are available at https://whitehartfiction.co.uk/ The author (one person, two pen names) is on fedi at @clacksee
Dharma Kelleher writes queer crime fiction. I've read some of her Jinx Ballou books and can recommend them, but I haven't read any of her other books.
https://dharmakelleher.com/I've read and can recommend Michael W Lucas' git murder novels, which are crime fiction set at tech conferences. He's also written tech books and (I think) sci-fi.
https://www.tiltedwindmillpress.com/
@mwl -
@neil best book you read last year? Looking for recommendations
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*Edit*: here at least, I am clearly not isolated!
Perhaps I am increasingly isolated in holding this position, but I have no interest in reading "AI"-generated slop.
I love reading.
I read people's blogs and toots and whatever *because people wrote them* and I want to read their own thoughts and opinions.
I buy books, and read numerous different authors. I like finding new authors, bringing new ideas, styles etc.
Same with "AI" images. I'd prefer no image at all.
Gli ultimi otto messaggi ricevuti dalla Federazione
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@CmykStudent
The #Amiga4000 Tower!
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Romagna mia fatti capanna / 2
@anarchia
Gli affitti esaaaaaaaaaagerati dell’ Azienda ASL. di Davide Fabbri (*) Una inchiesta sullo spreco di danaro pubblico dell‘Azienda USL della Romagna. Sono letteralmente vergognosi – quasi inverosimili – i canoni annui di locazione che l’Azienda USL della Romagna ha corrisposto...Vedi l'articolo
https://www.rivoluzioneanarchica.it/romagna-mia-fatti-capanna-2/
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@thatgiga @ORSOrama
Però sono amici loro, avrei preferito fossero amici miei, con o senza scappellamento a destra... 🤷
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I received a phone call from a rival company asking for a character reference for one of my staff. The employee in question is the worst in my team. Incompetent, always late, and not the nicest of people. So of course I gave the most glowing reference I've ever given.
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Questa la capiscono solo i sardi
- Mio nonno dice che a Trump piacciono gli asparagi. Ogni volta che appare al telegiornale dice "cussu boli sparau"
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@heals I have a 500 character limit when writing any kind of post including supplies. People who are not on stock mastodon often have a much higher character limit, and some of those people do not have the ability to say anything important in under 1000 words
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@enzoesco @hal7000 @Makkaroni
È vero: su Android la maggior parte delle persone usa Chrome non perché sia migliore, ma perché è preinstallato. Stesso discorso per il motore di ricerca impostato di default.
Solo l’idea di cambiare browser è già fuori dalla comfort zone per molti.Personalmente uso Fennec F-Droid https://f-droid.org/it/packages/org.mozilla.fennec_fdroid/
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Quick update since I rebased this branch for (eventual) 3.4 development. I cleaned up the channel code a bit so it now properly separates out the Key channel from the Cyan/Magenta/Yellow channels.
