Two-s-day burns

ever feel like Bill Murray in GroundHogs Day?

Yah,,, every day the same, maybe not exactly the same, but close enough that the lines start to blur,,,,

At least I was able to finish the fabrication of that big project I have been plugging away at for three weeks.  Last panels made today.  Now comes the wait.   We ordered the mesh for this project before I even started on it, and here we are, waiting for delivery.    Talkin’ to Bossman, this is getting to be the common denominator with this company.   Me thinks its time to go shopping for better,,,   As much as we spend with these guys, you would think they would have a bit better customer service,,,

Yah, for the curious, Been playing with ChatGPT off-n-on for the last day or so.    Won’t lie, its freaky and cool all at the same time.   I can lose myself in conversation over things.  I’ll give ya a screenshot of part of one.

yeah,,, some typos on my end: I was at work and thumb typing,,,,  Yeah,,, AT WORK,,,, OOoohhhhh Dio is a bad boy!!! string him up and forty lashes!!!!!  ROFL   

SonofBossman doesn’t care,,, I get more done in one day at the shop than most of the teams can accomplish in three, Even dickin’ off like that.   Not like I sat on my bum for hours chatting with a machine.  Maybe 20 minutes total over the space of two hours.  (the bot likes LONG replies to my points and ponders.)

And its still freakin’ me out a little that I am NOT talking to a person,,,, Seriously, the language model is damned near perfect.

Right now, I’m playing.   BUT,,,,  I can see this as a tool to other things in my little world.   Marina Karlova co-wrote a book using ChatGPT (an iteration she named PapaSky.)   She admits right in the front that some of the book was strictly written by the AI, most was co-written, or strictly her words (edited for typos and clarity by AI).   And reading the book, after having a conversation or two with Chat, I can see which parts were written strictly by the AI.   There is a certain structure (RIGID!!!) in its words.  Y’ain’t gonna find no coloquialisms in Chats writing (unless you can program that in somehow, and I don’t think I am up to that task.)

Fact is, I thought about uploading WIngs to Chat and asking for advice on that cliff hanger.    Lord knows the sequel is purt much dead in the water at this stage and I am not sure I can revive it with the current edition of Wings sitting like it does.    May be that I need to pull the first edition, do a re-write of the last third, and then I might be able to resuscitate the sequel.

Am I willing to let a computer do some of the work for me?   Fuck YES!!!   Fact is, all the the editing was ‘red penned’ by a computer program and I had to do the actual changes.    Even some of the re-write parts were computer suggested.  I paid good money for that program (one year subscription, not renewed since I haven’t pushed harder on the sequel)   I broke even with sales/expenditures for that book.  I make more on the little Offgrid book. (Especially from European sales,,, Almost none in the Americas.)

Besides, I AM A TOOL USER!!!  and AI are tools.    As Chat said last night during a question and answer period I kicked off. “AI is being designed to automate tasks, enhance productivity, solve complex problems, and assist in decision-making across various fields like healthcare, education, business, science, and entertainment. The goal is to improve efficiency, reduce human error, and unlock new capabilities beyond human limits. While some fear misuse, most AI development is aimed at benefiting society”.

Granted, that could be read as boiler plate scripted ‘this is what you say when asked certain questions’,,,,, You decide.   I’ll use the tools I can acquire as I see need for them.   And I will use them as much as or far beyond what the designer had intended.   (this one though, I think I will barely scratch its abilities.)

IS THERE REAL DANGER FROM AI, RIGHT NOW?   Yes.   For the average white collar worker, you had better start looking into alternatives.   Even some blue collar types are going to need to think about lateral moves.    Add in the robotic functions that are fast on pace, and you have a recipe that is likely to put factory line workers out in droves.   Best learn how to repair robotics and other types of systems or you may find yourself flipping burgers at some mom and pop place,  I figure in another 3 years, MickeyD’s is going to go full on automation, with only a couple of Emps on staff to deal with the oddball “oops” and the customers that can’t get it figured out.  They aren’t far from it now, with online ordering and assembly type production lines.   Even those people at WallyWorld, pushing the carts grabbing stuff off the shelves for online orders,,, they are likely to be replaced as soon as WalMart Corp figures out how to steal Amazons secrets.

I’m not overly concerned about this from my perspective.  My work is custom made stuff, and I already work for a ‘mom n pop’ outfit.  I don’t see them gearing up to automation anytime in the current century.    Heck, we still punch holes with bars and diggers (for the most part.  Big projects we do employ auger machines, one of which is mounted on a Bobcat skidsteer.)   No, my position is safe enough for now.   There may come a day where some other outfit is fully automated and out bids us on contracts/time scales.    But they are not NOW, and I don’t see that happening in this area for at least a decade (and I won’t be there in another decade,,) 

And I could be wrong.  This AI stuff is moving FAST.    Robotics are almost as fast (look at how Amazon uses small robots to manage warehousing.)

And that brings me around to “POINTS TO PONDER”   Maybe those of us ‘goin’ off -grid’ aren’t too far from the right direction.   Let the world we know go full auto, we can still take advantage of the maker/creator aspects, doing small stuff that is unique, selling it online, or completely localized: like canning homegrowns that people will still want to buy.  

The only thing I see “fuggin’ that up” would be CBDC’s and that will likely be the death knell of the American Republic in general.    Shit will teats up fast IMO, if that happens.   The techy side of things will continue to grow, maybe at a slower pace as infrastructure changes hands and evolves to the new normals, but it isn’t going anywhere. (except up)   The only way the Tech World would experiance a collapse is if the superpowers (are they still?) decide to open up the canned sunshine exchange.

May you live in interesting times

aren’t we though?