A couple of years ago I pulled together some notes and files about Learfield’s early adventures with the Internet. (I’ve posted on this topic more than once.) Yesterday it came up in a conversation with Perplexity which asked I would like to see a “narrative chapter” of that history. I was pretty sure Perplexity would produce something more readable so I said “go ahead.” 

It boiled my fourteen page ramble down to three pages while creating a story that –to my mind– accurately captured the vibe of those frantic days. [Links above to PDFs]

I’ve resisted the temptation to let an AI write or rewrite these blog posts and will continue to do so. But I wonder if it’s much different than an author submitting a manuscript to an editor who cleans it up and generally improves it.