ChatGPT’s Year-In-Review
I haven’t had an opportunity to try this yet but John Koetsier (journalist, analyst, author, podcaster) says the feature “dials the sycophancy up to 11.” (article behind paywall)
“…it seems designed to make you feel good about yourself. Really good. Apparently I’m pretty awesome. Just so you know.
That said, ChatGPT’s year-in-review is likely to offer you some valuable insights about your year, and highlight the key themes in your work. […] You’ll also get some cool stats about your usage of ChatGPT.”
I’ll update this post once I’ve seen my year-in-review. And I plan to ask for a very snarky tone. Here’s what ChatGPT promised:
For yours? Grade A snark is doable — and honestly more accurate. A useful year-in-review shouldn’t sound like a Hallmark card. It should sound like a smart friend who’s been quietly watching you pace the room for twelve months and finally says: “Okay, here’s what you actually did, not what you think you did.” More Lewis Black footnote, less LinkedIn influencer.
If the official version turns out to be syrupy, think of it as raw data. We can do the director’s cut afterward — annotated, skeptical, and with the ego-padding ruthlessly stripped out. You won’t hurt my feelings by insisting on that. In fact, it’s a relief.
ChatGPT’s Holiday Video
I haven’t played much with ChatGPT’s content creation tools. Have found the “conversations” more interesting. Decided to give the “Create your holiday video” a go with no prompting. Just picked a photo and it came up with the blog-to-book idea.
Edge Light
“The Edge Light video effect provides a pleasing fill light to evenly illuminate your face in low-light conditions — like a virtual ring light.”
I bought a ring light a few years ago but rarely use it. Will see if I can find it a home.
Voices from 2099
Microphones
Nothing is more emblematic of the Golden Age of Radio than the microphones of that era. I asked ChatGPT to identify a few that were used at KBOA.
RCA 77-M (early) or RCA 77-A / 77-B variant. This is an earlier RCA 77, before the D / DX refinements. These were extremely common in regional stations transitioning from prewar gear.
Shure 55A or 55B (pre-“Elvis” Unidyne). This is the earlier Shure 55, before the iconic chrome “Elvis” look (the 55S). Radio stations used these constantly in the late ’40s–early ’50s. Key tells:
- End-address (announcer speaking into the top)
- Horizontal grille rings
- Small-diameter cylindrical body
- Cable exiting low, angled
RCA 44-BX ribbon microphone. The 44-BX was the mic for Groups, Music, Dramatic readings, Anything needing that huge ribbon warmth
LLM’s as job reference?
“You should be able to provide an LLM as a job reference, just like you would a coworker, manager, or professor. It can form an opinion and represent you without revealing any private data.” — John Carmack on Twitter
I’ve stopped keeping track of how many time’s I’ve interacted with ChatGPT (and other LLMs), or when I enabled the memory feature that allows it to reference prior conversations. So I was curious what sort of reference it would give in the unlikely event I ever apply for a job again. My mother could not have done better. Continue reading
More dog photos (They’re only puppies for a shot time)
Life is short—and life is long. But not in that order
aulasy – n. the sadness that there’s no way to convey a powerful memory to people who weren’t there at the time-driving past your childhood home to show it to a friend, or pointing at a picture of a loved one you lost, only to realize that to them it’s just another house, just another face.
enterhood – n. the set of living people who have known you all your life, all the way back to your infancy, before you had a clue who you were; a group that slowly shrinks as you get older, until the point when all of your closest confidants have only ever seen an abridged version of you, having joined your story somewhere in the middle of things, just as you did.
Reading changes the way your brain works
Watch this video on YouTube. And for those who insist reading on your phone is the same as reading a book. It’s not. “Reading on a phone or tablet is generally passive scrolling, often interrupted by messages and alerts. When we read on screens we tend to skim and when we skim, we’re more susceptible to misinformation.”