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I think it's even worse. We are solving a lot of mediocre problems and customers are impressed at that. But that's not the problem we need to solve. There are

by smokel 2y ago

I think it's even worse. We are solving a lot of mediocre problems and customers are impressed at that. But that's not the problem we need to solve. There are wars going on, and the climate is changing in undesirable ways, and we have no clue how to organize people, or how we could put modern technology to good use.

Spivak 2y ago
I suppose but I also have to eat and the skill set I have is technomancy. Division of labor is fine, I think it's a fairly unique attitude in tech that we have do something (tm) with our skills. No one asks the accountant to get out there and fix climate change.
MrMcCall 2y ago
> we have no clue how to organize people, or how we could put modern technology to good use But I do, friend, I really do. It all starts with compassion; profit-motive being prioritized over compassion is the source of all this world's problems, from strife to pollution to fascism to oppression of minorities or other ethnic/religious groups. Both political parties here in America are on the take from various moneyed groups, though the Dems have less disdain for the poor, to be certain. Their prioritization of those interests damages how our government behaves, how it should serve the people of both our country and the world at large. And look at the fools who are about to run America now, as well as the majority of the commentariat around here, burning up the Earth for their "coins" and "near-worthless" LLMs, worshipping dangerous fools like Musk. If you want to be a part of the solution, connect yourself with our Creator and learn how to become more compassionate, for EVERY SINGLE ONE of our problems is solely and completely due to a lack of compassion. So, tech is great to help people but can be (and is being) used to oppress others (e.g. rent collusion), amplify mis- and disinformation, cheat consumers, and so on and so on. Steel yourself in compassion for all innocent human beings, i.e. the ones not oppressing others and destroying the Earth.
- bulatb 2y ago
  "If everybody just" is a description of a problem, not a solution. The problem is that everybody will not "just," no matter what could happen if they did.
  - MrMcCall 2y ago
    An alcoholic must stop drinking, or they will die from it. The solution is to stop drinking. How to succeed in making that solution happen is a separate problem, but the first step in solving any and every problem is identifying its root causes. For our world, not understanding that compassion must be the fundamental factor under consideration is the primary problem. Once that essential fact is understood, we can then haggle out the solution, but not before then. With love, all things are possible, if we so choose.
    - smokel 2y ago
      Hm, I sense a very positive attitude, so I'm eager to hear more. I do have some doubts though -- concepts such as compassion and love have been around since, and even before, Christ and Buddha. I don't necessarily see these concepts as being a robust solution though. Bad things keep popping up again and again, and not everyone is equally well off.
namaria 2y ago
Shuffling numbers in networked personal computer devices has diminishing returns and we're hitting them. LLMs are a hail mary, throwing compute at the wall to see what sticks. No, Silicon Valley, the world doesn't need more compute. It has ceased being a limiting factor several years ago, and the consumer experience has been worsening for quite a while. Just for an example, consuming media on a smart tv using a streaming app is a vastly inferior experience to just using bluray discs.
ravenstine 2y ago
> We are solving a lot of mediocre problems and customers are impressed at that. And even that's not true much of the time. We are solving a lot of mediocre problems that product owners and shareholders are impressed at.
hackable_sand 2y ago
Those are all solved problems. Being scared and acting a fool is not a solution.

by smokel 2y ago

Spivak 2y ago

I suppose but I also have to eat and the skill set I have is technomancy. Division of labor is fine, I think it's a fairly unique attitude in tech that we have do something (tm) with our skills. No one asks the accountant to get out there and fix climate change.

MrMcCall 2y ago

> we have no clue how to organize people, or how we could put modern technology to good use But I do, friend, I really do. It all starts with compassion; profit-motive being prioritized over compassion is the source of all this world's problems, from strife to pollution to fascism to oppression of minorities or other ethnic/religious groups. Both political parties here in America are on the take from various moneyed groups, though the Dems have less disdain for the poor, to be certain. Their prioritization of those interests damages how our government behaves, how it should serve the people of both our country and the world at large. And look at the fools who are about to run America now, as well as the majority of the commentariat around here, burning up the Earth for their "coins" and "near-worthless" LLMs, worshipping dangerous fools like Musk. If you want to be a part of the solution, connect yourself with our Creator and learn how to become more compassionate, for EVERY SINGLE ONE of our problems is solely and completely due to a lack of compassion. So, tech is great to help people but can be (and is being) used to oppress others (e.g. rent collusion), amplify mis- and disinformation, cheat consumers, and so on and so on. Steel yourself in compassion for all innocent human beings, i.e. the ones not oppressing others and destroying the Earth.

bulatb 2y ago
"If everybody just" is a description of a problem, not a solution. The problem is that everybody will not "just," no matter what could happen if they did.
- MrMcCall 2y ago
  An alcoholic must stop drinking, or they will die from it. The solution is to stop drinking. How to succeed in making that solution happen is a separate problem, but the first step in solving any and every problem is identifying its root causes. For our world, not understanding that compassion must be the fundamental factor under consideration is the primary problem. Once that essential fact is understood, we can then haggle out the solution, but not before then. With love, all things are possible, if we so choose.
  - smokel 2y ago
    Hm, I sense a very positive attitude, so I'm eager to hear more. I do have some doubts though -- concepts such as compassion and love have been around since, and even before, Christ and Buddha. I don't necessarily see these concepts as being a robust solution though. Bad things keep popping up again and again, and not everyone is equally well off.

namaria 2y ago

Shuffling numbers in networked personal computer devices has diminishing returns and we're hitting them. LLMs are a hail mary, throwing compute at the wall to see what sticks. No, Silicon Valley, the world doesn't need more compute. It has ceased being a limiting factor several years ago, and the consumer experience has been worsening for quite a while. Just for an example, consuming media on a smart tv using a streaming app is a vastly inferior experience to just using bluray discs.

ravenstine 2y ago

> We are solving a lot of mediocre problems and customers are impressed at that. And even that's not true much of the time. We are solving a lot of mediocre problems that product owners and shareholders are impressed at.

hackable_sand 2y ago

Those are all solved problems. Being scared and acting a fool is not a solution.