4 ms·
I don’t give a flying fuck what people think. Most colleges copied or adopted my (for a few semesters) school’s style guide, so LLMs are essentially copying me,
by DrewADesign 4mo ago
I don’t give a flying fuck what people think. Most colleges copied or adopted my (for a few semesters) school’s style guide, so LLMs are essentially copying me, and I won’t change my punctuation usage because they suck.
- tormeh 4mo agoThe purpose of good writing style has always been to signal education and class. Well, your style no longer does. The future is now.
- DrewADesign 4mo ago> The purpose of good writing style has always been to signal education and class Sure, that’s why there have never been any authors that became famous despite being poor and deliberately writing with that affect. Good writing style does connote good education, and in environments where being upper-class bolsters social standing, some people flaunt it to signify class, as they would with any other wealth signifier, like expansive shoes. I am a union tradesman— the third generation to work in manufacturing in this area. Affecting an upper-class identity diminishes social standing in my environment. Having a lot of money, definitely doesn’t. My dirty work boots probably cost as much as many of the trendiest shoes on the market, and the guys at work know that and admire them… but my wearing them doesn’t signify class. Similarly, you can use good writing style in a way that shows you went to a good school and paid attention without wearing it like a Harvard Business School fleece.
- paulhebert 4mo agoThe purpose of good writing style is to communicate more effectively. Sometimes you’re trying to communicate education or class. Often that’s not the main goal.
- shakna 4mo agoShakespeare was written for the masses. Hence being full of dick jokes. Similar story for Chaucer, and so many others. I don't think good writing, things we appreciate so much it lasts generations, has much to do with signalling education or class.
- gleenn 4mo agoSounds like a case of the Mondays, Mike Bolton
- DrewADesign 4mo agoYYyeah… that’s definitely the correct reference, Bob.
- rogerrogerr 4mo agoYeah, I get it, they do suck. It all sucks. But people at work who are copying responses from LLMs into emails to others also suck, and I want to distance myself from them as much as possible. I'm kinda hoping we will eventually have a wave of "what the fuck are we paying you for if you're just copying stuff from an LLM to Slack" firings.
- stouset 4mo agoThis is a pointless and infinitely losing arms race. LLMs will learn to use hyphens instead of em dashes, and so what? You’re going to start using em dashes again? Just focus on not producing slop.
- rogerrogerr 4mo agoAt this point, I believe the LLM "style" is on purpose. Perhaps the labs want to be able to distinguish their slop from human content for future training; I don't know. But it feels very deliberate that they've kept the style so consistent for so long.
- fc417fc802 4mo agoI agree. They're voluntarily adding fingerprints to images so I expect the default voice is intentional and it wouldn't surprise me at all (though I have no evidence of this) if the output text has a fingerprint stenographically embedded in it.
- BlaDeKke 4mo agoIn a video of Hank Green, he interviewed an AI expert (if there even is such a thing), and he said that in the thinking part of the conversation, LLMs seems to use code language to communicate with itself, like in the usage and ordering of words, and such. I think that there could be even more then a fingerprint in those messages. It’s this video: https://youtu.be/5CKuiuc5cJM?is=9VQ1FCxY_X3eNm-b https://youtu.be/5CKuiuc5cJM?is=9VQ1FCxY_X3eNm-b Warning: They anthropomorphize a lot in this video, but I get it… the words exist, why not use them.
- Andrex 4mo ago> I don’t give a flying fuck what people think. So all your writings are private, then? Do you have a motivation to communicate or publish? You're posting here on HN, so I think so. Why do you do think you do it?
- DrewADesign 4mo agoOk— I don’t give a flying fuck if people jump to the conclusion that I am an LLM. And that concludes my willingness to engage in those pedantic semantic antics.
- hananova 4mo agoThey all say that, until someone that matters mistakes their writing for LLM slop and they lose something of value due to it.
- DrewADesign 4mo agoSure— I don’t do any professional writing at this point, so my stakes are a lot lower. If I work in a field where people care about what I write, again, then maybe I will. Complete sentences are often seen as unforgivably inefficient in my current position.