Trustworthy Suppliers
I look at the things around me differently than most.
If a newspaper, their site, publishes something that turns out to be incorrect, I scrap the entire company as unreliable.
The have the journalism training and know how in order to do the job correctly. If they are not using what they have at their disposal in order to inform the people of "the news" then the people do not need them. They used to publish retractions but today, those are too little, too late. f
I look at tech the same way. When Google first started, I was on board with every single one of their new projects. They were cutting edge for the IT scene. I thought it was strange when they removed the "Don't be evil" motto from their page. I wondered why they would change such a foundational mission statement and I began to question their search site and other endeavors.
I started to double check search results on Google compared to competitors. It turned out that some results from trusted sources were not visible. Just as with that news paper and their reporting, I found that Google was picking and choosing the info it was feeding to the public. I immediately moved all of my dealings with Google to another service provider. Email, video, youtube, all of it.
Why would you do that?" you ask; for the same reason I would stop using a plumber who comes to my house and messes up my plumbing instead of fixing it; for the same reason I will not go back to the same mechanic that forgot to tighten the oil filter; for the same reason I will not go back to the same restaurant that served me a meal that included a cockroach in the gravy. If you did not do the same as I did with Google and others, you are asking for a messed up life in all aspects related to information.
You are misinformed on things you need to know in order to make good decisions.
For that same reason, I use Linux and not Microsoft Windows. Windows has code that runs in the background, and sometimes the foreground, that does things that do not benefit the user who pays for said operating system. Linux, which is the basis for Qubes, and whose code is public, was a hard transition but one I do not regret making. Learning something new is not easy. But it is well worth it when it comes to avoiding those "Format and reinstall" days that Bill Gates has gifted us.
Apple is the same but different. They took the free code of Linux, modified it with a lot of bells and whistles (plus a lot of costs for the user to pay) and then called it their own. Apple users are happy because they are really using Linux, under the hood, without ever having to type anything into one of those scary black windows that need commands typed into them (the terminal window).
Yes, it is easier to just stick with Windows or Apple because you have already learned it. It would also be easier to go back to that mechanic, because the shop is close to home, but if you have to buy a new engine every year due to their incompetence, well, you are not better off repeating that choice. Choosing to make a change is one of life's hurdles. Change is not easy, but it is healthier than staying sick.
My middle son recently made the transition to Linux and he is comfortable it after just 3 weeks. He does not know it all but he can do most anything on it. He still uses Google for everything but he will learn, as many do, when reality hits him in the face.
AI - It Does it all For Me
Another upcoming hurdle the world will fail to jump, falling flat on its face, is the AI hurdle.
Smart phones aka: the easy way, have turned out to be the fastest way to get more stupid. There are ways to keep it from running your life. The phone is now the "user" and we are the interface it uses. AI will be the same thing. We will be able to do less on our own, letting AI do so much that we will be slaves to the AI , IE; dependent on it. Why would anyone seek more ways to decrease their abilities?
Stay with me here. I am not against AI the same way I am not against calculators, which decreased the math capabilities of 90% of the population. My youngest son has chosen to learn math at very high levels, as did my father. His abilities will be immense when he starts putting that knowledge into practice.
My main reservation with AI is that it is taking much of the disinfo from companies, that have proven to be untrustworthy, and incorporated it into its body of knowledge. That is what I suspect is happening, and if proven true, AI will do to us what smart phones have done times 1,000.
We are already hearing that AI will replace a lot, if not all, jobs that people do. They say it will do a better job than humans and that may be true as far as reliability and number of hours put in. But will it care? No. Will it make decisions based on faulty data? Yes, if the previous paragraph proves true.
I am not the kind of person that wants to save time on a task so that I have more time for stupid cat videos. I am getting older now and I am still increasing my abilities in the fields of programming, crypto tech, intelligent investing, piloting skills, plus the trades I already know like electronics, electrical repair, welding, making new inventions, and all that on top of my computer skills, languages, and when I have time, golf. If I am not learning something new, I am polishing the skills I already have. In other words, I am a productive member of the human race. What are you? Are you cheering your replacement?
I am not anti-AI. If I can use it, I will. If one type of AI is unreliable due to the reasons I have stated, I will find another iteration that may not be unreliable. If it is made by Google, Microsoft, Apple or the New York Times, to name a few, I will not even consider it. That is my plan going forward. I am liking Yandex so far without proofing its AI as of yet. Their sites and apps have issues only because I do not yet know that language, their programs do not complete the process when you select "English" so that is a challenge, but their tech is very solid. Their browser has already eliminated the need for 40% of the over 80 different computers I have created within Qubes. One browser instance can do what many virtual machines do.
I will always have a need for Qubes like having a dedicated machine for nodes and crypto mining. It is also nice to have photo processing and video renders running on their own box. One for banking, finance, and taxes. There are many reasons to isolate one computer from another - all using the same mouse, keyboard and monitor.
I threw a lot out there. If there are any questions you may have, I will try to answer them.
Originally posted on DClub Community Articles. Hive blog powered by ENGRAVE.