whateverthing.com

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I've managed to go a number of years in the software industry without having any repetitive strain issues. That all seems to have changed this month, so I've been looking for ways to ease the burden on my wrists and arms.

Enter: macOS voice control

This built in accessibility tool is free to use and runs locally* on–Device without sending my audio to a remote server. (* requires Apple silicon)

When I first noticed this feature, many years ago, I completely ignored it. At that time, it required remote server voice analysis in order to operate. So if you're wondering what the Secret Killer Feature actually is here, it's the fact that this is now on-device functionality, at least for Apple Silicon devices.

It's not perfect, but I'm getting used to its quirks and foibles.

How it works

To begin with, it's important to note that voice control is completely separate from Siri. You don't have to say something like "Hey Siri" to activate it; when enabled, it is always listening.

I always have a hard time explaining things. I don't tune the explanation correctly for the audience. I go into too much detail about stuff that doesn't matter. So I'm going to try and practice a better approach, and to do that, I'm going to try and explain Mastodon.

Explanation 1: The Good Parts

If you want a chronological timeline that is free from ads, doesn't use algorithms to hide your friends' posts from you, and isn't beholden to the whims of the billionaire techbro class, you want Mastodon.

Hmm, no, I can do better. That's a bit too wordy.

Explanation 2: Sales Pitch

Mastodon: Follow your friends. Fight the algorithms. Fuck the billionaires.

Erm, maybe that's too edgy and uninformative. Let me try again.

The problem with today's AI/ML craze is that companies are too hot for the dollar bills associated with the buzz. They try too hard to make AI the star feature of their product.

That's the wrong way to use it.

Every photograph tells you something about the photographer. How they think, what they like, how they work - it's as much a glimpse into their inner life as it is a glimpse into the frozen moment of time they've captured.

Yep, you guessed it: this post is a rant about generative art.