Lauren Weinstein

https://mastodon.laurenweinstein.org/@lauren

< Tech Systems & Policy Analysis: Internet, Privacy, plus his other sundry topics >

Los Angeles - lauren.vortex.com

Signal: By request on need to know basis

Lauren's Blog: https://lauren.vortex.com

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npub1lq68asmanu3etxax9hvrj8au4h585lq8zgzujmufqsewtsz85mkskknf7e

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nprofile1qqs0sdr7cd7e7gu4nwnzmkper772m6r60sr3ypwfd7ysgvh9cpr6dmgpz3mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerpd46hxtnfduqs6amnwvaz7tmwdaejumr0dsn5pg4g

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nos.lol

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npub1lq68asmanu3etxax9hvrj8au4h585lq8zgzujmufqsewtsz85mkskknf7e

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Last Notes

2026-05-04 00:13:52 CEST

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Yes, it is mine. It is (as far as I can tell from serial numbers, etc.) pretty much exactly 100 years old. It was in very rough shape when I got it but I brought it back to life. Probably the most difficult overall tech work I ever did, given I knew nothing about pianos (player or conventional) when I started, and you don't find many of these around these days that weren't gutted many decades ago with their player mechanisms removed. I also tuned it myself, which is why it's not tuned well. It was foot pump only, but I added a vacuum inlet so it could be powered by a shop vac on low power. The research was fascinating, I had to depend on a variety of very old books from the era to get it all working. Turns out there was one guy who was like THE guru on player pianos who wrote extensive (we'd say wordy today) detailed treatises on the tech back in the 19-teens and 20s. I was able to read them in their entirety on Google Books.

2026-04-17 16:54:22 CEST

Saw an apparently legit Mastodon site this morning which triggered Chrome to ask for local LAN access to other devices permission. Seems odd.

2026-04-14 02:21:39 CEST

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I've been ranting about this for many years, of course. To no avail.

2026-04-13 18:05:25 CEST

BREAKING: Trump deletes insane post featuring AI image as himself as Jesus

2026-04-09 17:54:30 CEST

CNN declared Michael J. Fox dead. He insists he's not.

2026-04-03 20:28:17 CEST

There's a lot of talk about the secret bunker that would be built under Trump's ballroom. Worth noting that pretty much ANYTIME anything is excavated on government property on D.C. at the White House or anywhere else, it's used as a cover for building or expanding something secret underneath. This goes back many, many years.
Long ago, I was visiting at federal agency HQ in D.C. (that shall remain nameless), and my host walked me through the basement as a shortcut. As we went down the hall, there were a pair of double doors propped open, and as we passed I glanced over to see a long, featureless, well-lit hallway seeming to stretch literally out to the vanishing point. I didn't ask.

2026-04-03 20:22:45 CEST

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Ordinary people are sucked into this stuff -- they do not deserve to be disparaged, and that they so frequently are is one of the longest standing and most awful aspects of techies writ large.

2026-03-25 01:24:28 CET

Watch this video. To the end. It's only 2 minutes. Trust me.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EqyQs4Gsr-M
- - -
https://mastodon.laurenweinstein.org/system/media_attachments/files/116/286/964/544/475/258/original/44abde9e3a221b11.jpg

2026-02-25 19:30:42 CET

VIDEO: 14 Feb 1966: When Australia switched to decimal currency -- with a jingle!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GtyNLwqljzI

2026-02-21 17:57:31 CET

RE: https://researchbuzz.masto.host/@researchbuzz/116109637541281147
The 1949 musical (and 1958 film) "South Pacific" included a song called "You've Got to Be Carefully Taught" which stated that hate was not innate. It caused enormous controversy at the time but Rodgers and Hammerstein refused to remove it despite the pressures to do so.
#note1jgw…8ap2

2026-02-11 18:36:21 CET

T-Mobile announces beta test of real time language translation on calls, suggesting the ability to tap conversations -- Trump Gestapo will love this!
Since they say this will work even when only one side is a TM customer, it's clear they can tap conversations at will. This should surprise nobody since they are an ersatz "phone company", but keep in mind that under the Trump Gestapo regime, a simple friendly call to a billionaire is enough to get anything he wants from Big Tech.

2026-02-07 18:17:03 CET

OK, I'll admit it's cute. - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ue-v39IaCkg

2026-02-05 02:28:38 CET

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I used to hang around MH1127 whenever I was in town. I've told the story of sitting there at a terminal connected back to UCLA and I ran into a tough C declaration problem. DMR was sitting right next to me. So I asked his advice. He gave me an elegant solution. The closest I ever got to getting advice from a god.

2026-01-27 03:12:45 CET

It is reported that Bovino is being recalled from Minn. to be replaced with Homan, and that some federal agents will be leaving Minn. starting tomorrow. Trump claimed he had good calls with governor and mayor. Reports claim widespread upset at WH and DHS over how the weekend shooting was handled from a public relations standpoint.

2026-01-27 02:37:29 CET

Unconfirmed rumor: After a brief theatrical run, the "Melania" movie will be going direct to VHS tape.

2026-01-14 19:49:47 CET

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No, it's necessary. You're tracking fast moving low orbit satellites, requiring absolute precision in beam positioning and timing. Without precise geo and time, it can't work. There is no practical alternative.

2026-01-10 17:49:20 CET

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Yes. The first of the three, "Reefs of Space" is the best by far I think. Fun fact: People are forced to continually check in with the master computer that makes all the decisions (there is a human "Planner" who is nominally the computer's agent and human head of world government). They do this on electromechanical teletype machines that are scattered everywhere, and print on paper tape! But really, those collars are the star of the show.

2026-01-09 22:14:09 CET

Horrific Gestapo footage apparently agent's phone video who killed Good,
monstrous killing
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oc9gwMDxYAQ
https://mastodon.laurenweinstein.org/system/media_attachments/files/115/867/205/301/110/253/original/9f681cde648d3ec2.png

2026-01-09 06:26:36 CET

BULLETIN: Google announces AI that will "scour" all your emails (that's the word they use)
Trump endorsed, no doubt. Sundar and Trump are best buddies.
L

2026-01-04 01:28:37 CET

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Eh? Who is the "they" you're referring to?

2026-01-04 01:20:30 CET

Legal experts say Trump ranting about taking Venezuela oil and running the country" undermine case against Maduro in U.S. courts

2025-12-25 17:25:38 CET

Christmas Day is traditionally (according to many metrics) the lowest spam day of the year.

2025-12-22 23:08:02 CET

Report: Trump to announce new class of battleship called "Trump Class" -- USS Trump
But he'll be long gone from the scene before such a ship actually exists, and then TRUMP can be stripped off just like it will be everywhere else. -L

2025-12-20 18:51:59 CET

As an experiment, I tried using #Google Gemini's bananayammawhateverthehellit'scalled AI to create a simple test pattern with some text overlaid on it. After an hour of trying different prompts and updated prompts, with long waits between each as Google wasted more electricity, I finally gave up. Such a simple thing, and Google was utterly incapable of getting it right. I created the image manually with Gimp in 5 minutes. Generative AI is, essentially, a horrifically wasteful fraud, as it sucks up electricity, water, and now computer RAM driving its prices through the roof, all to enrich the Billionaire Big Tech CEOs with this AI Slime. The Billionaires ARE THE PROBLEM.

2025-12-08 20:00:12 CET

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It's not the banking system that is the key aspect, your whole government and law enforcement regimes having been heading toward MAGA+ for years. You don't really need a listing of examples. Brexit was a giant leap into MAGAland.

2025-12-07 21:40:17 CET

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And when they churn out twenty copies of you? How will you feel about that?

2025-12-07 18:57:54 CET

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Star Trek existed to make money. Or at least, to try make money.

2025-11-23 18:33:44 CET

Two areas where MAGA is getting it right: 1) The need for a total release of the Epstein files. 2) Increasing skepticism about Big Tech in general and AI in particular.

2025-11-18 20:31:24 CET

It sounds like a Broadway tune: ♫ Things ... happen! ♫

2025-11-18 20:21:34 CET

Three judge panel rules against Texas' Trump-ordered redistricting plan.

2025-11-18 20:20:24 CET

House voting on Epstein files release. It will likely pass unanimously.

2025-11-12 18:10:09 CET

I want to make it clear to everyone in all 52 U.S. states that time travel is impossible. Thank you for your attention to this matter.

2025-11-11 19:04:31 CET

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I'm a pretty big fan of UFO. Arguably the darkest sci-fi TV series ever made.

2025-11-11 19:00:12 CET

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You're a very weird person.

2025-11-11 18:57:47 CET

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A fun thing about Viewmaster wheels is that since they had to be shot with stereo cameras, they were shot on the original sets of films and TV shows. I still have one for "Time Tunnel" where the tops of sets and boom mics and other other stage stuff are clearly visible in the images!

2025-11-10 17:24:34 CET

Note that Trump's pardon of persons related to 2020 election is largely symbolic -- apparently all of the current charges are in STATE courts that Trump
can't touch.

2025-11-09 22:11:50 CET

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It bridges public posts to whom though?

2025-11-09 20:49:37 CET

I've had a number of people ask me about bridging my account here with Bridgy Fed. I think I looked at some other bridges back sometime ago but decided against them. I just looked at the BF docs and it's not entirely clear to me (without spending more time on this) exactly WHO sees your public posts on a bridged network (only Bluesky? Not Twitter I hope). Anyone using this thing that has a good feel for what it actually is doing?

2025-11-09 19:31:59 CET

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The default case is what most users see of course. In my case, 99.99% of my Mastodon usage (if not more!) is just using a web browser, so there IS no client per se.

2025-10-31 18:10:30 CET

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There will probably be an NDA.

2025-10-31 17:32:53 CET

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He will appear. We're still in negotiations about his social media presence.

2025-10-31 03:15:41 CET

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It actually probably wouldn't be too bad. The units in question have integral mechanical safeguards that should prevent any dangerous actions, as far as I know.

2025-10-29 22:24:19 CET

BREAKING: Major reorg at YouTube, "voluntary" exit program announced for U.S. employees as Google prepares for mass firings to be replaced by AI

2025-10-22 01:27:54 CEST

Historically, White House renovations (inside or out) have been frequently used as opportunities to expand various underground facilities under cover of the construction chaos.

2025-10-11 17:46:13 CEST

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That is an extraordinarily complex topic. The executive summary is something like: "Sometimes ..."

2025-10-09 17:11:52 CEST

Got an email from someone saying my Mastodon is "surprisingly based". I've decided to treat that as a compliment.

2025-09-28 02:03:49 CEST

I find that about 50% of #Google #AI Overview answers I see are incorrect, either in full or part. If you inspect the source links, which often is difficult because sometimes the associated sites don't seem to contain the answers provided by the AI Overview, the root of the problem is still obvious. Google AI has absolutely no idea WHICH statements on which sites are correct or incorrect. This is blatantly notable with data pulled from discussion groups, where a thread may contain back and forth arguing or conflicting answers -- wrong, right, or a mix -- to any given question. Google AI appears to just make a guess and pick one -- and about half the time that appears to be wrong. It's even worse when these threads contain sarcastic responses. If anything, Google AI Overview answers seem to be becoming less accurate not more accurate. A true train wreck of AI misinformation and slop.

2025-09-19 20:09:12 CEST

If I had the power, I would ban (1) Online gambling (2) State-supported gambling (e.g. lotteries). These both prey mainly on desperate people who don't understand statistics, and push their propaganda of wonderful winnings in ads targeted to the people who can least afford to lose their money to these operations.

2025-09-15 23:23:58 CEST

During the production of the first "Star Trek" film ("Star Trek: The Motion Picture" - 1979) -- on which I was working at the time -- I suggested to a higher-up that the Enterprise wouldn't actually be piloted like a WWII battleship -- it would all be computerized by then. He stood there thinking for a few seconds. Then he replied, "Lauren, you're right. But if we did it your way, we wouldn't have a movie." And he was correct, of course.

2025-09-12 21:12:42 CEST

It's nuts how much conflicting information there seems to be about what should be this simple question.
I have a raspberry pi zero w card that flashes its green activity light when no sd card is inserted but power is applied. This card functions normally when an sd card is inserted.
I also have a raspberry pi zero w 2 card of unknown status that I have not been able to boot, and that does NOT show any LED activity (no flashing, no nothing) when power is applied.
I am attempting to determine if the w 2 card is dead. Searching reveals completely conflicting views on whether the pi w and/or pi w 2 will show any LED activity on power application without an sd card. Of course Google AI Overviews give completely contradictory answers depending on exactly how you word the question. Yeah, garbage.
Can anyone out there clarify? When applying power to a w 2 card without an sd card, should I see LED activity as I do with the w card?
Thanks!

2025-08-30 07:45:13 CEST

BREAKING: Proposed legislation to permit AT&T to end California
landlines has DIED for this session
The legislation apparently died in a State Senate committee by not being passed by the legislative deadline. Of course, it could be reintroduced in the next session, and the California Public Utilities Commission proceedings that could ultimately have the same result (regarding carrier of last resort, end of landlines, etc.) as the legislation are still in progress.
But for now this is a win for the good guys -- the people of California.
L

2025-08-27 16:16:04 CEST

The CEO of Open AI should tried for accessory to murder -- OpenAI
responds to ChatGPT helping a teen commit suicide
What load of goddamned CRAP:
https://openai.com/index/helping-people-when-they-need-it-most/
https://mastodon.laurenweinstein.org/system/media_attachments/files/115/101/147/136/318/192/original/ca6b09b0cad20e2c.png

2025-08-24 18:38:17 CEST

Dear JD Vance, the "negotiations" that ended WWII were 16 kilotons and 21 kilotons, respectively. Learn your history, you idiot.

2025-08-22 01:43:47 CEST

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I have seen those. And the Scientology one.
When I was in SLC many years ago to present at a Usenix conference, I took the LDS central church tour. Actually very impressive, especially the Tabernacle. But I don't think they appreciated my asking what happened to the tablets. Because gosh, if they were still around that would be a pretty good chunk of evidence. But no luck.

2025-08-21 23:53:34 CEST

I've never been a fan of South Park in general, but their latest jabs at Fascist Trump are worthy.

2025-08-21 23:04:34 CEST

BREAKING: Trump admin examining all 55 million visa holders for possible deportation or shipment to Trump concentration camps

2025-08-19 19:52:05 CEST

Apparently there are efforts to replace human 911 operators with LLM AIs to triage calls. What the bloody hell could go wrong?

2025-08-16 06:48:25 CEST

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Some of the Left groups are saying, "Oh no, we have to set a good example and play nice and fair and not redistrict."
Screw that. It's about time we started following Machiavelli's advice from "The Prince". Good loses to evil because good wants to be oh so nice while evil breaks all the rules. Screw that too.

2025-08-14 22:04:18 CEST

REPORT: Thuggish Trump sends ICE agents to crash Gov. Newsom's press conference on redistricting

2025-08-11 19:43:06 CEST

Unless otherwise demonstrated, assume that pretty much anything you see posted now in text, photos, or videos are fake and generated by AI.

2025-08-11 02:46:56 CEST

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And the shipping in this case is buried in there, since I'm not paying any explicit shipping fee.

2025-08-08 17:18:03 CEST

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NEVER blame the users. Expecting people to "do their own research" in the face of answers provided by these systems given the MASSIVE HYPE Big Tech is spewing out about them is just wrong.

2025-08-08 16:29:15 CEST

Guy Gives Himself 19th Century Psychiatric Illness After Consulting With ChatGPT
https://www.404media.co/guy-gives-himself-19th-century-psychiatric-illness-after-consulting-with-chatgpt/
https://mastodon.laurenweinstein.org/system/media_attachments/files/114/993/615/988/209/607/original/9e02a0978c26de9e.png

2025-08-07 15:33:07 CEST

Library of Congress explains missing parts of Constitution (and it's logical to me)
I saw a lot of, well, frankly ranting yesterday that claimed the fascist Trump administration was somehow trying to change the Constitution because the middle of Article 1 Sections 8 to the end of 10 were missing. I thought that was frankly silly. What purpose would it serve? And every other copy on government sites was intact. I assumed it was a tech problem.
Today the Library says they were editing analysis of latest cases affecting those articles, and left out an XML tag by accident, which eliminated everything after that point. Most of us have done something like that on our own sites at some time and it sounds completely logical
to me. End of story.

2025-08-04 02:38:20 CEST

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Key differences between book Bond and movie Bonds.
1) Book Bonds had definite sadistic tendencies not present in film Bonds.
2) Book Bonds were internally terrified much of the time, but pushed on anyway. Movie Bonds are always 100% self-assured.

2025-07-31 19:29:31 CEST

"Cable management? We ain't got no cable management! We don't need no cable management! I don't have to show you any stinking cable management!"

2025-07-29 03:25:59 CEST

How Tom Lehrer Escaped the Transience of Satire
https://www.newyorker.com/culture/postscript/how-tom-lehrer-escaped-the-transience-of-satire
https://mastodon.laurenweinstein.org/system/media_attachments/files/114/933/913/660/598/122/original/df0803a6e43be539.jpg

2025-07-19 17:39:12 CEST

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I stand by my statement. Their ultimate goal is to terminate TRS.

2025-07-18 04:21:43 CEST

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Since I see various calendars all day long, no more than 24 hours, tops.

2025-07-16 17:20:06 CEST

No matter how much is released about the Epstein files, there will always be concern that it wasn't ALL released, and that the Trump conspiracy is continuing. Remember, there are still many who believe that Obama was born in Kenya! And in Pizzagate. Conspiracy theories like these are immortal.

2025-07-14 01:02:53 CEST

It occurs to me that Trump is like a bunch of the characters from "The Wizard of Oz" rolled into one:
No brains.
No heart.
No courage.
And definitely Wicked.

2025-07-06 01:32:31 CEST

#Google needs to provide users on the Web, phones, and any other platforms a ONE BUTTON way to turn off ALL sharing of any and all user data or actions with #Gemini #AI -- and to completely delete Gemini from their devices.
No more of this bullsh*t confusion about global settings vs. app data, Gemini apps vs. Gemini settings and more. It's a total train wreck and I don't blame anyone for not understanding whether or not their data is going to Gemini, because I AM NOT SURE MYSELF on my own devices!
This is either gross incompetence on Google's part or is being done purposely to make it as difficult as possible for users to understand whether or not Gemini is interacting with them, either obviously or behind the scenes.
If Google won't do this on their own, there need to be laws to force them. Enough of this garbage and manipulation. ENOUGH!

2025-07-05 03:44:09 CEST

#Google pushes Gemini AI in much the same way the stereotypical drug pusher pushes their wares.

2025-07-05 03:28:31 CEST

More than with any other social media platform, #Mastodon often feels like a family. The Addams Family, that is. That's a good thing.

2025-06-29 20:33:29 CEST

People are saying that a main reason Elon is so angry about the G.O.P. budget bill is that it would hurt Tesla. They're right. But that does NOT make Elon wrong about the bill. For all his many faults, he can be reasonably called a futurist, and he realizes the bill is written to reward old tech and crush new tech.

2025-06-28 17:01:40 CEST

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And that is a key point. Einstein did sign that letter, giving it the gravitas to push the MH into existence. Later he regretted having signed the letter, but hindsight is 20/20.

2025-06-28 15:49:12 CEST

It's an imperfect analogy as are they all, but in key respects the promises the Big Tech Billionaire CEOs made about generative AI made us expect to get Einstein, when in reality what we've ended up getting is an evil-looking clown waving around a broken pocket calculator.

2025-06-25 06:48:52 CEST

Docusign providing generative AI summaries of documents to be signed, given generative AI's well-known penchant for misinformation and worse, seems like a recipe for enormous blowback at Docusign when things go wrong.

2025-06-25 02:56:15 CEST

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BTW, I've been meaning to mention this for some time. You have arguably the single most disturbing profile image I think I've ever seen.

2025-06-22 05:36:55 CEST

BREAKING: Reports: Iran says they evacuated Fordow site prior to attack along with enriched uranium stockpiles and critical equipment, says any damage can be repaired

2025-06-21 02:21:29 CEST

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I don't have all the context -- it's impossible to keep up with everything written about everything I deal with. But for an instance admin to make this default decision, rather than the individual user, with the understanding that no matter how many notices you pop many will ignore them or not understand the ramifications, seems at least problematic, especially when that site-wide default various from instance to instance. Again, this reminds me of the mess the YT/G+ integration caused that had to be rescinded (but the damage was already done).

2025-06-14 20:41:46 CEST

Suspect named in Minn. shootings
Suspect is 57-year-old Vance Boelter, still at large. He was twice appointed to Governor's
development board by current gov Tim Walz and previous governor. He reportedly had a hit list of other Democratic officials and abortion providers. He had a bunch of "No Kings" flyers in his car. All info is preliminary.

2025-06-04 22:35:30 CEST

A cold day in Hell: I agree with Marjorie Taylor Greene about AI regulation
She has come out saying she did not know that a 10 year prohibition on states regulating AI was in the Big Beautiful Bill she voted for, and says she will not vote for any bill coming back from the Senate that includes it. It's a cold day in Hell -- I agree. -L

2025-06-03 04:59:51 CEST

Wondering how many people here on #Mastodon ever met Larry Fine of "The Three Stooges". I did -- among the high points of my life. So that's ONE.

2025-05-31 17:35:26 CEST

#Mastodon loses track of Favorites and Boosts in a seemingly random way. As those metrics increase, the TOTALS shown if you click over to the actual post are current, but the counts on the notifications reset back to zero and start incrementing again from there at seemingly random intervals.

2025-05-31 17:00:21 CEST

As usual, #Google #AI Overviews screw up and inconvenience people -- with literal garbage!
I asked Google Search if Los Angeles picks up garbage on Memorial Day. AI Overview authoritatively said NO, and warned that pickups the rest of the week would be delayed one day. That would mean that yesterday's normal pickup would be today, Saturday. Luckily, my garbage was out yesterday anyway, because the city picked it up on the usual day, BECAUSE actually Memorial Day is not a trash holiday in Los Angeles.
Let's see what Google AI said:
Query: does los angeles pick up trash on memorial day
GAI: "No, the City of Los Angeles does not pick up trash on Memorial Day. Trash collection will be delayed by one day for the rest of the week, meaning if your usual collection day is Monday, it will be Tuesday. Saturday collections are not affected. The City of Los Angeles observes Memorial Day on Monday, May 26, 2025, and will be closed, causing a delay in trash pickup for the week."
Where did the massive, expensive Google AI Brain get this
misinformation? My guess is that it simply ASSUMED that since the city offices are closed that day, there would be no trash pickup that day, even though the city page on this subject is explicit about which holidays are trash holidays:
https://sanitation.lacity.gov/san/faces/home/portal/s-lsh-wwd/s-lsh-wwd-s/s-lsh-
wwd-s-c/s-lsh-wwd-s-c-htc?_adf.ctrl-state=avopkod27_282&_afrLoop=45836831410387#
!
Yeah, more AI Slop from Google. Or in this case, AI TRASH.
It's endless, boys and girls. And Google Doesn't Care.
L
https://mastodon.laurenweinstein.org/system/media_attachments/files/114/603/036/393/600/901/original/088d52b5063ed45c.png

2025-05-22 17:45:40 CEST

***** How Google Supports Dangerous Phishing Email Attacks *****
#Google #Gmail has become one of the largest sources of dangerous phishing attacks: Emails claiming fake charges, relating to PayPal, Norton, Bitcoin, and many other products and services. They are flooding non-Gmail email services and coming directly from Google email servers.
The whole point of these is to get the recipient to call a provided phone number to have the "charge" removed. Of course for these phishes there was no actual charge -- but the "customer service" folks will ask for financial information and/or try convince busy, nontechie users to download software that gives the phishers control of their systems for even more pervasive attacks.
GOOGLE COULD EASILY STOP THESE, BUT THEY REFUSE TO DO SO!
These phishes have characteristics that Google could easily use to identify them and block them from being sent, especially to non-Gmail destinations. But Google refuses to act, putting vast numbers of email recipients at risk every day.
When all they seem to care about anymore is their misinformation-spewing generative AI, I suppose it's not surprising that Google seems to be just letting Gmail turn into a dangerous nightmare for the rest of the Net.
Google's old motto, "Don't Be Evil", is just a memory.
L

2025-05-22 00:40:15 CEST

Republicans Sneak Massive Medicare Cuts Into Their Horrid Tax Bill
https://newrepublic.com/post/195553/trump-republican-budget-bill-medicare-cuts-cbo
https://mastodon.laurenweinstein.org/system/media_attachments/files/114/548/224/985/469/456/original/c36e96c6180dd18a.png

2025-05-12 02:33:40 CEST

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Yes, The Jetsons covered video face masks, video telehealth calls, and perhaps even more amazing, swallowable camera pills for medical use. All in the early 60s. However, Mad Magazine covered fake backgrounds for video calls -- in 1957!

2025-05-11 15:58:18 CEST

Trump being given super luxury Boeing 757-8 jumbo jet "the flying palace" from Qatar royal family to use as Air Force One -- when he leaves office his library keeps it
The Constitution prohibits any U.S. government official accepting gifts "from any King, Prince or foreign State." The transfer of the plane to the Trump presidential library is an attempt to get around this.
And of course, the security implications of using a plane provided by a foreign power are enormous.
Expect lots of fun in courts on this one.

2025-05-06 20:07:08 CEST

Especially whenever you see and hear Trump in a public setting next to a normal human being, it's so dramatically obvious what a totally senile, illiterate, evil clown he is.

2025-05-05 03:38:43 CEST

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You're mistaken. He's mentally ill, senile. He's surrounded by people are not mentally ill, merely evil and leveraging his illness for their own purposes.

2025-05-03 20:58:39 CEST

A reminder: The reason so many firms on their websites constantly urge you to install and use their apps instead of their websites is that the apps typically give them access to VASTLY more data about you and your activities. Don't fall for it.

2025-05-02 19:01:17 CEST

Herb Alpert at 90, just a few days ago. Fun Fact: When he released his first album "Whipped Cream and Other Delights" in 1965, he (at least initially) did not like the cover photo, which became incredibly iconic (yeah, I have this original vinyl album). Even more interesting is that at the time despite the nomenclature "Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass", there actually was no such group. After the smash success of the album, he rushed to form one, calling on the talents of L.A. session musicians (e.g. "The Wrecking Crew") who were (largely unknown to the public at the time) performing the music for an array of pop singers and classic tracks.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SkrBmu8eYaM
https://mastodon.laurenweinstein.org/system/media_attachments/files/114/439/305/616/524/050/original/f282d5f04cf1e780.jpg

2025-05-02 18:02:45 CEST

If you can't carry on a discussion with me here on #Mastodon without resorting to obscenities aimed at me, please unfollow me now and save us both some time. Thanks.

2025-05-02 06:25:16 CEST

Temu blocks U.S. shoppers from seeing any products that would be shipped from China

2025-05-01 17:16:57 CEST

Reportedly for some period of time many, many years ago the administrative password for the IBM 360/91 APL subsystem at UCLA CCN was: 314159. I never confirmed this though.

2025-05-01 06:29:41 CEST

- reply

I just missed being in Europe when Chernobyl went up. I was actually scheduled to be there but had to cancel the entire trip from the U.S. at the last minute.

2025-05-01 02:14:31 CEST

Completely out of touch: Trump today on increased prices and shortages with his tariffs: "Maybe the children will have 2 dolls instead of 30."
What a horrible, horrible man. -L

2025-04-29 06:01:08 CEST

It was a hell of a lot more fun growing up when there weren't cameras everywhere.