W-1 NOW IN 1111 of starlight and black matter... A bit of a rant...
of starlight and black matter...
a bit of a rant.
I'm never really sure how things get started. Often, I don't even know where they began. I only know that frequently, material, time, and effort disappear from my writings. More is loss than I can easily blame on my sub-moderate computer skills, or my personal lack of knowledge, or even just simple ignorance.
I'm basically a "learn as you go" kind of guy. Until recently, I thought of computers as simple tools, like a hammer, a typewriter, or a toaster. Not "smart" toys by any means. And to be honest, I've some angst towards computers. Occasionally, I've even considered taking a hammer to my laptop, but so far, I have only thrown one into the pool.
Am I simply jinxed by the many things my computer demands of me? The apps, programs, accessories, updates, drop-down menus, passwords- don't even get me started about passwords, and the constant looking here or there for six or seven-digit codes only as to reset nagging passwords, always at least convenient moments. What a pain!
These days, I just cut to the chase. Whenever possible, I simply cut and paste those numbers and keep to the random temporary passwords, at least until next time. It's quicker and easier than trying to remember them. Even if you write them down and hide them somewhere, by the time you find them, you can't use them because you've already changed them.
Can you see where I'm going with this, even if I don't?
And tell me this: why do I feel it necessary to monitor every bit of my work? When I tuck words into posts, files, folders, programs, desktops, or The Cloud, I don't trust that anything goes where I thought it should. For instance, I need to check and make sure anything I've pasted end up exactly as it should.
And, because I don't trust the success of a cut and paste, especially from one screen to another, I never cut; I always copy and paste, and then I'll go back and delete what might have been cut. Only then, after I confirm the pasted part again, do I delete and move on.
>And, really? How can you trust anything called The Cloud? Have you ever observed a cloud, or clouds? A single cloud dissipates pretty quickly. They say that you can break one up with your mind. Even a giant horizon-filling storm of black clouds, with pounding rain, flashing lightning, and thunder, will break up and give way to blue skies. Even hurricanes dwindle and form into floods that rush to the sea.
>Why would anyone store their precious words, photos, or "content" in a cloud? Isn't it rather like "streaming?" And what exactly is streaming? I only know that streams transport clouds to the ocean (and that I enjoy flyfishing in them).
Whether it's rain from clouds or, for the sake of metaphor, data plunked into AI, think of each as emptying into distinct oceans. Just as all water flows to the ocean, all intelligence (data) is absorbed by AI. Absolutely everything that we feed to AI will eventually end up in one of two other: the ocean, or as stolen by AI.
>The real difference is that the ocean conjures romantic and adventurous thoughts of endless spiraling emotions. The ocean is the repository of stardust, of our essence. Artificial Intelligence is simply an evil oxymoron. It's a simple task, retaining everything just to spit it back as dark matter while at the same time convincing us that we're heading for the stars.
Yes, indeed, it is true that I'm writing this now because earlier today, I inadvertently, or foolishly, but mostly accidentally began a Windows 10 to 11 update. This update was supposed to interfere with my writing. It wouldn't take long, but it kept posting "just a moment, please." It has been downloading something for over two hours now, reminding me also, "Don't shut off your computer!"
In the past, this kind of inconvenience would have had me throwing this laptop into the pool, but I'm better medicated these days. Now it's more like cracking a beer and listening to crappy static muzak while waiting on hold for two hours after first being told that you were third in the queue.
Can each of us openly and honestly acknowledge that technology serves and services each one of us now individually and adequately and in better ways than anything could before (sarcasm)?
I've always tried to avoid repeating the same mistakes, at least not over and over. It's a waste of time, of my time. I avoid things like hooking up with strange women or connecting to perilous foreign and secluded wi-fi sites.
I double-check everything. When signing in to open wi-fi, I verify these connections by cross-checking links with email or Evernote, messaging between my laptop and phone. Even before, when leaving home, I make sure my batteries are charged, checking the little icon at the lower right of the screen. I check my mouse batteries. All sorts of little basic tricks like that.
It's no wonder why people ask me what took me so long at anything. More to the point, this post was not to be about any of these topics. This post was originally meant to be about what I...
Oh, sorry, Social Security just picked up. Gotta go!
PS: When I returned to my laptop, the Windows 11 download was done. Ready to restart. Done, as was the story I had been writing. Done, gone, not to be found. Luckily, I had most of a near-complete draft from before. One I remembered and found backup on Blogger. After a couple of hours, I used that to scrape together a semblance of what Windows 11had lost. So much time spent backing up and tracking my work. It paid off, but how I miss paper.
Comment "yes," or leave an emogee if you made it through, or at least skimmed this post. Thanks!
-dp-
10-22-25
(30) 584/743/907/1015
NEXT: With all of the things we ask of them, do they serve us well, or at all?
of starlight and black matter...
a bit of a rant.
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