A Software Library with No Code by Drew Breunig

the whenwords library contains no code. Instead, whenwords contains specs and tests, specifically:

• SPEC.md: A detailed description of how the library should behave and how it should be implemented.
• tests.yaml: A list of language-agnostic test cases, defined as input/output pairs, that any implementation must pass.
• INSTALL.md: Instructions for building whenwords, for you, the human.

Drew goes on to list a bunch of scenarios when this will not be useful. But it’s an interesting way to look at libraries.

What’s on your desk, Stevie Bonifield?

I just got that when I moved last month, and it’s one of my favorite additions to my desk setup. It’s a double-decker laptop mount I got for around $30 on Amazon and just clamps onto the side of my desk (no screws necessary!).

I love reading these desk setups. This one has a nice clip on thing you can put your laptop in among other things.

Survey: Majority of Finns do not use AI at work by

A survey by recruitment and HR firm Barona has found that just 32 percent of people in Finland use artificial intelligence (AI) at work on a weekly basis.

A mistake that I often make is think that the world is filled with me. It’s not. I work in the IT industry. The majority of the world does not.

Hence, it takes a moment for me to say, yes, this makes sense.

Grok turns off image generator for most users after outcry over sexualised AI imagery by Helena Horton, Dan Milmo and Amelia Gentleman

Grok, Elon Musk’s AI tool, has switched off its image creation function for the vast majority of users after widespread outcry over its use to create sexually explicit and violent imagery.

'The Downside To Using AI for All Those Boring Tasks at Work' - Slashdot

Roger Kirkness, CEO of 14-person software startup Convictional, noticed that after AI took the scut work off his team's plates, their days became consumed by intensive thinking, and they were mentally exhausted and unproductive by Friday. The company transitioned to a four-day workweek; the same amount of work gets done, Kirkness says. The underlying problem, according to Boston College economist and sociologist Juliet Schor, is that businesses tend to simply reallocate the time AI saves. Workers who once mentally downshifted for tasks like data entry are now expected to maintain intense focus through longer stretches of data analysis.

This is an interesting problem. I see little discussion of it elsewhere. What will happen? Will we continue to work the same hours doing more, or will we be working less doing the same.

Knowledge work is highly cerebral in nature. That requires down time, in order to continue working at a high level.