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#1

General Discussion / Re: The Non-human World is Tak...

Last post by buster - Yesterday at 05:46:13 PM

Hiring in big companies seems to be for AI workers, whatever hiring there is. Got this from bnnbloomberg.ca.

Meta slashes 8,000 jobs, or 10% of its workforce, as Microsoft offers buyouts to 7%.

Here's a heartwarming quote from the news report:

"While an alternative to the sudden layoffs removing tech workers from peers like Meta and Oracle, the savings are likely tied to a similar industry upheaval that is requiring huge spending on the costs of artificial intelligence. Meta has already warned investors that its 2026 expenses will grow significantly -- to the range of US$162 billion to US$169 billion -- driven by infrastructure costs and employee compensation, particularly for the artificial intelligence experts it's been hiring at eye-popping pay levels."

[BMO executive wants every client to have an AI concierge.]

#2

General Discussion / Re: The Non-human World is Tak...

Last post by buster - Yesterday at 12:26:07 PM

Good luck with all that Bill.

And in my continued awareness of machine takeover, The Examiner today has a news report that spooks me out. The headline is

BMO executive wants every client to have an AI concierge.

With a chatbox, bill paying, e-transfers, maybe even investment advice could be handled by AI.

I don't like the idea of distancing myself from those processes. With any investments I like to look at the numbers and consider options and pitfalls. And it is software we're dealing with, and we know how that can break our hearts from experience with our computers.

I prefer dealing with knowledgeable people.

#3

General Discussion / Re: The Non-human World is Tak...

Last post by ssfc72 - April 22, 2026, 08:09:21 PM

Right on, Buster.

I am about to post a couple of topics.
Been busy installing an up to date fresh install of Mint 23 on my Dell 14" Inspiron notebook.I was using Mint 20, way past end of support.
Details to follow in another post

Also an up to date fresh install of MxLinux 25 on my Dell 13" XPS notebook.
The XPS running MxLinux 23, out of the blue, started to fail to boot up the Distro.
The boot up, got to the point of the desktop splash screen loading up and then it went into a blank screen with a blinking cursor in the top left of the screen.
Turns out this seems to be a common problem.
I wasn't messing around with the Distro, the notebook just all of a sudden would not boot?
Details to follow.

#4

General Discussion / The Non-human World is Taking ...

Last post by buster - April 22, 2026, 07:22:29 PM

So first of all let's note that no human has posted a reply or a new topic for about a dozen days. Let's also note that we have about two dozen members of which typically four post. But what we write must be tremendously interesting. How do I know?

" Most Online Ever: 7,274 (March 30, 2026, 08:09:32 PM) "

At that exact time there were over 7,000 eyes on something we had written.

I suspect they weren't human eyes. Just a guess of course.

And then there's the fact that in April of this year we had no new topics, and only 6 new posts, yet we had almost 6 million views(5,888,667).

We are into the land of science fiction where the future is edging beyond our control.

 

#5

Support / Re: can't upgrade Mint 21 to 2...

Last post by fox - April 10, 2026, 09:44:33 AM

No, it isn't R. I have R also, and a front end called RStudio, but I am not proficient with R. The one I use is called JMP. It is fully menu based, and my version is very old; thus requiring a bunch of 32 bit libraries.

#6

General Discussion / Re: Three words could save you...

Last post by Jason - April 07, 2026, 08:07:35 AM

Amazing! I can see why amateur radio can be/is used in emergency situations.

#7

General Discussion / Re: Three words could save you...

Last post by ssfc72 - April 01, 2026, 06:10:11 PM

On Amateur radio HF (high frequency) Bands, you can communicate with another Amateur radio operator (Ham) for thousands of miles (across the oceans) at night on the 80 Meter (low frequency) and up Bands.

During the daytime on 20 Meters (a higher frequency Band) you can communicate with another Ham, for up to 1000 miles. You would need to have a very good wire antenna strung up at a good height.

#8

Support / Re: can't upgrade Mint 21 to 2...

Last post by Jason - April 01, 2026, 05:58:59 PM

One thing I did have that I like to maintain is an old stats program that requires a lot of 32 bit libraries, and the app resides in my /Home folder. I just copied the files for it from my old Mint partition that wouldn't update, and then added the libraries until it worked in the new partition. I copied a few other things over and then destroyed the old partition.

Is it R, or a front-end for R? I believe R is console-based. I know the use something R-related in the stats course I'll have to take eventually. Most people hate statistics, I'm looking forward to it. Calculus scares me, though.

[The secret is not to allow it to format /home during the install.]

#9

Support / Re: can't upgrade Mint 21 to 2...

Last post by Jason - April 01, 2026, 05:52:57 PM

The secret is not to allow it to format /home during the install. I have done this before and so far it has worked. Nothing lost if it doesn't work

I am not the only one in the club that does this, and over the years I'd guess I've done it 3 times.

I did it this way on the last install. I've gone back and forth on it. I do regular backups, so restoring my data isn't a big headache, but your method is definitely faster and more foolproof. The only downside of this method is that you don't get to see the snazzy new desktop and settings, basically, that new distro feel that you would get with a regular install.

#10

General Discussion / Re: Three words could save you...

Last post by Jason - April 01, 2026, 05:48:25 PM

That's so cool, Bill! What is the range of those? Line of sight to the nearest tower?