Peter Ludemann

Assume any of my comments has a sarcasm/snark tag - I'm a survivor of the 1980s Usenet Flame Wars.
Retired from software {Google, Yahoo, start-ups, IBM, BNR}; sometime bicyclist, sailor, & non-gardener; easily amused by PL design and type inferencing.
Los Altos, California (previously Tokyo, Osaka, Toronto, Ottawa, Victoria, Vancouver)

Twitter: Peter Ludemann (npub107n…qqc4)
Github: kamahen

Public Key

npub107nyde0pnstwsjq2fu4ps9dq8j0ffyaf8qtcla65meqff352f76s3yqqc4

NIP-05 Address

[email protected]

Profile Code

nprofile1qqs8lfjxuhsec9hgfq9y72sczksre855jw5ns9u07a2dusy5c69yldgpz3mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerpd46hxtnfduqs6amnwvaz7tmwdaejumr0ds395w7r

Publishing to

relay.damus.io

nos.lol

Author Public Key

npub107nyde0pnstwsjq2fu4ps9dq8j0ffyaf8qtcla65meqff352f76s3yqqc4

Show more details

Last Notes

2026-08-07 09:01:37 GMT

- reply

With renewables, energy usage isn't an issue.
@npub19ua…53cv @npub1wxz…ndds

2026-08-05 23:43:31 GMT

- reply

That argument might work if LLMs were precise. But they can't even do arithmetic and the code I've seen was barely junior programmer quality.
@npub1wxz…ndds @npub19ua…53cv

2026-08-05 23:01:33 GMT

- reply

That's like saying we don't need any master bricklayers or stonemasons or carpenters because anybody can lay bricks or cut stones or hammer nails ... and who cares what happens in a few decades when the quality difference becomes obvious. (Not that a lot of software is of high quality today but I digress)
@npub1wxz…ndds @npub19ua…53cv

2026-07-24 22:44:43 GMT

- reply

Do American workers have a reasonable expectation of privacy when at work? It would be ironic if POWs have more rights than employees.

2026-07-05 17:17:36 GMT

- reply

Not to disagree with you about "trust aura around SERPs" but have you tried searching for anything related to health, for example? (IOW, it's a false "trust" but I agree that it exists)

2026-02-14 18:07:29 GMT

- reply

And expect a call from HR or the police.

2026-02-14 01:50:47 GMT

- reply

But ICE is funded separately?

2026-01-31 17:34:37 GMT

- reply

A less prolix and bland response should be possible.

2026-01-31 00:44:26 GMT

- reply

The McKennzie brothers were only a slight exaggeration of some kids I went to school with. Although a few years later, I had a summer job as a chokerman, with some of those same people, and was amazed at the work ethic of those high-school slackers.
(I don't recall ever hearing "hoser" -- I think Bob&Doug made it up ... but Canada's a big country, and there is definitely regional slang and even regional dialects and accents)
(Also, I think that "eh?" sounds more refined than "huh?")

2026-01-30 21:38:36 GMT

- reply

What makes you think it was parody? (Speaking as a Canadian)

2026-01-30 21:36:27 GMT

- reply

Facebook-powered AI Agents?

2026-01-24 21:27:15 GMT

- reply

Fox News website shows the video but without sound, so totally different impact. First half of article quotes DHS, Trump et al, second half quotes Governor, Mayor, etc and is fairly neutral. (I wonder if I would have seen something different if I logged in?) (Which I wouldn't do)
Wonder what Fox cable news is showing (which I don't watch) ...

2026-01-16 01:18:51 GMT

- reply

Tell the Nobel committee to shut up.

2026-01-06 00:52:02 GMT

- reply

There's a reason why a lot of MIT's robot research was done with Lisp and not Cobol (or Fortran), and it wasn't because Cobol is more verbose.
@npub1lq6…nf7e

2026-01-05 23:33:57 GMT

- reply

People wrote robot controllers in Cobol? Surely, Intercal would have been easier.

2026-01-02 19:40:17 GMT

- reply

Even though he's not wrong? (Based on my N=1 experience living in Canada, Japan, USA)

2026-01-02 19:38:26 GMT

- reply

Seems to be a Rorschach kind of word
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collectivism_(disambiguation)

2026-01-02 19:25:56 GMT

- reply

https://fed.brid.gy/r/https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:s6j27rxb3ic2rxw73ixgqv2p/post/3mbhjhcge6k2l

2026-01-02 18:39:43 GMT

- reply

He should have said "community" instead of "collectivism".

2025-12-26 02:06:39 GMT

- reply

Japanese taxis have "automatic" doors - and have had them for decades. (Operated remotely by the driver)

2025-12-21 14:26:38 GMT

- reply

I doubt that it would be much worse than the everyday traffic I encountered today in Phnomh Penh. Which is better than some other cities that also have no public transit.

2025-12-21 09:12:32 GMT

- reply

The sniffed WiFi info (which, when it was revealed to exist, caused a huge privacy outcry, even though the collected data was unencrypted and it's what you see when you look for available networks) was primarily used to speed up GPS calculations, which (I'm told) iterate from an initial location guess. They're also useful for underground geolocation, where GPS doesn't work.
Due to the PR disaster, a Google-wide edict prohibited collecting any of the WiFi data and caused the cancellation of a project I was working on. IDK if that edict is still in effect.

2025-12-06 05:02:58 GMT

- reply

And if you know San Francisco, spot the location jumps that don't make sense, except from a cinematic experience point-of-view.

2025-12-05 21:11:36 GMT

- reply

You do realize that being in a city with functioning transit means an international trip? (And, yes, I've been to NYC, Chicago, SF, Seattle, Portland)
So it might be a while before I report back.

2025-12-05 20:22:11 GMT

- reply

The ones I've noticed say "emergency stop", both on the train and on the platform. I've seen separate emergency com buttons in trains (not sure about platforms). I'll have to remember to look next time I'm in a city with a functioning transit system. (I think I've seen emergency stop cords on buses also)

2025-12-05 19:42:01 GMT

- reply

Subway trains have emergency stop buttons both inside the trains and on the platforms, despite having human operators. And they don't get abused.

2025-12-05 19:30:05 GMT

- reply

I suppose it helps to have a parent who grew up under Naziism and a few teachers who experienced eastern European communism. But my generation will soon be gone and with it first- and second-hand experience with those tyrannies. And so the cycle repeats...

2025-12-05 19:14:25 GMT

- reply

If so, they could just as easily be manipulated to believe in vaccines. Why do the manipulators want to harm them?

2025-12-05 18:59:20 GMT

- reply

I'm trying to understand why they're doing this. Is it a kind of loyalty test for cult members, requiring them to believe ridiculous things? Is it some kind of grift (if so, what?)? Or do they actually believe the anti-vax nonsense?
(I almost died from pertussis as a child and can't imagine why anyone would want that for their kids)

2025-12-03 19:36:44 GMT

- reply

Has the script been posted? (I want to know why I can't get a reasonably priced PC with ECC)
Is it related to this: https://investors.micron.com/news-releases/news-release-details/micron-announces-exit-crucial-consumer-business
... although I haven't been able to get ECC for years.

2025-11-27 20:09:33 GMT

- reply

Woodworking table saws are very dangerous (my father lost a finger on one, even though he was very experienced and very careful, and he almost died from blood loss and shock) but nowadays there are "instant stop" saws that prevent those accidents. "Agency" is fine but safety is also important.

2025-11-10 05:57:10 GMT

- reply

I have no insight into what goes on in smoke-filled back rooms. I grew up in a country where the Opposition believed its duty is to oppose (HM's Loyal Opposition).

2025-11-10 05:39:24 GMT

- reply

Schumer isn't on the list of 8 but the whip is so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/11/09/senate-democrats-shutdown-vote-00644146
Hassan
King
Cortez-Masto
Shaheen
Kaine
Fetterman
Durbin (whip)
Rosen

2025-10-13 18:26:19 GMT

- reply

I still remember "[our enemies'] impure blood will water our farm fields" from my highschool French class.

2025-10-10 03:54:56 GMT

- reply

Non sequitur. (Being smart has nothing to do with freezing on TV. Also: brain farts happen)

2025-09-30 01:54:30 GMT

- reply

"Nothing personal, it's just business"

2025-09-30 01:44:51 GMT

- reply

You'd prefer that they quit and work for Facebook?

2025-09-28 00:29:08 GMT

- reply

I think I could demolish the argument that generative content is covered by §230 in a few minutes, and I'm no expert on LLMs or copyright law ... but Google, Facebook et al have very good lawyers and would the government lawyers/experts be good enough? (This is a rhetorical question)

2025-09-27 19:07:23 GMT

- reply

Presumably responsibility for any AI-generated stuff would be with the entity that generated it? (That is, Google would be responsible for all its AI summaries) Isn't that the situation now with §230?

2025-09-18 02:41:11 GMT

- reply

Surely this will result in US drone manufacturers springing up and we'll see awesome new (made in America) drones within a few months.
/s

2025-09-15 23:30:33 GMT

- reply

Photo #1's background is better.

2025-08-22 01:34:29 GMT

- reply

Anti-redistricting stuff is also showing up on Nextdoor, although the moderators seem to be taking them down as being inappropriate political discussion.
I've noticed on Nextdoor that posts and comments that aren't about lost cats or people stealing fruit off trees in the front yard skew conservative/reactionary even though we're in a Democratic-majority area (during Covid, this was especially true). Lots of "Newscum"-style commentary. The exception is when NIMBYSm enters the chat, where there's a sprinkling of leftists who think that increasing supply somehow increases prices. But I digress.
(Yeah, I know I shouldn't waste time reading these things, but I'm amused by the idiocy of some of the people living near me, and it beats watching reality shows)

2025-08-21 06:12:30 GMT

- reply

Or gloves.

2025-08-20 00:47:59 GMT

- reply

Each generation learns the same things, but in different contexts.

2025-08-08 17:28:32 GMT

- reply

What else would they train on?

2025-08-08 17:04:57 GMT

- reply

As someone with a medical condition that current medical science can only help about half the time, I still see more human-generated crap than AI-generated. Some of the human stuff is book-length. In this sea of misinformation, it's hard to imagine that AI would make things much worse.

2025-08-07 18:42:19 GMT

- reply

Oxford's not in America. But I see that the Chicago Manual of Style specifies Oxford commas, except before "&".
https://cmosshoptalk.com/2020/02/11/oxford-chicago-and-the-serial-comma/

2025-08-07 18:08:59 GMT

- reply

Americans also do m/d/y for dates, miles, gallons (128 fl.oz. instead of 160), fahrenheit, pennies (carpentry nail sizes), etc ... not an exemplar of rationality in a lot of categories.
Now, let's discuss Oxford commas ...

2025-08-06 16:31:32 GMT

- reply

Was that the talk that began "what do you call 100TB? - answer: an emergency low-on-disk alert" (or something like that), although today it'd probably be 10PB.
@npub1u8n…a92u

2025-08-06 16:06:15 GMT

- reply

It still shows "has not been convicted" to me. Of course, given Google's compute infrastructure, it's not unusual for different people to get different results.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eventual_consistency
(which is far from the only reason ... "250ms" is another for those in the know)

2025-07-25 16:29:24 GMT

- reply

If we could tax billionaires out of existence, that would be evidence that many of our societal problems had been fixed.

2025-07-20 07:18:57 GMT

- reply

I suspect that the C/370 runtime library still has several thousand lines of assembler that I wrote 35 years ago, to allow fopen() to open a file by name rather than by ddname - my small contribution to making OS/370 (now z/OS) marginally more easy to use (I could have retained ANSI compatibility without this; and my management did not appreciate what I had done),
OS/370 deserves an award for both bad OS design and bad API design (and another award for longevity). But its designers can at least defend themselves by saying that nobody else at that time knew better (see also Brooks' Mythical Man-Monght).
Windows has no such excuse.

2025-07-20 04:37:58 GMT

- reply

// EXEC PGM=IEFBR14

2025-07-20 03:44:49 GMT

- reply

After "n" times of submitting a card deck, it would become somewhat worn, so I'd run it through the reproducing punch (IBM 514?) to re-sequence the deck (I think we used intervals of 100, but that wasn't enough for some large changes)
And we'd write the name of the program on the side with a magic marker, although some people preferred a diagonal line. A box of cards held 2000 cards and some of my programs needed multiple boxes.
(And then there was the IEBUPDTE program, the less said about that, the better)

2025-07-18 16:32:00 GMT

- reply

But Colbert is still going to be on the air for another 9 months, so how does that help Trump?...

2025-07-12 18:01:11 GMT

- reply

I'm reminded every time I look in the mirror.

2025-07-12 17:45:10 GMT

- reply

And you've been concealing this vital secret for how many years?

2025-06-29 18:16:27 GMT

- reply

FWIW, one way I can tell that I'm coming down with a cold is that I start to dislike coffee and have an urge to drink tea. Maybe it's the theanine in tea, but I feel the caffeine in coffee much more than the caffeine In tea (similar amounts of caffeine).
If you really want a hit of caffeine (and various antioxidents), try "koicha" (thick matcha). https://ippodotea.com/blogs/ippodo-tea-blog/koicha-for-a-next-level-matcha-experience
(but this requires higher grade matcha than is generally available in the US)

2025-06-29 17:57:08 GMT

- reply

You didn't say whether you drink your coffee with or without sugar and cream. If you want something definitely stronger than water, I suggest properly made Hong Kong style milk tea. If you like your coffee black, you might find an "Irish Breakfast" blend that meets your criteria.
https://murchies.com/fine-tea/features/breakfast-teas/
(The Google coffees were OK, but barely comparable to any random coffee bar in Italy)

2025-06-29 17:29:11 GMT

- reply

At the risk of insulting @npub1lq6…nf7e , as he's American and has lived all his life in LA, we must enquire as to how he makes "tea" and what type of "tea" he's vigorously disagreeing with.
https://youtu.be/rG-rMpQT-GQ?t=66
PS: Loose tea is better than tea bags.

2025-05-30 15:29:16 GMT

- reply

But search results can also point to sites with incorrect information... try searching for almost any medical or nutritional condition (and compare with results from https://healthlibrary.stanford.edu/research-services2.html)

2025-05-30 07:36:24 GMT

- reply

Ummm ... there are lots of questions that take much longer to generate a "solution" than to test its correctness. (And not just computational complexity NP, BDD, SAT, etc. but also real life)
Which doesn't invalidate your other arguments

2025-05-27 16:52:19 GMT

- reply

Low information voters wouldn't see this (nor remember it) even if there were no paywall.

2025-05-26 20:16:29 GMT

- reply

"Who shall remain nameless" indeed. But more than one person fits that description.

2025-05-26 19:46:13 GMT

- reply

I wrote a rant about the G+ interface to one of the architects and how it also lacked a decent API and accidentally hit send ... I got back a rather nice reply.

2025-05-26 19:34:06 GMT

- reply

I got into the special G+ restaurant because our intern knew an G+ intern. (It was a nice lunch)

2025-05-21 09:22:22 GMT

- reply

I thought that 30+ years ago ... coding would be replaced by bolting together ready-made components, so I quit making bespoke systems and went to work for a component-maker. What's so different about today?

2025-05-01 05:24:37 GMT

- reply

I see that you've never had to deal with Product Managers. Or MBAs.

2025-04-03 16:29:03 GMT

- reply

But wouldn't they need a 2/3 majority to overcome the inevitable presidential veto?
Delegating authority to the president requires a simple majority; un-delegating is much harder.

2025-03-28 19:17:24 GMT

- reply

Me too ... there was on option for reading the boot sequence from some kind of ROM but it was $$$.
The mainframe booted from a card reader.

2025-03-14 15:54:56 GMT

- reply

Methinks you're an outlier. :)

2025-03-14 07:26:25 GMT

- reply

I figure my overall odds of not dying in s robotsxi are better than if I'm in a human-driven taxi/Uber/etc. (unless the robotaxi is a Tesla, of course). You figure the odds differently. The unknowns are large enough that either of us could be wrong.
As for privacy and surveillance, I assume that carrying a cell phone makes my whereabouts easy to determine.

2025-03-14 05:05:36 GMT

- reply

I've seen worse than Boston.

2025-03-14 03:49:34 GMT

- reply

I wouldn't lump Waymo/Google and Tesla together. And maybe you've not encountered some drivers that I've experienced.

2025-03-14 03:14:54 GMT

- reply

I've had enough frightening rides in taxis and Uber to prefer robo-taxis (Tokyo and London being exceptions).
Long ago, I taught Defensive Driving, so I have a heightened awareness of unsafe driving.

2025-03-14 03:11:50 GMT

- reply

When the enemy has been deploying scorched-earth tactics for years, "playing by the rules" is unlikely to succeed.

2025-03-14 02:37:08 GMT

- reply

Trump/Musk has fired plenty of VA workers already, so maybe they'd declare VA medical services as non-essential... after all, emergencies could be handled by non-VA hospitals.

2025-03-14 02:33:35 GMT

- reply

With the exception of Japan and London, the words "service" and "taxi driver" don't belong together, at least until one lives in a place long enough to figure out the various ways taxi drivers overcharge.

2025-03-14 02:27:13 GMT

- reply

Wouldn't VA medical services be considered "essential" and therefore not shut down?

2025-03-13 04:50:38 GMT

- reply

Seniors who know computers sometimes need help with the complex rules that Congress has decreed and my local SSA has been rather pleasant in helping with those rules.
But just as people need lawyers to navigate the immigration system or accountants to navigate tax rules, I suppose seniors will now need consultants (paid) to navigate the SSA system.

2025-01-29 02:56:13 GMT

- reply

They could use a "black sharpie" font. https://www.fontspace.com/category/sharpie

2025-01-29 01:06:29 GMT

- reply

I took down the build system once ... I think that was a P0 ... we had a nice post mortem and I was given a Pink Kirby award (so-called because of the SRE graphs' appearance... I wasn't the first)

2025-01-27 23:56:00 GMT

- reply

I regularly filed bug reports about pages that failed Google's automated readability tests. I don't recall any of the bug reports being answered.

2025-01-27 21:37:37 GMT

- reply

I think Japanese would have blown up the UI even more (and French uses ~30% more space than English). Also, Japanese can be written both vertically and horizontally (modern Chinese is mostly horizontal). And throw in Arabic (or another right to left language).

2025-01-27 01:17:22 GMT

- reply

So, if using Google Maps in Alabama, we'll see "Gulf of America"; and in California, "Gulf of Mexico" ...

2025-01-26 22:36:22 GMT

- reply

Google Maps does location-specific naming and boundaries, to conform with local laws and customs (e.g., Korea/Japan)

2025-01-24 05:23:11 GMT

- reply

On the off-chance that you're not a troll: “DEI is not lowering the bar, it is widening the gate.” ... "DEI *raises* the bar, since you have a bigger talent pool ..."
https://hachyderm.io/@aronow/113875619118750711
@npub1jsl…93xu

2025-01-23 04:44:42 GMT

- reply

Maybe you could learn from this really smart guy? (Whose experience matches mine, even though I'm not as smart; in fact I enjoy being the dumbest person in the room)
@npub1jsl…93xu

2025-01-23 02:47:25 GMT

- reply

IOW, Congress hasn't been doing its job. (Why Congress would collectively decide to relinquish power, I don't know ...)

2025-01-17 22:35:50 GMT

- reply

One can imagine "Yes, Minister"-like scenes ...

2025-01-06 21:52:41 GMT

- reply

At the risk of thread necromancy, Lauren said that drivers pay for roads with gas taxes and cyclists don't pay gas taxes and that bicyclists get a "free ride" (which isn't true, but anyway); and that's a common trope of people who (in other social media that shall remain nameless unless you ask me) claim that bikes have no right to be on the roads, that bike lanes cause traffic congestions, that bicyclists are all crazed entitled maniacs who don't obey the traffic laws, etc. I don't think that Lauren meant to imply this or was even aware of the trope.
BTW:
"Repeated studies consistently show that adding a protected bike lane to a road improves safety for all road users - including drivers, walkers, and bikers. Research shows that adding protected bike lanes reduces all collisions and injuries by 30-50%. The reason is simple: roads are easier to navigate when everyone is in their place. There can only be peace on the road, when everyone has a piece of the road."
https://www.pasadenacsc.org/blog/facts-about-protected-bike-lanes

2025-01-05 05:50:41 GMT

- reply

I hate using words like "privilege" because they've been overused by the extreme left (and by the extreme right's "critique"); but that's exactly what it is. This country vastly subsidizes drivers, and builds cities where a car is a necessity, not a luxury. And then the drivers whine about the bad behaviour of a few non-drivers and ignore the pervasive bad behaviour of drivers (which they don't even notice). [Not all drivers, of course; and not all bicyclists either]

2025-01-05 05:27:00 GMT

- reply

I'm sure it'll work out better than https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phoenix_Program

2025-01-05 02:48:15 GMT

- reply

Members of an overclass (in this case, drivers) are often oblivious of their privilege over the underclass (in this case bicyclists and pedestrians). So, might I suggest "classist"?
For example: https://www.utoronto.ca/news/more-half-toronto-drivers-u-t-study-didn-t-look-cyclists-and-pedestrians-turning-right

2025-01-02 20:50:25 GMT

- reply

Hmmm ... I've seen plenty of cars running red lights, also almost hitting pedestrians in crosswalks. Also many cars going over the speed limit (which speed limit is usually higher than is safe in residential areas).
PS: Years ago, I was a "defensive driving" instructor.

2025-01-02 20:37:11 GMT

- reply

What percentage of bicyclists are such idiots/jerks? When answering, bear in mind that you probably don't notice the ones who are riding safely.
Maybe 1% of drivers are dangerous to cyclists, but it's enough to be scary.

2024-12-29 21:04:41 GMT

- reply

What has Amazon been doing (or not doing) with AI? They seem to have made some better strategic decisions in the past (e.g., AWS vs Google's attempt to catch up because it focused on Google+) and they have serious Operational Research capabilities (needed for managing their warehouses and delivery systems).

2024-12-21 00:33:48 GMT

- reply

Is Bing any better?

2024-11-25 20:31:08 GMT

- reply

You should want bicycling to be so common that bike parking isn't free. Here's what paid parking can be like (at a high-end shopping complex in downtown Tokyo - first couple of hours are free, then ¥100 (CAD0.90))
https://media.mathstodon.xyz/media_attachments/files/113/545/481/025/198/144/original/5810f55854d88839.png

2024-10-19 23:59:25 GMT

- reply

It was too late.
The effort should have gone into GCP and related de-complication of the various internal platforms (which were a huge invisible internal tax because of their excessive complexity). Instead, AWS won.