On 11/11/2023 6:13 AM, Hamish Laws wrote:
> On Saturday, November 11, 2023 at 4:35:57 PM UTC+11, Lynn McGuire wrote:
>>
>> I really need to read TMIAHM again, it is sitting in my SBR. Along with
>> the sequel, "The Rolling Stones", the final years of Hazel Stone.
>>
> The Rolling Stones was published first, and The Cat That Walks Through Walls reveals that The Rolling Stones is a long way off being the final years of Hazel Stone

I need to reread TCTWTW through walls again. It has been over 40 years.
It is sitting my garage with over 3,000 other books.

Lynn

In article <b22d3c93-9033-47b4-a5cb-db37418a531bn@googlegroups.com>,
Jack Bohn <jack.bohn64@gmail.com> wrote:
>Paul S Person wrote:
>> On Mon, 6 Nov 2023 15:35:21 -0600, Lynn McGuire
>> <lynnmc...@gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> >“Elon Musk's xAI Officially Announces Grok, Its Answer to ChatGPT"
>> >
>>
>>https://www.pcmag.com/news/elon-musks-xai-officially-announces-grok-its-answer-to-chatgpt
>> >
>> >“After showing off a few screenshots of the chatbot on X late Saturday
>> >night, Elon Musk’s xAI has now officially announced Grok.”
>> >
>> >“Grok is “AI modeled after Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” and is
>> >intended to both answer questions as well as make suggestions on what to
>> >ask, according to a blog post from xAI.”
>> >
>> >Somebody has read Heinlein.
>> Or heard the term used at some time in the past and thought it sounded
>> "cool" without bothering to find out what it meant.
>
>Well, has some idea what it might mean from context, even if not fully
>grokking it.
>
>(waiting for Hal Heydt to correct me that "grok" does not need the
>modifier "fully". ("Unique" not being especially unique in that way.))

[Hal Heydt]
Why should I do the work when you've already taken care of it?

On Tuesday, November 7, 2023 at 5:53:05 PM UTC-5, Dimensional Traveler wrote:
> On 11/7/2023 9:52 AM, Paul S Person wrote:
> > On Mon, 6 Nov 2023 15:26:10 -0800, Dimensional Traveler
> > <dtr...@sonic.net> wrote:
> >
> >> On 11/6/2023 1:35 PM, Lynn McGuire wrote:
> >>> “Elon Musk's xAI Officially Announces Grok, Its Answer to ChatGPT"
> >>>
> >>> https://www.pcmag.com/news/elon-musks-xai-officially-announces-grok-its-answer-to-chatgpt
> >>>
> >>> “After showing off a few screenshots of the chatbot on X late Saturday
> >>> night, Elon Musk’s xAI has now officially announced Grok.”
> >>>
> >>> “Grok is “AI modeled after Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” and is
> >>> intended to both answer questions as well as make suggestions on what to
> >>> ask, according to a blog post from xAI.”
> >>>
> >>> Somebody has read Heinlein.
> >>>
> >> And he's likely spinning in his grave.
> >
> > And I suspect has been since the Verhoeven /Starship Troopers/ came
> > out.
> Good point, probably with a few extra revolutions per second because
> they only bought the rights so they could use the title.
> --

[ Note: making a third attempt to post in this thread.
Captcha is allowing me to claim I am not a robot, but is not
proceeding to whatever the next step is. ]

If REH's ashes are spinning, Elon should get permission to attach
a turbine to the urn and use it as Tesla charging point. But would
the urn spin, or just the ashes within a motionless urn? That might
be a heat source, depending on the speed of the cremains. Would
the urn eventually degrade from the heat? I'm no engineer, so
someone else should figure this out. In any event, if the attempt
were made there should be suitable payment to the estate. The heirs
should at least get beer money.

--
Kevin R

On 11/11/2023 14.53, Lynn McGuire wrote:

> I need to reread TCTWTW through walls again.  It has been over 40 years.

By "over", you mean "nearly", right?

<https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cgi?2270>

--
Michael F. Stemper
The name of the story is "A Sound of Thunder".
It was written by Ray Bradbury. You're welcome.

On Sat, 11 Nov 2023 14:56:27 -0800 (PST), Kevrob <kevrob@my-deja.com>
wrote:

>On Tuesday, November 7, 2023 at 5:53:05?PM UTC-5, Dimensional Traveler wrote:
>> On 11/7/2023 9:52 AM, Paul S Person wrote:
>> > On Mon, 6 Nov 2023 15:26:10 -0800, Dimensional Traveler
>> > <dtr...@sonic.net> wrote:
>> >
>> >> On 11/6/2023 1:35 PM, Lynn McGuire wrote:
>> >>> “Elon Musk's xAI Officially Announces Grok, Its Answer to ChatGPT"
>> >>>
>> >>> https://www.pcmag.com/news/elon-musks-xai-officially-announces-grok-its-answer-to-chatgpt
>> >>>
>> >>> “After showing off a few screenshots of the chatbot on X late Saturday
>> >>> night, Elon Musk’s xAI has now officially announced Grok.”
>> >>>
>> >>> “Grok is “AI modeled after Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” and is
>> >>> intended to both answer questions as well as make suggestions on what to
>> >>> ask, according to a blog post from xAI.”
>> >>>
>> >>> Somebody has read Heinlein.
>> >>>
>> >> And he's likely spinning in his grave.
>> >
>> > And I suspect has been since the Verhoeven /Starship Troopers/ came
>> > out.
>> Good point, probably with a few extra revolutions per second because
>> they only bought the rights so they could use the title.
>> --
>
>[ Note: making a third attempt to post in this thread.
>Captcha is allowing me to claim I am not a robot, but is not
>proceeding to whatever the next step is. ]

When the Doubleday Science Fiction Book Club first went online for
book ordering purposes, I eagerly tried it out. I had to do this on
successive Saturdays due to time constraints.

Week 1 -- managed step 1, process died
Week 2 -- managed steps 1 and 2, process died
of course, it finally worked, there being only 3 or 4 steps.

I wrote them an email after each failure.

In effect, I debugged their system for them. The tech-savvy
20-somethings they no doubt hired to implement it clearly had no
intention of actually testing it to see if it worked. Indeed, the very
/concept/ of testing a web procedure to be sure it worked was, I
suspect, unknown to them.

But that is what it is to be young -- to not know what you are doing.

<snippo very funny speculations>
--
"Here lies the Tuscan poet Aretino,
Who evil spoke of everyone but God,
Giving as his excuse, 'I never knew him.'"

On Saturday, November 11, 2023 at 5:56:31 PM UTC-5, Kevrob wrote:
[snip-snip]
> [ Note: making a third attempt to post in this thread.
> Captcha is allowing me to claim I am not a robot, but is not
> proceeding to whatever the next step is. ] [snip]

It appears to be browser- and/or extension-specific. I ran into the same
issue with Firefox.

On 11/12/2023 9:39 AM, Michael F. Stemper wrote:
> On 11/11/2023 14.53, Lynn McGuire wrote:
>
>> I need to reread TCTWTW through walls again.  It has been over 40 years.
>
>
> By "over", you mean "nearly", right?
>
> <https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cgi?2270>

I guess so. I forgot that Heinlein published anything in the 1980s.

I have no real idea when I read most of my books except for the 1,100
reviews that I have put on Big River.

Lynn

On 11/11/2023 10:13 AM, Jay E. Morris wrote:
> On 11/10/2023 11:35 PM, Lynn McGuire wrote:
>> On 11/10/2023 11:09 PM, Dorothy J Heydt wrote:
>>> In article <dof2N.57553$KCJd.56251@fx45.iad>,
>>> Scott Lurndal <slp53@pacbell.net> wrote:
>>>> Lynn McGuire <lynnmcguire5@gmail.com> writes:
>>>>> “Elon Musk's xAI Officially Announces Grok, Its Answer to ChatGPT"
>>>>>
>>>>> https://www.pcmag.com/news/elon-musks-xai-officially-announces-grok-its-answer-to-chatgpt
>>>>>
>>>>> “After showing off a few screenshots of the chatbot on X late Saturday
>>>>> night, Elon Musk’s xAI has now officially announced Grok.”
>>>>>
>>>>> “Grok is “AI modeled after Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” and is
>>>>> intended to both answer questions as well as make suggestions on
>>>>> what to
>>>>> ask, according to a blog post from xAI.”
>>>>>
>>>>> Somebody has read Heinlein.
>>>>
>>>> Wouldn't Mike have been a more appropriate Heinlein reference for an
>>>> AI?
>>>
>>> [Hal Heydt]
>>> Or--if being formal--Mycroft.
>>
>> Wasn't MYCROFT an acronym for several words ?
>>
>> NO !  The acronym was "Lunar infrastructure and machinery are largely
>> managed and controlled by HOLMES IV ("High-Optional, Logical,
>> Multi-Evaluating Supervisor, Mark IV"), the Lunar Authority's master
>> computer, on the premise that having a single, large-capacity computer
>> to run everything is cheaper (though not safer) than multiple
>> independent systems.[5]"
>>     https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Moon_Is_a_Harsh_Mistress
>>
>> "The narrator is Manuel Garcia ("Mannie") O'Kelly-Davis, a computer
>> technician who discovers that HOLMES IV has achieved self-awareness -
>> and developed a sense of humor. Mannie names it "Mike" after Mycroft
>> Holmes, brother of fictional Sherlock Holmes, and the two become
>> friends.[6]"
>>
>> I really need to read TMIAHM again, it is sitting in my SBR.  Along
>> with the sequel, "The Rolling Stones", the final years of Hazel Stone.
>>
>> Lynn
>>
>
> On occasion though, Michelle.

???

Lynn

Lynn McGuire <lynnmcguire5@gmail.com> writes:
>On 11/11/2023 10:13 AM, Jay E. Morris wrote:
>> On 11/10/2023 11:35 PM, Lynn McGuire wrote:
>>> On 11/10/2023 11:09 PM, Dorothy J Heydt wrote:
>>>> In article <dof2N.57553$KCJd.56251@fx45.iad>,
>>>> Scott Lurndal <slp53@pacbell.net> wrote:
>>>>> Lynn McGuire <lynnmcguire5@gmail.com> writes:
>>>>>> “Elon Musk's xAI Officially Announces Grok, Its Answer to ChatGPT"
>>>>>>
>>>>>> https://www.pcmag.com/news/elon-musks-xai-officially-announces-grok-its-answer-to-chatgpt
>>>>>>
>>>>>> “After showing off a few screenshots of the chatbot on X late Saturday
>>>>>> night, Elon Musk’s xAI has now officially announced Grok.”
>>>>>>
>>>>>> “Grok is “AI modeled after Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” and is
>>>>>> intended to both answer questions as well as make suggestions on
>>>>>> what to
>>>>>> ask, according to a blog post from xAI.”
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Somebody has read Heinlein.
>>>>>
>>>>> Wouldn't Mike have been a more appropriate Heinlein reference for an
>>>>> AI?
>>>>
>>>> [Hal Heydt]
>>>> Or--if being formal--Mycroft.
>>>
>>> Wasn't MYCROFT an acronym for several words ?
>>>
>>> NO !  The acronym was "Lunar infrastructure and machinery are largely
>>> managed and controlled by HOLMES IV ("High-Optional, Logical,
>>> Multi-Evaluating Supervisor, Mark IV"), the Lunar Authority's master
>>> computer, on the premise that having a single, large-capacity computer
>>> to run everything is cheaper (though not safer) than multiple
>>> independent systems.[5]"
>>>     https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Moon_Is_a_Harsh_Mistress
>>>
>>> "The narrator is Manuel Garcia ("Mannie") O'Kelly-Davis, a computer
>>> technician who discovers that HOLMES IV has achieved self-awareness -
>>> and developed a sense of humor. Mannie names it "Mike" after Mycroft
>>> Holmes, brother of fictional Sherlock Holmes, and the two become
>>> friends.[6]"
>>>
>>> I really need to read TMIAHM again, it is sitting in my SBR.  Along
>>> with the sequel, "The Rolling Stones", the final years of Hazel Stone.
>>>
>>> Lynn
>>>
>>
>> On occasion though, Michelle.
>
>???
>

Why not?

On 11/13/2023 6:14 PM, Scott Lurndal wrote:
> Lynn McGuire <lynnmcguire5@gmail.com> writes:
>> On 11/11/2023 10:13 AM, Jay E. Morris wrote:
>>> On 11/10/2023 11:35 PM, Lynn McGuire wrote:
>>>> On 11/10/2023 11:09 PM, Dorothy J Heydt wrote:
>>>>> In article <dof2N.57553$KCJd.56251@fx45.iad>,
>>>>> Scott Lurndal <slp53@pacbell.net> wrote:
>>>>>> Lynn McGuire <lynnmcguire5@gmail.com> writes:
>>>>>>> “Elon Musk's xAI Officially Announces Grok, Its Answer to ChatGPT"
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> https://www.pcmag.com/news/elon-musks-xai-officially-announces-grok-its-answer-to-chatgpt
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> “After showing off a few screenshots of the chatbot on X late Saturday
>>>>>>> night, Elon Musk’s xAI has now officially announced Grok.”
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> “Grok is “AI modeled after Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” and is
>>>>>>> intended to both answer questions as well as make suggestions on
>>>>>>> what to
>>>>>>> ask, according to a blog post from xAI.”
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Somebody has read Heinlein.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Wouldn't Mike have been a more appropriate Heinlein reference for an
>>>>>> AI?
>>>>>
>>>>> [Hal Heydt]
>>>>> Or--if being formal--Mycroft.
>>>>
>>>> Wasn't MYCROFT an acronym for several words ?
>>>>
>>>> NO !  The acronym was "Lunar infrastructure and machinery are largely
>>>> managed and controlled by HOLMES IV ("High-Optional, Logical,
>>>> Multi-Evaluating Supervisor, Mark IV"), the Lunar Authority's master
>>>> computer, on the premise that having a single, large-capacity computer
>>>> to run everything is cheaper (though not safer) than multiple
>>>> independent systems.[5]"
>>>>     https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Moon_Is_a_Harsh_Mistress
>>>>
>>>> "The narrator is Manuel Garcia ("Mannie") O'Kelly-Davis, a computer
>>>> technician who discovers that HOLMES IV has achieved self-awareness -
>>>> and developed a sense of humor. Mannie names it "Mike" after Mycroft
>>>> Holmes, brother of fictional Sherlock Holmes, and the two become
>>>> friends.[6]"
>>>>
>>>> I really need to read TMIAHM again, it is sitting in my SBR.  Along
>>>> with the sequel, "The Rolling Stones", the final years of Hazel Stone.
>>>>
>>>> Lynn
>>>>
>>>
>>> On occasion though, Michelle.
>>
>> ???
>>
>
> Why not?

Oh, I forgot about that in TMIAHM. Thanks for the reminder.

Lynn

On 12/11/2023 12.26, Lynn McGuire wrote:
> On 11/12/2023 9:39 AM, Michael F. Stemper wrote:
>> On 11/11/2023 14.53, Lynn McGuire wrote:
>>
>>> I need to reread TCTWTW through walls again.  It has been over 40 years.
>>
>>
>> By "over", you mean "nearly", right?
>>
>> <https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cgi?2270>
>
> I guess so.  I forgot that Heinlein published anything in the 1980s.

Actually, I'm jealous of you. I just read "Cat" in 2002. Not nearly
enough time to heal.

--
Michael F. Stemper
Isaiah 58:6-7