Phillip de Wet

Columnist, editor, consultant

[Phillip de Wet @phillipdewet]

This seems like an excellent weekend to play with Mastodon: https://t.co/kIqLb4JMpr

If you are a fellow asylum seeker, reply with your details please? It's weird not having people to follow.

[Phillip de Wet @phillipdewet]

@vumatel Hi!
Could we have more details on your offer, please? Your standard T&Cs point to a pricing page that 404s, and no other details on your link.
For starters: are you waiving installation, does this apply to any third-party package, and does it require a minimum time contract?

[Phillip de Wet @phillipdewet]

I'm looking for anyone in South Africa who is – or is considering – spinning up a Mastodon instance.
DMs are open here, or via @[email protected]

[Phillip de Wet @phillipdewet]

@PCunliffeJones But a space full of techno-utopian early adopters and people worried about platform integrity, it turns out, is better.

If Twitter is defined by who is here, Mastodon is about who is not there.

[Phillip de Wet @phillipdewet]

* I recommend ignoring any apps and just using Mastodon on mobile Chrome, it's fantastic.

* Two non-obvious settings to change immediately: set yourself to discoverable, and filter for language on the public timeline.

4/4

[Phillip de Wet @phillipdewet]

This seems like an excellent weekend to play with Mastodon: https://t.co/kIqLb4JMpr

If you are a fellow asylum seeker, reply with your details please? It's weird not having people to follow.

[Phillip de Wet @phillipdewet]

* Much like switching to a new OS or word processor, Twitter power users will find the change more frustrating than common folk. But I reckon they'll also find Mastodon more rewarding int he end.

3/4

[Phillip de Wet @phillipdewet]

Calling dibs on "consolvent".

[Phillip de Wet @phillipdewet]

No, that is ridiculous, sorry. Even circa-2021 AI systems had greater internal consistency than this, and these kind of grammar issues were eliminated well before 2020.
Maybe they're running some bootleg Chinese or Russian AI, and having trouble with the translation?

[Phillip de Wet @phillipdewet]

Pretty certain the department of women, youth and persons with disabilities fed some previous-generation AI the title of its latest policy document, and just plonked the raw output in the Government Gazette today.

[Phillip de Wet @phillipdewet]

So similar to a toddler playing dress-up and tottering around in mummy's high heels, this.
The DA assumes the trappings of news without any sign of understanding fundamentals – such as that you can't drone on for four minutes with no interjection, no cut-away, no graphics, niks.

[Democratic Alliance @Our_DA]

📣 Bailouts to failed SOEs must end, the job-killing BEE legislation must be scrapped, and a cut on fuel tax and an expanded zero-rated VAT food basket must be considered.

Today, the Minister of Finance must present a budget to cut food costs, fight poverty, and inspire growth.

[Phillip de Wet @phillipdewet]

@jack_sommers Freelancers: the people who never learnt the "read the whole question before answering" approach to exams.

[Phillip de Wet @phillipdewet]

Applications close tomorrow.

[Phillip de Wet @phillipdewet]

New: come work with us!
Business Insider South Africa needs a mid-senior business reporter.
A sense of humour is literally a job requirement.
https://t.co/PqY029zU9O

[Phillip de Wet @phillipdewet]

A bit forward on that story: https://t.co/zxDikDordP

[Phillip de Wet @phillipdewet]

This one could be fascinating. The Commonwealth is in play, Nato is transparently sick of of what it considers Russian enablers, Americans love the kind of distraction offered by "they're coming for our F-35 secrets!"

[Phillip de Wet @phillipdewet]

@SheldonMorais Why do you ask?

[Phillip de Wet @phillipdewet]

And right in the middle of that mess is a company from the Klein Karoo that – allegedly, they're still not talking to us – effectively phones up people in the UK (with a very specific set of work experience) to offer them high-paying jobs in China.

[Phillip de Wet @phillipdewet]

This one could be fascinating. The Commonwealth is in play, Nato is transparently sick of of what it considers Russian enablers, Americans love the kind of distraction offered by "they're coming for our F-35 secrets!"

[Business Insider SA🇿🇦 @BISouthAfrica]

A South African company helped China recruit UK fighter pilots, says that country in ‘threat’ notice.
https://t.co/1IbuJmru8U

[Phillip de Wet @phillipdewet]

Oh, and let's not forget how very much indeed the Truss administration would love to front-and-centre any non-fiscal, non-domestic issue where it can be nice and hawkish, without even riling up the EU or Ireland again.