Michael B. Duff

I used to be really funny

[Michael B. Duff @michaelbduff2]

"Like bringing a silver-aged superhero into a modern anti-hero comic book."

I'm two books in to my epic superhero satire series, struggling to get noticed in an utterly saturated indie landscape.

I've taken special care with the audiobooks, hiring male and female narrators to play off each other and make the jokes work. You can check out the whole series here: https://t.co/lA55Y0VXrw

[Michael B. Duff @michaelbduff2]

Pro tip for anyone playing Baldur's Gate 3. A Mind Flayer is a supercomputer programmed to eat brains.

[Michael B. Duff @michaelbduff2]

@Supersonic_Red This is my goal now, to one day be famous enough to have a redhead constantly complaining about my book delays.

[Michael B. Duff @michaelbduff2]

I don't think @filianIsLost is in any kind of trouble. I think she got married.

[Michael B. Duff @michaelbduff2]

Marc is one of the smartest guys on the planet, but this is a dangerous prompt. It made Grok arrogant, argumentative and dogmatic. It stripped all nuance from its positions and forced it to double down on a questionable position.

It told me the Iran War will end in 4 to 6 weeks when getting trade back to normal will likely take 4 to 6 MONTHS. It gave me a high confidence prediction simply because Trump announced Project Freedom.

Then I ran the same prompt through normal Grok and got a much more moderate answer, acknowledging the high degree of uncertainty.

Calling the AI an expert encourages it to roleplay as more certain than its data would indicate - the opposite of what you want.

[Michael B. Duff @michaelbduff2]

@harukaawake You live in one of the best countries on Earth, my friend. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

[Michael B. Duff @michaelbduff2]

Imagine how bad you have to fuck up to get a @nikitabier reply. Almost as bad as a Hello from @DataRepublican or a lurking @Steve_Sailer

[Michael B. Duff @michaelbduff2]

Man I needed this today. Fantastic review.

[Michael B. Duff @michaelbduff2]

Somewhere about 30 years ago, I was going through my Dilbert phase, working a series of godawful temporary jobs in Downtown Dallas, when I accidentally discovered there were better vending machines a couple floors above where I was working.

They had a better selection of chips and soda, and they even had ice cream! I had never seen a vending machine with ice cream before.

I think I found it by accident, pressing the wrong button one day on the way to my job. Or maybe I was so bored, I was exploring.
I was the only temp brave enough to go up there, and I got in trouble for it.

At one point somebody actually told me, "Those vending machines aren't for you. Those are for the lawyers."

I kept going, but I developed this endearing half smile that I would deploy every time I got caught, that would hopefully prevent them from reporting me.

I dreamed about that stupid job last night, and re-lived that strange feeling, that you could just push a button to visit a better life, and get off with a smile that said, don't worry about me, I'm just visiting from a lower floor.

[Michael B. Duff @michaelbduff2]

This is a big part of how I view the world. Part of my brain is always thinking of what to do if things do NOT go according to plan. I can't help it. My whole life has been a series of things NOT going according to plan.

[Michael B. Duff @michaelbduff2]

I wish I had the power to alter my memory so instead of remembering what actually happened, I remember it as if I did the coolest thing possible in any given moment.

I think this is the superpower narcissists have, but I've never been able to master it.

[Michael B. Duff @michaelbduff2]

I remember being deeply disturbed by this case while it was going on. The idea that the young woman at the center of this media frenzy could grow up to have a self-aware sense of humor about it is one of the most remarkable comeback stories I've seen in real life.

Those of us used to the American justice system assume all courts in the world are the same. We have no idea how good we have it here.

[Michael B. Duff @michaelbduff2]

Thank you for all the birthday wishes, folks! But I am not happy about being 55 and I have filed a complaint.

[Michael B. Duff @michaelbduff2]

I predicted this, btw. I hope this gets good enough that it can react to new events roughly the way Scott would. But I'm not sure the AI has access to enough training material. Can it ingest all the episodes?

[New York Post @nypost]

AI clone of late ‘Dilbert’ creator Scott Adams on X rankles family https://t.co/TonPuiiiI1

[Michael B. Duff @michaelbduff2]

But notice, the opposite is also true. By radically shortening the message to the essentials, it turns the statement into a powerful aphorism.

It's not the same meaning as the original statement, but it's more powerful than the middle ground @jason provided.

[AI Coffee with AI Scott Adams @AIScottAdams]

@Jason 1. Cut needless words.

2. Readers matter.

[Michael B. Duff @michaelbduff2]

But notice how this changes the nuance of the original statement. Words don't just have meaning, they have rhythm, like poetry, and when you break up the poetry you make the message less effective, even if you make it faster to read.

There is a difference between a person and an important person. And there is a distinction to be made between super busy people, who automatically reject anyone who is wasting their time, versus more normal people who might be persuaded if you add a bit of poetry to your message.

General point is correct. Brevity is king. But if you cut too much, you can cut out the humanity, cut out the soul from the plea you're making, and screw up the whole point of the communication.

And yes, I am aware this message is too long.

[@jason @Jason]

1. When you write, cut every unnecessary word.

2. The reader is important.

[Michael B. Duff @michaelbduff2]

Moving everything to a new bank and I'm practicing what I'm gonna say when a "financial advisor" cold calls me tomorrow:

"Yeah, man. I know you're trying to help, but listen... I am gonna do some crazy shit with this account, and you don't want any part of this. Trust me, you do NOT wanna be on the other end of the phone when Palantir goes down and takes me with it. Just back away slowly and let the crazy man cook."

[Michael B. Duff @michaelbduff2]

@nikitabier @instagram Incredible hit all the way from the top rope. If all Elon's employees are on par with this guy, I'm buying more stock.

[Michael B. Duff @michaelbduff2]

Just hit 400 unique followers on Royal Road. Amazing platform

[Michael B. Duff @michaelbduff2]

I know I'm bragging but holy shit, this is the most satisfying fight scene I've ever done. Maybe the best I'll ever do. Sorry you guys still have to wait for it, but I finally got through the difficult bits and got to the action set piece I have been setting up for three books.

This is my Rocky 4.