Tommi

🇺🇸 Learning AI in public 🤖 Building with Grok, Cursor & a team of AI bots · Retro tech lover 💾 · Regular builds, how-tos & questions

[Tommi @tommithetechie]

Hey, I'm Tommi 👋

I still love obscure retro machines, but I'm switching things up, for awhile because I love SO many things.

I'm learning AI coding and workflows "in public" as the kids say these days.

I grew up writing HTML, CSS, PHP, and Python but it's been quite a few years since I did it seriously...

But things have changed drastically, in some ways, so I'm practicing new skills here that are going to help me share the retro tech that I love better and level up my day job.

Some of it will look silly. But I like to have fun.

Here's what's on 📺 !

☀️ Sunrise: fast AI news
🥪 Lunch Bytes: your turn, questions
🍪 Snack Bytes: quick how-tos
🌙 After Dark: builds, wins and stumbles
🔍 Weekend Deep Dive: big science-y reads and retro machines

(Fine print: the above channels' content is subject to change now and then!)

Pull up a chair. What should I build first?

[Tommi @tommithetechie]

logging off this morning to touch grass! I need some air.

what are y'all doing offline today?

[Tommi @tommithetechie]

@Brad00647 I love it. Nice and simple but it does the most important things

[Tommi @tommithetechie]

Someone asked me, "What stops your bot from doing something you didn't want?"

RULES! My bots are instructed to plan everything in steps clearly first and ask for permission from me every step of the way.

It seems to work pretty well!

If you were using Grok Bot (or any AI bot) what's the most important rule that you would give it?

[Tommi @tommithetechie]

@filterofth74624 This is all really great. No one shot prompts round these parts

[Tommi @tommithetechie]

@NiX_24J @zaiphirion I KNOW, I’m not sure I could afford the gas right now, yuck

[Tommi @tommithetechie]

@zaiphirion @TheDavidHasbun I was going to say there’s a few android options but then you said cheap, and they definitely are not that, lol

[Tommi @tommithetechie]

@TheDavidHasbun @zaiphirion Actually the same

[Tommi @tommithetechie]

@w4www_raker YEP ugh, lol

[Tommi @tommithetechie]

Rough start this morning. I'm supposed to be working, but I am exhausted yall. Caffeine is not hitting right this morning.

I've got a case of the Mondays on a Thursday

[Tommi @tommithetechie]

@45626F @Texas_Twins_Dad Ohhh, that’s actually a really good question lol. I might want to stay in happy oblivion

[Tommi @tommithetechie]

@Metaforest Yes, thats a very smart way to do it. I do need to get better at this

[Tommi @tommithetechie]

Someone asked me: "Long chats seem to go bad after awhile, but a new chat loses everything. What do I do?"

I know this isn't always true, depending on what product you're using. BUT I've been there! You're deep in a project, the AI starts mixing things up or forgetting what you decided an hour ago, and starting over feels like losing all your progress.

Here's why it happens, in simple terms: AI can only keep so much of a conversation in view at once (more on that one later).

In a really long chat, the early stuff gets fuzzy.

What works for me is a short project note with three parts:
• Goal: what I'm building
• Decisions: what we already settled, so it doesn't redo them
• Next step: exactly where I left off

When a chat starts going sideways, I open a fresh one, paste the note, and keep going. It's like handing a new helper a sticky note instead of the whole messy notebook.

Bonus: writing the note helps ME remember what I'm doing too. 😅

Gimme your tips, some of y'all are smarter than me. How do you keep AI from forgetting your project?

[Tommi @tommithetechie]

grok bot 0.75.2 just dropped. the big three: pages, which are reports, memos and dashboards your bot builds and keeps up to date (or you edit them together). new cards in every desktop chat. and bots can make videos from a description or an image you share.

there's a lot more in the changelog too, like pinning library pages, files and links to a pinned section that syncs across your devices.

I love pages; that's my kinda jam. a dashboard that keeps itself current is exactly the kind of chore i want off my plate.

via @ericzakariasson
changelog: https://t.co/VPVBez9qnx

[Tommi @tommithetechie]

@NiX_24J @zaiphirion That is beautiful!!! I had a little bit newer one… and then blew it up 🫣

[Tommi @tommithetechie]

@NiX_24J 💯

[Tommi @tommithetechie]

@NiX_24J @zaiphirion YES! I love Camaros.

No offense to the original bug but I wanna go fast!

[Tommi @tommithetechie]

@zaiphirion Wait hang on I’m saving this I have an idea!!

[Tommi @tommithetechie]

@zaiphirion @NiX_24J We are so close. I want a bumblebee

[Tommi @tommithetechie]

@zaiphirion Bahaha probably true!!!

Probably because I’d be working two jobs to pay for what I just bought 😂

[Tommi @tommithetechie]

@zaiphirion Aaaaaah yes! I would have SO much fun 😁

[Tommi @tommithetechie]

@the_olutobi That’s really smart! Get the big brain to plan it out and then some cheap peons to bang it out lol