Don Dingee
@dondingee
Freelance technology writer, SABR member Rogers Hornsby Chapter (ATX/SATX), traded "tools of ignorance" for college textbooks, steely-eyed missile man (model rockets nowadays), INTJ, allergic to poison ivy | #WeAreCPP #USCViterbi
Stevie at Landa Park on her first public adventure #FreelancePets #FreelanceFriends
Yeah, I bought the wife cut-proof gardening forearm sleeves and she's still all banged up. A bit of sleepy side eye. #FreelancePets #FreelanceFriends
Last Thursday, the folks at TGPR sent an email with photos of 3 Pyr pups who "walked out of the woods in Waco" and needed transport. A worker met us in Georgetown with a boy and two girls, we had all 3 overnight, and we're adopting one. This is Stevie Nix. #FreelancePets #FreelanceFriends
In other news, I have some help this week. This is Wilson, a 9 year old tripod border collie. His mommy is on business travel, so he's been here since Saturday and has a few more days with us. He is such a blessing, loving, smart, and gentle. #FreelancePets #FreelanceFriends
So, for FHF ... I ran across this on LinkedIn recently, and I've never been to a AA meeting but the sentiment really resonated with me. #FreelanceFriends
HI, I'M DON, AND YOU'RE LOOKING LIVE AT WATER MAIN REPLACEMENT ON OUR STREET IN FRONT OF OUR HOUSE. SORRY, WHAT'S THAT? PLEASE SPEAK UP, THEY'VE BEEN GRINDING THIS ROCK ALL MORNING. #FREELANCEFRIENDS
Oliver, our daughter's six month old rescue cat, visiting us for a week. #Caturday
And here's the vote by mail application we got last week. It's just ... so much ... bullshit.
GOP: vOtiNg bY MAil iS eViL!!! TX GOP: well ... sorta ... unless we need votes Real text, received today. "Voting by mail is safe and secure."
We are grateful the adoption folks allowed us to care for him for almost 3 1/2 years. He brought us a lot of joy, too, and protected our house. Hopefully, this brings peace for Hughie and us. We love you, buddy. Please forgive us. Here's a photo from happier days, last Halloween.
OMG, as a Rockies fan, I finally feel seen with @arlevin.bsky.social term CORFing #SABR53
A very studious group of individual trivia quiz entrants (new to this year's competition) at #SABR53 (there is a lot of dead silence in this room)
450+ #SABR53 attendees gathered to see Rangers' GM Chris Young present this year's Roland Hemond Award to Rangers' manager Bruce Bochy, accepting at the podium after remarks from @danevans108.bsky.social and Young
SABR Hornsby Chapter member Eric Bynum relating a tale of the 1914 Waco team in the Texas League and how their league championship became shared at #SABR53
Apologies to #FreelanceFriends crew. We were with a mobile vet guiding Nix across the bridge this morning. Blessing to have a service in the comfort of our living room. He's with his brother now—that's Nix on the left and Beaux on the right (same mom, different litters). Good boy, job well done.
This might be the last good pic of Nix (right) and Hughie (left), daughter got this last weekend. Still smiling! #FreelancePets #FreelanceFriends
Well, if this writing thing goes south, maybe I can be a car stereo dude. Sony XAV-AX6000 with a Maestro RR and a Scosche PowerVolt in my GMC.
Phew, catching my breath. The #SABR Minor Leagues bio on Eddie Yasinski? His daughter Susan sent me a little thank you. It's a team-signed 1953 Elmira Pioneers ball.
So, Bluesky search, pluses and minuses ... Search on something like a hashtag gives you top, latest, people, which is cool. If you hit return versus hitting the magnifying glass, you get two different things. Magnifying glass gives you exact term in handles. #FreelanceFriends
By all means continue the conversation ... but we're close to the top of the hour. Friends Helping Friends: As we wrap up, feel free to offer a tip, inspirational quote or something you learned recently that we all should know or hear! #FreelanceFriends
There’s a lot to digest in Chris’ book, “How AI Ate the World” - we’ve only touched the surface. What questions do you #FreelanceFriends have for Chris about adapting to AI?
Q4: If AI is really more than just a tool, an “amplifier” as Hoffman just said, what should freelancers say/do if our client 1) forbids us using AI in any way (even Grammarly as spell/grammar check?) or 2) is trying to replace us with AI and wants our work to train theirs? #FreelanceFriends
Q3: That Vint Cerf quip about AI searching an “endless number of monkeys” typing, lol. AI results sound confident even when they are wrong. How much difference can good prompts make in results, and why should non-technical freelancers learn prompt engineering? #FreelanceFriends
Q2: You’ve mentioned possible AI uses other than full start-to-finish creation, like filling gaps in skills (great anecdote about the woman with ADHD), brainstorming, re-toning communication, and citation research - where do you think freelancers new to AI tech should start? #FreelanceFriends
Here we go! Q1: You’ve told audiences to “be careful how they deploy AI” - what do you mean by that, and what potential risks do you see? What uses should freelancers avoid? If it’s that risky, what is the upside to learning how to use AI properly? #FreelanceFriends
Welcome back to #FreelanceFriends, the weekly Bluesky chat where we connect professional #freelancers, discuss ways you can build your business, and help each other and have some fun while we’re at it.