A friend asked ChatGPT about me. It provided something that looks like an answer, but is not an answer.
This illustrates how these large language models produce things that LOOK like answers, but are not actual answers. I’m a public figure with a fair amount of information in public, but it can’t get the details correct.
I thought of going through this and highlighting everything incorrect, but I have no interest in helping train ChatGPT or in making more details of my life available. Every paragraph has multiple glaring inaccuracies.
Michael W Lucas is a technical author and FreeBSD advocate who has written many books and articles on computer systems administration, networking, and information security. He was born on June 6, 1968, in Detroit, Michigan, and currently resides in Detroit, Michigan.
Lucas is best known for his contributions to the FreeBSD operating system community, including his books “Absolute FreeBSD”, “FreeBSD Mastery: Storage Essentials”, “FreeBSD Mastery: Advanced ZFS”, and “FreeBSD Mastery: Jails”. He has also written extensively on other technical topics, including network security, system administration, and SSH.
In addition to his writing, Lucas has been a speaker at technical conferences such as BSDCan, EuroBSDCon, and BSDTW. He is also a member of the FreeBSD Foundation and the FreeBSD Security Team.
Lucas has been involved with various open-source projects over the years, including OpenSSH, OpenNTPD, and OpenBGPD. He has also been a regular contributor to the BSD Now podcast, where he discusses news and developments in the BSD community.
Overall, Michael W Lucas is a respected figure in the technical writing and open-source communities, known for his expertise in FreeBSD and his clear and engaging writing style.
Yes, that last paragraph is wrong. I’m the biggest fish in a minuscule pond. Most technology writers, and a large part of the open source community, consider my corner irrelevant. ChatGPT is being kind, and facts are neither kind nor cruel.
If you based decisions on this, you would go very wrong. If you use this for your business? That’s your problem.
Also, I’m told that it has declared Michael Warren Lucas dead. ChatGPT obviously wants me to spend more time writing books that can be used to improve it.
I’m continually confounded by this being the focus around ChatGPT and AI in general. It’s as if our idea that computers only compute based on non-subjective data transcends every interaction. It’s conversational, conversations are wildly inaccurate, and insisting that they be based in provable fact, with significant more emphasis on validated facts is, in general, a deal killer for conversation. Absolutely no one wants to talk to someone who insists that every point of conversation be validated, and proven. The above text sounds exactly as interesting or valid as any other conversation about your body of work, vaguely related and with points made with some reason to support them, but any given statement is at best allegory for the detailed, nuanced underlying facts.
Semi-related second point, do dogs train people, or vice-versa …
I know that. And you know that. But many people think these things are accurate. I’m simply illustrating that they are not.