jake
@yetanotheruseless.com
he/they
/in/jakemannix, fka @pbrane
professionally: Tech Fellow, AI/Relevance, Walmart Global Tech
here: bad math/physics jokes, AI++, puns, OSS ML news, ultras/MTB/outdoorsy stuff, DL papers, shitposting, the fall of democracy
Abolish ICE, full stop.
/in/jakemannix, fka @pbrane
professionally: Tech Fellow, AI/Relevance, Walmart Global Tech
here: bad math/physics jokes, AI++, puns, OSS ML news, ultras/MTB/outdoorsy stuff, DL papers, shitposting, the fall of democracy
Abolish ICE, full stop.
note: it did not make much of a dent in my *weekly* token usage. Just the 5hr session limit.
January 16, 2026 at 8:31 AM
note: it did not make much of a dent in my *weekly* token usage. Just the 5hr session limit.
well that was enthusiastically short lived :D
January 16, 2026 at 6:11 AM
well that was enthusiastically short lived :D
Well shit, with that many tokens left in that little time, what will I do?
Why I'll dispatch ALL the polecats, natch!
Why I'll dispatch ALL the polecats, natch!
January 16, 2026 at 5:57 AM
Well shit, with that many tokens left in that little time, what will I do?
Why I'll dispatch ALL the polecats, natch!
Why I'll dispatch ALL the polecats, natch!
Data point, dear anthropoids: connecting my gMail/gCal to CoWork should enable Claude to see it as a tool or something.
It doesn't appear to do that, however?
It doesn't appear to do that, however?
January 13, 2026 at 6:24 PM
Data point, dear anthropoids: connecting my gMail/gCal to CoWork should enable Claude to see it as a tool or something.
It doesn't appear to do that, however?
It doesn't appear to do that, however?
so since my bsky timeline is evenly divided among "googleballs" and "i <3 my fren claude", I wonder why nobody is commenting on how if you go to Claude Code-upon-Web, and move your mouse over the little cuttlefish/cthulu (?), it squints its eyes and runs away?
January 7, 2026 at 2:45 PM
so since my bsky timeline is evenly divided among "googleballs" and "i <3 my fren claude", I wonder why nobody is commenting on how if you go to Claude Code-upon-Web, and move your mouse over the little cuttlefish/cthulu (?), it squints its eyes and runs away?
If you compare how we're "programming in English" now, in comparison to traditional software, I estimate we're somewhere around 1975 in terms of maturity:
January 7, 2026 at 2:30 PM
If you compare how we're "programming in English" now, in comparison to traditional software, I estimate we're somewhere around 1975 in terms of maturity:
(try scrolling down to `trending_domains` (a virtual tool over `get_trending_domains`, which transforms the output into a structured JSON list instead of packing it into a string)
January 6, 2026 at 4:53 PM
(try scrolling down to `trending_domains` (a virtual tool over `get_trending_domains`, which transforms the output into a structured JSON list instead of packing it into a string)
Not sure what I'd *use* it for just yet, but my little virtual tool-server let me turn one of the tools into one which has structuredOutput with a usable JSON-Schema, automagically!
January 5, 2026 at 6:29 PM
Not sure what I'd *use* it for just yet, but my little virtual tool-server let me turn one of the tools into one which has structuredOutput with a usable JSON-Schema, automagically!
When a token-predictor gets its tokens predicted, it knows to back-away-slowly.
Claude knows not to go to the planet made of pure diamond!
Claude knows not to go to the planet made of pure diamond!
December 23, 2025 at 2:55 PM
When a token-predictor gets its tokens predicted, it knows to back-away-slowly.
Claude knows not to go to the planet made of pure diamond!
Claude knows not to go to the planet made of pure diamond!
you're right, your prompt worked well:
December 22, 2025 at 8:06 PM
you're right, your prompt worked well:
huh, mine wasn't that much less detailed:
"Create a modern, 2025 map, from Montana to Alaska, and as far south as California. Label all state/provincial capitals in the correct locations. Also include major interstate highways connecting them."
"Create a modern, 2025 map, from Montana to Alaska, and as far south as California. Label all state/provincial capitals in the correct locations. Also include major interstate highways connecting them."
December 22, 2025 at 7:55 PM
huh, mine wasn't that much less detailed:
"Create a modern, 2025 map, from Montana to Alaska, and as far south as California. Label all state/provincial capitals in the correct locations. Also include major interstate highways connecting them."
"Create a modern, 2025 map, from Montana to Alaska, and as far south as California. Label all state/provincial capitals in the correct locations. Also include major interstate highways connecting them."
bro you ain't gonna catch nothing fishin' wit dis shit!
December 21, 2025 at 10:24 PM
bro you ain't gonna catch nothing fishin' wit dis shit!
reinventing stuff is so hot right now
![Opening slide from my qcon.ai talk last week:
A side-by-side comparison meme titled "We're building agents like it's 1975" with the punchline "No interfaces. No encapsulation. Ship it."
Left side - "1975 BASIC Program": A vintage green-screen CRT terminal displaying a BASIC program with line numbers 10-500. The code shows a primitive customer service menu system using GOTO statements: it prints "WELCOME TO CUSTOMER SERVICE" and three options (1. ORDER STATUS, 2. TECH SUPPORT, 3. REFUNDS), accepts user input, then uses IF-THEN-GOTO statements to jump to different line numbers (100, 200, 300) based on choice, with each destination printing "CONNECTING TO [SERVICE]..." before jumping to line 500 which prints "DISCONNECTING." and ends. Invalid choices loop back to line 20 with "INVALID CHOICE. TRY AGAIN."
Right side - "2025 Agent Prompt": A modern flat-panel display showing an XML/JSON-formatted system prompt that reads: "You are a helpful customer service agent. Your goal is to assist users with their requests by calling the appropriate tool. Here are the tools available to you:" followed by three tool definitions in pseudo-code format: get_order_status (retrieves order status, requires order_id parameter), connect_tech_support (connects to technical support, requires issue_type parameter), and process_refund (initiates refund, requires order_id and reason parameters). The prompt concludes: "Analyze the user's request and call the most relevant tool. If no tool is relevant, ask for clarification."](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:bjaceaxgoto5p7gor2rcov3g/bafkreif4ppk6sw5ueldlbg2winw44eek2tfp5vne2qnykmrxvn72yqcsaa@jpeg)
December 21, 2025 at 7:56 AM
reinventing stuff is so hot right now
@nsaphra.bsky.social managed to pull off *both* ending with enough time for questions, *and* having such an interesting talk on how to think about how LLMs behave, that all 10min of the QandA time was filled… and then some!
December 17, 2025 at 11:51 PM
@nsaphra.bsky.social managed to pull off *both* ending with enough time for questions, *and* having such an interesting talk on how to think about how LLMs behave, that all 10min of the QandA time was filled… and then some!
QCon.ai is pretty lit today, y'all. @hmason.bsky.social's keynote definitely lived up to expectations.
Just enough snark mixed with optimism, with some definitely insightful thoughts on how the software engineering profession is evolving.
Just enough snark mixed with optimism, with some definitely insightful thoughts on how the software engineering profession is evolving.
December 16, 2025 at 6:25 PM
QCon.ai is pretty lit today, y'all. @hmason.bsky.social's keynote definitely lived up to expectations.
Just enough snark mixed with optimism, with some definitely insightful thoughts on how the software engineering profession is evolving.
Just enough snark mixed with optimism, with some definitely insightful thoughts on how the software engineering profession is evolving.
fancy-nails crew unite!
December 13, 2025 at 9:51 PM
fancy-nails crew unite!
we'll have to compare!
December 11, 2025 at 8:18 PM
we'll have to compare!
Bwa! Just had Claude do web-searches for vibe-checks combined w/leaderboards to do some meta-analysis on which models are best, and came back with Opus 4.5 winning nearly every category
I, uh, called that out a bit, but conceded that in many ways, I agree, barring image generation, and got deadpan:
I, uh, called that out a bit, but conceded that in many ways, I agree, barring image generation, and got deadpan:
December 11, 2025 at 2:41 AM
Bwa! Just had Claude do web-searches for vibe-checks combined w/leaderboards to do some meta-analysis on which models are best, and came back with Opus 4.5 winning nearly every category
I, uh, called that out a bit, but conceded that in many ways, I agree, barring image generation, and got deadpan:
I, uh, called that out a bit, but conceded that in many ways, I agree, barring image generation, and got deadpan:
from that exact article:
December 10, 2025 at 1:32 AM
from that exact article:
exactly. Like my "We really didn't need this meeting" coffee-mug:
December 7, 2025 at 1:11 AM
exactly. Like my "We really didn't need this meeting" coffee-mug:
