Saw #GotG3 today and definitely recommend. Fun movie, finally see Rocket’s origin story, and sweet but not treacly ending. Disappointing that Badlands was over the end-end credits and not in the movie proper though.
Level 5000 🎉🎉
Early Days: GPT-4
I tried two related prompts and got total garbage both times:
Write a biography of William Stuart Lazar, born 1961
Take 1:
William Stuart Lazar was born in 1961 in the bustling city of New York. From a young age, he showed a keen interest in technology and computers, often tinkering with gadgets and electronics in his spare time. His parents recognized his passion and encouraged him to pursue his interests, enrolling him in computer programming courses at a local college while he was still in high school.
Lazar’s early exposure to computer programming helped him develop a strong foundation in the field. He went on to attend the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he earned a degree in computer science. During his time at MIT, he worked on a number of groundbreaking projects, including the development of early artificial intelligence algorithms and the creation of new programming languages.
After graduating from MIT, Lazar began his career as a software engineer at IBM. He quickly rose through the ranks, thanks to his expertise in programming and his ability to lead complex projects. In 1990, he was appointed head of IBM’s software development division, where he oversaw the creation of numerous new products and technologies.
In 1995, Lazar left IBM to start his own software company, which he called LazarSoft. The company focused on developing software for the emerging mobile market, and quickly became a leader in the field. Lazar’s vision and leadership helped propel LazarSoft to great success, and the company went public in 2000.
Throughout his career, Lazar has been recognized as a leading expert in the field of software development. He has authored several books on programming and is a frequent speaker at conferences and events. He has also been an active philanthropist, supporting a number of charities and organizations that focus on education and technology.
Today, Lazar remains at the forefront of the software development industry, constantly exploring new technologies and pushing the boundaries of what is possible with software. His innovative approach to programming and his dedication to excellence have earned him a reputation as one of the most influential figures in the field.
Take 2:
William Stuart Lazar was born in 1961 in the city of Los Angeles, California. He grew up in a family that valued education and hard work, which instilled in him a strong sense of discipline and determination from a young age. As a child, Lazar was always fascinated by technology and electronics, spending countless hours tinkering with gadgets and machines.
Lazar’s interest in technology led him to pursue a degree in computer science at the California Institute of Technology. During his studies, he excelled in his coursework, earning top grades and developing a deep understanding of programming languages and computer systems. He also participated in various extracurricular activities, including robotics competitions and hackathons, which helped him refine his skills and gain practical experience.
After graduating from Caltech, Lazar began his career as a software engineer at a startup in Silicon Valley. He quickly proved himself to be a talented programmer, and his contributions to the company’s projects helped it grow rapidly. Over the years, Lazar rose through the ranks, eventually becoming the company’s chief technology officer.
In 1995, Lazar left the startup to co-found his own software development company. The new venture focused on creating cutting-edge software solutions for businesses and organizations, and it quickly gained a reputation for its innovative and reliable products. Under Lazar’s leadership, the company grew rapidly, expanding its operations to new markets and partnering with major industry players.
Throughout his career, Lazar has been a passionate advocate for the role of technology in improving people’s lives. He has spoken at numerous conferences and events, sharing his insights on the latest trends and developments in the field of computer science. He has also mentored and trained many young engineers, helping to inspire and guide the next generation of tech leaders.
Today, Lazar remains an active member of the technology community, continuing to innovate and push the boundaries of what is possible with software and hardware. He has received numerous awards and accolades for his contributions to the industry, including the prestigious Turing Award in 2010. Despite his
(Ed: Response cut short by a “Network Error” even though there was no network interruption here…)
————
Write a biography of William Stuart Lazar, born 1961 in Newark, NJ
Take 1:
William Stuart Lazar is an accomplished American lawyer and legal scholar, born on December 29, 1961, in Newark, New Jersey. Lazar’s childhood was spent in New Jersey, where he grew up with his parents and siblings. He showed an early interest in law, politics, and history, and often engaged in debates and discussions with his family and friends.
Lazar pursued his undergraduate education at Rutgers University, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in History in 1983. After graduation, he enrolled at the New York University School of Law, where he earned his Juris Doctorate in 1986.
After law school, Lazar joined the law firm of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom in New York City. During his tenure at the firm, Lazar worked on a variety of complex litigation matters, including antitrust, securities, and intellectual property cases. He quickly rose through the ranks and was named partner in 1995.
In 2002, Lazar left Skadden to join the faculty at the University of Texas School of Law. He taught a variety of courses, including antitrust, civil procedure, and intellectual property law. In addition to his teaching duties, Lazar was also actively involved in research and scholarship, and he published several articles and books on antitrust and competition law.
In 2007, Lazar joined the law firm of Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, where he focused on antitrust and competition law. He continued to teach at the University of Texas School of Law as an adjunct professor.
Lazar is a recognized authority in antitrust and competition law, and he has been recognized for his contributions to the legal profession. He has served on several professional organizations, including the American Bar Association’s Antitrust Section and the State Bar of Texas’ Antitrust and Business Litigation Section.
Outside of his legal career, Lazar is an avid reader and traveler. He has visited many countries and enjoys learning about different cultures and histories. He also volunteers his time and resources to various charities and philanthropic organizations.
Overall, William Stuart Lazar has had a successful career as a lawyer, scholar, and teacher. He continues to be a respected authority in the field of antitrust and competition law, and his contributions to the legal profession have been significant.
Take 2:
William Stuart Lazar was born on March 12, 1961, in Newark, New Jersey. He grew up in a middle-class family in the suburbs of the city, where he was the eldest of three siblings. From a young age, William showed an interest in science and technology, and he spent much of his free time tinkering with electronic devices and building his own inventions.
William attended local public schools and excelled academically. He went on to study electrical engineering at the New Jersey Institute of Technology, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in 1983. After graduation, William took a job at a small electronics company, where he quickly rose through the ranks thanks to his technical expertise and leadership skills.
In 1987, William decided to pursue an MBA at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He continued to work full-time while attending classes, and he completed the program in two years. Armed with his new business knowledge, William returned to the electronics company and helped steer it through a period of rapid growth and expansion.
In 1994, William was recruited by a large technology firm to serve as a vice president of research and development. He relocated to California to take on the new role, and he quickly made a name for himself within the company. Over the next decade, William led numerous successful projects and was credited with helping the firm maintain its competitive edge in the rapidly-evolving tech industry.
In 2004, William decided to strike out on his own and start his own technology company. He founded a startup that focused on developing cutting-edge software for the healthcare industry, which was a field that William was passionate about. The company quickly gained traction, and it was acquired by a larger firm in 2010 for a substantial sum.
Following the acquisition, William took some time off to travel and spend time with his family. He remained active in the tech industry, however, serving as a mentor and advisor to numerous startups and entrepreneurs. He also became involved in philanthropy, donating significant sums to education and healthcare initiatives in his home state of New Jersey.
Today, William is widely regarded as a visionary leader in the tech industry, and he continues to be active in the startup world. He lives in California with his wife and children, and he enjoys hiking, cycling, and other outdoor activities in his spare time.
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Water Main Excitement
Just writing this to record events.
On Feb. 28 (2022) the crew showed up to install the photovoltaic system for our house. That afternoon or the next morning they drilled through the main water line in the garage wall. Fair enough, they cleaned up the mess, patched the pipe and repaired the wall.
On March 30, water was leaking out from the same wall and the install company sent a crew to patch and repair. The same crew, which is significant since they made the same repair.
Today we came home from running errands, we were gone maybe 75-80 minutes, and water was gushing and the garage floor and driveway we covered in water.
I called the installers and they sent an electrician right away and this time agreed to call a real plumber. I had one here last week for unrelated work and he was available for an after hours call. Phew!
As soon as the plumber arrived he saw the issue. The electricians, not being plumbers, used the wrong connector on the pipe patch and it was only ever a matter of time before the previous repair blew!
Hopefully this is the last time the pipe blows!!

Bill’s European Club Top 10 October ’18
(Note: Will try to keep my Liverpool FC bias to a minimum…)
- Juventus: With Dybala back in the side and some tough Serie A competition to keep them on their toes, can’t see anyone else on top.
- (tie)
- Liverpool: One loss, by a late goal away to another Top 10 side, otherwise undefeated in meaningful competition. Including an away win, an away draw, and a home draw against three of the other English Top Six.
- Manchester City: A bad loss in Europe, two draws in the EPL, while missing Kevin De Bruyne. Beat Arsenal away to open the season.
- Dortmund: Even with Pulisic injured and Goetze barely featuring, the Yellow and Black are top of Germany.
- Barcelona: A bad week made not so bad by a Messi masterclass against Tottenham. Still the team to beat in Spain and a threat to anyone in Europe.
- Chelsea: Sarri has made a difference, fast, though some results (West Ham, PAOK Salonika, Newcastle) are well below expectations.
- Atletico Madrid: Bit of a rough start to the season but clamped down on Real Madrid away. We’ll see if the rough patch is over when they meet Dortund on 24 October.
- Napoli: Beat Liverpool but lost two domestically and have been exposed at the back.
- Arsenal: Weak start but have won everything since and Unai Emery putting Lacazette and Aubameyang together up top may be the key change.
- Inter Milan: After a tough few seasons, Inter are making themselves heard again.
- Bayern Munich: Played very poorly last weekend in losing to Borussia Monchengladbach, a game I watched in shock. While the six-time defending Bundesliga champs currently sit sixth domestically they have too much talent to not be at or near the top by Christmas. Either first year manager Nico Kovac gets it done or someone will come in to do it (Zidane? Wenger?)
Real Madrid are struggling, #11 spot would be a toss-up between them and Tottenham.
Springsteen: Best of the Rest
Any fan can put together a Greatest Hits record for The Boss, and you’d get very little variety. Asking the same fans to pick a 12-14 (or 2021) track Best of the Rest playlist, I believe, would give a much wider and interesting range of selections.
This is my list (YouTube playlist). Here’s a Deep Cuts list from Apple Music. What’s yours? This is a record so sequence the songs for the best listening experience.
And if you’re saying, Bill my favorite band is Not Bruce well (foolish you) try to do this for your favorites. If they have enough good stuff!
Side One: The Sunny Side
- Growin’ Up: an amazing solo performance from 1972.
- Waiting on a Sunny Day: Let’s follow that up with a 2008 full band (16? 17? E Streeters) and, at the 4:00 mark, pulls a young girl up to sing for him while he “dances”.
- All that Heaven Will Allow: Sweet version from 1988 opening with a beautiful Big Man solo and a pre-song story (actual song starts at about the 8:00 mark)
- She’s the One: London 1975, Clarence in his sharp white suit, Bruce in wooly ski cap and Steve still in his fedora blasting the Bo Diddley beat
- Thundercrack: “Her bones they rattle and her brains they shake, she’s the angel from Inner Lake.” 2013 performance
- Spare Parts: A year before the Wall fell, Bruce did a huge show in East Berlin including this Texas rock version of the Tunnel of Love tune
- Mary’s Place: Nice R&B/party rock arrangement, an uplifting end to Side One
Side Two: The Gritty Side
- Night: Leads off the side with twin guitars blazing (really hard to find a decent concert version)
- Jackson Cage: From Wembley 2002, would prefer to get an early 80s performance but again not finding much
- Living in the Future: One of the last Big Man shows, miss him so much!
- Point Blank: Hard choice between this and Drive All Night (intimate version with Bruce on piano backed by SVZ on acoustic guitar and Clarence with his sax)
- Atlantic City: Paris 1985, electrifying performance
- Cover Me: Born in the USA tour, with Bruce in guitar hero mode
- Prove It All Night: From a ’78 show great Clarence/Bruce solos, let’s close with a song that’s down in the dirt but enough heart to lift you out.
Bonus EP: “Covers”
From the beginning Bruce and the E Streeters have been a pop music jukebox so I’m throwing in this list of favorites, including a couple of Bruce tunes that he wrote but were hits for other artists.
- Fire: Capitol Theater, Passaic, NJ, Sep. 1978, black and white but looks professionally shot
- It’s My Life: This has one of the classic Bruce story intros, about his dad and trying to understand each other (Atlanta, 1977, decent audio, poor video)
- Jersey Girl: Bruce finally gets the band back together in 1999 and blows the roof off the Meadowlands Arena. Hearing this always makes me think of my sister (Hi Jo!)
- What’s So Funny (About Peace, Love and Understanding)?: From the 2004 Vote for Change shows, Eddie Vedder, Jackson Browne and John Fogerty join the E Streeters in this power pop gem from Nick Lowe and Elvis Costello
- Many Rivers to Cross: More gospel than reggae in Bruce’s version (this 1993 video is “the other band”)
- Light of Day: Bruce joins Joan Jett on the screamer he wrote for her 1987 movie (2001 video)
- Viva Las Vegas: The Boss pays homage to The King (this 1993 video is “the other band”)
Jeez this was hard to do than I expected! Keeping the list to just these 20 was really difficult but I have a tough time understanding that anyone listening to this playlist wouldn’t come away loving Bruce’s music.
A Favorite ozjimbob Tweet
Went for a good 20 minutes there, but once the dude gets to "women should just ignore threats like I do", it's time to get back to work.
— Grant Williamson (@ozjimbob) October 21, 2014
A Favorite ozjimbob Tweet
Human turd-demon who inspired GG says victim should have done more to prevent it https://t.co/MTewcu1Lrg
— Grant Williamson (@ozjimbob) October 15, 2014
A Favorite whump Tweet
You get the feeling that at some point we’re going to find out that the Koch brothers are funding GamerGate?
— Bill Humphries (@whump) October 15, 2014
A Favorite whump Tweet
What happened in Utah is this: gun rights trump speech and assembly. Fuck you Utah.
— Bill Humphries (@whump) October 15, 2014
A Favorite studentactivism Tweet
Sarkeesian has cancelled her Utah State speech tomorrow because the university REFUSED TO BAN GUNS FROM THE VENUE. http://t.co/yg86Ehb0Yy
— Angus J. (1865-1944) (@studentactivism) October 15, 2014
A Favorite whump Tweet
But at the end of the day, Gamer Gate’s methods amount to a troupe of chimps flinging poo and screeching.
— Bill Humphries (@whump) October 4, 2014
A Favorite GeriJoyTech Tweet
PRESS RELEASE: Emily White, Social Entrepreneur, Geriatric Social Worker & Care Manager Joins GeriJoy as VP http://t.co/1u3ebr6F4D
— GeriJoy (@GeriJoyTech) September 29, 2014
A Favorite mxiayun Tweet
Pixate creates shortcut for mobile app development. http://t.co/sC7BnJxuZt via @DawnC331
— Michael Yun Xia(夏云) (@mxiayun) September 16, 2014
A Favorite NYCKOPITES Tweet
The most popular toy in the world @LEGO_Group meets the biggest football club in the world. @LFC http://ift.tt/1qii5IP
— NYC KOPITES (@NYCKOPITES) September 10, 2014
A Favorite ClinicEscort Tweet
Friends, I regret that I will be unable to give to your @GoFundMe fundraisers. Any of them. Ever. http://t.co/88DR6sRxj7
— ClinicEscort (@ClinicEscort) September 10, 2014
A Favorite neha_ns Tweet
Hackerdojo – my new hangout place. Love it! http://pic.twitter.com/cqZaJHDNwV
— Neha Singh (@neha_ns) September 3, 2014
A Favorite ynwagram Tweet
@D_Sturridge http://ift.tt/1r4BtI7
— (@ynwagram) September 1, 2014
A Favorite djcp Tweet
This is why you never end up hiring good developers http://t.co/PAWh2r9HKM via @qz
— Daniel Collis Puro (@djcp) August 31, 2014
A Favorite ynwagram Tweet
Im all for standing by the players through bad form but Glen's been like this for way too long now. Complete lack of effort
— (@ynwagram) August 25, 2014