Posted on November 10th, 2025 by Joy Schwabach
There’s been a ton of publicity about Elon Musk’s competitor to Wikipedia, “Grokipedia.” Whether you think it’s good or bad may depend on your politics. The new encyclopedia was inspired by Larry Sanger, who co-founded Wikipedia with Jimmy Wales in 2001 and coined the name. Sanger says that Wikipedia is “broken beyond repair.” Its neutrality is gone. To test for bias on both Wikipedia and Grokipedia, Sanger asked ChatGPT to rate 10 controversial pages, including the ones for President Donald Trump, white privilege, the January 6 attack and alternative medicine. According to ChatGPT, Wikipedia bias is heavy, severe, or wholly one-sided in six out of 10 of these, while Grokipedia is entirely neutral three out of 10 times. It’s only […]
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Filed under: AI, electronics, science, web, Wikipedia | Comments Off on GROKOPEDIA VS. WIKIPEDIA
Posted on February 16th, 2025 by Joy Schwabach
Most seniors stick to Google, but young people increasingly turn to artificial intelligence. It’s great for financial questions. For example, a relative was interested in a reverse mortgage, but wasn’t sure how it worked. So I clicked the Copilot icon in Windows (also available at copilot.microsoft.com and in a free mobile app.) Then I typed: “How much would a reverse mortgage on a fully-paid-off $400,000 house pay to a 75-year-old New Hampshire man over the next 20 years?” Assuming an average rate of five percent, the estimated annual payout would be $15,000 to $20,000 a year and even more if he waited until he was 78, Copilot said. Next I asked what would happen if he died before getting his […]
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Filed under: AI, Internet, text messaging, Wikipedia, Windows | Comments Off on GETTING FINANCIAL INFO FROM AI
Posted on February 4th, 2024 by Joy Schwabach
After trying a voice amplifier that screeched, I was on the lookout for something better. I needed to interview a soft-spoken author in front of a large audience. As I was wondering how I would accomplish this, the soft-spoken author dragged an ancient karaoke system out of her closet. Brilliant idea, I thought. Unfortunately, it was missing a crucial part. So I bought the Moyleaf “Karaoke Machine for Adults and Kids,” a portable public address system with colorful disco lights. It looks like a large black lunch box with a bright orange handle, but weighs only 6.65 pounds. It’s about the height of a piece of paper, not counting the handle. I just saw it for $99.99 on Amazon, though […]
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Filed under: apps, gadgets, health, maps, music, robots, troubleshooting, Wikipedia | Comments Off on KARAOKE SAVES THE DAY
Posted on December 6th, 2022 by Joy Schwabach
The first time I tried the OpenSwim headset from Shokz, I found myself wanting to swim longer and faster. It literally brought music to my ears. But I had a heck of a time getting it adjusted properly. First I jumped in the pool, then tried to stuff my ponytail and headset under my cap. It makes a kind of ring around the back of your head, using bone conduction technology to bring the sound to you. But I kept adjusting not just the fit, but the volume. It seems louder underwater, though it had to compete with my splashes. The second time I tried the OpenSwim, I thought “phooey.” I just couldn’t get it adjusted right. Of course, it’s […]
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Filed under: gadgets, Internuts, social networks, trends, Wikipedia, word processing | Comments Off on SWIMMING TO THE BEAT
Posted on November 7th, 2022 by Joy Schwabach
When I spilled orange juice on a Macbook it died. Apple said it couldn’t be fixed. But if that happens to the new Google “Framework,” I could just swap out the bad part. The $999 “Framework Laptop Chromebook Edition,” by Google, is made of replaceable components. It’s part of the “right to repair” movement, which is all about do-it-yourself (DIY). Instead of buying a new laptop, you could theoretically keep upgrading the parts forever. Each component has a QR code that takes you (or your repairman) to DIY guides for replacing or upgrading. At 2.8 pounds, the Framework weighs the same as a Macbook Air, and is similar in size. Unlike the Macbook, its basic memory can be upgraded from […]
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Filed under: computers, environment, games, Internuts, trends, Wikipedia | Comments Off on NEW CHROMEBOOK LETS YOU SWAP PARTS
Posted on March 22nd, 2009 by Joy Schwabach
The free online encyclopedia, Wikipedia, can now be downloaded into your cell phone, if you have a Blackberry or your phone uses the Windows Mobile system. It uses four gigabytes of the cell phone’s memory, but once it’s there you can look things up without any further calls. Wikipedia has 12 million articles, and that’s just in English. You can get it for $10 from wikipock.com.
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Filed under: education, Wikipedia | Comments Off on WIKIPEDIA ON YOUR CELL PHONE
Posted on February 8th, 2009 by Joy Schwabach
In an odd turn of the digital wheel, the book “Wikipedia, the Missing Manual,” is on Wikipedia.
(CLICK HEADING FOR MORE.)
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Filed under: books, Wikipedia | Comments Off on FREE BOOK
Posted on February 23rd, 2008 by Joy Schwabach
We got a new book about Wikipedia recently, and it prompts us to devote some space to this remarkable Web creation.
(CLICK HEADING FOR MORE.)
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Filed under: books, education, encyclopedia, Wikipedia | Comments Off on IT SAYS RIGHT HERE IN THE ENCYCLOPEDIA
