A quick note of thanks...

To my faithful subscribers.

Self portrait. Source: DALL-E.

I just got word that COMYAI [1] has reached the milestone of 100 subscribers.

Huzzah!

At this rate, it is well on its way to 103 or possibly even 107 foolish faithful readers.

Even more outlandish is that 19 of you have actually paid for a subscription. I appreciate that, truly I do. So I wanted to share both my thanks and also a programming note or two.

Up til now, COMYAI has been free to any and all. At some point soon, some posts will be hidden behind an impenetrable, fortress-like paywall. (I mean, the kind folks who shared their hard-earned scratch need to get something in return, right?) But I’ve decided that at least one post per week will always be available free of charge, to anyone foolish curious enough to read it.

So far, I’ve been keeping to a pretty tight, twice-a-week schedule, posting 1000-word essays on Tuesdays and Fridays. I may supplement that with an additional weekly post for the folks paying folding money, and am thinking ways to incorporate video interviews with notable people willing to put up with my antics.

I’ve focused pretty heavily on AI so far, for obvious reasons — it’s both a topic of huge interest to lots of people at the moment, as well as a little confusing and scary. We are experiencing (in my so-called humble opinion) a major paradigm shift in our relationship to technology, on a scale with the introduction of smart phones and, before that, the Internet as a mass medium. It’s a big friggin’ deal, in other words. And as with any new technology, there are benefits to reap and pitfalls to avoid. I hope to pay equal attention to both.

However, I hope to touch on other topics here at Cranky Old Man HQ, such as blockchain, digital art, NFTs, persistent identities, disinformation, how to disappear from the Internet, and anything else that lingers in my brain long enough for me to remember it.

And here’s where you come in. I’ve already taken on topics that were suggested to me by readers who’ve shared stories about AI they’ve seen, and I’m always hungry for more. As a freelancer writer for more decades than I’d care to admit, I’ve found that the secret to success has been to get other people to do my research for me. [2] So if there are any stories you’d like me to dive into, or if you just have any ideas how to improve this thing [3], please email me: crankyolddan AT gmail DOT com.

We now return you to your email inbox, already filling up with more spam.

[1] Such a euphonious acronym.

[2] Kidding/Not kidding.

[3] More footnotes? Fewer?