Motivation I am doing lots or recruitment at the moment - some weeks it can be near 15-25 % of my time. It is for this reason I wanted to think about my workflow and put in some automation to help me with the process. I am currently living almost exclusively in denote - the fantastic notes package by Prot. The real aim here is to remove as much cognitive load as possible and reduce the amount of time needed in preparation of interviews....
I have heard wonderful things about gptel - the Emacs package that gives an interface to various LLMs. I will admit however I really struggled to get this working using my OpenAI API key with the Docs in their GitHub. Below is a quick guide for anyone else that got stuck - running a Linux machine. First things, get gptel installed - add the below to your config: (use-package gptel :ensure t) (setq gptel-api-key (getenv "OPENAI_API_KEY")) You will notice here we have to specify out OpenAI API key....
When it comes to quickly pulling in images into my org documents, org-download is superb. This package is a critical part of my workflow and I use it daily on my Windows work system. Having a Windows system at work1 means that some of the cool functions that work with org-download do not function due to the limitation put on my by corporate policy. One of those is pasting images from the clipboard....
Intro I wanted to share a quick tool I’ve been using recently to up my writing - emacs-langtool. This is a tool that bring spell and grammar checking tools you would expect in modern word processing suites into Emacs. It is also free, open source and can be run locally without an internet connection. Set-up Download Languagetool and extract it into a folder on your system. Also make sure you have Java installed too....
Intro Change has an energy barrier. To do anything new you need help to get over that hump, make a change, and enjoy the rewards of your new situation. I have written in the past about my efforts to remove distractions by limiting my phone’s functionality with, if I’m being honest, the aim to remove doom-scrolling and short form content. Ideally becoming a more present person who, when they do consume content, consumes high-quality content mindfully....
Image courtesy of Peter Myers Intro When I was invited to attend my PhD supervisor’s 60th birthday symposium, it struck me as a rare opportunity to pause and look back on a journey that has, until now, been relentlessly forward-looking. This reflection, prompted by the task of presenting scientific work conducted since leaving my Matt’s group, revealed insights that I want to share here, if only so I can come back and see what it is I have inevitably forgotten....
Motivation As cloud adoption increases, so does the complexity of managing costs. As with any organization, we constantly face challenges related to optimizing and mitigating the risks of cloud spend. With the risk of cloud costs spiralling, it became clear that a more structured approach is needed. Enter FinOps — short for Financial Operations. It’s a discipline that focuses on maximizing business value from cloud spend, allowing companies to make more informed financial decisions around cloud usage....
When it comes to my own productivity, few techniques have helped me as much as time blocking. Earlier this year, I shared some thoughts on this method, praising its ability to slice through the cacophony of daily tasks and distractions. However, in the months since and, as the post-holiday workload surged, I think it is worth a revisit to this topic. The essence of time blocking, for those unfamiliar, lies in its simplicity: allocating specific blocks of time to individual tasks or types of work....
In the whirlwind of technological evolution, generative AI emerged as a beacon of transformative potential. Less than two years ago, the advent of ChatGPT set the tech world ablaze with predictions of a seismic shift that promised to redefine industries, economies, and the fabric of our daily lives. Goldman Sachs, with the precision of seasoned soothsayers, foretold the displacement of 300 million jobs.1 Yet, as we stand eighteen months into this future, the landscape is markedly different from what was prophesised....
It’s time for this years Holiday. Normal service will resume later this month.