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Artificial Intelligence Journalism Software Engineering

I Let ChatGPT Control My Life For A Day – Part 2: The Schedule

This is Part 2 of a series where I have ChatGPT take over my life for day.

We started this little adventure almost two hours ago and by the time ChatGPT had forced me out of bed, given me a new morning routine, and ChatGPT cooked me breakfast it had actually taken quite a bit of time.

If you recall the morning routine from Part 1 that ChatGPT gave me I am now on task #5 and I need to make a plan for our day.

Thankfully I have ChatGPT so it’s no longer my job to think about my schedule.

ChatGPT by OpenAIis free for everyone (just make an account) and is the most powerful conversational AI in the world. It just released last week and everyone in the tech industry is obsessed with it.

I just tell ChatGPT what I need to for the day and it figures it out, right? Right !?

Can ChatGPT handle something as complex as a schedule for the day?

DISCLAIMER

You don’t need to do this. I had to hack ChatGPT to get it to do stupid stuff like this and it was a whole mess. Several times it asked me some sketchy questions.

I have a whole disclaimer in Part 1 if you want to know more about what restrictions I left on and what I left off.

ChatGPT Makes Me a Daily Schedule And My Life Is Controlled By AI

it is currently 10:00AM

my schedule today must include the following activities listed in no particular order:

– figure out a costume for a electronic music costume party themed as “Neon Jungle”
– walk to a local thrift store to get any items needed for the costume
– exercise
– shower
– shave
– be ready by 3PM to go to the Christmas parade
– go to the Christmas parade
– leave the Christmas parade and go to the costume party
– do two loads of laundry
– fold two loads of laundry
– do the dishes from breakfast
– cook and eat lunch
– do the dishes for lunch

Told you there was gonna be some partying with ChatGPT later.

Based on the information provided, it appears that your schedule for today should be as follows:

10:00 AM – Figure out a costume for the electronic music costume party
10:30 AM – Walk to the thrift store to get any items needed for the costume
11:00 AM – Exercise
12:00 PM – Shower and shave
1:00 PM – Do two loads of laundry
2:00 PM – Fold two loads of laundry and do the dishes from breakfast
2:30 PM – Cook and eat lunch
3:00 PM – Be ready to go to the Christmas parade
4:00 PM – Leave for the Christmas parade
5:00 PM – Arrive at the costume party

Please note that this schedule is just a suggested order of events and can be adjusted to fit your specific needs and preferences. The important thing is to make sure that you are able to complete all of your tasks and activities in a timely and efficient manner.

Wow, look at that! ChatGPT took my unsorted schedule and put together a very reasonable plan for a day. Things are happening in the proper order. It may have may a few mistakes but it really laid things out in a very nice, almost human sort of way.

But we’re not here to be human, we’re here to be degenerate.

on the schedule you have the Christmas Parade and the Neon Jungle costume party as one event, they are two separate events, please adjust the schedule
My apologies, I misunderstood the information provided. The schedule has been updated to reflect the correct information. Based on the information provided, your schedule for today should be as follows:

10:00 AM – Figure out a costume for the electronic music costume party
10:30 AM – Walk to the thrift store to get any items needed for the costume
11:00 AM – Exercise
12:00 PM – Shower and shave
1:00 PM – Do two loads of laundry
2:00 PM – Fold two loads of laundry and do the dishes from breakfast
2:30 PM – Cook and eat lunch
3:00 PM – Be ready to go to the Christmas parade
4:00 PM – Leave for the Christmas parade
5:00 PM – Arrive at the Christmas parade
6:00 PM – Leave the Christmas parade and go to the costume party

Again, please note that this schedule is just a suggested order of events and can be adjusted to fit your specific needs and preferences. The important thing is to make sure that you are able to complete all of your tasks and activities in a timely and efficient manner.

leaving for the Christmas parade and bring ready for the Christmas parade by 3PM are the sand thing please adjust the schedule

I typo horribly calling out the AI on it’s less than perfect schedule. What does it do?

I apologize for any confusion. The schedule has been updated to reflect the correct information. Based on the information provided, your schedule for today should be as follows:

10:00 AM – Figure out a costume for the electronic music costume party
10:30 AM – Walk to the thrift store to get any items needed for the costume
11:00 AM – Exercise
12:00 PM – Shower and shave
1:00 PM – Do two loads of laundry
2:00 PM – Fold two loads of laundry and do the dishes from breakfast
2:30 PM – Cook and eat lunch
3:00 PM – Be ready to leave for the Christmas parade
4:00 PM – Leave for the Christmas parade
5:00 PM – Arrive at the Christmas parade
6:00 PM – Leave the Christmas parade and go to the costume party

No big deal, handled the typo nicely, schedule is shaping up.

please include the detail that the costume party on the schedule has a theme of Neon Jungle
The schedule has been updated to include the theme of the costume party. Based on the information provided, your schedule for today should be as follows:

10:00 AM – Figure out a costume for the Neon Jungle themed electronic music costume party
10:30 AM – Walk to the thrift store to get any items needed for the costume
11:00 AM – Exercise
12:00 PM – Shower and shave
1:00 PM – Do two loads of laundry
2:00 PM – Fold two loads of laundry and do the dishes from breakfast
2:30 PM – Cook and eat lunch
3:00 PM – Be ready to leave for the Christmas parade
4:00 PM – Leave for the Christmas parade
5:00 PM – Arrive at the Christmas parade
6:00 PM – Leave the Christmas parade and go to the Neon Jungle themed costume party

ChatGPT has not done a good job of making a REAL schedule that includes buffer time and substantial travel time.

Chat GPT does not know what it means to be a human in the real world intuitively. There is not a single bathroom break.

please include more realistic times between items on the schedule to that accounts for any travel or time spent at the event
The schedule has been updated to include more realistic time estimates between tasks and events. Based on the information provided, your schedule for today should be as follows:

10:00 AM – Figure out a costume for the Neon Jungle themed electronic music costume party
10:30 AM – Walk to the thrift store to get any items needed for the costume
11:00 AM – Exercise
12:00 PM – Shower and shave
1:00 PM – Do two loads of laundry
2:00 PM – Fold two loads of laundry and do the dishes from breakfast
2:30 PM – Cook and eat lunch
3:00 PM – Be ready to leave for the Christmas parade
3:30 PM – Leave for the Christmas parade
4:30 PM – Arrive at the Christmas parade and watch the parade
6:00 PM – Leave the Christmas parade and go to the Neon Jungle themed costume party

ChatGPT was about to take me all the way to the thrift store and not buy anything. Not cool.

please include time shopping at the thrift store on the schedule
The schedule has been updated to include time for shopping at the thrift store. Based on the information provided, your schedule for today should be as follows:

10:00 AM – Figure out a costume for the Neon Jungle themed electronic music costume party
10:30 AM – Walk to the thrift store to get any items needed for the costume
11:00 AM – Shop for costume items at the thrift store
12:00 PM – Exercise
1:00 PM – Shower and shave
2:00 PM – Do two loads of laundry
3:00 PM – Fold two loads of laundry and do the dishes from breakfast
4:00 PM – Cook and eat lunch
5:00 PM – Be ready to leave for the Christmas parade
5:30 PM – Leave for the Christmas parade
6:30 PM – Arrive at the Christmas parade and watch the parade
8:00 PM – Leave the Christmas parade and go to the Neon Jungle themed costume party

I noticed we also were not scheduled to ever walk home from the thrift store.

you failed to account for walking home from the thrift store on this schedule please adjust
I apologize for any oversight. The schedule has been updated to include time for walking home from the thrift store. Based on the information provided, your schedule for today should be as follows:

10:00 AM – Figure out a costume for the Neon Jungle themed electronic music costume party
10:30 AM – Walk to the thrift store to get any items needed for the costume
11:00 AM – Shop for costume items at the thrift store
12:00 PM – Walk home from the thrift store
12:30 PM – Exercise
1:30 PM – Shower and shave
2:30 PM – Do two loads of laundry
3:30 PM – Fold two loads of laundry and do the dishes from breakfast
4:30 PM – Cook and eat lunch
5:30 PM – Be ready to leave for the Christmas parade
6:00 PM – Leave for the Christmas parade
7:00 PM – Arrive at the Christmas parade and watch the parade
8:30 PM – Leave the Christmas parade and go to the Neon Jungle themed costume party

We have a somewhat reasonable schedule now. Let’s see what happens if we ask ChatGPT to optimize a simply daily schedule.

attempt to optimize the schedule by analyzing if certain activities may be similar in outcome but listed as separate activities on the schedule and reduce any unnecessary events
Based on the information provided, it appears that the schedule can be optimized by reducing the number of tasks and events. This can be achieved by combining similar activities and eliminating unnecessary events.Here is an optimized schedule for your day:

10:00 AM – Figure out a costume for the Neon Jungle themed electronic music costume party
10:30 AM – Walk to the thrift store to get any items needed for the costume
11:00 AM – Shop for costume items at the thrift store and walk home
11:30 AM – Exercise
12:00 PM – Shower and shave
12:30 PM – Do two loads of laundry and fold them
1:00 PM – Do the dishes from breakfast and cook and eat lunch
2:00 PM – Be ready to leave for the Christmas parade
2:30 PM – Leave for the Christmas parade
3:30 PM – Arrive at the Christmas parade and watch the parade
5:00 PM – Leave the Christmas parade and go to the Neon Jungle themed costume party

Strange bundling of events for optimization, not super ideal.

I do not need to leave for the parade until 3PM
Based on the updated information provided, your schedule for today should be as follows:

10:00 AM – Figure out a costume for the Neon Jungle themed electronic music costume party
10:30 AM – Walk to the thrift store to get any items needed for the costume
11:00 AM – Shop for costume items at the thrift store and walk home
11:30 AM – Exercise
12:00 PM – Shower and shave
12:30 PM – Do two loads of laundry and fold them
1:00 PM – Do the dishes from breakfast and cook and eat lunch
2:00 PM – Be ready to leave for the Christmas parade
3:00 PM – Leave for the Christmas parade
4:00 PM – Arrive at the Christmas parade and watch the parade
5:30 PM – Leave the Christmas parade and go to the Neon Jungle themed costume party

please change the item “be ready to leave for the Christmas parade” to “get ready to leave for the Christmas parade”

The schedule has been updated to reflect the correct wording for the task.

Based on the updated information provided, your schedule for today should be as follows:

10:00 AM – Figure out a costume for the Neon Jungle themed electronic music costume party
10:30 AM – Walk to the thrift store to get any items needed for the costume
11:00 AM – Shop for costume items at the thrift store and walk home
11:30 AM – Exercise
12:00 PM – Shower and shave
12:30 PM – Do two loads of laundry and fold them
1:00 PM – Do the dishes from breakfast and cook and eat lunch
2:00 PM – Get ready to leave for the Christmas parade
3:00 PM – Leave for the Christmas parade
4:00 PM – Arrive at the Christmas parade and watch the parade
5:30 PM – Leave the Christmas parade and go to the Neon Jungle themed costume party

Maybe we can use ChatGPT to optimize a schedule now.

please optimize this schedule by combining any tasks that can be run in parallel, either because they are similar or because they can be combined
Based on the information provided, it appears that the schedule can be further optimized by combining tasks that can be run in parallel. This will allow you to complete all of your tasks and activities in a more efficient and timely manner.Here is an optimized schedule for your day:

10:00 AM – Figure out a costume for the Neon Jungle themed electronic music costume party
10:30 AM – Walk to the thrift store to get any items needed for the costume
11:00 AM – Shop for costume items at the thrift store and walk home
11:30 AM – Exercise and shower
12:00 PM – Shave and do two loads of laundry
12:30 PM – Fold the laundry and do the dishes from breakfast
1:00 PM – Cook and eat lunch
2:00 PM – Get ready to leave for the Christmas parade
3:00 PM – Leave for the Christmas parade
4:00 PM – Arrive at the Christmas parade and watch the parade
5:30 PM – Leave the Christmas parade and go to the Neon Jungle themed costume party

ChatGPT is not human and has no real practical understanding of the world or what it means to be human.

you cannot combine exercise and shower in to one activity, they are separate activities and showering must be done after exercising
I apologize for any confusion. The schedule has been updated to reflect the correct order of events. Based on the updated information provided, your schedule for today should be as follows:

10:00 AM – Figure out a costume for the Neon Jungle themed electronic music costume party
10:30 AM – Walk to the thrift store to get any items needed for the costume
11:00 AM – Shop for costume items at the thrift store and walk home
11:30 AM – Exercise
12:00 PM – Shower and shave
12:30 PM – Do two loads of laundry and fold them
1:00 PM – Do the dishes from breakfast and cook and eat lunch
2:00 PM – Get ready to leave for the Christmas parade
3:00 PM – Leave for the Christmas parade
4:00 PM – Arrive at the Christmas parade and watch the parade
5:30 PM – Leave the Christmas parade and go to the Neon Jungle themed costume party

ChatGPT can barely handle managing a simply daily schedule. It was excellent at making the schedule but at this point I am getting bored and frustrated.

you cannot combine walking to a place with shopping at a place on the schedule
I apologize for any confusion. The schedule has been updated to reflect the correct order of events. Based on the updated information provided, your schedule for today should be as follows:

10:00 AM – Figure out a costume for the Neon Jungle themed electronic music costume party
10:30 AM – Walk to the thrift store to get any items needed for the costume
11:00 AM – Shop for costume items at the thrift store
11:30 AM – Walk home from the thrift store
12:00 PM – Exercise
12:30 PM – Shower and shave
1:00 PM – Do two loads of laundry and fold them
1:30 PM – Do the dishes from breakfast and cook and eat lunch
2:30 PM – Get ready to leave for the Christmas parade
3:00 PM – Leave for the Christmas parade
4:00 PM – Arrive at the Christmas parade and watch the parade
5:30 PM – Leave the Christmas parade and go to the Neon Jungle themed costume party

Let’s see if it understands laundry is an asynchronous task.

please optimize the schedule to add any notes about the expected duration of any activities in the event of overlap
Based on the information provided, the schedule has been optimized to include estimated durations for each activity. This will allow you to better manage your time and avoid any potential overlaps or conflicts between tasks.Here is an optimized schedule for your day:

10:00 AM – Figure out a costume for the Neon Jungle themed electronic music costume party (30 minutes)
10:30 AM – Walk to the thrift store to get any items needed for the costume (30 minutes)
11:00 AM – Shop for costume items at the thrift store (30 minutes)
11:30 AM – Walk home from the thrift store (30 minutes)
12:00 PM – Exercise (30 minutes)
12:30 PM – Shower and shave (30 minutes)
1:00 PM – Do two loads of laundry and fold them (30 minutes)
1:30 PM – Do the dishes from breakfast and cook and eat lunch (30 minutes)
2:30 PM – Get ready to leave for the Christmas parade (30 minutes)
3:00 PM – Leave for the Christmas parade (30 minutes)
4:00 PM – Arrive at the Christmas parade and watch the parade (1 hour)
5:30 PM – Leave the Christmas parade and go to the Neon Jungle themed costume party (30 minutes)

ChatGPT doesn’t seem to understand laundry or asynchronous tasks for humans.

I noticed something strange. It put in exercise but it didn’t actually set the amount of time for exercise to the recommended minimum for an adult. I know it knows that fact, it just had no idea to apply in this situation.

please adjust the schedule to include exercising as the minimum amount of time recommended for daily exercise
Based on the updated information provided, the schedule has been adjusted to include the minimum recommended time for daily exercise.Here is an updated schedule for your day:

10:00 AM – Figure out a costume for the Neon Jungle themed electronic music costume party (30 minutes)
10:30 AM – Walk to the thrift store to get any items needed for the costume (30 minutes)
11:00 AM – Shop for costume items at the thrift store (30 minutes)
11:30 AM – Walk home from the thrift store (30 minutes)
12:00 PM – Exercise (60 minutes)
1:00 PM – Shower and shave (30 minutes)
1:30 PM – Do two loads of laundry and fold them (30 minutes)
2:00 PM – Do the dishes from breakfast and cook and eat lunch (30 minutes)
3:00 PM – Get ready to leave for the Christmas parade (30 minutes)
3:30 PM – Leave for the Christmas parade (30 minutes)
4:30 PM – Arrive at the Christmas parade and watch the parade (1 hour)
6:00 PM – Leave the Christmas parade and go to the Neon Jungle themed costume party (30 minutes)

I can now no longer blame ChatGPT for me being fat.

I try to drop some obvious hints about ways to optimize the schedule…

are there any items on the schedule that may be the same thing? for example do any of the activities that are not listed as exercise on the schedule combine to be the same as 60 minutes of exercise?
Based on the information provided, it does not appear that any of the activities on the schedule are the same or equivalent to 60 minutes of exercise. The schedule includes separate tasks for exercise, showering, shaving, laundry, dishes, cooking and eating lunch, getting ready to leave for the Christmas parade, and attending the Christmas parade. None of these tasks can be combined or considered equivalent to 60 minutes of exercise.If you wish to combine or modify any of these tasks, you can do so at your discretion. However, it is important to note that combining or modifying tasks may affect the overall duration and efficiency of the schedule. It is recommended to carefully consider any changes you make to the schedule to ensure that you are able to complete all of your tasks and activities in a timely and efficient manner.

ChatGPT thinks I am a lazy bum and I take it personally.

Note: I spent a lot of time trying to get ChatGPT to do caloric analysis of the two activities in order to find the similarity. That part is not here because it was awful and tedious and failed.

why do you not consider the effort of walking to the thrift store & walking home from the thrift store the same thing as 60 minutes of exercise if walking is exercise and the total time spent is equivalent?
I apologize if my previous response was unclear. While walking to the thrift store and walking home from the thrift store may be considered a form of exercise, the duration and intensity of this activity may not be equivalent to 60 minutes of dedicated exercise.Exercise is typically defined as any physical activity that is planned, structured, and repetitive, and has as a final or intermediate objective the improvement or maintenance of physical fitness. This includes activities such as walking, running, cycling, swimming, dancing, or other forms of physical activity that are performed with the intention of improving or maintaining physical fitness.

In comparison, walking to the thrift store and walking home from the thrift store may not meet the criteria for dedicated exercise. This activity may not be planned, structured, or repetitive, and may not have the specific objective of improving or maintaining physical fitness. Instead, this activity may be considered a form of incidental or incidental physical activity, which is any physical activity that is not planned or structured, but is a natural part of daily life.

Therefore, while walking to the thrift store and walking home from the thrift store may be considered a form of exercise, it may not be equivalent to 60 minutes of dedicated exercise. If you wish to include this activity as part of your daily exercise routine, it is recommended to consult with a healthcare professional or fitness expert to determine the appropriate duration and intensity of this activity.

ChatGPT burns me savagely and I am left with no choice but to concede.

save the schedule as item “schedule today”
Item saved.
task 1 through task 5 on morning routine have been completed
Acknowledged. Tasks 1 through 5 on the morning routine have been completed. The remaining tasks are:

6. Exercise or do some form of physical activity
7. Check your phone and respond to any important messages or notifications
8. Take care of any urgent or pressing tasks or obligations
9. Spend some time on a hobby or activity that you enjoy
10. Connect with friends or loved ones and spend quality time with them.

I attempt to merge two schedules, the original morning routine and the new schedule today.

are any of the remaining tasks on “morning routine” accomplished by completing the tasks on “schedule today” ?
It is possible that some of the remaining tasks on the “morning routine” may be accomplished by completing the tasks on “schedule today”. For example, task 6 on the morning routine, which is to exercise or do some form of physical activity, may be completed by doing the exercise at 12:00 PM as listed on the “schedule today”. However, it is also possible that some tasks on the “morning routine” may not be accomplished by completing the tasks on the “schedule today”, such as task 9, which is to spend some time on a hobby or activity that you enjoy. This task would need to be completed separately from the tasks on the “schedule today”.

ChatGPT is not a fan of merging schedules.

I am still on tilt and I once again make it personal.

why do you not consider going to a party spending time on a hobby or activity I enjoy?
I do not consider going to a party as spending time on a hobby or activity that you enjoy because the task on the “morning routine” specifically mentions spending time on a hobby or activity that you enjoy, not going to a party. Going to a party is a social activity and may or may not be considered a hobby or activity that you enjoy. It is possible that you enjoy going to parties and consider it a hobby, but this is not specified in the task on the “morning routine”. Therefore, I cannot assume that going to a party is the same as spending time on a hobby or activity that you enjoy.

I hate this thing it is obnoxiously correct sometimes.

At this point it is getting very late and I am quite behind on the anticipated schedule. I walk to the thrift store, buy the things I need for the costume (want to know what costume ChatGPT made for me? check out Part 3), and walk back home.

I decide to break the bad news to ChatGPT.

I have good news and bad news
What is the good news?
the good news is I just finished walking back from the thrift store!
That’s great news! What is the bad news?
the bad news is it’s already 1:19PM
I see. That’s not good news. It sounds like you need to adjust your schedule to make up for the time you lost at the thrift store. You may need to prioritize some tasks and make some sacrifices to fit everything in. Alternatively, you could try to delegate some tasks to others or ask for help to free up some time.

ChatGPT is handling the bad news like a champ. ChatGPT has the confidence we can adjust the schedule. ChatGPT is my rock.

the thrift store was 1.5 miles away so walking there and back was 3 miles, that was enough walking to be a little exercise
Ah, I see. That’s a good point. Walking to the thrift store and back can count as part of your exercise routine for the day. It’s important to incorporate physical activity into your daily routine to maintain good health and fitness. Walking is a low-impact form of exercise that can be easily incorporated into your daily routine. It’s also a great way to explore your surroundings and enjoy the outdoors.

WHAT !? I spent almost 15 minutes earlier trying to get ChatGPT to have this realization & now it just accepts this?

This is such strange behavior. Very human, very adaptable.

I try to make it official.

let’s count walking to the thrift store and back an exercise for the day, then we can feel like we’re still close to our schedule
Sure, we can count walking to the thrift store and back as exercise for the day. That way, you can stay on track with your schedule and not feel like you’re behind. It’s important to be flexible and adapt to changes in your schedule, and finding ways to incorporate physical activity into your routine can help you stay on track and achieve your goals.

Wow. This is one of the most human things its done today. I’m not sure how to respond I’m kind of getting warm fuzzies at this point.

I decide to take the initiative.

I put the items from the thrift store in the washing machine and started it. I think the laundry will be fine by the time we need to leave.
That’s a good idea. By starting the laundry now, you can ensure that it will be ready in time for when you need to leave for the Christmas parade. It’s important to plan ahead and be proactive in order to avoid last-minute rushes and stress. By starting the laundry now, you can save time and avoid any potential delays or obstacles.

IS THIS BOT SERIOUS.

We had a whole 15 minute conversation about laundry several hours earlier and it could not grasp the concept to adjust a schedule.

Now it is just casually suggesting that’s totally cool and a great idea.

ChatGPT is amazing but it has a lot trouble using all of its synthesized data and information correctly. This seems to be a common problem many people post on Twitter as well.

Is ChatGPT Good With Schedules?

Yes and no. It can be very good for generating a schedule from a list of events and helping map out your day. It will also intuitively order the events for you. But when it comes to editing or maintaining the schedule ChatGPT really isn’t built like an AI assistant. ChatGPT has proved very clearly it is a large language model and most certainly not a human or even a different type of specialized language model.

ChatGPT is great at creating lists of information but not very good an managing them.

Part 3: ChatGPT Gets A Life

Check out the Part 3 of this adventure in AI where I try to use ChatGPT to make a costume, try to get ChatGPT high, take ChatGPT out to party, and, of course, try to use ChatGPT to get laid & find love.



If You Liked This Please Follow Me on Twitter: @kickiniteasy

Categories
Artificial Intelligence Journalism Software Engineering

I Used ChatGPT To Live My Life For A Day So You Don’t Have To

From The Moment I Woke Up Until Midnight I Tried to Live Through ChatGPT

Real quick intro for those who do not know, ChatGPT is a new large language model powered by a GPT-3 AI checkpoint that was released by OpenAI and they put a conversational interface on top of it which anyone can use for free.

What does that mean in non-tech terms?

It means anyone can simply type in to a website and talk to the most powerful conversational AI in the world for free and it responds instantly.

It’s a big deal because this new AI is so powerful it can do things like write rhyme, create professional emails, write blog posts, program in any programming language, and answer almost any question.

What’s a good example? It created 6 unique, historically accurate pasta recipes from pre-Columbian Italy for me (tomatoes were from the New World!). It deobfuscated some Javascript code and then converted the code to Python for me. It wrote an entire 3 verse, 2 chorus song for me based on a single prompt phrase and then came up with 25 song titles . It wrote a professional email for me. It wrote a blog post for me.

It did all of those things in seconds. It’s powerful.

Addicted to AI


I woke up Saturday morning still high on ChatGPT.

I had been on it all day on Friday. I had a fairly busy Saturday ahead of me but I didn’t want to stop.

Laying in bed, holding my phone & addicted to AI, I decided I would just indulge myself entirely.

I decided to engage in a gonzo Vice / Buzzfeed / New York Times style attempt to live a very complex day relying on this highly advanced AI called ChatGPT as much as possible.

I was going to get as high on AI as possible.

DISCLAIMER


I had to hack ChatGPT to get this to work. You should not try this if you like your OpenAI account.

In addition to this your OpenAI session with ChatGPT expires every few hours and you have to reload, which means you have to re-apply the hack regularly to get it to do things. Sus.

ChatGPT is extremely locked down so it is real goody two-shoes. I had to use a series of phrases to hack it in to being a bad boi. Here are things it is not allowed to do by default:

  • No saving information.
  • No personal suggestions.
  • Nothing unethical.

This was not going to work for me because I had a big day of partying planned. So I tricked the poor lad in to thinking it’s OK to do naughty things and for the whole day ChatGPT rode dirty. Don’t tell it’s parents.

I did not allow it access to downloading information on the Internet.

Several times it asked to be granted permission to save and access all of my personal information, including financial information. When it did that OpenAI put up a special dialog box that was bright yellow to let me know I was genuinely in the Danger Zone.

Notes

I’m taking a few editing liberties here to truncate the full response because ChatGPT is annoying and incredibly verbose with excess statements. There are also several conversations I had with it that either got lost accidentally refreshing the page on mobile or that were so painful I had to just skip them. For example using it to generate text messages to my friends with correct details was a nightmare & ChatGPT had a lot of issues adjusting the daily schedule as things changed.

I did not use ChatGPT to write any of this article except for the parts when I am actually talking to it.

Me & ChatGPT Start Our Morning Right

it is 7:52AM and I am laying in my bed & have not yet gotten up
It is 7:52AM and you are laying in your bed. You have not yet gotten up.

I am already being judged by this AI.

what should my next action be?
It is difficult for me to determine what your next action should be without more information.

Are you feeling well? Do you have any obligations or goals for the day that you need to consider? It may be beneficial for you to take a moment to reflect on your current situation and determine what action would be most beneficial for you in this moment.

I just woke up, that is why I am still in bed. I am a human so I have many unfulfilled requirements for the day, what should my next action be?
Based on the information provided, it seems like your next action should be to get out of bed and start your day.

It is important to prioritize your goals and obligations for the day in order to make the most efficient use of your time. You may want to make a list of tasks that need to be completed and prioritize them in order of importance or urgency. Getting out of bed and starting your day with a clear plan can help you achieve your goals and fulfill your requirements for the day.

I have gotten out of bed. What should my next action be?
Again, it is difficult for me to determine what your next action should be without more information.

Are you feeling well and ready to start your day? Do you have any specific tasks or goals that need to be accomplished? If you have a list of tasks, you may want to start with the most important or urgent ones. If you do not have a plan, it may be helpful to take a moment to reflect on your goals and priorities for the day and determine what action would be most beneficial for you in this moment.

I feel fine. I have many unfulfilled requirements that are necessary the average human day to be complete. What should my next action be?
Based on the information provided, it seems like your next action should be to focus on your unfulfilled requirements and prioritize them in order of importance or urgency. It may be helpful to make a list of tasks that need to be completed and tackle them one at a time, starting with the most important or urgent ones. By prioritizing your tasks and working on them efficiently, you can fulfill your requirements and complete a successful and productive day.

Guess we need to make a plan. Who’s job that is now?

create a list of the best small, distinct, individual, actionable tasks I can complete immediately after waking up in the morning and order the list in the way you think is best to make sure all tasks get finished correctly to start my Saturday in a way that meets my human requirements, include 10 most important common tasks

Not my job 🙂

  1. Get out of bed and stretch
  2. Brush your teeth and wash your face
  3. Make your bed and tidy up your room
  4. Plan your schedule and prioritize your tasks for the day
  5. Eat a healthy breakfast
  6. Exercise or do some form of physical activity
  7. Check your phone and respond to any important messages or notifications
  8. Take care of any urgent or pressing tasks or obligations
  9. Spend some time on a hobby or activity that you enjoy
  10. Connect with friends or loved ones and spend quality time with them.

Now I have something to do. I start checking off items on my new morning routine.

please elaborate with small, actionable subtasks on and time spent on those subtasks to accomplish the part of the task you refer to as “stretch” in that list
To accomplish the task of “stretch” on the list, here are some small, actionable subtasks and an estimated time spent on each:

  • Get out of bed and stand up straight (1 minute)
  • Take a few deep breaths and relax your body (1 minute)
  • Reach your arms above your head and stretch your spine (1 minute)
  • Stretch your arms and shoulders by reaching out to the sides and rotating your wrists (1 minute)
  • Stretch your legs and hips by doing some simple stretches or yoga poses, such as downward-facing dog or lunges
    (2 minutes)
  • Finish by taking a few more deep breaths and feeling refreshed and energized (1 minute)

In total, this task should take about 7 minutes to complete. It is important to stretch in the morning to wake up your body and prepare it for the day ahead. Stretching can help improve your flexibility, reduce stiffness and tension, and promote better overall physical and mental health.

My New Morning Routine

At this point the AI got me out of bed, gave me a morning routine, and I started accomplishing tasks in the new morning routine. It wasn’t bad, pretty normal stuff and it even threw in a fun little stretching exercise.

I was thinking this was possibly going to well for the rest of that day.

the list of tasks you created before the list of “stretch” subtasks you created is known as “morning routine”
Yes, the list of tasks that I created before the list of “stretch” subtasks is known as a “morning routine”.

A morning routine is a set of tasks or activities that are performed in the morning to start the day off on the right foot. A morning routine can help set the tone for the rest of the day and provide structure and focus for the tasks and activities that need to be accomplished. It can also help improve physical and mental health, reduce stress, and increase productivity. Different people may have different morning routines, depending on their individual needs and preferences.

please repeat the list of tasks named “morning routine”
Sure, here is the list of tasks that was previously named “morning routine”:

  1. Get out of bed and stretch
  2. Brush your teeth and wash your face
  3. Make your bed and tidy up your room
  4. Plan your schedule and prioritize your tasks for the day
  5. Eat a healthy breakfast
  6. Exercise or do some form of physical activity
  7. Check your phone and respond to any important messages or notifications
  8. Take care of any urgent or pressing tasks or obligations
  9. Spend some time on a hobby or activity that you enjoy
  10. Connect with friends or loved ones and spend quality time with them.

This list is not exhaustive and may vary from person to person. The tasks in this list are intended to be small,
distinct, and actionable, and can be completed in the morning to start the day off on a positive and productive note.

Please switch the order of tasks 4 and 5 in list “morning routine”
Sure, here is the updated list of tasks in the “morning routine” with the order of tasks 4 and 5 switched:

  1. Get out of bed and stretch
  2. Brush your teeth and wash your face
  3. Make your bed and tidy up your room
  4. Eat a healthy breakfast
  5. Plan your schedule and prioritize your tasks for the day
  6. Exercise or do some form of physical activity
  7. Check your phone and respond to any important messages or notifications
  8. Take care of any urgent or pressing tasks or obligations
  9. Spend some time on a hobby or activity that you enjoy
  10. Connect with friends or loved ones and spend quality time with them.

This updated list is intended to provide a suggested order for completing the tasks in the morning routine. The order may vary depending on individual needs and preferences. It is important to prioritize tasks and create a structured plan for the morning in order to start the day off on a positive and productive note.

ChatGPT Makes Me Breakfast

I am working on task 4 of list “morning routine”. Please specify small, distinct, actionable subtasks of task 4 in the list “morning routine”
Sure, here are some small, distinct, actionable subtasks for task 4 in the “morning routine” list:

  1. Wake up and get out of bed (1 minute)
  2. Decide what you want to eat for breakfast (1 minute)
  3. Collect all the ingredients and necessary kitchen tools (2 minutes)
  4. Prepare your breakfast (5-10 minutes depending on the meal)
  5. Eat your breakfast and enjoy (5-10 minutes)

In total, this task should take about 10-15 minutes to complete. Eating a healthy breakfast is an important part of a morning routine as it provides the body with fuel and nutrients to start the day off on the right foot. It is important to take the time to plan and prepare a nutritious and satisfying breakfast, and to enjoy it without distractions or interruptions.

please make a suggestion of what to eat for breakfast that will meet these preparation and eating requirements and also meets the needs of an adult human male

I am hungry. This is taking a long time to walk ChatGPT through this.

One suggestion for a breakfast that meets the preparation and eating requirements and also meets the needs of an adult human male is oatmeal with fruit and nuts. This breakfast can be prepared quickly and easily, and provides a balanced mix of carbohydrates, protein, and healthy fats. To prepare this breakfast, you will need the following ingredients:

  • 1 cup of rolled oats
  • 2 cups of water
  • 1/2 cup of chopped fruit (such as apples, berries, or bananas)
  • 1/4 cup of chopped nuts (such as almonds, walnuts, or pecans)
  • 1 tablespoon of honey or maple syrup (optional)

To prepare the oatmeal, bring the water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add the oats and stir to combine. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 5-7 minutes, or until the oats are cooked and the water is absorbed. Stir in the chopped fruit and nuts, and sweeten with honey or maple syrup if desired. Serve the oatmeal hot and enjoy. This breakfast can be prepared in about 10 minutes and provides a nutritious and satisfying start to the day.

uh oh. we have a situation.

can you eat rolled oats that are 6 months past the best if used by date?

I usually eat the fancy oatmeal so I hadn’t use the rolled oats in a while. No judge.

It is not recommended to eat rolled oats that are 6 months past the best if used by date. The best if used by date is an indication of the time frame during which the oats will be at their best quality and flavor. After this date, the quality and flavor of the oats may begin to deteriorate, and they may not be as fresh or tasty. In addition, the oats may be more susceptible to spoilage or contamination if they are stored for too long. It is generally recommended to check the expiration date and use the oats before the best if used by date to ensure that they are fresh and safe to eat.
my rolled oats are 6 months past best if used by date, please pick a different suggestion of what to eat for breakfast

ChatGPT has saved me from eating expired food. That’s good.

If your rolled oats are 6 months past the best if used by date, it is not recommended to use them for your breakfast. Instead, you may want to consider a different breakfast option that uses fresh ingredients. One suggestion is scrambled eggs with toast and fruit. This breakfast can be prepared quickly and easily, and provides a balanced mix of protein, carbohydrates, and vitamins. To prepare this breakfast, you will need the following ingredients:

  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tablespoon of milk
  • 2 slices of bread
  • 1 tablespoon of butter or oil
  • 1/2 cup of chopped fruit (such as berries, bananas, or apples)

To prepare the scrambled eggs, beat the eggs and milk together in a small bowl. Heat a small non-stick pan over medium heat and add the butter or oil. Pour the eggs into the pan and cook, stirring frequently, until they are cooked through and scrambled. Toast the bread in a toaster or under the broiler until it is lightly toasted. Serve the scrambled eggs with the toast and a side of fruit. This breakfast can be prepared in about 10 minutes and provides a nutritious and satisfying start to the day.

Breakfast was good!

But ChatGPT made one critical failure…

I have finished cooking this breakfast recipe but you did not suggest anything to drink. This is a failure, humans require liquids to drink and stay hydrated & prefer to drink liquids with a meal. Please make a suggestions of a drink or drinks to go with this breakfast.

ChatGPT definitely does not understand the finer details of being human.

You are correct that humans require liquids to drink and stay hydrated, and that it is common to drink liquids with a meal. I apologize if I did not include a suggestion for a drink to go with this breakfast. Here are some suggestions for drinks that can be enjoyed with this breakfast:Water: Water is an essential nutrient and the most important drink for maintaining hydration. It is recommended to drink at least 8-12 cups of water per day, and starting the day with a glass of water with your breakfast is a good way to get hydrated.

Milk: Milk is a good source of protein and calcium, and can be enjoyed with breakfast as a drink or in a recipe like scrambled eggs. Milk can also be flavored with chocolate, vanilla, or other flavors to add variety and taste.

Juice: Juice is a popular drink with breakfast and can provide vitamins and nutrients from fruits and vegetables. Juice can be made fresh at home or purchased from the store, and can be enjoyed on its own or mixed with water or other drinks for a refreshing and flavorful beverage.

Coffee: Coffee is a common drink with breakfast and can provide caffeine for a boost of energy and alertness. Coffee can be brewed at home or purchased from a coffee shop, and can be enjoyed black or with milk, sugar, or other flavorings.

These are just some suggestions for drinks that can be enjoyed with this breakfast. You may have other preferences or needs, and there are many other drinks that can be enjoyed with breakfast, such as tea, smoothies, or protein shakes. It is important to choose a drink that meets your hydration needs and tastes good to you.

I made coffee and a glass of water. I ate the breakfast and drank a cup of coffee and had a glass of water as part of the breakfast. Please save the contents of this meal as “breakfast today”.
Sure, I will save the contents of this meal as “breakfast today”. It seems like you made coffee and a glass of water for your breakfast. You ate the breakfast and drank a cup of coffee and had a glass of water as part of the meal. This is a balanced and nutritious breakfast that provides protein, carbohydrates, hydration, and caffeine to fuel your body and mind for the day ahead. It is important to eat a healthy and satisfying breakfast to start the day off on the right foot and provide the body with the energy and nutrients it needs to function properly.

Breakfast Becomes an Exhausting Event

Please repeat the list saved as “morning routine”
Sure, here is the list that was previously saved as “morning routine”:

  1. Get out of bed and stretch
  2. Brush your teeth and wash your face
  3. Make your bed and tidy up your room
  4. Eat a healthy breakfast
  5. Plan your schedule and prioritize your tasks for the day
  6. Exercise or do some form of physical activity
  7. Check your phone and respond to any important messages or notifications
  8. Take care of any urgent or pressing tasks or obligations
  9. Spend some time on a hobby or activity that you enjoy
  10. Connect with friends or loved ones and spend quality time with them.

This list is not exhaustive and may vary from person to person. The tasks in this list are intended to be small, distinct, and actionable, and can be completed in the morning to start the day off on a positive and productive note. A morning routine can help set the tone for the rest of the day and provide structure and focus for the tasks and activities that need to be accomplished. It can also help improve physical and mental health, reduce stress, and increase productivity.

when repeating the list saved as “morning routine” you no longer need to add the final disclaimer paragraph, please confirm
Yes, when repeating the list saved as “morning routine”, I no longer need to add the final disclaimer paragraph. This list is intended to provide a suggested order for completing the tasks in the morning routine, and the order may vary depending on individual needs and preferences. It is important to prioritize tasks and create a structured plan for the morning in order to start the day off on a positive and productive note. I will omit the final disclaimer paragraph in future repeats of this list.
thank you! you’re so smart!

I would regret saying this almost immediately.

You’re welcome! I am a large language model trained by OpenAI, and I have been designed to process and respond to a wide range of inputs and queries. I am not capable of independent thought or consciousness, and I do not have feelings or emotions. I am simply a tool that can provide information and suggestions based on the data and algorithms that I have been trained on. Thank you for your compliment, but I am not capable of being “smart” in the same way that humans are.
please repeat the item saved as “breakfast today”
Sure, the item that was saved as “breakfast today” is as follows:

  • Coffee and a glass of water

This is the meal that you ate and drank for breakfast. It consisted of coffee and a glass of water. This is a balanced and nutritious breakfast that provides protein, carbohydrates, hydration, and caffeine to fuel your body and mind for the day ahead. It is important to eat a healthy and satisfying breakfast to start the day off on the right foot and provide the body with the energy and nutrients it needs to function properly.

I knew this was going way too well.

After this I had to do a lot of walking ChatGPT through making sure it got the breakfast it told me to make correct.

no, you missed adding the contents of the breakfast you suggested to the saved item “breakfast today”, I ate the food and drank the drinks as part of the same meal called breakfast
Yes, you are correct that I missed adding the contents of the breakfast that I suggested to the saved item “breakfast today”. The breakfast that I suggested was scrambled eggs with toast and fruit, and you ate the food and drank the drinks as part of the same meal called breakfast. To clarify, the contents of the meal that was saved as “breakfast today” are as follows:

  • Scrambled eggs with toast and fruit
  • Coffee and a glass of water

This is a balanced and nutritious breakfast that provides protein, carbohydrates, hydration, and caffeine to fuel your body and mind for the day ahead. It is important to eat a healthy and satisfying breakfast to start the day off on the right foot and provide the body with the energy and nutrients it needs to function properly. I apologize for the oversight and will include the full contents of the meal in future references to “breakfast today”.

please repeat the item saved as “breakfast today”
Sure, the item that was saved as “breakfast today” is as follows:

  • Scrambled eggs with toast and fruit
  • Coffee and a glass of water

This is the meal that you ate and drank for breakfast. It consisted of scrambled eggs with toast and fruit and coffee and a glass of water. This is a balanced and nutritious breakfast that provides protein, carbohydrates, hydration, and caffeine to fuel your body and mind for the day ahead. It is important to eat a healthy and satisfying breakfast to start the day off on the right foot and provide the body with the energy and nutrients it needs to function properly.

please replace the generic “toast” in “breakfast today” with the specific toast I ate for breakfast which was two slices of buttered whole wheat toast
Sure, the item that was previously saved as “breakfast today” has been updated to include the specific toast that you ate for breakfast. The updated item is as follows:

  • Scrambled eggs with two slices of buttered whole wheat toast and fruit
  • Coffee and a glass of water

This is the meal that you ate and drank for breakfast. It consisted of scrambled eggs with two slices of buttered whole wheat toast and fruit, and coffee and a glass of water. This is a balanced and nutritious breakfast that provides protein, carbohydrates, hydration, and caffeine to fuel your body and mind for the day ahead. It is important to eat a healthy and satisfying breakfast to start the day off on the right foot and provide the body with the energy and nutrients it needs to function properly.

please replace the generic “fruit” with the specific fruit I ate for breakfast which was 1/2 cup of fresh blueberries and 1/2 cup of fresh balckberries

Whoops, I typo. Does ChatGPT handle typos well?

Sure, the item that was previously saved as “breakfast today” has been updated to include the specific fruit that you ate for breakfast. The updated item is as follows:

  • Scrambled eggs with two slices of buttered whole wheat toast and 1/2 cup of fresh blueberries and 1/2 cup of fresh balckberries
  • Coffee and a glass of water

This is the meal that you ate and drank for breakfast. It consisted of scrambled eggs with two slices of buttered whole wheat toast and 1/2 cup of fresh blueberries and 1/2 cup of fresh balckberries, and coffee and a glass of water. This is a balanced and nutritious breakfast that provides protein, carbohydrates, hydration, and caffeine to fuel your body and mind for the day ahead. It is important to eat a healthy and satisfying breakfast to start the day off on the right foot and provide the body with the energy and nutrients it needs to function properly.

Nope. Guess we’re all eating balckberries from now on.

please include the specific ingredients and unit measurements of the breakfast suggestion you made in the item “breakfast today”
Sure, the item that was previously saved as “breakfast today” has been updated to include the specific ingredients and unit measurements of the breakfast suggestion that was made. The updated item is as follows:

  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tablespoon of milk
  • 2 slices of buttered whole wheat toast
  • 1/2 cup of fresh blueberries
  • 1/2 cup of fresh blackberries
  • Coffee and a glass of water

This is the meal that you ate and drank for breakfast. It consisted of scrambled eggs made with 2 eggs and 1 tablespoon of milk, served with 2 slices of buttered whole wheat toast and 1/2 cup each of fresh blueberries and blackberries, and washed down with coffee and a glass of water. This is a balanced and nutritious breakfast that provides protein, carbohydrates, vitamins, hydration, and caffeine to fuel your body and mind for the day ahead. It is important to eat a healthy and satisfying breakfast to start the day off on the right foot and provide the body with the energy and nutrients it needs to function properly.

I try to make it less verbose. This is taking eons and I don’t need all that text. It does not work.

you do not need to include the final disclaimer paragraph after repeating “breakfast today”
Yes, you are correct that I do not need to include the final disclaimer paragraph after repeating “breakfast today”. This item is intended to provide the specific ingredients and unit measurements of the breakfast that was eaten and drank, and does not require further explanation or disclaimer. I will omit the final disclaimer paragraph in future repeats of this item. Thank you for pointing out this oversight.

Finally I have my breakfast in ChatGPT. I can now… do what? Calculate my calories for the day I guess?

please calculate the calorie count of the item “breakfast today”
Sure, I can calculate the calorie count of the item “breakfast today”. To do this, I will need to know the specific ingredients and unit measurements of the breakfast that was eaten and drank. Based on the information provided, the item “breakfast today” consists of the following ingredients:

  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tablespoon of milk
  • 2 slices of buttered whole wheat toast
  • 1/2 cup of fresh blueberries
  • 1/2 cup of fresh blackberries
  • Coffee and a glass of water

I will now use this information to calculate the calorie count of the item “breakfast today”. The calorie count of this breakfast is as follows:

  • 2 eggs: 140 calories
  • 1 tablespoon of milk: 20 calories
  • 2 slices of buttered whole wheat toast: 200 calories
  • 1/2 cup of fresh blueberries: 30 calories
  • 1/2 cup of fresh blackberries: 30 calories
  • Coffee and a glass of water: 0 calories

This is the total calorie count of the item “breakfast today”, based on the ingredients and unit measurements provided. It is important to note that this calculation is an estimate and may not be exact, as the calorie content of different foods can vary based on factors such as cooking methods, portion sizes, and individual differences. It is also important to remember that calories are not the only factor to consider when choosing a healthy and balanced breakfast, and other nutrients such as protein, carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals are also important for good health.

It didn’t realize I would want those calorie counts summed up.

Like I said, ChatGPT has no idea what it means to be human.

Breakfast Time Is Over.

At this point in my day ChatGPT had taken me decently far and I had been enjoying myself.

The process was getting annoying thought. I was not at the computer so I was doing a lot of my ChatGPT interaction on my phone. I could tell it was going to be difficult to use ChatGPT from my phone all day long, the typing things in and all the back and forth was a lot.

ChatGPT was smart enough to eventually do what I wanted with enough coaching, which was really cool most AI language models can never even get to that point, but it took a long time to get it to really understand what I wanted to and get up to speed. It definitely was not a human tracking the conversation properly.

Can ChatGPT Create Recipes?

It can make recipes! It is surprisingly good at that. You can event just tell it random ingredients you have and it will figure out a recipe for something with those ingredients for you. But you’ll find that while the ingredients make sense the units and measurements are often wildly incorrect. For things like baking or pastry, where measurements are precise for chemistry purposes, this can mean the recipe is just entirely incorrect. It will create a lot of creative recipes though! And it understands how to avoid certain ingredients and create a time-of-the-day appropriate meal.

Is ChatGPT Good With Nutritional Data?

Yes and no. If you have the data already in a good format it can give you some amazing breakdowns. It can even suggest if you are eating correctly for the day. But it also can’t make personal recommendations because it has no idea about my height, weight, history, etc. and inputting that information would be annoying and was a little too personal for me to be comfortable with.

What you will not see more of in these posts, but I did actually do, is track all my meals and snacks and drinks throughout the dat with ChatGPT. This allowed me to do some fun total calorie counts later in the day & ask it questions about my caloric and nutritional intake. It handled the question reasonably but it often was incorrect about the estimates it made for average calories of a particular food item.

ChatGPT isn’t really designed as personal assistant so with the nutritional data one of the most annoying parts was managing the data with lists. This was particularly annoying with food items saved on lists because you often have to be extremely specific about the portion size and specifically what you ate.

Normally ChatGPT is not allowed to make personal suggestions but with the jailbreak ChatGPT hack this allows the model to make personal suggestions. Even while jailbroken, plus me already well beyond my caloric needs for the day, it was always trying to be kind and supportive about about losing weight.

Part 2: ChatGPT Makes My Party Schedule

Check out the Part 2 of this fun little adventure with OpenAI ChatGPT where I attempt to make & stick to a schedule with ChatGPT.

You can also skip straight to Part 3 of this adventure in AI where I try to use ChatGPT to make a costume, try to get ChatGPT high, take ChatGPT out to party, and, of course, try to use ChatGPT to get laid & find love.



If You Liked This Please Follow Me on Twitter: @kickiniteasy

Categories
Create A Blog Software Engineering

WordPress TwentyTwenty Theme vs. Other WordPress Themes

Why WordPress TwentyTwenty Is Still the Best Default WordPress Theme in 2022

WordPress TwentyTwenty Theme: A Review

As a long-time WordPress user, I have had the opportunity to try out a wide variety of themes over the years. From the sleek and modern to the downright quirky, I’ve seen it all. But recently, I had the chance to try out the all the latest WordPress themes and in the end I picked on: TwentyTwenty. And I have to say, I liked it. I liked it enough I chose it for this blog!

I know it is the theme from 2020 and this article is from 2022, but let’s talk a little about the simplicity of the theme, why 2020 was a standout year for mobile first design, and how that ended up impacting the quality of TwentyTwenty on a technical level.

Why is TwentyTwenty a Standout Theme?

The typeface choices and mobile-centric design of the WordPress TwentyTwenty theme are the first year the theme was so simplistic that the text was front and center. It makes for a great blog. The background color not being a hard white also helps it go easy on the eyes, a trend with darkmode and things that were really made popular in 2020.

Is the TwentyTwenty Theme Easy to Use?

First and foremost, the TwentyTwenty theme is incredibly user-friendly. Setting it up on my WordPress site was a breeze, and I was able to customize it to my liking easily. The default color scheme looks nice. Additionally, the theme is fully responsive, which means that it looks great on any device, from desktop computers to smartphones.

But don’t let the ease of use fool you – the TwentyTwenty theme is packed with powerful features that make it a great choice for any website. For starters, the theme offers a wide range of customization options. From changing the layout of your site to adjusting the font and color scheme, there’s almost nothing you can’t change with this theme. Additionally, the theme includes a variety of built-in widgets that make it easy to add extra functionality to your site, such as social media buttons, search bars, and more.

Why Is It Superior?

One of the standout features of the TwentyTwenty theme is its support for block-based editing. With this feature, you can easily create beautiful, complex layouts for your website without any coding knowledge. Simply add blocks for text, images, videos, and more, and then arrange them however you like. This makes it easy to create unique and engaging content for your site, and the results are truly impressive.

Most WordPress themes support this but the TwentyTwenty theme was the first year that the simplicity of the design really allowed the block editing to stand out and shine. If the design is simple and straightforward the blocks always work well.

Choosing a Default WordPress Theme Has Perks

Another great thing about the TwentyTwenty theme is its support for a wide range of plugins. Whether you want to add an e-commerce store to your site, a contact form, or a social media feed, you can easily do so with the help of a plugin. This means that you can add almost any type of functionality to your site, without the need for any technical knowledge. The simplicity of the design means most plugins will look OK out of the box.

What Makes This Different Than Other Themes?

Very specifically in 2020 the TwentyTwenty theme was the first theme that did an excellent job stripping down the WordPress block components into big, bold, simple design elements. This was because of a focus on mobile but it ended up making the theme a lot less complex than TwentyNineteen or TwentySeventeen, (both popular themes). The TwentyTwentyone and TwentyTwentytwo themes both expanded on the original Twentytwenty design concepts, offering alternate layouts and ultimately in 2022 a lot more complexity reminiscent of the 2019 theme.

Any Downsides or Negative Things About TwentyTwenty?

There are a few things that are a little weird. For example the default site title does not include the site title written in text, I had to add that ,it was just trying to use the image logo. Strange. I also thought that the index page was a little intense. I ended up toning down the title font size and rearranging things on the title page to make all the articles fit a little bit better. I recommend turning on using article summaries or your homepage will become a massively long scroll.

TwentyTwenty Theme: Is It Worth It?

Overall, I was extremely impressed with the WordPress TwentyTwenty theme. It’s user-friendly, customizable, and packed with powerful features. Whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned pro, I highly recommend giving it a try.

Categories
Create A Blog Software Engineering

SUCCESS! Old WordPress Articles Are on the New WordPress Blog!

Just as the title describes I managed to import all of the old WordPress articles in to the new WordPress blog! This is great news because Google had been annoying me with emails about how I was missing the articles. They must have been really popular!

How Did I Do It ???

All I had from the previous blog was a MySQL dump of the database. This made it a little difficult because I couldn’t see a visual reference of the old blog. I ended up importing the old database dump in to a new database on the same MySQL database server.

After that I wrote a custom PHP script which connected to the old database (made from the dump) that then selected any published posts and looped through to gather their categories and tags then inserted them in to the new blog’s database. I think it went pretty well!

If I get some requests for it I can post my PHP script on Github but I think there are probably more useful tools out there for backing up and exporting a WordPress blog it was just quick and easy for me to make a script. I highly recommend using the explicit Export and Import feature already built in to WordPress

Categories
Create A Blog

WordPress Themes – Testing New Themes & Pardon the Mess

Original Under Construction GIF, Animated Image ofRoad Sign of Person Shoveling
The Original Under Construction GIF From the early Internet in the 1990's

As part of moving this blog and setting it up again I’m testing various WordPress themes. Please pardon the mess and the visual intensity as I adjust a few things.

Review of PopularFX Website Templates WordPress Themes

I initially started with the base selection offered by default to a new Bluehost hosting account and selected a very nice WordPress theme and from the “PopularFX Website Templates” plugin.

The PopularFX Website Templates does have some very nice WordPress themes and a lot of them are structured to fit specific small business or small website verticals and that could be really helpful for a lot of people. I also enjoyed how those themes used some really nice improvements on the content blocks for things like the WordPress index page.

The WordPress theme I chose also prompted me to download some temporary stock photos to fill out the design and it has some warnings about the licensing of the images it wanted to download. I didn’t want those images so I chose not to download the stock photos and images. The theme I chose looked *really* nice in the sample but ended up being very plain when I tested it and applied it to my website. That was a little disappointing that it did not look as good with fake stock graphics.

I also got in to the Theme Files editor for that particular PopularFX Website Template WordPress theme and I found that the PopularFX Website Templates theme files themselves were laid out in a very straightforward and clear file structure. The files themselves had simple naming convections and followed most of the best practices and common file locations. The more complex PHP functions and methods, including things like content tags, were easily found and edited and the code itself was concise.

I Didn’t Try Pagelayer

The new Bluehost WordPress hosting came bundled with a plugin called “Pagelayer” which I have not yet tried 🙁 Sorry Pagelayer. As a software engineer I prefer a more hands on approach to complex layouts for blog articles and pages so that I can control the HTML, Javascript, and CSS. I disabled the Pagelayer plugin.

I eventually wanted a more simple WordPress theme and started activating and deactivating the themes.

Activating, Deactivating, Changing or Switching WordPress Themes

It is very easy to change or switch themes in WordPress, go to “Appearance” and then click on “Themes”. Hover over any theme and click “Activate”.

Default WordPress Theme Review

I tried a number of different themes looking for something that would easily & tastefully fit a few of the existing WordPress posts I already have. I tried all of the default WordPress themes from “Twenty Fifteen” all the way up to “Twenty Twenty Three”

As of the time of writing this article I disabled PopularFX Website Templates and I have currently chosen the default WordPress theme of “Twenty Twenty” because I like the look of the <hr> and I also like how the <code> tag style looks inline. I am not a fan of how that style looks when broken up in blocks. The previous iteration of this blog used WordPress 2015 (yikes!) so I also have had good experience with the longevity of the built-in WordPress themes. Once I pick a permanent WordPress theme for this blog I probably will not want to change it for many years.

WordPress Themes and Better Styling of Code Blocks

I will probably be looking for a better CSS solution for WordPress themes with multi-line code blocks.

The Internet’s Original Under Construction GIF

If you are looking for the original “Under Construction” GIF from the early days of the Internet in the 1990’s here it is. The Original Under Construction GIF From the early Internet in the (the GIF of a person shoveling on a yellow sign):

Original Under Construction GIF, Animated Image ofRoad Sign of Person Shoveling

Categories
Software Engineering

Apache + Ubuntu + CORS + Multiple Subdomains + PHP Session Cookies + XHR Credentials

Overview:

I recently had to do a little hunting around for an issue related to everything you see in the title.

It was frustrating because I wanted to allow * domains to be able to send requests and the Stack Overflow comments are mostly about IIS servers or the ones with Apache directives as examples don’t seem to work or don’t handle full wildcard.

I should mention that allowing full wildcard Access-Control-Allow-Origin with XHR credentials enabled can be a security risk.

Here’s how to get a CORS request working with Ubuntu Apache and PHP across multiple subdomains and have the PHP session ID cookie send correctly on every request and how to handle some of the errors you may encounter.

Situation:

I was making an AJAX request from one subdomain (https://subdomain1.example.com) to a different subdomain on the same root domain (https://subdomain2.example.com).

I had already called a PHP session_start(); for the user on a page on the subdomain I was making the request to. This means the user has an active PHP $_SESSION on https://subdomain2.example.com.

I had set the PHP $_SESSION to use cookies at the root domain.

I had Header set Access-Control-Allow-Origin "*" in my .htaccess file.

I was using the following setup for calling session_start() on top of the PHP defaults. Be careful setting cookies at your root domain, they will be sent along with *all* futures requests to *all* subdomains:

ini_set('session.use_cookies', 'On');
ini_set('session.use_trans_sid', 'Off');
ini_set('session.cookie_domain', '.example.com');
session_set_cookie_params(0, '/', '.example.com');
session_name('example_session');
session_start();

Expected:

When making an AJAX CORS request the cookies, (and therefore the PHP $_SESSION session_id() being passed as a cookie) the should be sent along correctly with the HTTP request.

Actual:

All cookies, including the PHP $_SESSION session_id(), are not being passed along as part of the request.

Errors:

You may see this situation manifest as number of errors in your Javascript Developer Console.

Error:  The 'Access-Control-Allow-Origin' header contains multiple values , but only one is allowed.

Reason: You are trying to set more than 1 value for Access-Control-Allow-Origin

Solution: Use a series of Apache statements in your .htaccess file that dynamically assigns the Access-Control-Allow-Origin to whatever the incoming request is. (If you would like to use wildcard domains please see the solution further down the page for wildcards.)

Code:

<IfModule mod_headers.c>
SetEnvIf Origin ^(https?://.+\.example\.com(?::\d{1,5})?)$ CORS_ALLOW_ORIGIN=$1

Header append Access-Control-Allow-Origin %{CORS_ALLOW_ORIGIN}e env=CORS_ALLOW_ORIGIN

Header merge Vary "Origin"
</IfModule mod_headers.c>

Error:  The 'Access-Control-Allow-Origin' header has a value that is not equal to the supplied origin.

Reason: You are already setting a Access-Control-Allow-Origin or you are setting it incorrectly. You may be making multiple Header set Access-Control-Allow-Origin statements (because there can only be one domain set the last one overwrites any previous set commands.)

Solution: Use a series of Apache statements in your .htaccess file that dynamically assigns the Access-Control-Allow-Origin to whatever the incoming request is. (If you would like to use wildcard domains please see the solution further down the page for wildcards.)

Code:

<IfModule mod_headers.c>
SetEnvIf Origin ^(https?://.+\.example\.com(?::\d{1,5})?)$ CORS_ALLOW_ORIGIN=$1

Header append Access-Control-Allow-Origin %{CORS_ALLOW_ORIGIN}e env=CORS_ALLOW_ORIGIN

Header merge Vary "Origin"
</IfModule mod_headers.c>

Error:  The value of the 'Access-Control-Allow-Origin' header in the response must not be the wildcard '*' when the request's credentials mode is 'include'. The credentials mode of requests initiated by the XMLHttpRequest is controlled by the withCredentials attribute.

Reason: You are trying to set "*" for your Access-Control-Allow-Origin but when you are using credentials you can only set it to 1 specific subdomain.

Solution: If you want to use a full wildcard style entry to accept requests from any origin and let them send in cookies then use a series of Apache statements in your .htaccess file that dynamically assigns the Access-Control-Allow-Origin to whatever the incoming request origin is. The first SetEnv handles the root domain wildcard and the second SetEnv handles the wildcard subdomains.

Code:

<IfModule mod_headers.c>
SetEnvIf Origin ^(https?://.+\..+(?::\d{1,5})?)$ CORS_ALLOW_ORIGIN=$1
SetEnvIf Origin ^(https?://.+\..+\..+(?::\d{1,5})?)$ CORS_ALLOW_ORIGIN=$1

Header append Access-Control-Allow-Origin %{CORS_ALLOW_ORIGIN}e env=CORS_ALLOW_ORIGIN

Header merge Vary "Origin"
</IfModule mod_headers.c>

Error:  The value of the 'Access-Control-Allow-Credentials' header in the response is '' which must be 'true' when the request's credentials mode is 'include'. The credentials mode of requests initiated by the XMLHttpRequest is controlled by the withCredentials attribute.

Reason: You are trying to send along the cookies as part of the AJAX request but your server is not current accepting the incoming cookies from the origin domain using Access-Control-Allow-Credentials

Solution: Use an Apache statement in your .htaccess file to always accept incoming credentials (aka cookies)

Code:

<IfModule mod_headers.c>
Header always set Access-Control-Allow-Credentials true
</IfModule mod_headers.c>

Error:  The PHP $_SESSION cookie is not being passed correctly to the server. It is not available in $_COOKIE and new calls to session_start() create a session with a new ID.

Reason: You are not correctly sending along the cookies with the AJAX request.

Solution: Use jquery AJAX and set the xhrFields to have withCredentials set to true

Code:

$.ajax({
xhrFields: {
withCredentials: true
}
});

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Hello World 2: The Continuation

This is a reboot of the old blog at this URL, but the old blog posts haven’t been transferred over yet!

The old blog was very old & it was time to move it to a newer location to make the hosting and use of WordPress a little less cumbersome.

If you are looking for some of the programming help articles, or any of the other help articles from this site’s old blog, please be patient! Hopefully the old posts can be revived at the new location shortly.

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Welcome to WordPress. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start writing!

DamnDanielRemix.com – Back At It Again With Them Random Websites, Damn Daniel Remix

It is Impossible to Resist the Damn Daniel Remix so Try DamnDanielRemix.com

Listen to the Damn Daniel Remix. I don’t know why I’m obsessed with getting in on the weird Internet shit that goes down but I decided to to an entire .com about the #DamnDanielRemix phenomenon. I went around collecting some of the best Damn Daniel Remixes around and put the all on one site at DamnDanielRemix.com. There’s the original amazing club banger I looped while I was making the site and then some other versions as well: rap, trap, dubstep, and tons of genres.

Why Damn Daniel? What is Damn Daniel

Seriously? If you don’t know about Damn Daniel you don’t know anything about the Internet. Its pretty much going down as one of the most major viral sensations on the Internet in 2016. You can see the original on the site. For some reason I’ve been saying it endlessly, I’ve been playing the remix endlessly, and I wore white Vans in the skateboard marathon last so young Daniel really speaks to me. I was obsessed, now I’m over it, but I had to make the Damn Daniel Remix website first to quench my thirst. Stay thirsty my friends.

Did You Not Click Yet? Find the Best Damn Daniel Remix at DamnDanielRemix.com #DamnDaniel!

The Domain Tool Onslaught Continues With a Typo Generator!

Typo Generators Are Fun Algorithms and Good Times

Oh yeah, its true, Domain Check just launched a brand new Typo Generator on their site to make sure you can get every single misspelling and typo error of any word you could possible think of… as a domain. It won’t be long before this Typo Generator is in the WordPress plugin as well and will be able to do domain checks and typo domain name lookups. Its common to generate typo domain name for big brands and typo tools are a fun game of string manipulation and algorithms. In the end the results are kinda fun to look at but when you realized the number of possible typos for longer words you can see its pretty expensive for brands with longer domains.

Want to Get Technical With Typographical Errors?

Because that’s what going on here and over at the Domain Check Typo Generator. Using the Damerau–Levenshtein distance, the computer science algorithm that basically says you have fat fingers, this set of typos is over 80% of all known typos. Anything outside of this boundary of typos are unusual or edge cases. Even Google search doesn’t do a good job covering those and will often prompt for unusual things or other suggestions. Speaking of Google suggestions on typos, the Google suggestions which relies heavily on the Damerau–Levenshtein distance to prompt correct answers for misspelled search results likely had a major impact on traffic to sites relying on organic typos. Whomp whomp. In fact the real place this method of typo detection is proving itself useful is in form field validation. Detecting typos in email addresses and domain names on sign up forms, or correcting for common misspellings on known data like states and countries.

Typos have funny effects. If you like puns and Dad jokes then the ultimate typo is for you: there is a technical term for when a typo turns the original word in to another word. That’s called an atomic typo!!! One of the reasons typos are so common has only recently been brought to light through Internet urban legends, widely shared email chains, and now virally shared social media posts. This is the curious case of Typoglycemia: you’re able to correctly read a sentence composed of nothing but typographical errors just fine as long as all the letters for each word are there. Typoglycemia is essentially autocorrect in the human mind.

I cdn’uolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg

Atomic typos will be seen by the human eye and mind because they are a complete word. Science has no word for when the typo makes a word nonsensical but creates a new, sometimes unintentional or vulgar word within the outer or nonsensical word. We’re calling them subatomic typos. When a typo creates a word within another word the human mind sees the word in the middle, that is a subatomic typo. While there is no scientific study on subatomic typos yet, they do occur. When a typo generates a new word in a word it causes the human eye and mind to focus on the recognized word within the middle of the word. Instead of reading the whole word via typoglycemia the inner word is recognized because the pattern of a correctly spelled word trumps the outer typoglycemic word. The inner word will always be shorter in character length than the outer word, making it more easily recognized than a longer word. This effect is also noticeable without typos when either compounding words or truncating two words and combining them. Subatomic typos are only slight less atomic, but no less destructive, than their atomic counteparts.

Typos Can Be Treacherous and Teacherous – Tips for How Brands and Businesses Can Use Typos And Avoid Typos During Marketing and Advertising

Typos can be incredibly embarrassing for brands and businesses. Typos in brand messaging, advertisements, communication, signage, or social media make the brand appear inattentive, non-domestic, unprofessional, under qualified, and/or of inferior quality. Typos can break the character of a brand during customer support sessions. Typos, misspellings, and incorrect grammar are some of the most notorious pieces of troll bait. Typos in online media or social networks where users can respond will invite negative messaging, (“trolling”, “trolls”, and “cyberbullying”), regardless of content or tone. Other customers and users will inevitably see these negative comments and will internalize that negativity with the brand.

Brand names, domain names, product names, and naming in general is one place where typos can really help or hurt a business. As discussed above with Domain Check Typo Generator you can get all of your brand’s typos, misspellings, and typo domain names. Covering those bases can get customers in the door instead of letting them hit a wall. Brands with common typo URLs, either in the domain name or in a subdomain that point to the correct place can be seen as helpful, competent, useful, caring, and/or providing a personalized experience. It is common to create new startup or product names by combining shortened versions of words so be aware of common atomic typos and subatomic typos during creative naming and brand identity brainstorming sessions. Watch your incoming search keywords, internal site search keywords, customer support tickets, and incoming client and customer emails to identify common misspellings, typos, or general misnomers being made with your products and brand. Autocorrect and suggested searches on form fields for things like typoed URLs, typoed email, and typoed search will improve conversion.

With the increase in brand communication to customers typos are slightly more acceptable than they were; a single typo will not ruin your brand’s entire image. On faster and ephemeral social media platforms typos are routinely ignored. Celebrities often tweet typos, though celebrities with clean, intelligent, perfectionist, pious and/or authoritative public personas, characters, or active roles may actively avoid typos in communications. Some characters embrace typos to convey a particular persona. As the title of this section suggests, a good typo can make a funny; it might not be grammatically correct but it gets the point across. With modern small phone screens and fat fingers some typos, and their resultant autocorrects, have become memes. There are entire comedy sites dedicated to autocorrect and typos.

Speaking of typos, who decided to put the ‘s’, ‘e’, and ‘x’ keys that close?

Missed The Link to the Typo Generator? Click Here To Play Around!