Coder, dad, runner, biker. Bits and bikes.
Salisbury, England
Joined May 2010
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- Following411
- Followers114
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Phil Richards retweeted
It finally finished, here's the final output. Used 60% of my monthly Kimi usage on it
macos27.kimi.page
Phil Richards retweeted
Linux kernel won't be anti-AI, by Linus himself:
lore.kernel.org/all/CAHk-%3D…
"No, that’s not the position of the Linux kernel.
I realize that some people really dislike AI, but this is an area where I’m willing to absolutely put my foot down as the top-level maintainer.
Linux is not one of those anti-AI projects, and if somebody has issues with that, they can do the open-source thing and fork it.
Or just walk away.
AI is a tool, just like other tools we use. And it’s clearly a useful one.
It may not have been that “clearly” even just a year ago, but it’s no longer in question today.
There are other questions around AI, like what the economy of it will actually look like in the end, but “is it useful?” is no longer one of those questions. Anybody who doubts that clearly hasn’t actually used it.
Yes, it can also be a somewhat painful tool, both for maintainer workloads and just from an “it keeps finding embarrassing bugs” standpoint.
But the solution is not to put your head in the sand and sing, “La la la, I can’t hear you,” at the top of your voice, like some people seem to do.
The solution is to make sure those LLM tools help maintainers instead of just causing them pain. There’s no question on that side.
We’re not forcing anybody to use it, but I will very loudly ignore people who try to argue against other people using it.
And no, AI isn’t perfect. But Christ, anybody who points to the problems with AI had better be looking in the mirror and pointing at themselves at the same time.
Because it’s not like natural intelligence is always all that great either.
The kernel project has been and will continue to be about the technology.
Sure, the social angle of working on open source is important and often a very motivating part of the project, but in the end that’s a side benefit, not the point of the project.
This is NOT some kind of “social warrior” project, never has been, and never will be.
In the kernel community, we do open source because it results in better technology, not because of religious reasons.
And so we make decisions primarily based on technical merit. Not fear of new tools."
Linus
Phil Richards retweeted
You'll want to be sitting down for this bit.
Water companies are currently £82.7 billion in debt, have paid themselves £85 billion in dividends, leak over a trillion of litres of water per year, dump sewage for almost 4 million hours per year, have been convicted of over 1,200 criminal acts since 1989 and an average of 35% of your bill goes on nothing but paying more interest and yet more dividends.
And not a single company has ever lost their operating licence. 👇
Yorkshire Water and Northumbrian Water have nearly 200 criminal convictions between them.
On 6 August 2024, Ofwat fined them £47m and £17m for sewage dumping.
Fines not paid, will not be paid. Firms claim to have invested. No penalty for abusing laws
leftfootforward.org/2026/01/…
Phil Richards retweeted
Never has this been truer. Labour needs to step up, wake up, show up, and get us back on the path to EU membership, in whatever form can be agreed. Blair was right then and is right now. Come on, sort yourselves out. Your economic growth doesn’t exist.
Phil Richards retweeted
Take it in. The first female chancellor. The first housing secretary who's actually lived in social housing. The first education secretary who was on free school meals. An energy secretary who actually believes in aggressively fighting climate change. Not a bad afternoon.
Phil Richards retweeted
This tweet about a practical proposal to lessen the congestion on the road near me has been looked at by 50k people. I have learnt a lot of things from the many responses. Here are just a few. 1/10
Phil Richards retweeted
Microsoft.com added 192.168.1.1 to their DNS record news.ycombinator.com/item?id…
Phil Richards retweeted
If you're not angry enough at WCs already this will definitely put you over the edge.
Fantastic tool by the @Guardian. Enter your postcode and see exactly how much of your water bill goes to pay for greed, incompetence and failure.
Me? 25% 😡
theguardian.com/environment/…
Phil Richards retweeted
Introducing RESCUE: Transforming challenges into opportunities. If your iPSCs reveal mosaic genetic or genomic abnormalities, there's no need to despair. Our RESCUE service can salvage these cells, preserving the integrity of your research. #CellRevival #iPSCRescue
ALT iPSCs in need of RESCUE
RESCUE: if you discover that your cells have a genetic/genomic abnormality - don’t panic! We are here to help rescue your cell line, saving your cells and the day. #drugdiscovery
cellected.com/services/ipsc-…
3/
Phil Richards retweeted
As highlighted by a number of publications - and recently in the @ISSCR standards document - it is key for researchers to assess the quality and stability of their iPSC cultures.
We're launching a trio of new services that tackle quality and stability head-on.
1/
We're on the cusp of something special in accelerated stem cell QC. Our team has been working hard on a trio of services that we believe will make a real difference in iPSC research. #ipscs #stemcells #RnR
Phil Richards retweeted
HS2 was never going to destroy 108 ancient woodlands, not even before the Tories slashed it to pieces.
I'd like to explain the history of this claim.
It started when @WildlifeTrusts wrote a report, which suggested 108 ancient woodlands would risk loss or significant impact.
Phil Richards retweeted
A few people (actually quite a lot) have asked me what I think of recent announcements on “the war on motorists.” Here is my reply which I suspect will annoy people on both sides …
createstreets.com/street-fig…
Phil Richards retweeted
"We are a nation of drivers"????
Uh, yeah I guess so. We are also a nation of bed users. Of breakfasters. We're carpet fans. We are a nation of tap users. We are a nation who likes to use pens.
We are a nation of microwavers, of shoe-wearers.
We are a nation of eyebrow-havers.
We are a nation of drivers.
Most of us use a car every day and, for many, life would be difficult without their car.
But too often, drivers feel under attack.
That changes today with a long-term plan to improve drivers' experience on the road.
Here’s how 👇🧵
ALT Graphic that reads: Our plan for drivers - slamming the brakes on anti-motorist measures. Long-term decisions for a brighter future.
Phil Richards retweeted
I’ve seen this graphic a few times now on social media.
Put simply, it is the difference between walking next to a train when it’s stationary at a platform and being passed by an express train when you’re stood in front of the yellow line.
There’s quite a difference.
ALT A graphic which says: “If cyclists need 1.5m when you overtake them, how come they try and squeeze up the side of your car at traffic lights?”
ALT A fast moving train in front of a train platform
Phil Richards retweeted
Farm donations box takings stolen! Who does that to a community farm that is free to visit? Must have happened after 3pm Sunday 13th. Any info please call 01722 330667, or email [email protected]
ALT Donation box with lock forced open and cash stolen
Phil Richards retweeted
This is shocking. There used to be many routes into study for those who didn’t make the cut first time - cheap FE evening classes, extra-mural university departments, low cost Open University modules. What is *wrong* with these people?
Phil Richards retweeted
We face a cost-of-living crisis created by events outside the UK triggering rates of inflation that many in this country have never witnessed before. In the face of these rising prices the Bank of England has increased the price of money itself. This is bizarre. A thread……
