Ken Williams

@theneutralbay Thank you!

@caboken Good luck to transit 466!

Roberta's and my Northwest Passage journey is now underway. Since records began, only 465 distinct maritime transits of the Northwest Passage have been successfully completed by various vessels. We will travel from the Puget Sound through the Inside Passage, brave the Bering Sea, and spend plenty of time in the Arctic Ocean as we cross all of North America. Roughly 8,300 nautical miles in total. Wish us fair winds and following seas, and toss a coin to Poseidon! Follow our journey on Instagram at: instagram.com/mv_northstar/ Or on youtube, at: @mvnorthstar" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">youtube.com/@mvnorthstar And subscribe to the newsletter at: kensblog.eo.page/nh9zj Or .. here on X!

@MuskieMcKay I'll wave as I go by!

@caboken You’ll pass by my mom’s house in Deep Bay. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deep_Bay%…

@silvenshadow Thank you! - Ken W

@caboken Congratulations! Have fun and safe travels!

@invyc Thank you! - Ken W

@caboken That’s awesome - have a wonderful trip!

@PawelHomenko Thanks. It’s a fun project

@caboken The radar simulator looks interesting. Video series about it would be great :)

Roberta and I have been working for over a year to get our boat ready for going through the northwest passage. I just posted a video on youtube that explains what we're doing. If you stay to the end, there is a sneak preview of a new software project I'm working on... youtu.be/qgn9X3Pu96k

@radvon ROFL!

@caboken Not to be confused with Torin's Passage

@ShaunTonstad Ps hi Shaun! Just noticed it was you

@caboken I have zero knowledge of boating ... but after watching your vlog I’m hoping for frequent updates so that I may follow along as you navigate the Northwest Passage. Gotta try it on hard mode with less crew!

@ShaunTonstad We’ve done LOTS of hard mode. We’re looking forward to being spoiled…

Today, at 4pm west coast time, 7pm east coast, Roberta will be live in chat on YouTube while we premiere a one hour video of here playing our game Colossal Cave. After the video she will go live on YouTube to answer questions about anything; the game, the Sierra days, our boating, or whatever anyone wants to ask. It should be fun! @colossalcave" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">youtube.com/@colossalcave

@LukaschikGleb I don’t know. Some days I think yes, and other days I think not. To build a market competitive game is a serious commitment of time and money. My guess is - I’m retired.

@caboken Is there any update on your desire to develop a new game, or you've finished with that?

I just posted a new blog (vlog) entry on youtube. There's a lot in this update! It starts with a test of the stabilizers in rough-ish seas, and then Roberta (and the pups) show how the interior is finally starting to take form. Lastly, there is a brief tour of the engine room followed by a breakdown of the two major issues that currently have us stuck waiting on repairs. youtube.com/watch?v=QvIA6M…

@PawelHomenko Thank you!

@caboken Great video :) boat looks amazing :)

@PawelHomenko Thank you!

@caboken Great video :)

I just posted a new blog (or is it vlog) entry on youtube. It is announcing that we are nearing completion of a nearly one year effort to buy and refit an older boat. For the last third of the video I go completely off topic and talk about how I'm using AI and how I see it impacting the job market. Some of you who aren't into boats might find that interesting. youtu.be/yv7KqVwKwds

Thank you! Unfortunately, stabilizers are not optional. In rough seas, they are a lifesaver. I always worry that they will fail and a wave will push us over. In reality we would be safe except in the kinds of seas I know to avoid. However, it would be dangerous and very uncomfortable. Snagging nets and crab pots on the props tends to be a bigger problem than the stabilizer fins. I've had several problems with ropes, nets and even a chain, wrapped around the props. Maybe I've been lucky, but we've cruised around 60,000 miles without snagging anything on the fins. I damaged one on a rock once, but so far nothing that stopped us moving.

@caboken Boat - Could the stabilizers become an irritant if they keep getting caught up with thigs underwater ? is there a way to shed / eject them in an emergency ? AI - We survived a near wipe out (pandemic). In the long run we'll adapt. Love your video blogs. Do more ! 🌈

Here's something with AI that blew me away yesterday. Probably everyone else knew about this, but it was the first time for me. I had a zoom call with my boat crew and noticed that zoom had an AI option. I had no idea what it was, but turned it on, and then forgot I did. Within a minute of the call ending I received an incredible summary from Zoom of the call. It had done text to speech, and produced an action item list, summary of all we talked about, etc. It was wrong in a few places, but how it was able to keep up with everyone's discussion, including the crappy connections and accents, I do not know. Hardware investments in new technology are dangerous. Imagine all the investments in cable tv, or vsat (satellite) communications before starlink, or even hard wired telephone networks. Lots of companies are investing billions to power AI, and five years from now Nvidia will come up with some quantum computer that obsoletes all the investment. Hardware is a dangerous business.

@caboken Great video, Ken! I also lean on AI for all kinds of questions, especially when exploring concepts... However, increasing compute is now yielding diminishing returns. If I could short data center construction, I'd go all in.

For fun, Roberta asked ChatGPT to give her ideas for a King's Quest 9 game. One simple request, and back came a full design that really wasn't bad. It had a plot, puzzles, characters, scoring. It needed fleshed out, and wasn't perfect, but she was shocked. We are living in some crazy times.

@YoungantheRetro ROFL!

@caboken Ha! Im into both! …. Wait thats came out wrong.