Mastodawn

WriterOfMinds (she)Jun 12

@kbob The language is python, and it's running on the CPU with no special hacks. The text-to-speech is provided by a third-party utility called FreeTTS (this one: https://freetts.sourceforge.io/docs/index.php)

FreeTTS 1.2.3 - A speech synthesizer written entirely in the Java(TM) programming language

WriterOfMinds (she)Jun 11

WriterOfMinds (she)Jun 10

Latest #robot in sea trials. An old 12v trolling motor provides propulsion. A #RaspberryPi pico is always-on and runs the basics, sensors, h-bridges and such.

An RPi4 will be the main autonomy hub to enable detailed mapping and surveys and such. But for now I can just push #mqtt buttons in #HomeAssistant and move it around.

I built it almost totally out of scrap and epoxy. What a delightful waste of time! 😜

P. S. Note the #lego crew on the bridge.

Small demo this month! I always wanted to be able to see Acuitas "thinking" and I've updated the semantic memory visualization to make that possible. https://writerofminds.blogspot.com/2025/06/acuitas-diary-85-june-2025.html

#ArtificialIntelligence #AI #chatbots #NLP

Acuitas Diary #85 (June 2025)

Adventures in robotics and AI on a shoestring budget. SFF Fiction and occasional video game appreciation.

WriterOfMinds (she)Jun 8

@Crell It's weird to me that, while Twitter and Bluesky both still offer the *option* of a feed consisting only of people you follow (and Bluesky offers other custom options), a lot of people seem not to use it. Even people who endlessly complain about how bad the primary algorithmic feed is *won't stop looking at it.* I'm confused.

To my shock, the *other* penstemon species (Bluestem Penstemon) that I thought had totally died in my front yard is now blooming. I saw the leaf rosettes this spring and took them for wild daisies or something. #nativePlants #bloomscrolling

@Gustodon Fetal rights are human rights. This woman stands with fetal people and against the system of oppression that is legalized elective abortion. And I'm not impressed with anyone who abets discrimination and cruelty against the youngest of our fellow humans, while pretending that they're "punching up."

@mikolasan Yeah, I see some every year. Sometimes whole families. They're very cute when they're not being brats.

@mikolasan Dug them up. They like to grub around in any soft/wet dirt, so they often attack things I've just planted or things I'm watering.

Latest #robot in sea trials. An old 12v trolling motor provides propulsion. A #RaspberryPi pico is always-on and runs the basics, sensors, h-bridges and such.

An RPi4 will be the main autonomy hub to enable detailed mapping and surveys and such. But for now I can just push #mqtt buttons in #HomeAssistant and move it around.

I built it almost totally out of scrap and epoxy. What a delightful waste of time! 😜

P. S. Note the #lego crew on the bridge.

Duuuuuuuuude!!! 😲🤓

Ross of Ottawa Jun 10

@giantspacesquid nice! What are the rough dimensions?

@ottaross 20” by 50”? Maybe?

Ross of Ottawa Jun 10

@giantspacesquid nice work. A substantial craft!

@ottaross thank you!

@ottaross @giantspacesquid looks about 20 lego figures wide...

WokStation Jun 10

@giantspacesquid can it survive submersion, and does it self-right? ("have you got a shrimeck? course we have!")
Is definitely cool!

@wokstation I’m hoping she survives the rain 😂

Ally from Reborn Media Jun 10

@giantspacesquid the fact you called it a delightful waste of time made me smile ! Because well it is….. but that is what makes hobbies soooo cool and valuable. A perfect waste of time! I love it!