How can AI benefit you?

Haydon · Feb 18, 2024

@hdmi Thanks, but OMG what humongous infrastructure!

I got the above from

Continuous Data Protection (CDP) - User Guide for VMware vSphere

Continuous data protection (CDP) is a technology that helps you protect mission-critical VMware virtual machines when data loss for seconds or minutes is unacceptable. CDP also provides minimum recovery time...

helpcenter.veeam.com

and realize that it is part of a bigger system but the article below suggests that scaling down is not good possible either

Continuous data protection - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Well, at least I understand now why File History does not really work

hdmi · Feb 18, 2024

Haydon said:
@hdmi Thanks, but OMG what humongous infrastructure!

View attachment 87555

I got the above from

Continuous Data Protection (CDP) - User Guide for VMware vSphere

Continuous data protection (CDP) is a technology that helps you protect mission-critical VMware virtual machines when data loss for seconds or minutes is unacceptable. CDP also provides minimum recovery time...

helpcenter.veeam.com

and realize that it is part of a bigger system but the article below suggests that scaling down is not good possible either

Continuous data protection - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Well, at least I understand now why File History does not really work

Yeah, near-CDP (and especially True CDP) is almost always overkill if you're not an SME (small or medium-sized enterprise) or MSP (managed service provider). That's why I personally don't use any of all that for anything besides work related stuff, but there's things that you can do to make your own alternative backup solution that borrows some of the main principles behind CDP.

Running FastCopy in diff mode from within your own scripts that you wrote can be a lot more powerful than many think. For example, you could decide to share some of your local folders to a separate computer and monitor the changes individually in each folder to keep track of how much data is going to be transferred over the network by each individual backup task. So you could manually choose to prioritize/delay each backup task, individually, based on these monitoring reports. Doing this would put you more in control of the RPOs, of how much storage space will be used up by these numerous differential backup copies, and of how much network bandwidth will be used when. Just let FastCopy run from within scripts so it will be run on the remote computer such a way that it can copy the data over from the network share, to destination folders that will be newly created on the remote computer each time when a new backup task is run, and that are inaccessible by the local computer. By doing this, the backup data stored on the remote computer can be protected against local malware. (For it to be worth, the remote will need to be well-isolated from the local computer of course.)

Haydon · Feb 18, 2024

@hdmi What does it take to implement the following:

a cdp-like system to replicate/recover the library folders of a single computer with an rpo of 1 hour
on-demand replication (right after an important file has been created/updated)
use robocopy as the workhorse and use its logs as the reporting tools

I'm sure many others will be interested too.

Haydon · Feb 19, 2024

Back to regular programming, and referring to the title of this thread 'How can AI benefit you?' there is the 'Designer' tab that can benefit you.

----------------------- :copilot:

The ‘Designer’ tab is a feature found in certain Microsoft applications like PowerPoint. It’s designed to automatically generate design ideas to enhance the visual appeal of your slides. As you add content to a slide, the Designer works in the background to match that content to professionally designed layouts 1.

You can ask for design ideas at any time by choosing Design > Designer on the ribbon 1. The suggestions appear in the Designer pane on the right side of the window, and you can select the design you want 1.

This feature is part of Microsoft 365 and is intended to help users create more professional and visually appealing presentations 1. If you don’t see the Designer button, it might be because this is a subscriber-only feature 1.

Please note that the availability and functionality of the ‘Designer’ tab can vary depending on the specific Microsoft application and version you are using 1.

hdmi · Feb 19, 2024

Haydon said:
@hdmi What does it take to implement the following:

a cdp-like system to replicate/recover the library folders of a single computer with an rpo of 1 hour

on-demand replication (right after an important file has been created/updated)

use robocopy as the workhorse and use its logs as the reporting tools

I'm sure many others will be interested too.

File History on Windows 11 can be used to create incremental snaphots of the library folders hourly, but unlike Windows 10 if you copy other folders into the covered folders that File History backs up, they won't be backed up too. How to use File History in Windows 10 and 11
Another caveat is if a file never gets updated/modified after you turn File History on, then if this file gets deleted, you won't be able to get it back (and AFAIK this has always been the case with File History, ever since it was introduced by Microsoft with the release of Windows 8). To avoid the consequence of that, you'd have to create a separate backup to cover these files. Some would call that annoying. But then, by itself, File History is not a real backup solution, anyway in the first place. It just saves copies of files, not backup copies of files. It also means that malware can destroy the copies, as the malware still also has access to any storage location that File History has access to. (It's not wholly dissimilar to placing all your backup media right above the computer that you had backed up, and finding out later that the media have melted as a result of the computer catching on fire.)

Even so, you can choose to let File History save the copies on the local computer, i.e. into a local target folder that is shared over a network, and let the remote computer create a backup copy of that shared folder each time after File History has created another new snapshot in there. That is, let the remote computer listen for the local computer's snapshot creation completed successful event so the remote computer will create a new backup automatically each time, i.e. in another (new) folder that is located on the remote computer (and that isn't shared with the local computer of course). It would require at least a little bit of scripting knowledge to be able to pull this off, but should still be doable within Powershell, for example.

On-demand replication should be even easier to achieve, as you only need to trigger your backup script manually to make it start to run on the remote computer.

As for ROBOCOPY and using its logs to find out where exactly it was that things went wrong. Good luck with that.

Haydon · Feb 19, 2024

@hdmi You suggested in post #162 to use cdp techniques for backups, because true cdp or near cdp can't be (meaningfully) scaled down to backing up a single computer.

So, in the next post #163, I suggested a backup app that uses cdp techniques, the backup app having ALL three features below:

replicate/recover the library folders of a single computer with an rpo of 1 hour
on-demand replication (right after an important file has been created/updated)
use robocopy as the workhorse and use its logs as the reporting tools

Since you are familiar with cdp, I wondered/wonder if you could come up with a block diagram/flowchart/description of the above app that uses cdp techniques.

I already know about FH's many, many shortcomings, I can even add one to the list that I find particularly hideous: FH does NOT notify you if it fails making updates, you can only discover the gaps in the logs

I like RoboCopy's logs a lot, but if you don't then just substitute FastCopy for RoboCopy as the underpinning copy workhorse.

A block diagram/flowchart/description would pull together the various suggestions on using cdp techniques in a single (or some) backup app, making the discussion more concrete

hdmi · Feb 19, 2024

Haydon said:
@hdmi You suggested in post #162 to use cdp techniques for backups, because true cdp or near cdp can't be (meaningfully) scaled down to backing up a single computer.

Well it can be meaningfully scaled down to backing up a single computer if you're dealing with the kind of exception that makes it still worth. I was referring to alternative, less complex (to those who aren't afraid to tinker with a small-but-effective monitoring script that they wrote themselves), techniques that do not meet the definition of True CDP, nor even meet the definition of near-CDP if you tried to stretch that definition (albeit there's always going to be someone who will insist on stretching it further, lol).

Haydon said:
So, in the next post #163, I suggested a backup app that uses cdp techniques, the backup app having ALL three features below:

replicate/recover the library folders of a single computer with an rpo of 1 hour

on-demand replication (right after an important file has been created/updated)

use robocopy as the workhorse and use its logs as the reporting tools

Since you are familiar with cdp, I wondered/wonder if you could come up with a block diagram/flowchart/description of the above app that uses cdp techniques.

I didn't say I was familiar with it, as I don't very often have to futz around with it TBH, but I do know that it very often can become fairly complex. Once you start looking a tad deeper under the hood, it tends to be that.

What I think I am more or less familiar with are the general basic principles, the pros versus the cons, how it compares to other types of strategies also in that regard, etc. so, what I did was I just tried to describe another method/idea the goal of which is to move one reasonable step closer to those specific advantages of near-CDP that could potentially be useful to backing up a single computer. That is, without going as far as to actually deploy near-CDP on that computer.

Haydon said:
I already know about FH's many, many shortcomings, I can even add one to the list that I find particularly hideous: FH does NOT notify you if it fails making updates, you can only discover the gaps in the logs

One disadvantage of CDP besides the added complexity is the importance of needing to monitor the status info, monitor errors and inconsistencies in the backed up data, monitor the impact on the infrastructure and on performance related factors also including how much backup storage space will be used... among various other factors. But anyway. To get notified of errors that might occur with File History, you could always decide to create a new task in Task Scheduler that will be triggered based on a custom XML query of the event logs.

How to run Scheduled Task when an Event is triggered in Windows 11/10

For IT administrative purposes, you may want to run a Scheduled Task when an Event is triggered in Windows 11/10. This post shows you how!

www.thewindowsclub.com

Consuming Events (Windows Event Log) - Win32 apps

You can consume events from channels or from log files.

learn.microsoft.com

Haydon said:
I like RoboCopy's logs a lot, but if you don't then just substitute FastCopy for RoboCopy as the underpinning copy workhorse.

It isn't a matter of like or dislike. Just tell me what I have to do to get ROBOCOPY to make me a log of exactly what file(s) it failed to copy, and maybe I will consider using it one day.

Haydon said:
A block diagram/flowchart/description would pull together the various suggestions on using cdp techniques in a single (or some) backup app, making the discussion more concrete

RealTimeSync can be set up such a way that it will run a custom command based on changes that RealTimeSync will detect while it monitors a certain folder. See:

FreeFileSync

Download FreeFileSync 14.0. FreeFileSync is a free open source data backup software that helps you synchronize files and folders on Windows, Linux and macOS.

freefilesync.org

● RealTimeSync does not require you to start FreeFileSync. It can also be used in other scenarios, like sending an email whenever a certain directory is modified.

So basically, what that means is that RealTimeSync can also be used to, on a remote computer, run your own script that runs FastCopy in diff mode by using FastCopy commandline options, and that keeps periodically evaluating the logs that FastCopy creates, i.e. to extract what info you want from the logs and notify you of errors that it might encounter etc. until FastCopy has finished its current task. No block diagrams/flowcharts are required for any of this.

hdmi · Feb 19, 2024

AI can help you to understand
what's come out of yer hooter.

Haydon · Feb 19, 2024

@hdmi Well, if I put a complex system together, then, after putting together the system performance expectations (like items 1, 2, 3 in post #166) I put together a block diagram/flowchart/description, I wouldn't know how else it can be done.

The reason is that if a does 1, b does 2, c does 3, then a+b+c does NOT do 1+2+3

The log switches in my multi-line RoboCopy script are

first line
/LOG:"<drive letter>:\<text file name.txt" /FP /BYTES /NS /NC /NFL /NDL

subsequent lines
/LOG+:"<drive letter>:\<text file name.txt" /FP /BYTES /NS /NC /NFL /NDL

The formatting switches /FP /BYTES /NS /NC /NFL /NDL are sufficient for what I want to monitor in the combined log, but they allow for a great deal of flexibility.

Haydon · Feb 19, 2024

Back to regular programming, how can Copilot help office workers?

--------------------------- :copilot:

Certainly! Microsoft Copilot can be a valuable ally for office workers, streamlining tasks and enhancing productivity. Here are some ways Copilot can assist:

Drafting Emails: Copilot can help you compose emails more efficiently, saving time on repetitive communication.
Summarizing Web Pages: When researching or reading articles, Copilot can provide concise summaries, allowing you to quickly grasp essential information.
Creating PowerPoint Decks: Copilot can assist in generating slide content, making your presentations more engaging and informative.
Automating Excel Tasks: Whether it’s data analysis, modeling, or cleaning, Copilot can handle repetitive Excel operations, freeing you up for more strategic work 1.
Meeting Organization: Copilot can help organize meetings by setting agendas, formulating action points, and creating summaries for absent team members 2.
Content Creation: Copilot can generate content for various purposes, such as writing reports, creating documentation, or drafting proposals.
Local Machine Commands (Windows 11): Copilot integrates with Windows 11, allowing you to issue commands like “Open Notepad,” “Turn on dark mode,” or “Take a screenshot” directly from your desktop 1.
Edge Browser Integration: When working in the Edge browser, Copilot is accessible via a button on the top right. It can summarize web pages, organize tabs, and even create content based on your browsing context 1.

Remember, Copilot is your AI companion, ready to tackle mundane tasks and provide valuable insights, ultimately reducing workload and improving well-being 3.

hdmi · Feb 20, 2024

Haydon said:
@hdmi Well, if I put a complex system together, then, after putting together the system performance expectations (like items 1, 2, 3 in post #166) I put together a block diagram/flowchart/description, I wouldn't know how else it can be done.

The reason is that if a does 1, b does 2, c does 3, then a+b+c does NOT do 1+2+3

The log switches in my multi-line RoboCopy script are

first line
/LOG:"<drive letter>:\<text file name.txt" /FP /BYTES /NS /NC /NFL /NDL

subsequent lines
/LOG+:"<drive letter>:\<text file name.txt" /FP /BYTES /NS /NC /NFL /NDL

The formatting switches /FP /BYTES /NS /NC /NFL /NDL are sufficient for what I want to monitor in the combined log, but they allow for a great deal of flexibility.

https://fastcopy.jp/help/fastcopy_eng.htm

You can specify multiple source items (files/folders) in just a single command. Here is an example (with file verification set to enabled),

Code:

C:\tools\FastCopy\FastCopy.exe /logfile=C:\tools\FastCopy\ErrorLog.log /filelog=C:\tools\FastCopy\FileLog.log /cmd=diff /force_start /verify=TRUE /balloon=FALSE /no_ui <file1> <file2> <...> /to="<DestDir>"

Alternatively, specify a filelist. E.g.:

Code:

C:\tools\FastCopy\FastCopy.exe /logfile=C:\tools\FastCopy\ErrorLog.log /filelog=C:\tools\FastCopy\FileLog.log /cmd=diff /force_start /verify=TRUE /balloon=FALSE /no_ui /srcfile=C:\tools\FastCopy\filelists\files.txt /to="<DestDir>"

Always be sure to pay special attention to this: https://fastcopy.jp/help/fastcopy_eng.htm#backslash_behavior

Further, some settings are stored in a file FastCopy2.ini (so these can be edited manually in there), like:
Option | Main Settings | Verify options |
● Hash mode [0 = MD5, 1 = SHA-1, 2 = SHA-256, 3 = SHA-512, 5 = xxHash, 6 = xxHash3(128bit)] – example:
hash_mode3="0"
● If not verifying, record the src hash value in the file log [0 = Disabled, 1 = Enabled] – example:
hashAdd="0"

If there's multiple logfiles and you want them to be combined, you could always decide to add a few simple Windows commands to concatenate these logfiles in a separate new textfile.

Again, being unable to see in the logs exactly what file(s) have failed to copy is part why I never use ROBOCOPY. (File History doesn't have that limitation, lol...) Having no verification also kind of defeats the whole purpose of using ROBOCOPY to create backup copies anyway to begin with.

Haydon · Feb 20, 2024

@hdmi Oh yes, you can very well see failures to copy in the RoboCopy log and much, much more, e.g. leaving the Outlook app open will lock its data file, and you can see which data files fail to copy (if you have multiple data files) you can see how many bytes have failed to copy (although that is not in my log switches) you can see the time stamps, and if you specify multiple retries, you will see the time stamps of each, etc. etc.

More importantly though, neither you nor I have the background to do a top down design of the deceptively simple system 123 of post #166. Dabbling with wheels and axles don't lead to the wagon. Let's park the issue for now.

Haydon · Feb 20, 2024

How can Copilot help teachers?

-------------------- :copilot:

Microsoft Copilot is an AI tool designed to assist educators in the classroom. Here are five ways it can be helpful:

Personalized Learning: Copilot supports personalized learning by helping you create content, tailored feedback, and guidance for students based on their individual needs and learning styles. It can adapt to diverse student requirements and enhance their learning experiences 1.
Brainstorming: Use Copilot to brainstorm new ideas for activities, lesson plans, supporting materials, and assignments. It can generate creative prompts and suggestions to inspire your teaching approach 1.
Lesson Planning: Copilot assists in planning lessons by suggesting or drafting activities, resources, and assessments aligned with learning objectives. It can even help you start a rubric for your lessons 1.
Feedback Generation: Copilot can draft initial feedback and ideas for students on their work. You can then edit and personalize this feedback to suit individual student needs 1.
Quick Answers: When you have questions, Copilot provides quick answers without requiring you to read through multiple search results. It also includes links to content sources, allowing you to assess the credibility of information or explore further 1.

jvickers · Feb 20, 2024

Haydon said:
How can Copilot help teachers?

--------------------
Microsoft Copilot is an AI tool designed to assist educators in the classroom. Here are five ways it can be helpful:

Personalized Learning: Copilot supports personalized learning by helping you create content, tailored feedback, and guidance for students based on their individual needs and learning styles. It can adapt to diverse student requirements and enhance their learning experiences 1.

Brainstorming: Use Copilot to brainstorm new ideas for activities, lesson plans, supporting materials, and assignments. It can generate creative prompts and suggestions to inspire your teaching approach 1.

Lesson Planning: Copilot assists in planning lessons by suggesting or drafting activities, resources, and assessments aligned with learning objectives. It can even help you start a rubric for your lessons 1.

Feedback Generation: Copilot can draft initial feedback and ideas for students on their work. You can then edit and personalize this feedback to suit individual student needs 1.

Quick Answers: When you have questions, Copilot provides quick answers without requiring you to read through multiple search results. It also includes links to content sources, allowing you to assess the credibility of information or explore further 1.

I use Gemini (formerly Bard) to do much of what Copilot indicates it can do for teachers. It cuts down on the time spent having to brainstorm and plan for individual classes as well as an entire semester's worth of work. It does a great job designing discussion questions and rubrics.

jvickers · Feb 20, 2024

jvickers said:
I use Gemini (formerly Bard) to do much of what Copilot indicates it can do for teachers. It cuts down on the time spent having to brainstorm and plan for individual classes as well as an entire semester's worth of work. It does a great job designing discussion questions and rubrics.

Also, Khanmigo is a great AI tool for educators: https://www.khanmigo.ai/. It costs $4.00 a month, but that's nothing compared to the time it will save a teacher.

cereberus · Feb 20, 2024

Haydon said:
Back to regular programming, how can Copilot help office workers?

---------------------------
Certainly! Microsoft Copilot can be a valuable ally for office workers, streamlining tasks and enhancing productivity. Here are some ways Copilot can assist:

Drafting Emails: Copilot can help you compose emails more efficiently, saving time on repetitive communication.

Summarizing Web Pages: When researching or reading articles, Copilot can provide concise summaries, allowing you to quickly grasp essential information.

Creating PowerPoint Decks: Copilot can assist in generating slide content, making your presentations more engaging and informative.

Automating Excel Tasks: Whether it’s data analysis, modeling, or cleaning, Copilot can handle repetitive Excel operations, freeing you up for more strategic work 1.

Meeting Organization: Copilot can help organize meetings by setting agendas, formulating action points, and creating summaries for absent team members 2.

Content Creation: Copilot can generate content for various purposes, such as writing reports, creating documentation, or drafting proposals.

Local Machine Commands (Windows 11): Copilot integrates with Windows 11, allowing you to issue commands like “Open Notepad,” “Turn on dark mode,” or “Take a screenshot” directly from your desktop 1.

Edge Browser Integration: When working in the Edge browser, Copilot is accessible via a button on the top right. It can summarize web pages, organize tabs, and even create content based on your browsing context 1.

Remember, Copilot is your AI companion, ready to tackle mundane tasks and provide valuable insights, ultimately reducing workload and improving well-being 3.

If anybody is taken in by this garbage, I despair.

1. No chance - my emails are very technical.
2. Never need that
3. No chance - my slides are very technical.
4. Even more no chance - my excel spreadsheets are very technical. It would take me longer to tell Aritificial Idiot what I want than do it my self.
5. This is a joke - right - who needs AI to do this!
6. Content Creation - nonsense - all our reports are bespoke.
7. So I type long commands to do what I can do with shortcuts lol.
8. Switched the annoying prat off!

In summary, I have a brain - I do not need AND will never need Co-Pilot.

Haydon · Feb 20, 2024

Can AI help people with a brain?

---------------------- :copilot:

Absolutely, AI can be a powerful tool for individuals who prefer to think for themselves. Here’s how:

Information Access: AI can help users access and analyze vast amounts of information quickly, aiding in informed decision-making.
Personalized Learning: AI can adapt learning materials to a user’s pace and level of understanding, fostering independent learning.
Productivity Tools: AI-powered tools can automate routine tasks, freeing up time for more complex, thought-intensive tasks.
Critical Insights: AI can provide insights and predictions based on data analysis, which users can then interpret and apply according to their judgment.
Creative Inspiration: AI can generate ideas, designs, or suggestions that can serve as a starting point for creative endeavors.

In essence, AI doesn’t replace human thought but can enhance it by providing resources, insights, and tools that individuals can use according to their discretion.

cereberus · Feb 20, 2024

Haydon said:
Can AI help people with a brain?

----------------------
Absolutely, AI can be a powerful tool for individuals who prefer to think for themselves. Here’s how:

Information Access: AI can help users access and analyze vast amounts of information quickly, aiding in informed decision-making.

Personalized Learning: AI can adapt learning materials to a user’s pace and level of understanding, fostering independent learning.

Productivity Tools: AI-powered tools can automate routine tasks, freeing up time for more complex, thought-intensive tasks.

Critical Insights: AI can provide insights and predictions based on data analysis, which users can then interpret and apply according to their judgment.

Creative Inspiration: AI can generate ideas, designs, or suggestions that can serve as a starting point for creative endeavors.

In essence, AI doesn’t replace human thought but can enhance it by providing resources, insights, and tools that individuals can use according to their discretion.

IMO - Total codswallop.

All you have done is use some Chat wotsit to reply what it is programmed to say. Do you seriously believe all that nonsense?

This is just marketing hype - end of story.

Even if we consider classic computing tasks e.g. numerical integration of many functions that cannot be solved analytically - sure the computers helps because of the speed of doing repetitive work, but the underlying solution methods come from humans.

All AI does is use fancier solution techniques but it cannot and never will make the mental intuitive leaps necessary to develop the fancier solution techniques UNTIL the AI achieves sentience. Until then, it has no intelligence whatsoever.

So @Haydon, I am sorry but I have to disagree with the above statements. If you want to believe that marketing hype, it is your prerogative, but please accept others do not.

edit: what is truly worrying is the statement "Absolutely, AI can be a powerful tool for individuals who prefer to think for themselves."
This suggests there are individuals who prefer not to think for themselves!

We don't need no AI education
We don't need no AI thought control
No company thoughts in the classroom
AI, leave them kids alone
Hey, AI, leave them kids alone
All in all, it's just another brick in the wall
All in all, you're just another brick in the wall
We don't need no AI education
We don't need no AI thought control
No company thoughts in the classroom
AI, leave them kids alone
Hey, AI, leave us kids alone
All in all, you're just another brick in the wall
All in all, you're just another brick in the wall

Haydon · Feb 20, 2024

Can you chat with brain-dead people?

---------------------- :copilot:

Microsoft secured a patent for software that could reincarnate people as chatbots

cereberus · Feb 20, 2024

Haydon said:
Can you chat with brain-dead people?

----------------------

Microsoft secured a patent for software that could reincarnate people as chatbots

LOL

How can AI benefit you?

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