How do you feel about your HEXUS forum posts being scraped and used by AI?

[Jonatron]

https://forums.hexus.net/general-dis...ery-spend.html

[Jonatron]

I don't consent, so delete me if so

OpenAI didn't ask permission, and have already taken your posts.

[Jonj1611]

Never knew they could do that, always thought there was some type of permission involved :/

[DDY]

OpenAI didn't ask permission, and have already taken your posts.

Goodness, it's 2024 and it didn't ask for Jonj1611's pronouns either.

[jimbouk]

It's like Napster for words, but flipping the roles of large corporations and people.

[g8ina]

I got off lightly :

ChatGPT : who is g8ina

G8INA is the call sign for an amateur radio operator based in England. Call signs like G8INA are unique identifiers assigned to licensed amateur radio operators, which allow them to communicate and identify themselves globally within the amateur radio community.

Amateur radio, also known as ham radio, is a popular hobby and service that brings people, electronics, and communication together. People use ham radio to talk across towns, around the world, or even into space, all without the Internet or cell phones. It's a way to communicate with others using various frequencies and modes, such as voice, Morse code, and digital data​ (ARRL)​​ (Ham Info)​.

For more detailed information about G8INA, you can visit their profile on QRZ.com, a comprehensive database of amateur radio operators​ (QRZ)​.

[Output]

I'm certainly against it as anything I post (just like all of us I'm sure) is intended to be seen by a real person, not a bot scraping it to try to make a profit in whatever way they can.

I believe the likes of ChatGPT are basically opt-out via robots.txt files (according to darkvisitors.com at least).

Although I doubt that removes what they've already been trained on before anyone found out any of the bots were even a thing, and I obviously disagree with it being opt-out in the first place instead of opt-in.

That obviously also doesn't guarantee that they will actually adhere to that exclusion either, as Perplexity AI for example was in the news in recent times being accused of ignoring it, so I highly doubt they would be the only ones.

Given the expense and energy cost these supposed AI bots apparently consume, hopefully the hype will die down in time and most will die off as they realise that it was all pointless with no actual benefit as it was just a solution looking for a problem.

[Jonj1611]

I was thinking about this last night. I wonder because its a public forum with no access restrictions (to read it anyway) that they can legit scrape the data.

I as others wish they wouldn't but is there a way to actually stop them?

Though it's not particularly up to do date on certain things. I asked it when my first post was. It said 2021. Sorry AI, that's a fail

[Output]

I doubt legitimacy actually comes into it (especially considering YouTube video transcriptions were scraped according to the latest episode of Techlinked, albeit a step removed in that case rather than directly), it's probably more that they're banking on most people not having the funds to challenge them on it and so they're hoping to get away with it, and of course make as much money for themselves personally in the process until any investors who fell for it cotton on to it not really being a way to get rich quick.

[Rob_B]

I had to add Hexus as context as my username is too generic, but it's 100% correct..

...His involvement in these forums highlights his engagement and the value he adds to the community through his posts and interactions with other members.

[Jonj1611]

I asked it what I thought about spammers. The results I can't even put here! Nor do I recall ever saying such things but I do remember it being said but wasn't by me. Something about viagra, men and prison cells if you get my drift. But that wasn't me!

[Ttaskmaster]

Happily, it doesn't have much on me, but what little it does have is woefully inaccurate and entirely without context. I'm not an expert on something just because I post a flippant and mostly unrelated remark in a thread about such a topic.

Of course, I'd rather it didn't happen at all...

[neonplanet40]

Hmmmmm


""Neonplanet40" appears to be an active participant in various online tech forums and communities, often seeking and sharing advice on technology-related topics. They are involved in discussions about home theater PC setups, networking hardware, and home audio systems.

For instance, they have asked for advice on configuring settings for madVR, a high-quality video renderer used with media players on HTPCs (Home Theater PCs), indicating their interest in optimizing video playback quality​ (Reddit)​. Additionally, Neonplanet40 has engaged in conversations on forums like SNBForums, discussing WiFi setups and issues related to Asus AiMesh systems​ (SNBForums)​.

Neonplanet40 also participates in AV forums, discussing various topics related to home theater receivers and other audio-visual equipment​ (Reddit)​. Their activity suggests they are well-versed in home networking and media server setups, frequently seeking and offering recommendations on tech products.

If you need more specific details or have further questions about Neonplanet40's online contributions, feel free to ask!"

[kalniel]

It's a tricky one isn't it - if you googled forum content you'd expect to find the answer (which had been previously indexed) so how different is it to ask genAI a question of forum content and then expect or not it to be able to answer from the contents?

Would it be better if it was not previously 'indexing' the data and instead used traditional search but then ran genAI on the results to interpret the question and answer it from the content it brought back?

[DDY]

In this tread:

{USER} is a part of {FORUM_NAME}, and participates in {DESCRIPTION_OF_FORUM}.

Truly impressive stuff.

[[GSV]Trig]

I'm not gonna even ask...