---
title: "Xecast Episode 2: Conferences, homelabs, and AI"
date: 2024-08-11
image: "xecast/episodes/002"
desc: "Xe Iaso shares their DevOpsDays MSP experience, home studio upgrades, and AI musings."
podcast:
  link: "https://files.xeiaso.net/xecast/episodes/002.mp3"
  length: "49996935"
---

<Picture path="xecast/episodes/002" />

Also catch Xecast on [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJDDsMrk2tSHFmE_KAQ8YzL6TzrNdCFrC) (I'll make a proper podcast feed soon, trying to de-scope so I can actually get things done).

<Conv name="Mimi" mood="happy">
  These show notes were generated using Google Gemini 1.5 Pro. Should this
  podcast take off, we'll find a better way to do this.
</Conv>

In this episode, Xe shares their experience speaking at DevOpsDays MSP, updates on their home studio and lab, and dives deep into their unique note-taking strategy. They discuss their viral "Praise My GitHub Profile" project, the excitement of enabling GPUs in Talos Linux for their home lab, and the ethical dilemmas surrounding AI advancements, particularly in photorealistic image generation.

## Show Notes

- **DevOpsDays MSP talk:** Xe delivered a talk on their social network project visualized on a whiteboard.
  - [Building a social network from scratch on a whiteboard](https://xeiaso.net/talks/2024/shashin/)
- **Home Studio Upgrades:**
  - Xe upgraded their home studio with large LED lights for better lighting.
  - Building the lightbox was a challenge, requiring a video tutorial in "literally translated Chinese".
- **Home Lab Updates:**
  - Xe's home lab runs Talos Linux, a minimal Linux implementation designed for Kubernetes.
  - They successfully enabled GPUs in Talos, navigating a challenge with the Nvidia kernel module.
  - Xe uses separate Talos schematics for machines with and without Nvidia GPUs, utilizing node labels for management.
  - They plan to integrate their HomePod with a large language model on their home lab via iOS shortcuts.
  - Xe aims to use their home lab for Stable Diffusion experiments with their "No Way To Prevent This" series.
- **Note-Taking Strategy:**
  - Xe's note-taking method involves a hierarchical bullet tree structure, capturing nuanced details.
  - While they prefer paper for its flexibility, they occasionally use Apple Notes due to its convenience and integration possibilities.
  - [Using paper for everyday tasks](https://xeiaso.net/blog/gtd-on-paper-2021-06-13/)
- **"Praise My GitHub Profile" App:**
  - Xe created an app that analyzes GitHub profiles and provides positive feedback using Llama 2 3.1 70B.
  - This project was a response to the negative "GitHub Profile Roaster" tool.
  - [Praise my GitHub Profile](https://praise-me.fly.dev)
- **SRE Sin #1 - Unbounded Work Queues:**
  - Xe's "Praise My GitHub Profile" app went viral, overloading their A100 80GB GPU capacity.
  - They describe their efforts to scale the app, highlighting the challenges of managing sudden traffic surges.
- **AI-Generated Photorealistic Images:**
  - Recent advancements in AI allow for the creation of believable verification photos on consumer hardware, raising ethical concerns.
  - Xe expresses their discomfort with photorealistic AI images, preferring stylized and clearly artificial generations in their work.
  - [DeepLiveCam](https://github.com/hacksider/Deep-Live-Cam)
- **New Image Generation AI Model - Flux:**
  - Xe plans to experiment with Flux, a new image generation AI model from BlackForest Labs.
  - They aim to potentially incorporate Flux into their "No Way To Prevent This" series.
  - [Flux from Black Forest Labs](https://github.com/black-forest-labs/flux)
- **Ethical Concerns and the Future of AI:**
  - Xe voices their concerns about the potential societal impact of advanced AI, particularly deepfaking and photorealistic image generation.
  - They argue for responsible development and deployment of AI technologies, urging societal action to mitigate potential harms.
