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I were 17, I'd learn how to build LLMs from scratch

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Re: I were 17, I'd learn how to build LLMs from scratch

#171

Post by embedding-shape »

latexr wrote: post #166
embedding-shape wrote: post #141

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Mine is that HN in general (certainly more than any other website) used to worship[3] everything he wrote [...] It definitely was not “interesting and maybe true in some ways”, it was much more hardcore than that. I guess it depends on what submission you look at, previous comment of mine solely based on memory. Now I went to https://news.ycombinator.com/from?site=twitter.com/paulg , clicked "More" a bunch of times…

> Just one example That post has barely any points and comments. It’s not a good indicator of general sentiment, it’s just an indicator of people who were on HN at that time. > Maybe you need to enable "Show Dead" or something? I have it enabled. > Pgs articles on HN definitely never was free of any critique in the HN comments, just like any article. Of course. I very explicitly wrote “in general (certainly more than…

Indeed, no hard disagree, merely details :) Overall you're right though, general/overall tone definitely shifted hard for a bunch of individuals over the years.

Re: I were 17, I'd learn how to build LLMs from scratch

#172

Post by zombot »

InsideOutSanta wrote: post #40
embedding-shape wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I would encourage people not to seek advice from successful people like this (survivorship bias). Personally I don't see the problem, as long as you're aware there is survivorship bias involved here. What's the alternative really, seek advice from unsuccessful people? That seems worse :) Personally I do both, read about what worked for people, also read about what didn't work for people, then ignore both and do wha…

> seek advice from unsuccessful people Intuitively, I would guess that they have a better grasp of what made them fail than successful people have of what made them succeed.

Luck is a huge factor in success, so that logic leads nowhere. If one of the quacks selling how-to-succeed recipes had got it right, everyone would do it by now.

Re: I were 17, I'd learn how to build LLMs from scratch

#174

Post by amelius »

bmacho wrote: post #162
yobbo wrote: post #140

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes. It's like looking at the (Apollo) moon rocket launch and then suggesting teenagers should learn to build rockets in their garages for the coming space age. It is viable as a toy project, but there are vanishingly few career opportunities.

It's like looking at the early internet and then suggesting teenagers should write browsers as their projects instead of webpages.

Well, there's a lot more to learn from the former than the latter ...

Re: I were 17, I'd learn how to build LLMs from scratch

#175

Post by BoredomIsFun »

molf wrote: post #161
BoredomIsFun wrote: post #131

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> That's what I would call exploring. Then it is not "building llm from scratch" in my book. Just mindlees following instructions. Could be educational yes, but only trivially useful, if you have no bloody idea what you are doing. > Fooling around and getting results is what made it fun. Understanding came later. It is not how LLMs are "built from scratch".

No it's not useful, no you don't know what you're doing, and no it is not 'proper'. But you're learning. Maybe just accept that not everyone starts from fundamental theory, and there are lots of people who start learning by fooling around.

> No it's not useful, no you don't know what you're doing, and no it is not 'proper'. But you're learning.

It is sold by PG as something special though.

> Maybe just accept that not everyone starts from fundamental theory, and there are lots of people who start learning by fooling around.

Even then LLMs are strange thing to advice to play with, when there are so much more interesting and theoretically accesible for a 17 y.o. so I wonder why would you'd particularly single it out.

Re: I were 17, I'd learn how to build LLMs from scratch

#177

Post by broodbucket »

dude250711 wrote: post #169
wiseowise wrote: post #110

[flagged]

So get into debt and spend money is the advice? Then vote for someone who will make the debts go away?

As opposed to what, neglecting the human experience to grind yourself to the bone for those who own capital, and then voting to uphold that capital? Makes no sense.

Re: I were 17, I'd learn how to build LLMs from scratch

#178

Post by latexr »

embedding-shape wrote: post #171
latexr wrote: post #166

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Just one example That post has barely any points and comments. It’s not a good indicator of general sentiment, it’s just an indicator of people who were on HN at that time. > Maybe you need to enable "Show Dead" or something? I have it enabled. > Pgs articles on HN definitely never was free of any critique in the HN comments, just like any article. Of course. I very explicitly wrote “in general (certainly more than…

Indeed, no hard disagree, merely details :) Overall you're right though, general/overall tone definitely shifted hard for a bunch of individuals over the years.

> Indeed, no hard disagree, merely details :)

Hard agree! Though the discussion was short, I thank you for it. Good start of the week, I wish you a good one.

Re: I were 17, I'd learn how to build LLMs from scratch

#180

Post by Jhater »

epolanski wrote: post #115
wiseowise wrote: post #110

[flagged]

Is going to university really that good of advice nowadays? Everybody goes to college nowadays and the average white collar has lots of debt and relatively minor financial benefits over a skilled trade worker. edit: woah, so many people insulted by that. In my bubble and friends, me and another friend are the only people that make very good money compared to non-graduates. Plenty of others opened their shops, went in…

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