Not long ago I had absolutely no background in programming. I started learning out of pure curiosity after discovering AI and realizing how powerful these systems were becoming. At first everything felt overwhelming syntax, debugging, concepts I had never seen before but I kept showing up every day and building small projects. Fast forward a few months later, after countless hours of learning and experimenting, I managed to land my first role as a Junior AI Engineer. The journey wasn’t easy, but it proved to me that with consistency and the right resources, changing careers into tech is actually possible. I'm curious, has anyone else here made a similar transition?

Something I've been thinking about. We have over 2,000 people in here on the writing of this post and some of you have serious expertise in areas I cant cover alone. Cybersecurity, UX, data analytics, DevOps, healthcare workflows, construction tech, fintech, you name it. I want to start bringing community members in to help create content. That could look like writing up a walkthrough of something you built, recording a short tutorial on a tool you use every day, curating resources for The Vault, or helping turn raw material into structured courses. I'll be honest about where things stand. I cant offer full paid positions right now. Can possibly do some comp here or there over the next month but I have to ask you would be volunteer to start (I will never put anything you volunteered to make behind a pay wall) But I have every intention of building a contributor model that includes revenue share or some form of compensation as the paid tiers grow and happy to get you in front of crowds as well. I don't want to make promises I cant keep yet, but I also don't want to pretend this stays free forever. The goal is to build something where the people who help create the value share in it. I can only bring on a small group at a time so I can actually work with you on quality and structure. If this sounds interesting drop a comment telling me what you'd want to contribute. Doesn't have to be polished. Just tell me what you know well enough to teach someone else. No commitment from either side. Just want to see who's out there and what you'd bring to the table.

***A note before you read: this post talks about losing a parent to drug overdose, addiction, and some of the harder parts of growing up through that. If any of this hits close to home, take care of yourself first.*** This is personal, not ai related but feel its important to share. Both @Matthew Creamer and I lost our fathers to drug overdoses. I don't say that for sympathy. I say it because it's the kind of thing that rewires your entire life and I think some of you need to hear that the people building this thing with you know what it feels like to start from somewhere broken. My dad was a good man. I need you to know that before anything else. He was loving, he was present, he was the kind of father who wanted his son to never have to grind through the kind of work he did. He spent his life in construction, the kind that wears your body down year after year, and he always told me he wanted something different for me. He wanted to retire the whole family one day. He wanted to leave a mark on the world and he wanted me to do the same. He just had his demons, and one night when I was 15 they took him from me. A month after my birthday so I was still basically 14 years old and I found him on the couch and that was it. Everything after that moment I had to figure out on my own. I learned how to trim my beard without him standing behind me in the mirror. I learned how to haggle with taxi drivers in countries he never got to see. I broke my heart for the first time and had nobody to call who could tell me what that kind of pain actually means when you're young and don't know who you are yet. I fell into addiction myself somehow escaped after a lot of battles. I joined the Marine Corps and that brought its own tragedies, its own weight. I climbed the tallest mountain in Europe. I walked across the grand sands of the Middle East. I have tasted war and peace, depression and anger, and so much more that I am still learning how to carry.

Hey guys, complete rookie here. I currently run Windows on my PC but my PC is completely outdated and I'm thinking of purchasing a Mac Mini for now. Any comments on the pros and cons of switching to Mac OS? It seems like Mac is more conducive to AI or maybe that's a false assumption? Feel free to leave your input, thanks!

Hey y'all, this is for those among you who look into setting up Claude on a Linux system. More specific it's about CachyOS the Linux distribution that many people currently propose for people who want to switch over from Windows. Now if you haven't embarked on that journey: Don't rush it, while it's a good thing to consider and while CachyOS seems a great choice for most current Windows users who would like to get away from the Microsoft ecosystem, it's not always possible to do so. Thus: If you want to embark on this journey, I would propose you to check out channels where people help you with that (which is not the focus of "Clief Notes"). Before I get into details. A major difference between installations of software in Linux environments and an Windows is this: Each Linux distribution I ever tried out had something like a software store Though it is not a store as in paying money for getting something valuable... it's more like a part of the operating system from which you install software even if it's not part of Linux itself. The reason why you should use the store is that it automatizes the update of each software you download here. That is not the case if you download the software from some webpage. The store also contains some level of security, that is: It is much less probable that you download some malware from here than if you download "the same" software from a webpage. - On the installation of Claude Desktop: It seems that there is no Claude Desktop for Linux systems. - On the installation of node.js: While you can install Claude without node.js I'll explain it here as Jack did so in his course. (And I think we should all be on the same track to avoid mistakes that are hard to solve just because we forgot something when we started onto the trail.) Use the "application" from the "Start menu" named "CachyOS Hello" (the one that pops up when you log-on to your system > Click the button "Apps Installation > Enter "npm" into the search field for the application you want to install. Alas, looking for node.js will not get you anywhere. (You might need to check out the register "repo" first.) > Check "npm" and "npm-check-updates" > Click the button "Install" > Next you'll get the usual drill with affirming system changes, entering your admin credentials and so on, but that's all you need to do.