# What were you THINKING? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [October 13, 2023, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532 "2023-10-13T19:36:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 210
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2025, 11:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/4480 "2025-04-01T11:03:55Z")
> [@Stanislaus](#): > > challenging the claim implicit in the let’s face it amphibolous phrase “I spent some time trying to illustrate it…” that this is something you created rather than something you commissioned. So it is about pedantic language nitpicking? Do you really think the situation necessitates rather than saying “I made”, I must, in pursuit of accuracy, say “I pressed buttons that initiated a remote computer to generate a few dozen images based on my descriptions and stopped when one of those 60 to 80 images came close enough to my original vision to satisfy me”? Do you require that level of accurate detail in all aspects of life? Do you _honestly_ think people were confused by the phrasing? I’ve been using computer image-generating software since the early 1990s. I _could_ have fired up my copy of Alias/Wavefront Maya and spent several hours modeling, texturing, and positioning cameras and lights to make an image of Domo-kun on a cross. It is very much within my skillset. If I insisted on keeping the grassy hill I would have had to dust off one of my ancient fractal landscape generators and composited an image with the Maya output. And in the end…it would almost certainly have looked worse than what I was able to get in about 5 minutes with Bing. Since my purpose was goal-oriented, not process-oriented, I went with the solution that produced probably better results in 1/100th the time. (I’m aware that you reused a very common flippant comment about AI imagery instead of coming up with something of your own, but that one falls especially flat given the high popularity of food photography on the internet. People don’t go around saying “I ordered a pizza, I’m a great chef” but they very much _do_ say “I ordered a pizza, look at the nice pizza I got.”.) ---
**Author:** ![Stanislaus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stanislaus/32/3391_2.png) [@Stanislaus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stanislaus)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2025, 11:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/4481 "2025-04-01T11:44:30Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > So it is about pedantic language nitpicking? Do you really think the situation necessitates rather than saying “I made”, I must, in pursuit of accuracy, say “I pressed buttons that initiated a remote computer to generate a few dozen images based on my descriptions and stopped when one of those 60 to 80 images came close enough to my original vision to satisfy me”? Do you require that level of accurate detail in all aspects of life? Do you _honestly_ think people were confused by the phrasing? I think you’re retreating to the motte of “everyone knows the process of generating AI images and has a shared view on how little creativity is involved” from the bailey of “I spent some time trying to illustrate it dot dot dot”. A test: are you replying to the people who commented positively to remind them that it doesn’t reflect on your abilities at all? And a repeated question: why did you share it? > [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > I’ve been using computer image-generating software since the early 1990s. I _could_ have fired up my copy of Alias/Wavefront Maya and spent several hours modeling, texturing, and positioning cameras and lights to make an image of Domo-kun on a cross. It is very much within my skillset. If I insisted on keeping the grassy hill I would have had to dust off one of my ancient fractal landscape generators and composited an image with the Maya output. And in the end…it would almost certainly have looked worse than what I was able to get in about 5 minutes with Bing. Since my purpose was goal-oriented, not process-oriented, I went with the solution that produced probably better results in 1/100th the time. It’s not a better result. The first option would have been you sharing something you’d made with your own hard earned skills, and would have been genuinely impressive. The second is as you say 1/100th of the effort to reproduce what is essentially other people’s work. If you don’t care, why should I? > [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > I’m aware that you reused a very common flippant comment about AI imagery instead of coming up with something of your own, but that one falls especially flat given the high popularity of food photography on the internet. People don’t go around saying “I ordered a pizza, I’m a great chef” but they very much _do_ say “I ordered a pizza, look at the nice pizza I got Interesting - I hadn’t (consciously) been aware of the pizza comment being common, but I don’t make any great claims to originality, it’s an obvious analogy. Had I introduced it to the thread with a “I was unimpressed by @Darren_Garrison 's AI image so I spent some time trying to craft an amusing response…” then I’d be embarrassed to find I was taking credit for others’ original work, right enough. But the bigger point is that when people photo their pizzas, it’s about the pizza and more or less explicitly a celebration of the people who made it. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2025, 11:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/4482 "2025-04-01T11:55:32Z")
Huh? It was obviously an AI image, and i thought it was fun and appropriate for the conversation. And it does take some thought to come up with suitable prompts to get an ai image that matches what you were imagining. For that matter, it takes having imagined something to begin with. Sheesh, i like takeout pizza, too. And when someone offers me pizza, i don’t berate them for having obviously ordered takeout instead of cooking. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2025, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/4483 "2025-04-01T12:02:09Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > It was obviously an AI image This isn’t always obvious, and it is becoming less obvious with every passing improvement to these generators. I don’t think there’s anything inherently wrong with using AI art generation, but it’s definitely unethical to not state, explicitly, how it was made. No different than copy/pasting AI-generated text. I do wish to hell that AI stuff was limited to threads specifically made for it. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2025, 12:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/4484 "2025-04-01T12:09:12Z")
You wish that no one ever illustrated an idea using ai in a thread not devoted to ai? Why? I take it you don’t enjoy memes, either. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2025, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/4485 "2025-04-01T12:13:00Z")
> [@Johnny\_Bravo](#): > > I do wish to hell that AI stuff was limited to threads specifically made for it. Do you feel the same about restricting _all_ images to threads specifically for images, keeping all other threads text-only? Or is the restriction only for what you perceive to be low-quality images, and there is a threshold where they become acceptable? Or are all images generated using AI off-limits on principal based on their very nature? As an example, if I had taken several hours to produce an image in Maya of Domo-kun on a cross, would that have been acceptable to post? ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2025, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/4486 "2025-04-01T12:14:52Z")
> [@ShadowFacts](#): > > I don’t normally post in here, but Saint Cad is making a complete ass of himself over in [ATMB](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apparently-you-are-only-allowed-10-reports-per-month-note-this-is-of-course-not-accurate/1016406) Regardless of my feelings on that thread, I’m not sure how I feel about What Exit changing the thread title like that. > [@Johnny\_Bravo](#): > > I’ll donate a hundred bucks to the apolitical charity of your choice if you do it and that happens. Careful there, correlation might not be causation, but it’ll still lose a bet. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2025, 12:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/4487 "2025-04-01T12:17:32Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > You wish that no one ever illustrated an idea using ai in a thread not devoted to ai? Why? It’s mainly recognition that it would be hypocritical of me to be virulently opposed to copy/pasting AI text generation here (which I am) without also wanting limits on posting AI-generated images. More broadly, I doubt I’ll ever get over a general feeling that AI generation is, at best, a proxy for actual engagement. > [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > Or is the restriction only for what you perceive to be low-quality images, and there is a threshold where they become acceptable? Or are all images generated using AI off-limits on principal based on their very nature? Sorry, but I’m not getting into this nitpicky shit with you. I get that you’re super super duper super duper into AI image generation and there are no rules that say you can’t post them wherever and whenever you like. I do think you should be explicit about crediting each and every AI image you post. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2025, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/4488 "2025-04-01T12:18:35Z")
> [@Stanislaus](#): > > And a repeated question: why did you share it? Because I thought the idea was _funny_. Someone mentioned the OP of the thread on a cross, and given that the OP has long used as their icon an image of Japanese television mascot and God-appointed killer of kittens Domo-kun, I imagined Domo-kun on a cross. The humorous image was the point. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2025, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/4489 "2025-04-01T12:23:50Z")
> [@Stanislaus](#): > > My candidate answer is: you thought it was worth sharing and you thought people would appreciate it and you hoped people would say, “Hey that’s cool, that’s neat, I dig it, you’ve produced something interesting and worthwhile”. And some people did, so that’s nice for you! Hey @Darren_Garrison - that’s cool, that’s neat, I dig it, you produced something interesting and worthwhile. I’m sorry you triggered the Luddites. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2025, 12:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/4490 "2025-04-01T12:26:24Z")
> [@Stanislaus](#): > > And a repeated question: why did you share it? Here’s a question: why are _you_ posting _this_? Your rehashed anti AI Luddite BS is no more creative or worthwhile an endeavour than entering a prompt and pressing “generate images”. Hell, @Darren_Garrison’s prompt contains about a dozen times more creativity than your bog standard anti AI bitching and moaning. ChatGPT could do a better job complaining about AI than you, you tiresome Luddite. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2025, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/4491 "2025-04-01T12:27:25Z")
> [@Stanislaus](#): > > It’s not a better result. The first option would have been you sharing something you’d made with your own hard earned skills, and would have been genuinely impressive. The second is as you say 1/100th of the effort to reproduce what is essentially other people’s work. If you don’t care, why should I? If you don’t care enough to come up with your own original talking points, instead regurgitating standard anti AI luddite slip at us, why should we care? ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2025, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/4492 "2025-04-01T12:28:37Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > As an example, if I had taken several hours to produce an image in Maya of Domo-kun on a cross, would that have been acceptable to post? What if you took several seconds to slap some all caps IMPACT font text on an image? ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2025, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/4493 "2025-04-01T12:28:46Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > Hey @Darren_Garrison - that’s cool, that’s neat, I dig it, you produced something interesting and worthwhile. I’m sorry you triggered the Luddites. Thanks. I don’t claim “ownership” of the image any more than I would had I did a Google image search (you will note that when someone posts an image found via Google image search, nobody accues you of deception when you don’t post a copyright notice for the original photographer). ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2025, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/4494 "2025-04-01T12:30:57Z")
Yeah, i honestly didn’t think @Darren_Garrison was trying to impress us with his artistic talent. I thought he was trying to offer a humorous illustration of what folks were talking about in the thread. And… I think he succeeded. And here’s his claim about sweating over a hot keyboard to create it: > [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > Thanks to [Cervaise’s comment](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/apparently-you-are-only-allowed-10-reports-per-month-note-this-is-of-course-not-accurate/1016406/55) I spent time trying to illustrate it… Nothing there to imply he painted it by hand. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2025, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/4495 "2025-04-01T12:40:49Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > What if you took several seconds to slap some all caps IMPACT font text on an image? Well, my first idea was to take the classic [“Every time you masturbate God kills a kitten” meme](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Every_time_you_masturbate), crudely cross out “masturbate” and “God” and crudely replace it with “flag a thread”, and “Saint\_cad”. Well, I’ll do it right now for the sake of illustration: [![](https://i.imgur.com/oIJv06n.jpeg) ](https://i.imgur.com/oIJv06n.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![SuntanLotion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suntanlotion/32/16165_2.png) [@SuntanLotion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuntanLotion)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2025, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/4496 "2025-04-01T12:50:57Z")
Also adorable. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2025, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/4497 "2025-04-01T13:03:00Z")
I think AI art is generally nonsense garbage, but all of this is _way_ too much of a kerfuffle, out of scale of what this specific example deserves. It was a silly, tossed-off joke, so it doesn’t deserve any more than a tossed-off tool. It took five minutes to make it and it takes five seconds to scroll past it. Get a grip, everyone. Christ. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2025, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/4498 "2025-04-01T13:05:26Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > It was obviously an AI image, and i thought it was fun and appropriate for the conversation. This, both points. > [@Johnny\_Bravo](#): > > This isn’t always obvious In this case, it was - unless you think someone somewhere had already painstakingly hand-painted Domo-kun on a cross? > [@Johnny\_Bravo](#): > > it’s definitely unethical In the Pit? Oh, my fucking stars and garters! ---
**Author:** ![ASL\_v2.0](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asl_v2.0/32/3525_2.png) [@ASL\_v2.0](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ASL_v2.0)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2025, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532/4499 "2025-04-01T13:22:01Z")
I love domo-kun on the cross and I don’t care that it was AI generated. Sometimes, AI-generated schlock has its uses. Representing Cad’s self-adopted martyrdom (which I guess is a philosophical question: must all martyrs necessarily be willing? Personally, I think not, but others may disagree) is such a time. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532.md?page=209) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-you-thinking/991532.md?page=211)