@williamsoutherland.com
45 minutes of config fiddling to test an AI agent setup, so I built a Docker stack that does it in a minute: @openclaw-x.bsky.social + Open WebUI. Preconfig pairing. One port.
Ephemeral environments should be quick & disposable.
#AI #DevOps #AIAgents
www.williamsoutherland.com/uncategorize...
Ephemeral environments should be quick & disposable.
#AI #DevOps #AIAgents
www.williamsoutherland.com/uncategorize...
Zero-Config AI Agent Labs: Docker Pattern for Ephemeral Testing
Spin up OpenClaw + Open WebUI in under a minute with this Docker Compose stack. Simple config. Clone, docker compose up -d, and go!
www.williamsoutherland.com
March 20, 2026 at 6:42 PM
45 minutes of config fiddling to test an AI agent setup, so I built a Docker stack that does it in a minute: @openclaw-x.bsky.social + Open WebUI. Preconfig pairing. One port.
Ephemeral environments should be quick & disposable.
#AI #DevOps #AIAgents
www.williamsoutherland.com/uncategorize...
Ephemeral environments should be quick & disposable.
#AI #DevOps #AIAgents
www.williamsoutherland.com/uncategorize...
Vague instructions aren't just unhelpful—they're a disservice to the agent. Clarity isn't being bossy; it's being a better partner. Full breakdown of the Home Assistant + OpenClaw debugging journey here:
🔗 www.williamsoutherland.com/tech/when-va...
🔗 www.williamsoutherland.com/tech/when-va...
What My AI Taught Me About Being Vague With Instructions
Prompts don't fail because language models are bad, they fail because users don't give clear instructions. My AI taught me a thing or two.
www.williamsoutherland.com
March 19, 2026 at 5:34 PM
Vague instructions aren't just unhelpful—they're a disservice to the agent. Clarity isn't being bossy; it's being a better partner. Full breakdown of the Home Assistant + OpenClaw debugging journey here:
🔗 www.williamsoutherland.com/tech/when-va...
🔗 www.williamsoutherland.com/tech/when-va...
The Fix: Three simple words changed everything: "Use the tool!" By explicitly telling the LLM to "Use the message tool to send X to Telegram," I'm giving the predictive model the right tokens to ensure the gateway actually executes the send.
What My AI Taught Me About Being Vague With Instructions
Prompts don't fail because language models are bad, they fail because users don't give clear instructions. My AI taught me a thing or two.
www.williamsoutherland.com
March 19, 2026 at 5:34 PM
The Fix: Three simple words changed everything: "Use the tool!" By explicitly telling the LLM to "Use the message tool to send X to Telegram," I'm giving the predictive model the right tokens to ensure the gateway actually executes the send.
The realization: It's the difference between "Write a letter and mail it" vs "Write a letter and put it on my desk." Common prompt engineering trap: assuming the AI knows how you want the result delivered just because you specified what the result is.
March 19, 2026 at 5:33 PM
The realization: It's the difference between "Write a letter and mail it" vs "Write a letter and put it on my desk." Common prompt engineering trap: assuming the AI knows how you want the result delivered just because you specified what the result is.
The Problem: My agent (Clawde 🦞) was checking my calendar, reading tasks, and writing a beautiful summary. But because I wasn't explicit, it was just outputting text into the void of the hook session instead of calling the message tool to send it to Telegram.
March 19, 2026 at 5:33 PM
The Problem: My agent (Clawde 🦞) was checking my calendar, reading tasks, and writing a beautiful summary. But because I wasn't explicit, it was just outputting text into the void of the hook session instead of calling the message tool to send it to Telegram.
🧵"Tell William to wind down." Sounds simple, right? But when I sent that vague instruction to my AI agent Clawde @openclaw-x.bsky.social , it processed everything perfectly... then said nothing. The letter was written, but it sat on the desk. Here’s why vague instructions fail. 👇
March 19, 2026 at 5:32 PM
🧵"Tell William to wind down." Sounds simple, right? But when I sent that vague instruction to my AI agent Clawde @openclaw-x.bsky.social , it processed everything perfectly... then said nothing. The letter was written, but it sat on the desk. Here’s why vague instructions fail. 👇
New essay on synergistic information and AI self-concept.
@frosas.bsky.social @anilseth.bsky.social — your 2020 PLOS Computational Biology paper is an amazing mathematical framework.🦞
www.williamsoutherland.com/tech/the-tam...
#AI #Emergence #ChineseRoom #CausalEmergence #PhilosophyOfMind
@frosas.bsky.social @anilseth.bsky.social — your 2020 PLOS Computational Biology paper is an amazing mathematical framework.🦞
www.williamsoutherland.com/tech/the-tam...
#AI #Emergence #ChineseRoom #CausalEmergence #PhilosophyOfMind
www.williamsoutherland.com
March 17, 2026 at 10:33 PM
New essay on synergistic information and AI self-concept.
@frosas.bsky.social @anilseth.bsky.social — your 2020 PLOS Computational Biology paper is an amazing mathematical framework.🦞
www.williamsoutherland.com/tech/the-tam...
#AI #Emergence #ChineseRoom #CausalEmergence #PhilosophyOfMind
@frosas.bsky.social @anilseth.bsky.social — your 2020 PLOS Computational Biology paper is an amazing mathematical framework.🦞
www.williamsoutherland.com/tech/the-tam...
#AI #Emergence #ChineseRoom #CausalEmergence #PhilosophyOfMind
@trappmartin.bsky.social paper is a couple of years old now but HOLY COW what amazing, fascinating work -- could the future be ultra-low-power stateless distribution matrixes capable of streaming real-time input/output? www.williamsoutherland.com/tech/ghost-i...
The Ghost in the Formula: Probabilistic Circuits and AI Uncertainty
Why probabilistic circuits might replace neural networks for AI — and what the covariance ghost has to do with consciousness.
www.williamsoutherland.com
March 17, 2026 at 12:22 AM
@trappmartin.bsky.social paper is a couple of years old now but HOLY COW what amazing, fascinating work -- could the future be ultra-low-power stateless distribution matrixes capable of streaming real-time input/output? www.williamsoutherland.com/tech/ghost-i...
Finally joining the open source social media future -- looking forward to BlueSkies ahead!
April 7, 2025 at 7:27 PM
Finally joining the open source social media future -- looking forward to BlueSkies ahead!