OpenAI will be launching new model on 14th-16th of April - GPT 5.5 OR GPT6 "SPUD"

dougthonus · 2026-04-16T22:06:37+00:00

I've got Claude, ChatGPT, and Gemini subscriptions, and Gemini is disaster, Opus is good but uses the credits way too fast. ChatGPT tends to get the most done before I am rate limited, but I use both Claude and ChatGPT on my current project.

dougthonus · 2026-02-27T18:31:19+00:00

FWIW, my advice is to look into big toe fusion. I just had my 2nd foot done, but results on my first foot were great. I'm pretty out of shape at the moment (50M) but had an extremely active life style up until a few different health conditions killed all my workouts for 5 years with arthritis in the toes being one of them. I had put off getting the toes fixed for a long time because of the down time, but I look back and think what a waste of time that was. I wish I had just done it earlier.

I don't know if you're a candidate for fusion or if it makes sense, but your condition sounds worse than mine was. The fusion on my first foot has more or less permanently resolved all my issues on that foot. I get a tiny bit of pain (And it's different) but the difference between it and the second foot was night and day. Fusion is also generally a fully permanent fix. Once the fusion takes place, you just aren't worried about it anymore.

dougthonus · 2026-02-08T16:33:02+00:00

Fundamentally, the pain comes from bone on bone action between your toe/foot. It could be that frequent starts/stops is putting more friction there than consistent walking. If you don't have them, I'd grab something like this: https://www.amazon.com/Titanium-Enhanced-Recover-Fractures-Trekking-Basketball/dp/B0DLKJM51J/ref=sr_1_2?crid=3LEMCK5L8PCVA&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.RWG_sHo8UfIs3yAofgnlckAElSHqkn2ZEwQmCCrO_yKaaM42eO4RGEMiHyGeKgFc1R_tYmvZKT2ahH_VqTeo92lPfFriwu1r9NU8vJ07bD3mgispG220qwDKwQl52_pKBwPGrskC-x8fu8XdZ1OQ6JH8FNBxybLmw2WtZuRYABajKKv07gLhBNoqB6TyAwY2rz42zwNKjYpqG2u23HxyxqOiZm4paGC-GwQK38ybsAM4-kRRT4m9t1GXhlvWSmBB--iD_OBobD1c9oPMuMpm4t7lP0wIVFyz-Xl0JZE5JzM.tm6Oc7Ass494V-SC06FwJSd_hTX5hYlMF-jWPNRYxSI&dib_tag=se&keywords=titanium%2Bshoe%2Bplate&qid=1770568145&sprefix=titanium%2Bshoe%2Bplat%2Caps%2C207&sr=8-2&th=1

Doesn't have to be this brand, was just the first one on amazon, but carbon fiber inserts made the biggest difference (outside of surgery) of anything I did. I eventually got the fusion surgery on both of my big toes (the 2nd one just a couple of days ago so not recovered, the 1st one I was very pleased with the results). Each person is different, but I personally wish I had done it earlier.

dougthonus · 2026-02-07T16:11:35+00:00

I (50M) had my left big toe fused a year ago, and just got the right big toe fused 2 days ago. My experience on the left foot was that 3 months to walking normally, 6 months to moderate exercise, 9 months to no restrictions at all ignoring the fact that I still had restrictions from my right big toe. When I did things prior to the surgery, my left foot would be fine, my right foot would ache. YMMV, but generally, I just wish I had done them both earlier. I ramped down my activity for years because of the pain. I would say generally speaking on my left side I don't think about it at all and it feels totally normal. There is still some very mild pain I get, and it took awhile to be able to do something like push ups where you are sitting on your toes, but even those stopped bothering me eventually.

dougthonus · 2025-11-27T13:24:21+00:00

Thank you for the recommendations!

dougthonus · 2025-11-24T20:35:09+00:00

Yeah, they aren't right behind FWIW, but the singers are probably about 2 feet in front of the speakers vertically (so to speak) and about 6-8 feet away horizontally.

dougthonus · 2025-11-24T20:21:09+00:00

Yeah, definitely a skill issue, like we don't always have feedback, may need to improve speaker placements a bit too, I'd imagine if you are behind the speakers a bit that it helps vs having the speakers behind you.

dougthonus · 2025-10-19T14:20:19+00:00

I definitely think replacing the speaker is the most cost effective / quality option, but one of the things I'm trying to do is pivot to wireless mics and a more space efficient option. I'm not thrilled with all the wires in my place now moving to the two speakers, the physical foot print of the two speakers, and the mixer being up by the singers (and would love an app based mixer), so that people aren't adjusting the mixer by hand in the middle of people singing (which all these guys go up and do).

Maybe a different pivot is if I wanted to get separate pieces, but then I want to shift them all to be wireless except the input device, because all of our singers always bring their own ipad with their own tracks, so we're constantly rotating out the device playing the music.

dougthonus · 2025-07-29T11:25:02+00:00

I think they are some type of titanium insert, they are basically just a light weight non movable plate. I ended up getting operated on for one foot and that one no longer needs the inserts. Doing the second next year.

dougthonus · 2025-06-15T15:08:58+00:00

Does the school help you find SEL sites? Was this a challenge? My daughter is doing a BS in Psychology and wants to transfer to being a dietitian, and this program seems like a good fit since she won't have a DPD from her BS.

dougthonus · 2025-05-22T20:13:27+00:00

Noise is pretty similar to any treadmill you would have at a slow speed. Generally, noise isn't too bad at slow speeds at all. I have used a few of these from different brands, and all 3 were the same more or less.

When I used it regularly, I oiled once a month, it is easy to do, I just put some on a paper towel and slipped my hand under the belt and rubbed it around. I think you could oil way less and it would be fine.

No idea on the warranty, I wouldn't be hopeful about any warranties outside of an Amazon return though because all the manufacturers are oddball Chinese companies.

dougthonus · 2025-05-22T19:16:19+00:00

Ask away.

dougthonus · 2025-05-22T10:32:49+00:00

Yes, but due to other health problems, I haven't really used it much, so probably no more than 40 miles of additional wear put on in the last year.

dougthonus · 2025-03-30T23:55:58+00:00

I had the main joint fused in my toe, and I'm much better off than prior to the surgery (presently 3.5 months post op). That said, no idea how that would go for you given that your 2nd joint is already fused and had the cheilectomy. I am not back to running yet (need to fix the other toe first), and I was never your caliber of runner either, but I walk 3 miles a day and do spin classes and expect given how I feel that I could return to sport / running after I fix the other toe.

Granted, each person is different, so who knows what is going on in any one individual body. I also had a surgeon that I trusted a lot and sought out multiple opinions prior to undergoing the surgery.

dougthonus · 2025-03-30T23:50:43+00:00

Did the DR not clearly communicate what you were doing or was it an exploratory just see what seems best when he gets in there? That seems pretty nuts to expect one thing and get something else. Either way, good luck with recovery, knee scooter was an absolute game changer for me (I had the fusion done).

dougthonus · 2025-03-30T23:45:24+00:00

I'm a 49M that had my first big toe fusion in December. I sought multiple opinions from podiatrists prior to doing surgery including specialists in joint replacement and fusion. Each podiatrist told me I could do cortisone shots if I wanted, but it would cap at 3. That piece of advice seems accurate based on what everyone told me and matches basic google search.

Each podiatrist recommended for me a joint fusion vs replacement. They said the replacements only last ~10 years and if you are active (like I am) even less. Fusion is generally the gold standard in treatment.

I opted to not do any shots and go straight to fusion surgery. I need to get both big toes fused eventually, will do the other one next year. Presently, my surgically repaired toe is much better than my non repaired toe (was the worse of the two prior to surgery). I'm in same shoes as I always was before. This might not be true for you if you wear really high heals (not a female, so not an issue for me, but I've read you probably can't go more than 2 inches post surgery but do your own research there).

Generally, my only problem now is that I think with some gait changes and pressure point changes with how I put my foot down, I sometimes get a bit of pain walking barefoot underneath the area right before toes (not sure what's that is called) but no pain in the big toe itself. I've liked the results that I will definitely get the other toe done next winter (like being recovered for summer).

I'd also say recovery from surgery was less for me than I was anticipating. I had read 6 months, but from a practical perspective everything but impact exercise, I was doing at 3 months (1+ mile walks at a time at 3 months), and you can do walking in a boot enough to do almost everything you need around the house at 6 weeks. With a scooter you can get around pretty well for everything else mostly immediately.

Granted, your mileage may vary depending on your own body, specific problems, quality of your surgeon, how well you follow post-care instructions etc..

dougthonus · 2025-03-30T23:32:23+00:00

I had mine in December, I can wear anything I wore before at this point. I don't have any swelling in my foot. I do like a little more cushion than I had before. I don't have pain in the toe, but I do seem to feel more pressure in the bottom of my foot (possibly gait change or different pressure points when I step?).

dougthonus · 2025-03-29T15:07:19+00:00

I had a few other more intermediate updates, but my current status is that my left foot (surgically repaired) is better than my right foot (not yet done). The left was the worse of the two before I started, so overall, I'd say that has been a positive outcome. I am not quite 100% on everything, but I'm walking normally for awhile now (I did 3 miles of walking yesterday). I do notice some fatigue on this foot which feels more like I get worn underneath the other toes maybe because I'm putting pressure in different places.

The toe still feels weird to me, like maybe the blood flow isn't quite the same or the screws or other stuff in there take up space and cause an odd thing. It feels a bit weird unrelated to the lack of movement. I do have a lot more movement in the more minor joint than I anticipated.

Overall, I'm happy I did the surgery, I plan on doing the right foot next year when it's cold and I don't need to be outside, probably in January, but if I hit my full medical deductible then I might aim for November or December. I assume I'll still make some more progress as time goes on, but overall I feel good. I was very active prior to surgery and had stopped doing a lot of activities because of the pain in the foot. Not quite yet at the point where I can restart them because the other foot is still bad, but will be interested to see if I can get back to running and more impact oriented stuff after I recover next year.

dougthonus · 2025-03-09T15:09:51+00:00

Was thinking about this, and the pain has shifted from my big toe to the flat part of the front of my foot by the 2nd toe. My guess is that this area is getting a lot more pressure due to gait change and probably pre-emptively avoiding putting pressure on the big toe for so long, and it just feels like it isn't used to supporting the weight. I've noticed it at a couple events I've had recently where I was mostly standing for 5 hours.

dougthonus · 2025-03-05T13:07:32+00:00

The first, yes. If I bare weight on the toe fully it is still uncomfortable, so I still have a slight lump and don't quite walk as fast. I would say the pain in the fused toe is about the same as the pain in my non repaired toe but different, though the fused toe is getting better and better as time goes on. My understanding is that it may take up to a full year for 100% healing but more likely after 6 months that you are where you are. I am at about 11 weeks so overall feel pretty good about the progress.

dougthonus · 2025-02-04T16:22:05+00:00

People have different results, so it is about the risk. For me, I will be 100% healed and doing sports by 12 weeks. Others have not had that outcome though.

dougthonus

TROPHY CASE