"Complex challenges aren’t, unless you give them permission." - Futurist Jim Carroll

The debate about AI and the future of work, skills, and knowledge rages on.

In the meantime, lots of folks are figuring out how to leverage this darned thing. I am certainly am! I have an incredibly complex, rich, and sophisticated tech setup that has supported my business for over 3 decades. I'm a computer geek behind the scenes, with a ridiculous amount of tech gear in my life. There's a lot of automation throughout the house, and my home office and broadcast studio setups are pretty sophisticated.

Heck, I've even been called crazy, such as was the case in this magazine article from about 2002.

That said, it takes a lot of work to keep all of this running - and so for years, I've not only been the author and speaker and columnist and radio show host - I've been the tech support guy. Not only for me, but for my wife (who has worked with me in the home office for 30+ years), my two sons (who also do most of their career work out of their homes and have similar home automation setups!), and their two wives.

Enter AI.

In the last year, I've found that I have regularly turned to ChatGPT or Gemini or Claude with my tech support issues, ranging from simple requests for help to complex projects involving detailed programming in languages such as Python (which I know nothing about - more on that in a later post.)

I decided to take a look at one month's worth of the tech support requests I've made to Gemini - the full list, WITH MY QUESTIONS, is found below. And it's staggering to think about how much I've come to rely on this tool. I've realized that what has happened is that a new tech support partner has entered my life. It's powerful, information-rich, and pretty much takes me into a skills level with tech that is far beyond my capabilities.

How often am I using it for this purpose? It turns out, a LOT! (I was pretty surprised with the summary!)

Augmented knowledge, as it were. 

And if you think about what is happening here, there is a transformation underway - we are moving away from one type of traditional tech support to an AI-based partnership. Over time, we'll be fully integrating this knowledge augmentation into our daily lives, across a vast range of different skill sets.

In the case of my tech support, it's a pretty profound change:

"In the age of Al, technical expertise isn't about knowing all the answers-it's about knowing how to ask the right questions. Al becomes your tireless technical partner, available 24/7 to debug, configure, and innovate alongside you, transforming complex challenges into collaborative solutions."

And so while the debate about AI rages on, millions of people are learning how to augment their own knowledge. This one example involves my use of it for tech support - for others, it's about augmented knowledge, medical insight, engineering skills, science knowledge, or more.

Things are changing, folks, and the sooner you jump on board, the better positioned you will be! All of which comes to the key point - any complex challenges that we face today really aren't, unless you allow it to be. Your ability to master new knowledge and skills is what will now truly define your tomorrow!

You might find reading through this PDF to be pretty fascinating - it includes 20 examples of 20 different types of tech support I've been using AI for, questions and all.

It's a wild read!

Here's an example - I've got a lot of Linux servers around the home. (Long story!) Check the sample questions, and in seconds, I had solutions.

Or how about doing tech support for my sons, and dealing with unique issues in getting into their home network systems to provide them. support.

All of us have a lot of home automation tech, using something called Home Assistant. It also involves a lot of unique issues.

Here's the full list of what I'm doing.

  • 1. Linux Server & System Administration
    • Description: Setting up, configuring, and troubleshooting services, networking, and virtualization on Linux systems.
    • Examples:
      • "ok how do i make sure this x11 runs on startup? And how do I make sure it boots into the x11 desktop user?"
      • "Let's go back to creating a bridge. I want to bind it to the Ethernet port. Does this matter?"
      • "I originally did this but would like to go with option 2. How do i stop and delete the vm?"
  • 2. Remote Desktop & VNC Troubleshooting
    • Description: Installing, uninstalling, and debugging various VNC solutions to get remote desktop access from macOS to Ubuntu.
    • Examples:
      • "i was able to login from my Mac before, but can't now. I get the password prompt in screen sharing. Any ideas?"
      • "Ok, so how do i install x11vnc. I presume it won't work but whatever."
      • cat ~/.vnc/Tom-HA:2.log Xvnc TigerVNC 1.13.1 - built 2024-04-01 08:26...
  • 3. Home Automation (Home Assistant & Zigbee)
    • Description: Managing a Home Assistant server, troubleshooting integrations, and handling the underlying virtualized environment.
    • Examples:
      • "My data for Home Assistant was moved from another computer so the Zigbee integratiion was already there. So how dop I..."
      • "i have Home Assistant running on Ubuntu 24.04.I also have a Sonoff Zigbee USB dongle Plus that I need to make work."
      • jim@mp24:~$ ha core restart --safe-mode ha: command not found
  • 4. Raspberry Pi Project Development (Flight & Photo)
    • Description: Building and maintaining dedicated projects on Raspberry Pi, including a flight tracker and a digital photo frame.
    • Examples:
      • "sorry, i have a raspberry pi running flightaware and dump1090, that's what i am referring to"
      • "i have a raspberry pi which runs. a python script on boot. it runs, but the screen flashes as if it is trying to do something"
      • "i have a raspberry pi 5 with a fan i just bought. the fan is not running"
  • 5. Python Script Development & Debugging
    • Description: Actively developing, modifying, and adding new features to custom Python scripts.
    • Examples:
      • "This is a Python script I am using to track and display flights. I would like to remove all use and reference to the..."
      • "Is it possible to have the exclude.txt include a specific type of aircraft, i.e. C172?"
      • "now that we have the script working, i would like to add some features to it."
  • 6. Web Development & WordPress Management
    • Description: Managing a WordPress site, interpreting PHP logs, and modifying theme files for visual changes.
    • Examples:
      • "I recently updated my Wordpress website to php 8.4. I am getting sporadic 'There has been a critical error on this website...'"
      • "is there a wordpress plugin that will let me selectively determine which plugins should be loaded per page..."
      • "Here is the first, a theme file in PHP. I need to know how to change the banner image"
  • 7. Network Configuration & Troubleshooting
    • Description: Covering a range of networking tasks from home Wi-Fi to complex server-level network bridging.
    • Examples:
      • "is there a way to have a device connect to a specific router on a distributed Orbi network?"
      • "Trying to install tailscale on ubuntu 24.04. getting an error."
      • sudo netplan apply ** (generate:19274): WARNING **: 14:51:47.278: Permissions for /etc/netplan/01-bridge.yaml are too open...
  • 8. Application-Specific Configuration
    • Description: Troubleshooting specific applications after environmental changes, such as a server IP address update.
    • Examples:
      • "The IP address for my Nextcloud server recently changed... When I use the OS/x client... I get an error"
      • "I am the owner of jimcarroll.com and am trying to edit my page. I get this from Cloudflare. how can i whitelist mysel..."
      • "for future reference, i had to delete the machine from known_hosts in .ssh"
  • 9. Email & DNS Management
    • Description: Debugging custom domain email deliverability issues involving DNS records and provider settings.
    • Examples:
      • "I'm getting this error in Gmail: Message not delivered You're sending this from a different address or alias..."
      • "My easyDNS account is suddenly showing 'Blocked from sending' outbound mail settings..."
  • 10. Cross-Platform Integration (macOS & Linux)
    • Description: Making macOS and Linux systems work together for tasks like remote access, file sharing, and SSH management.
    • Examples:
      • "back to samba. i am trying to set up a share i set up and am getting an error on my Mac."
      • "So can macs not do rdp?"
      • "i'm on a Mac. I want to copy my ssh key to this device"
  • 11. Diagnostic Log & Error Interpretation
    • Description: Providing exact command outputs and log files for detailed analysis of what went wrong.
    • Examples:
      • curl -fsSL https://tailscale.com/install.sh | sh sh: 2: Caution:: not found sh: 3: Due: not found...
      • "getting an error: 2025-09-07 19:20:26,693 - route_logger - INFO - --- LOOKUP for CFC3469..."
      • "all i get is this: Sep 14 14:58:12 craigleith-front-pi dump1090-fa[1158]: rtlsdr: using device #0..."
  • 12. Marketing Technology (MarTech) & Ad Platform Support
    • Description: Seeking help with Google Ads campaigns, focusing on budget optimization and ad performance.
    • Examples:
      • "I want the innovation campaign to go from $15.00 a day, to sharing the budget in the first screen capture. how do i do..."
      • "This Google ad is being ranked poorly. can yuo help me fix it?"
      • "Ive' got these as strutured snippets. help me fix this"
  • 13. Software Installation & Removal
    • Description: Managing software packages, including the correct procedures to completely uninstall applications and their configurations.
    • Examples:
      • "Let's do that. How do i get rid of this tiger thing?"
      • "how do i uninstall the tiger one and the gnome one?"
      • "how can i install a qwow2 images om unbuntu linux 24.04"
  • 14. Direct Database Management (SQL)
    • Description: Interacting directly with a SQLite database via the command line to inspect and manage application data.
    • Examples:
      • sqlite3 /media/Jim/Photos/.tmp/photos.db "SELECT COUNT(*) FROM files;"
      • "can i query my database to see if it was in there?"
  • 15. Apple Ecosystem & Consumer Tech Troubleshooting
    • Description: Solving issues within the Apple ecosystem, specifically related to iMessage synchronization and beta software.
    • Examples:
      • "it seems that using iPhone beta 26 has messed up my iMessages account, including on other devices. Find out if this..."
      • "my messages app on my Macbook pro keeps signing out automatically,. what do i do"
  • 16. Hardware Component Selection & Compatibility
    • Description: Seeking advice on physical hardware components, their constraints, and proper installation.
    • Examples:
      • "i have a hulyn h4k1 esp32 device, that has 26 pins. I want a device i can use to screw on wires, rather than solderin..."
      • "This is a fan for a raspberry pie. Would I aim image at the pie or image be?"
  • 17. Headless/Remote-Only System Recovery
    • Description: Troubleshooting systems with no physical monitor or keyboard, relying exclusively on network access like SSH.
    • Examples:
      • "i have a raspberry pi which i thought I configured correctly for Wifi but did not. I only have SSH access. How can I..."
      • "i've rebooted the server and it does not seem to be coming back. Could any of the commands we issued make it is impossible to access via SSH?"
  • 18. Operating System Installation & Dual-Booting
    • Description: Requesting guidance on installing a new OS alongside an existing one, including partitioning and bootloader configuration.
    • Example:
      • "i have a windows pc running windows 10. i want to install linux ubuntu on it as the default and have a dual boot option"
  • 19. Direct Source Code Analysis (PHP/CSS)
    • Description: Delving directly into a CMS's source code to identify specific lines in PHP and CSS controlling website appearance.
    • Examples:
      • "Here is the first, a theme file in PHP. I need to know how to change the banner image"
      • "There is no option to do that. I think it is defined in the .css"
  • 20. System Monitoring & Status Verification
    • Description: Proactively checking the status and performance of hardware and software to ensure proper function.
    • Examples:
      • "how can i use sudo systemctl to find a running process?"
      • "is there a command I can use to see if the fan is running?"
      • "how do i know its running? I don't currently have a monitor attached"

Futurist Jim Carroll admits that when it comes to tech, he's always been a bit crazy and way ahead of his time.

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