Tag Archives: Amazon

Amazon and fake AI books

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I saw a story on TV that intrigued me to find out more.

Here’s a summary from Quartz:

Author Jane Friedman spotted more books on Amazon this week that falsely claimed to be written by her than ones she actually wrote.

At least five books under her name were taken down from Amazon yesterday (Aug. 8) after Friedman wrote a blog post on Aug. 7 detailing her experience finding books under her name being sold on Amazon and listed on Goodreads, the Amazon-owned social media and book-logging platform for readers.

https://qz.com/amazon-ai-generated-books-using-real-authors-names-1850720961

With the advent of AI, people are creating books in the voice of authors and selling them on Amazon as that author’s book. Jane Friedman had trouble contacting Amazon and getting the imposter books being sold in her name off their site. She discovered she needs to trademark her name to have more protection against this scam.

Here’s another story about the fake IA books on Amazon:

Five books for sale on Amazon were removed after author Jane Friedman complained that the titles were falsely listed as being written by her. The books, which Friedman believes were written by AI, were also listed on the Amazon-owned reviews site Goodreads.

“It feels like a violation, because it’s really low quality material with my name on it,” Friedman told the Guardian. The Ohio-based author has written several books about the publishing industry, and the fraudulent titles mimicked her real work. How to Write and Publish an eBook Quickly and Make Money and A Step-by-Step Guide to Crafting Compelling eBooks, Building a Thriving Author Platform, and Maximizing Profitability were two of the listed books. Friedman’s real books include The Business of Being a Writer and Publishing 101.

One of the falsely attributed books’ descriptions read: “This book offers practical strategies, tips, and techniques to help writers streamline their writing process, accelerate their eBook publication timeline, and maximize their earning potential.”

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/aug/09/amazon-removes-books-generated-by-ai-for-sale-under-authors-name

Have you heard about this scam before? What are your thoughts about AI and writing?

How much would you pay for hot sauce?

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This one caught me by surprise. I read yesterday that people are paying up to $120 on ebay for Sriracha sauce. Some are getting a deal at $70.

From CNN Business, yesterday:

Sriracha sauce is selling for as much as $120 amid prolonged shortage

Story by Jordan Valinsky 

The prolonged shortage of a certain red sauce is making the black market go wild.

Prices of Sriracha sauce are as high as $70 on eBay as people look to snap up the spicy sauce — and they’re even steeper on Amazon, up to $124. Huy Fong Foods, which makes the rooster-adorned bottled sauce, has been dealing with a years-long shortage of the chilis, which is hurting production and causing some shortages.

A search on eBay shows prices for various sized bottles ranging from $39.98 for 17-ounce bottles to a 28-ounce bottle for nearly $70. In both instances, shipping is an additional fee, jacking up the price even more.

Prices are even higher on Amazon, where one seller is offering a 2-pack for $124. Of course, it’s unclear if anyone is actually paying these exorbitant prices, considering a 17-ounce bottle typically costs around $5.

The company recently told CNN that it’s still experiencing a shortage of raw materials. “Although some production did resume this past fall season, we continue to have a limited supply that continues to affect our production. At this time, we have no estimations of when supply will increase,” a Huy Fong spokesperson said.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/other/sriracha-sauce-is-selling-for-as-much-as-120-amid-prolonged-shortage/ar-AA1dddgy

The story of David Tran, founder of Sriracha Sauce in Irwindale, Calif. is one of success by an immigrant. Not to say he hasn’t had his troubles.

I remember reading about neighbors complaining about the smells coming from his factory and he being at odds with the City Council.

From NPR in 2014:

Sriracha hot sauce-maker Huy Fong Foods has been tussling with the City Council of Irwindale, Calif., near Los Angeles for months now over whether the factory’s spicy smells harm its neighbors. There have been legal action and suggested fixes, but also pleas from other cities for the company to consider moving there.

David Tran, the CEO of Huy Fong, says he escaped from Vietnam almost 35 years ago to be free of the communist government there and its many intrusions.

“Today, I feel almost the same. Even now, we live in [the] U.S.A., and my feeling, the government, not a big difference,” Tran says.

Irwindale’s city attorney, Fred Galante, says the city loves having the cult condiment factory but must pay attention to the health of residents.

“It’s difficult to tell a resident that suffers from asthma or their child that suffers from asthma, ‘Sorry, we do not want to be considered business-unfriendly; just keep your child indoors,’ ” Galante says.

It’s a tough call, because Sriracha is a glamorous commodity. Bon Appetit named it one of its favorite foods last year. Chiliheads began to hoard it when it looked like Huy Fong might be forced to stop making it.

https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2014/05/12/311719864/sriracha-maker-says-factory-will-remain-in-california

The other day my husband asked me to buy some sort of Clorox stick to get out stains on something white. I looked at the store and couldn’t find any. He looked online and a single stick was $65.

Then he went to the pharmacy to pick up an Rx and was told it was on backorder. They expect it in September. Of course, he didn’t take that as an answer, but shopped around other pharmacies to find it in stock — sometime soon.

Something is drastically wrong here.

What do you think is going on?

A questionable delivery

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Recently I ordered mascara from Amazon. I rarely wear make-up, but last time I put on mascara I noticed it was drying out and was clumpy. Yuck.

When the package of Clinique mascara arrived, something looked off to me.

Here’s the packaging:

The mascara didn’t come in a box like it does when I buy it directly from a store. Maybe I should have gone to buy it in person? But we’re at least a thirty-minute drive to a department or makeup store. So I relied on Amazon.

Why wouldn’t it come in a box, I wondered? Once I unwrapped the plastic packaging, I found a plain old tube.

It’s been several years since I bought mascara. Maybe they quit their previous packaging and this tube was the new norm. I went to Clinique’s website to see if they still used boxes. The website didn’t have photos except for tubes of mascara. I bit the bullet and ordered another mascara directly from the source. I figured I’d learn how it was legitimately packaged, before I used the first one.

This is what arrived:

The box I remembered when I last bought mascara at a store. Yes, this is how it’s supposed to look. The box was wrapped in Clinique tissue paper.

So what’s up with the weird packaging of my first tube of mascara from Amazon? I’ve read about people stealing from stores and selling products on Amazon. I wondered why if a third party seller was reselling new makeup — wouldn’t it have the proper packaging? Or did someone lift the tube off a display or sample in a store? Or has it been used?

Yuck.

Do you have any idea why the packaging wasn’t how Clinique officially does it?

Is this fairly common? Do you think it was stolen goods or counterfeit?

Looking for more cuts

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Rainy day sunset last night.

Going through our subscriptions and cancelling them, I’ve cut a bit of fat out of our yearly budget.

I feel like I’m on a roll, but then my husband got a text to his phone with the monthly cable bill.

We were going to add a TV into a room and then decided we didn’t need or want it. I told my husband that I’d return the cable box we weren’t using and talk to the cable provider to see how we could whittle down the bill.

Also, one of our neighbors who is retired did a bunch of research and cut ties with our cable provider to lower his bill. Another neighbor uses Youtube TV. In the meantime, I said I’d address the cable bill immediately to lower it, and then we could investigate other options.

After a trip to the local cable company, I managed to slice 34% off our monthly bill. I dropped a bunch of stations we never watch like movie channels. What was really weird was Amazon was ALSO charging us for two movie stations that were in my cable package. So, we were being double charged.

My daughter said she hears and reads that tons of people are getting charged for TV subscriptions on Amazon Prime they didn’t sign up for. She believes there’s going to be a class action lawsuit. All I can say is double check your Amazon bill if you use it. Look under digital services and subscriptions.

I called Amazon today and complained. They are reimbursing me for six months of these charges. I guess it’s better than nothing. They began the conversation with a one month deal.

My kids have never subscribed to cable now they’re on their own and wonder why we bother to watch live TV. That’s the wave of the future.

Do you use cable TV or do you use Roku or other smart TV with third party apps like Netflix?

About those COVID tests

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I saw this rainbow on my morning walk yesterday.

I want to take a COVID test. I don’t have terrible symptoms, I just don’t feel great. I’ve stayed away from my husband for a week. His symptoms are gone except for a cough. I’d like to know if I’ve got a mild case of COVID, or if I’ve got a cold or flu. Maybe it’s nothing. But I’d like to know.

Here’s the problem. I ordered the tests from the government. I’ve heard they will ship in 12 days? I looked at Amazon and the only test that I can get before February — costs $89.

I’ve looked online for COVID testing at CVS and everywhere within 20 miles of me. There are no appointments available for a week.

So what do I do?

Rest, eat my chicken soup, take handfuls of vitamins and wait.

Frustrating.

Have you tried to get a COVID test at a pharmacy, doctor’s office or one delivered to your home? Are you finding them unavailable too? Or were you able to get tested right away?

Random Thoughts on NaNoWriMo

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Brilliant sunrise in Arizona
Sunrise yesterday morning. It felt like it was going to be a good day.

When I woke up Tuesday morning to this sunrise — I felt pure joy. How could I not? This is the view from our master bedroom and backyard. I grabbed my husband’s iphone — because he has a better camera on his — and began snapping away. Once I captured the moment, I stood quietly in the backyard as the colors enveloped me.

I’m on my second week of NaNaWriMo and if I were to describe the experience? A pain in the neck.

My neck really hurts. My shoulders hurt too as they hunch up to comfort and hang out with my sore neck. I complained about this last week, and boy howdy! It’s only gotten worse with each passing day.

I took one bit of advice from blogger extraordinaire LA. She said she has a lavender neck wrap that heats up in the microwave. I jumped on Amazon and voila! I now have one and it does help.

I was talking to my daughter on the phone and I complained about my neck.

“Your neck always hurts,” she said.

“But not like it does now. It’s the NaNo challenge that’s making it worse. I’m hunched down over my laptop for hours every day.”

“I know what you need,” she said.

“I already got the lavender neck wrap,” I answered.

“That too, but it’s not what I was going to suggest.”

This was her suggestion:

lap top stand and a work area with a view.
A laptop stand so I’m now working with my screen at eye level. This is my view from where I work in the casita.

I hope it helps. It should. You can now find me wearing a lavender neck wrap working on my raised laptop. I’m impressed with Amazon to get me these items within 24 hours. As much as I don’t like Amazon, I’m also thankful for their convenience and speed.

I took a break and sat in the backyard watching the quail fly onto the patio roof.

My other random thoughts about NaNoWriMo:

I don’t regret the challenge and I’m enjoying starting something new. It was just the thing to get me going on a new project. The words poured out faster than I could type the first week. I’ve slowed down on week two. I’m following my 9-point plot map. But I’ll get through all nine points in 25,000 words which means I need to add more to hit 50,000 words. I think I need more conflict between my characters and more depth in my characters.

What are your thoughts about Amazon? Are you a fan or a foe? Did you use it more during the COVID shutdowns? What are your easiest parts of writing whether it’s blogging or writing a novel? What do you find to be the most difficult?