Hamnix
Hey there, tech enthusiasts! David Hamner here, and boy, do I have a treat for you today. Ever thought to yourself, “Gee, I wish I could practice Linux commands without all the hassle of, you know, actually using Linux”? Well, hold onto your keyboards, because I’ve got just the thing: Hamnix, the AI-powered Linux terminal simulator that’s currently about as accurate as a weather forecast in the middle of a hurricane!
So, what exactly is Hamnix? Picture this: You’re sitting at your computer, typing commands into what you think is a Linux terminal, but it’s actually an AI that’s trying its best to pretend it knows what Linux is. It’s like having a golden retriever as your system administrator – eager to please, but prone to chasing squirrels mid-command.
Now, let me take you on a journey through the illustrious history of Hamnix. It all started when I had the brilliant idea to simulate raw VT100 on the biggest Qwen model my poor, overworked GPU could handle. Spoiler alert: it didn’t go well. My GPU started sending me smoke signals that translated to “Why are you doing this to me?”
[Cut to screen showing code or terminal]
To gather data, I set up a chroot script that builds a Debian root and runs commands. It was like teaching a parrot to recite Shakespeare – technically possible, but the results were… let’s say “creatively interpreted.”
The first version of Hamnix was about as useful as a chocolate teapot. It mostly output gibberish, occasionally stumbling upon a real command like a drunk person finding their keys. I’d asked for a Linux simulator and got a digital version of infinite monkeys with infinite typewriters.
So, I went back to the drawing board – or in this case, back to my keyboard to bang my head against it repeatedly. I updated the training data to look like this:
{"text": "Command: pwd\nOutput:\n/"}
{"text": "Command: ls\nOutput:\nbin\nboot\ndev\netc\nhome\nlib\nlib64\nmedia\nmnt\nopt\nproc\nroot\nrun\nsbin\nsrv\nsys\ntmp\nusr\nvar"}
{"text": "Command: echo $HOME\nOutput:\n/root"}I also switched to a smaller Qwen model. My GPU breathed a sigh of relief, but then realized it still had to run Hamnix and started plotting its escape.
Let me show you our current masterpiece in action:
[Cut to screen showing terminal]
$ cd /
$ pwd
/bin
$ cd /home
$ pwd
/etc/alternatives
$ pwd
/var/local
$[Back to camera, trying not to laugh] Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you: Hamnix! It’s like playing ‘Pin the Tail on the Donkey’, but instead, it’s ‘Pin the Directory on the Filesystem’ and we’re all blindfolded. And drunk. And the donkey is actually a cardboard cutout of Tux the Linux penguin.
The good news? It recognizes ‘cd’ and ‘pwd’. The bad news? It thinks the filesystem is a game of musical chairs. Every time you ask where you are, it’s like the AI is throwing a dart at a directory list.
But fear not! We’re making progress. My next steps include teaching Hamnix that ‘/bin’ is not the answer to everything, and that maintaining context is not just a suggestion, it’s a lifestyle.
The dream is to create an AI that can infer new programs just from their names. Imagine typing ‘makeeverythingawesome’ and the AI just… does it. We’re not there yet. Right now, if you type ‘makeeverythingawesome’, Hamnix might tell you you’re in ‘/var/local’ and call it a day.
[Camera on] If you want to follow along on this journey of digital self-flagellation, hit that subscribe button. And if you’re a developer with experience in language models or Linux systems and you’re thinking, “I could do better than that!” – well, you’re probably right. Drop a comment below with your ideas, or just to point and laugh. I’ll take either at this point.
Thanks for watching, and remember: in the world of AI, every bug is just an undocumented feature. This is David Hamner, signing off and going to have a long talk with my GPU about its life choices!
Sources:
Source: https://github.com/ruapotato/Hamnix/tree/main/bin
Images/ai videos:
Music: Tom Perry – Twin Musicom (CC)