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Phil Cohen

@philcohen.bsky.social

156 followers 155 following 844 posts

Tech writer and recruiter of tech writers, BAs, IDs and others in Australia

Posts Replies Media

Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Is it just my feed, or has the whole of BlueSky become suddenly obsessed with cycling? (Third possibility: BlueSky somehow knows I’m a cyclist?)

Reposted by Phil Cohen

Diane Coyle @dianecoyle1859.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

I’m all in favour of hire bikes in principle but idiot cyclists who park like this give the rest a bad reputation. It only needs a molecule of common sense …

A hire bike parked across the pavement as we round the corner. We often have to walk in the road here.

Reposted by Phil Cohen

Lindsay Ellis @lindsayellis.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

I think this is their way of retroactively rationalizing how LLMs haven't gotten any better in like two years and are stuck with a certain inevitable percentage of "hallucinations" - so hey let's IPO next year - and if it seems like the product isn't improving, well we did that on purpose

Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

What if OpenAI et al finally realised that pumping more compute into their models wasn’t actually improving them any more, and decided they needed an excuse to stop trying? “AI will kill us all” leaves them with all the cash, plus a great reason not to deliver.

Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 28/05/2026

So I hear they’re going to print a $250 note with Trump’s face on it. Given its most likely use, they’ll likely call it the Laundry Bill

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Reposted by Phil Cohen

Debbie Northway 🇦🇺🦘🐨 @debbienorthway.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 31/12/2025

Happy New Year from Sydney

Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 26/12/2025

What is the likely accuracy of a GDP statistic from a Government that punishes the bearers of bad numbers?

Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 08/12/2025

So will the war with Venezuela mean a ‘temporary’ suspension of all US elections, or a ‘permanent pause’?

Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 29/10/2025

Another way to think about AI: LLMs didn't invent anything, they just uncovered a structure that was already there, in human language. When you ask an AI a question, it's not really the AI that answers, it's *the language itself*.

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 27/10/2025

AI winter #2 is coming

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 21/10/2025

Hey if the US changed its mind about kings, the UK has a slightly worn royal it could offer

Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 16/10/2025

Here's one possible AI future: AI capability remains stuck pretty much where it is today, and everyone realises that they're still smarter than a computer and feel pretty good about that.

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 01/10/2025

Helter skelter

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 22/09/2025

A suggestion for when the US writes a new constitution to replace the current blown one: look at the idea of elected government 'ministers' for each department, rather than a government CEO. And don't make the mistake of Australia: don't allow the PM to take on ministries at will.

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 29/05/2025

Writing is like thinking, it takes time but you can’t explain why

Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 28/05/2025

Never use #PowerPoint to help you decide what to say

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 27/05/2025

#Selling is about the listening, not about the talking

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 26/05/2025

You can’t improve a process that’s not repeatable; Only documented processes are really repeatable

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 23/05/2025

Sometimes the person who has their hand on the tiller doesn’t move for long periods; doesn’t mean they’re not steering

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 22/05/2025

Never hire without at least two reference checks

Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 21/05/2025

You don’t win bids by impressing the customer, but by addressing their issues

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 20/05/2025

Good writers know when to stop

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 19/05/2025

#Innovative #organisations make constant changes, but so do desperate ones

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 16/05/2025

Grammar is important, but not that that important

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 15/05/2025

Don’t make bid evaluators do unnecessary work: if something is required two places in a bid document, put it in twice

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 14/05/2025

Technical writers read and listen for a living

Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 12/05/2025

If my call is important to you, then blooming answer it

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 12/05/2025

If using professional bid writers can win you 10% more bids, what’s that worth? www.hci.com.au/bid-writer/

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 08/05/2025

You know you’re getting old when you’re the same age as the Pope

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 08/05/2025

A manager is a) a manager b) a parent c) a manager

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 07/05/2025

If it’s boring to write, it’s going to be boring to read

Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 06/05/2025

If your engineers can write proposals, then we have some proposal writers who can do your engineering

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 05/05/2025

When you interview for a job, remember you’re buying as well as selling

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 02/05/2025

User interfaces are no more ‘intuitive’ than they were 10 years ago, we’ve just got used to being confused by them

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 01/05/2025

If you really want to get someone’s attention, send them a letter (yes, a paper one)

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 29/04/2025

Turing has a lot to answer for

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 29/04/2025

Not all #tech #writers can do #bids; not all bid writers can do tech writing #tenders #techcomm

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 28/04/2025

How to be a better tech writer - see www.hci.com.au/sme-intervie...

Subject matter interview techniques for technical writers

Getting information out of other people is a key tech writer skill. Within the documentation industry this is called getting information “by interview”. This article gives some tips that you might fin...

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 23/04/2025

A good #recruiter will question every ‘mandatory’ requirement in your brief

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 23/04/2025

#Bid managers do sales and project management; that’s a hard combination of skills to find

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 22/04/2025

#Documents should be structured to suit the reader, not the writer

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 17/04/2025

#Recruiting the right person for a #job involves a lot more than just text searching their #resume

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 15/04/2025

#Flowcharting is a tool that never gets old - see www.hci.com.au/flowcharting/

Flowcharting: how to draw a flowchart

Introduction to flowcharting. Learn how to draw a flowchart with step-by-step advice from the expert business analysts at HCi.

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 15/04/2025

Experts assume that #readers know as much as they do - why we need #tech #writers #techcomm

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 14/04/2025

Use test-driven development when writing your #RFP: if you can’t evaluate it objectively, don’t ask for it

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 10/04/2025

Never use #PowerPoint to help you decide what to say

Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 09/04/2025

Good technical #writers know when to stop adding to a document

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 08/04/2025

#Selling is about the listening, not about the talking

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Phil Cohen @philcohen.bsky.social · 07/04/2025

Putting waste paper in plastic bags in landfill traps carbon

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