It’s not Good Will Hunting with Chris Blocher
Last updated: 2026-Jul-07
In this episode, Ed talks to content strategist and technical writer Chris Blocher. Chris’ background spans academia, publishing, instructional design for Microsoft and Dell, and 18 years at Autodesk. They discuss how technical communicators are navigating the rapid evolution of generative AI, building “second brains”, local vs. cloud LLMs, Ed rants about his rabbit holes, and why human expertise remains irreplaceable.
Mentioned during this episode
AI platforms and models
- Claude/Anthropic
- ChatGPT/OpenAI
- Google Gemini (formerly Bard)
- Microsoft Copilot
Local LLM runners and interfaces
- LM Studio — Desktop interface for running local models
- Ollama — CLI/local runner for open-source LLMs
- Open WebUI — Chat interface compatible with Ollama and other backends
- AnythingLLM — Self-hosted vector store and RAG app
- Model Context Protocol (MCP) — Open standard for connecting AI tools to external data/skills
Note-taking and “second brain” tools
- Obsidian — Markdown-based knowledge base with web clipper
- NotebookLM — Google’s AI-powered research and note tool
- Microsoft OneNote
Writing, style, and prompts
- Chris’ technical content design skill
- Humanizer skill — Repository mentioned for avoiding common “AI tells” in resumes and writing
- Microsoft Style Guide
Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed this deep dive into AI workflows and content strategy, share it with a fellow technical communicator!
Credits
- Intro voiceover by one of my best friends since high school, Corey Holtzberg at Coho Studios.
- Headshot by life-long friend Michael Einreinhof of Arclight Images.
- Intro music bed: Come On! by Luke Bergs and AgusAlvarez. Music promoted by free-stock-music. Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-ND 4.0)