[CG] AI tools for coding

The following article shows an important use of GPT-style tools. But note that they are not doing any reasoning or evaluation. The most valuable parts are error correction (simple mistakes) and finding code snippets from a vast range of software that can be found on the WWW. I recommend clicking on the link below for more information. But caveat emptor: it can also insert bugs, especially for larger snippets that do almost what you want, but for a slightly different representation than what you're using. These are the same issues as writing aids in English and other languages. They are good for correcting spelling, inserting useful phrases, reducing the amount of typing, etc. But when they insert larger amounts of text, you have to check the details -- because they can insert stuff that is not what you meant. The worst cases are sections that look good at first glance, but you (or somebody else) discovers misleading or just false passages. Treat every passage they insert as if written by a clever assistant who does a lot of good stuff, but sometimes makes disastrous errors. John -------------------------------- From ACM technews. Information for computer professionals three times a week. GitHub Survey Finds Nearly All Developers Use AI Coding Tools Nearly all (97%) of the 2,000 developers, engineers, and programmers polled by GitHub across the U.S., Brazil, Germany, and India said they have used AI coding tools at work. Most respondents said they perceived a boost in code quality when using AI tools, and 60% to 71% of those polled said adopting a new programming language or understanding an existing codebase was "easy" with AI coding tools. [https://www.infoworld.com/article/3489925/github-survey-finds-nearly-all-de… ]InfoWorld (August 21, 2024)