AI: Monkeys on a typewriter


So with Github Copilot or similar one can quickly generate usable and accurate (?) code. But …

Q. Would it be possible for a non-coder with some nouce be able to create an app given specifications, when they no nothing? How long would it take. This is only a rhetorical question!

With GitHub Copilot at times it seems like it a mind reader suggesting the same or very similar code to what you are thinking of. In the past you would have Intellisense to suggest parts of what you are trying code or you did a search online. With all of this you have a a clear idea of what you want to do. Thatis what differentiates you the coder to a non coder.

With Copilot, some times it seems that you are having ac onversion with another person! You can asks it how to do something, evaluate and try what it returns and make further queries until you get a working project. Also, sometimes you start off with a with a specification that only covers the main part of the functionality required and then keep adding annd more complexity to the specification as you progress, when each step is satisfactory.

Underlying this is, as a coder, you know what you want to do to a very technical level, you know what is good code and you know how to evaluate it. it. The postive is that you can cut code a lot quicker because you “know what you are doing”.

It would be interesting to run an experiment where non coders are given a coding task in a black box context if you could filter out copy and paste.

An Simple Example of a Conversion

  • Q. Give me a C# Console app that writes “Hello World”

Response:

using System;

namespace HelloWorldApp
{
    class Program
    {
        static void Main(string[] args)
        {
            Console.WriteLine("Hello World!");
        }
    }
}
  • Q. Can Hello be read color and World be blue?

Response:

using System;

namespace HelloWorldColored
{
    class Program
    {
        static void Main(string[] args)
        {
            // Set the color for "Hello"
            Console.ForegroundColor = ConsoleColor.Red;
            Console.Write("Hello ");

            // Set the color for "World"
            Console.ForegroundColor = ConsoleColor.Blue;
            Console.WriteLine("World!");

            // Reset the color back to default
            Console.ResetColor();
        }
    }
}
  • Q. Also can Hello be bold whereas World is in italics

Response: Unfortunately, the console in C# does not support advanced text formatting like bold or italics because it is limited to basic text and color manipulations…

  • Q. How about using the Nuget package ConsoleTextFormat

Response:

dotnet add package ConsoleTextFormat

using System;
using ConsoleTextFormat;

namespace HelloWorldFormatted
{
    class Program
    {
        static void Main(string[] args)
        {
            // Write "Hello" in bold
            Console.WriteLine($"{Fmt.b}Hello{Fmt._b}");

            // Write "World" in italics
            Console.WriteLine($"{Fmt.i}World{Fmt._i}");

            // Reset formatting
            Console.WriteLine(Fmt.clear);
        }
    }
}

Bingo Dingo!

PS: The Nuget Package ConsoleTextFormat is a package that I have authored and published!

Comments

All good as above. It does pervade a number of coding contexts I have on my desktop, VS, VS Code, Arduino and Jekyll. At times though it does get in the way when you are making a small edit, say a few characters and it suggests several lines of code!

Is this all an analog of automonous vehicles? There have been some suggestions that there will be no need for coders in a year or two or sooner. But what if the whole AI/cpoding infrastructure blew up and we had start again. Someone would need to be able to start again with assembler.

I am reminded that over 50 years ago I watched the first man on the moon on TV. They want to do it again now but the engineers etc that made it happen long ago are long gone. We now have to reinvent-the-wheel!

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