Github Copilot was released for beta last month. The developers could now use a new AI pair programmer which will thrive in the Visual Studio Code. For those who have tested it already, Copilot could be a perfect companion for the developers who want to ease their load in programming by identifying programming errors and suggesting possible codes.
The project was made possible through the participation of OpenAI which is spearheaded by Sam Altman. The company has learned a lot from its GPT-3 which showed many flaws like allowing offensive languages to appear and others.
The collaboration of Github and OpenAI is only the start of big programs like Copilot which is focused on improving the work for the developers.
The Advantage of Github Copilot
Github Copilot just came out last month and some developers shared their experience in using it. Here are some of the testimonials from them.
According to Infoworld on Thursday, July 8, Netlify director of developer experience, Cassidy Williams said that Copilot has been useful when rewriting the codes. The AI-operated programmer has been helpful for her in writing "pattern-matching functions" or "capitalization patterns.
Another early user named Basile of Dragos said that what the tool did was to give him ideas about the random code items, functions. It also helped him to organize what he wanted to write on his blog.
In an interview with the same news outlet, Alexey Golub, a software development consultant said that what he admired the most was Github Copilot's "smart autocompletion tool." There are times when he was writing a post for his blog or documentation that the appropriate word "might escape" him, but the tool stepped up and made the autosuggestions available.
On top of that, Github has managed to show its effectiveness to many developers who have used it earlier. For instance, Applitools developer advocate, Colby Fayock said that he could now write the function and receive the answer in Visual Studio Code. Apart from that, he was amazed about its ability to generate utility functions like sorting the dates.
The case for Postman software engineer, Vinit Shahdeo was focused on improving the efficiency of the developers by suggesting possible codes that will fit in the program.
Over Reddit, someone wrote on an "AI Pair Programmer" forum that Github Copilot is as competent as a real programmer
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The Downside of Github Copilot So Far
While Netlify's Williams mentioned how useful is the Copilot, this time she said that the programmer could not simply write the code for her in the context of the ambiguous project. She added that what the tool did was "fairly generic" when she wanted something different to happen.
Going back to Basile, the Copilot's suggestion feature is wonderful. He described the other suggestions as "flat-out terrible." What he wanted to point out is that the programmer needs to filter the good suggestions from the bad, and not include all of them in the program.
Fayock commented that the Github Copilot does not support some features like in the case of using React. The struggle that he found here was the requirement to have a library before he could import.
Autocomplete Feature Might Hinder Learning Path
While the autocomplete feature is an impressive capability of the AI pair programmer, the developers could dwell on it thus slowing down their progress in learning, according to Shahdeo of Postman.
Meanwhile, Golub said that the users have an option to choose to unuse the feature.
According to Github, the features of the Copilot works for some, but not for everyone. Somehow, the company could still experiment with what improvements can be added after the early beta test.
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Written by Joseph Henry
