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Certain coding applications for software development
According to a research conducted by BlackBerry Global Research, 49% of IT decision-makers believe that ChatGPT will help hackers improve their coding skills.1 Whether this negative expectation will happen in the future or not, it is a fact that ChatGPT is a useful tool for coding applications.
In this article, we provide 7 ChatGPT coding use cases with examples from this tool.
ChatGPT can generate code for simple or repetitive tasks, such as file I/O operations, data manipulation, and database queries. However, it’s important to note that its ability to write code is limited and the generated code may not always be the accurate, optimized or desired output.
Figure 1. ChatGPT writing code for the comment “Can you write a Python program that reads a CSV file containing student data, calculates the average grade for each student, and writes the results to a new CSV file?”
ChatGPT is primarily designed to generate natural language text.Besides, instead of being specifically designed for writing code, it has been trained on large amounts of programming code. However, it can generate simple code snippets based on natural language inputs and can suggest improvements to the existing code.
It’s also worth noting that while ChatGPT can generate code, it cannot understand the underlying problem or requirements that the code is intended to solve. Therefore, the code generated by it may not always be the best or most efficient solution to the problem.
2- Debugging
ChatGPT’s bug fixing performance is also quite useful for programmers. It can debug code by suggesting potential causes of errors and providing solutions to fix them (See Figure 2). When a programmer encounters an error in their code, they can input the error message or code snippet into ChatGPT, and it can analyze the code and suggest possible solutions to fix the error.
ChatGPT can help in completing the code by predicting the next lines or sections of code based on the context and existing code. This can save time and effort for programmers who may not remember all the syntax and functions of the programming language they are using. Code completion can also reduce errors by suggesting the correct syntax and formatting.
ChatGPT can suggest ways to optimize and improve the code structure, readability, and performance. Refactoring involves modifying existing code to improve its quality without changing its behavior. ChatGPT can provide suggestions for changing variable names, removing redundant code, and other improvements that can make the code more efficient and easier to understand by other programmers.
Figure 3. ChatGPT refactoring a code it provides as an example
When a programmer inputs their code into ChatGPT, it can suggest appropriate documentation templates based on the programming language and the type of code being documented. For example, if the code is a function, ChatGPT can suggest a function documentation template that includes parameters, return values, and a description of the function’s purpose.
ChatGPT can also provide examples of best practices for documenting code, such as using descriptive variable and function names, including comments to explain complex code, and following established documentation standards for the programming language being used.
Figure 4. ChatGPT providing an example code documentation for a Python function that sorts a list of numbers in ascending order
ChatGPT is capable of generating code snippets in various programming languages based on user input and requirements. A code snippet is a small piece of code that demonstrates a specific feature, function, or technique in a programming language. Code snippets are useful for illustrating how to perform a specific task or solve a problem in code and can be used as a starting point for more complex programming projects.
When a user inputs a request for a code snippet, ChatGPT uses its natural language processing (NLP) capabilities to analyze the user’s input and generate a code snippet that meets the specified requirements. The generated code snippet may include various programming constructs, such as variables, loops, conditionals, and functions, depending on the specific task or problem being addressed.
ChatGPT can provide explanations and examples of programming concepts, syntax, and functions, which can be helpful for learning and understanding programming languages. This can be particularly useful for beginner programmers who may be unfamiliar with programming concepts or experienced programmers who are working with a new programming language.
Figure 6. ChatGPT providing an explanation for the question “What is object-oriented programming and how does it work?”
Also, it can provide step-by-step instructions for solving programming problems and improving coding skills.
However, it is important to not rely solely on ChatGPT’s ability to provide explanations as it occasionally provides wrong answers according to user reports. Although it is a useful tool for learning quickly and easily, it requires double checking for the information it provides. You can learn more about this and other limitations through our in-depth guide on ChatGPT use cases and limitations.
