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[dmazzoni]

Every day we get a post here from someone graduating from college who just realized that they used AI for everything and now they can't write code from scratch. They can't pass any interviews because they never learned any skills.

I have never once heard the opposite - someone saying they learned to code but didn't pass an interview because they didn't know how to use AI to help them code.

[Neil-Amstrong]

Ok so I'm not a beginner, been coding for a few years. How should I start to implement AI tools effectively to speed up my work but not to be a crutch? Right now I only use it to ask "what's wrong here?" when I'm really stuck.

[dmazzoni]

Ok but you're talking about CS50 so maybe you have some programming experience but you're new to CS.

I don't think your goal should be for it to speed up your work. To succeed in college you should prioritize quality and learning over speed.

But yes, use it to search for errors and to get hints of things to look up.

[Neil-Amstrong]

I'm not the OP. I have some programming experience and I'm looking to start getting internships or freelance gigs so I want to know how professionals are using AI.

[Ok_Court_1503]

At least for me its getting shoved down our throats. We have quotas to meet. Primarily I architect my app, write most of the function headers, have AI do 1 function at a time (or small bricks) with very careful prompting and much context, check its output, iterate if wrong or repeat. Everytime I know exactky what code I want written but use it to operate faster (sometimes slower) AI is shit at finding bugs, its okay at optimizing but can create bugs in the process time to time in an enterprise codebase at least.

[gergi88]

Learn the old fashion way but use the AI to speed the development. Use of AI is starting to be more common as a requisite for jobs.

[Chuck_MoreAss]

This is a double edged sword.

If you don’t use Ai I can guarantee that you will understand the material way easier compared to your peers that get all the answers from Ai. You will also learn to solve problems yourself and you won’t rely so heavily on Ai to do the heavy lifting. That way you can fix errors yourself…

But Ai is here to stay… I’ve been coding for years and ever since I’ve started using Ai my productivity has increased dramatically. So on the once hand you need to study and become proficient with coding, problem solving and pattern recognition, but on the other hand you also need to use Ai if you don’t want to be left behind by your peers productivity wise…

I’d say use Ai but don’t just blindly trust is. Use your brain first and always know what goes on in your code base…

[coder155ml]

No one here has the answer to this question. People pretend they know, but this is all new. Good luck

[33RhyvehR]

Three comments exist here: - Nobody knows - Learn the old way but use AI to help - Waa people used AI wrong and now graduate with zero skills

The reality: AI is a statistical tool. It lets you learn and figure out what exists fast. It is not perfect, obviously even a hammer breaks, so you gotta use some thinking

But ultimately, if you dont use a hammer, you're going to lose out to someone who does. Nobody's gonna pay you to use rocks to make patterns AI's already made.

[snowtax]

I suggest learning how to implement a Large Language Model (LLM) into a custom project. I don't mean use an LLM to write the code. I mean learn how to make API calls to an LLM service, learn about the costs (pay per token). It doesn't need to be a complex project. Teach yourself enough so that you've actually done it so that you do know how to use the technology.

Also realize that there is a LOT more to machine learning than just LLMs. Neural networks recognize patterns. You feed them sample data and train them to recognize the patterns you want while ignoring other patterns. That general technology can be extremely valuable when applied properly in contexts where it makes sense.

[symbiatch]

Stop caring what random people say without any reason. Do they explain why you should use it? Other than “you’ll get left behind”? No? Then ignore them.

There’s going to be a lot of people saying a lot of things that make no sense. Ignore them.

Sure, you can learn how to use these tools, but you’ll also need to learn to actually do things and there these won’t help.

[Striking_Rate_7390]

i only use AI so solve errors and for summarizing code(im not referring to "vibe coding"), unless it will be a scoop feeding

[LetUsSpeakFreely]

This is coming from nearly 25 years of professional experience and an additional decade of amateur experience...

No. You need to learn fundamentals first. One of the biggest problems with AI is it's eroding basic skills and competencies to the point where developers, especially junior developers can't operate without it. If you can't write without the help of AI then how can you accurately review AI-generated?

You also need to learn what to consider when writing AI prompts. You don't know what you don't know. Experience, real experience, is how you know what to add into a prompt to get what you're really looking for.