The Best AI Assistant For Coding
People & Blogs
Introduction
This past year, AI has gained tremendous popularity, and many programmers are now integrating AI tools like ChatGPT into their daily workflow. Instead of spending extensive time on Google to find bits of information and piecing them together yourself, you can now usually just enter a prompt and find exactly what you’re looking for. Right now, ChatGPT is the most popular and powerful AI assistant, but Google Bard just got a significant new update.
If you’re unfamiliar with Bard, it’s essentially Google’s version of ChatGPT. It looks very similar and even works the same way, where you enter a text prompt in English asking a question or for help, and then the AI assistant will give you an answer or assist you with whatever you need. We're seeing these AI tools become very powerful, and with Bard’s new update, Gemini, it’s reportedly more powerful than ChatGPT in several aspects.
There are three versions of Gemini that were just released: Gemini Nano, Gemini Pro, and Gemini Ultra. Gemini Ultra is the most powerful version and supposedly it outperforms ChatGPT in all benchmarks except for common-sense reasoning for everyday tasks. Gemini Ultra is expected to release early next year, but we can test out Gemini Pro now. Given Bard's potential superior performance in coding and mathematics, I decided to conduct a comparison by building something with Google Bard today.
Before diving into that, I want to mention Wix Studio. If you're a web developer, Wix Studio is one of the most all-encompassing web development platforms right now. You can build high-performing, powerful websites on Wix Studio easily without even knowing how to code. While some programmers appreciate the full control that coding gives you, Wix Studio has a powerful IDE in Visual Studio Code where you can edit and add any code you want.
Wix Studio also has its own AI assistant integrated into its IDE to help with fixing code, adding new code, or even understanding documentation or APIs. It's a great platform because you can build a majority of your website without coding using their high-quality templates, no-code animations, and AI responsiveness. If you want full control, you can just go into the IDE and add your code as you go. I'll link it in the description for those interested.
Testing Google Bard
To use Google Bard, you just go to b.google.com. In the main interface area, I entered the prompt, "I’d like to build a simple website. Do you have any recommendations?" Google Bard responded by asking for more information, unlike ChatGPT, which typically provides immediate suggestions. I clarified that I wanted to demonstrate Bard's capability for a coding YouTube video, specifying that the website should be simple and easy to code. Bard provided some standard recommendations like an interactive greeting card, to-do list app, quote generator, and single-page portfolio.
I decided on building a website for educational resources using HTML and CSS. Bard generated a bunch of code and styles, which I copied and pasted into my coding editor. It centered the example on general educational resources, so I modified it to focus on coding resources.
The template website Bard gave me included sections for languages, tech stacks, learning paths, challenges, projects, and a blog. While it looked alright, it was a bit bland, so I asked Bard to add more CSS to make it look modern and professional. Bard suggested some improvements, but they weren't in a copy-paste format.
I performed the same steps using ChatGPT, and it initially generated a simpler template. Prompting ChatGPT for more content resulted in additional information, although it wasn’t immediately impressive. Comparing both, Bard’s template was more thorough out of the box.
Issues with Bard
After spending around 15 minutes using Bard more to improve the educational website, I concluded that ChatGPT is significantly better. Bard struggled with maintaining context and providing complete code snippets. It often required multiple prompts for tasks that ChatGPT could handle in one prompt. At one point, Bard removed previous sections and only included updates to one section, demonstrating difficulties in maintaining a cohesive conversation.
I also found it challenging to get Bard to improve the CSS effectively. For example, when I asked for padding on section text, Bard only applied it to paragraphs, ignoring headers and other text. This required explicit and detailed prompting, which ChatGPT typically manages more efficiently.
Conclusion
If I had to choose between the two AI assistants, I would opt for ChatGPT without hesitation. Despite some improvements in Bard, it’s not yet on par with ChatGPT, especially for coding tasks. However, Bard is progressing, and we’ll have to wait and see how Gemini Ultra performs once it’s released early next year.
Let me know what you think of Bard’s new update. While it’s better than it used to be, I’m still leaning towards ChatGPT. Feel free to try them out yourself and leave your comments below. If you enjoyed this article, please like and subscribe as we grow this channel. Thanks, and see you in the next one!
Keyword
- AI Assistant
- ChatGPT
- Google Bard
- Gemini Update
- Coding
- Web Development
- HTML
- CSS
- Wix Studio
- AI Integration
FAQ
Q1: What are the main differences between ChatGPT and Google Bard?
A1: ChatGPT is more efficient, can maintain conversation context better, and typically provides more complete initial responses for coding tasks. Google Bard, although improved, often requires multiple prompts for tasks that ChatGPT can handle in one prompt.
Q2: What are the three versions of Gemini released by Google?
A2: The three versions are Gemini Nano, Gemini Pro, and Gemini Ultra. Gemini Ultra is the most powerful and is expected to outperform ChatGPT in most benchmarks except for common-sense reasoning in everyday tasks.
Q3: When is Gemini Ultra expected to release?
A3: Gemini Ultra is expected to release early next year.
Q4: What are some issues currently observed with Google Bard?
A4: Google Bard struggles with maintaining context in conversation, providing complete code snippets, and effectively improving CSS styles. Repeated prompts are often required to get desired results.
Q5: How does Wix Studio integrate AI for web development?
A5: Wix Studio features a powerful IDE integrated with Visual Studio Code that allows users to edit and add code. It also has an AI assistant to help with fixing code, adding new code, and understanding documentation or APIs.
Q6: Is Google Bard a worthwhile alternative to ChatGPT right now?
A6: Although improved, Bard is still not at the level of ChatGPT regarding coding assistance. It’s better to use ChatGPT for smoother, more efficient coding help until Bard potentially improves further with the release of Gemini Ultra.