ChatGPT Usage Tips

Foreword

Currently, it is widely expected that the fourth technological revolution will be based on artificial intelligence, quantum computing, biotechnology, and new energy technologies. Biotechnology and new energy technologies are already being widely applied and promoted, and in 2022, general artificial intelligence represented by ChatGPT also reached its “iPhone moment.” In the future, it will not be a competition between humans and artificial intelligence, but still a competition among humans. Those who embrace artificial intelligence will gain a competitive advantage.

ChatGPT has already established a leading position in this technological revolution, and mastering ChatGPT can provide a competitive edge in the future. ChatGPT is still new, and its functions and forms are continually evolving. This is beneficial for newcomers, as everyone starts at the same point. By using it regularly and keeping personal skills in sync with ChatGPT’s official updates, one can gain significant advantages over latecomers.

This article is intended to record personal tips and insights on using ChatGPT. If you have new skills or suggestions, feel free to leave a comment below for further discussion.

Official Update Log

• July 20, 2023, Custom Instructions Added

Custom instructions have been introduced to better tailor ChatGPT to meet your needs. This feature will be available for testing starting today with the Plus plan and will be expanded to all users in the coming weeks. Custom instructions allow you to add preferences or requirements that you want ChatGPT to consider when generating responses.

We have received your feedback about the friction of restarting each ChatGPT conversation. Through dialogues with users in 22 countries and regions, we have gained a deeper understanding of the importance of maneuverability in enabling our model to effectively reflect the different backgrounds and unique needs of each individual.

ChatGPT will consider your custom instructions for each subsequent conversation. The model will take these instructions into account for every response, so you don’t have to repeat your preferences or information in every conversation.

For example, a teacher creating lesson plans will no longer need to repeat that they are teaching third-grade science. Developers who prefer writing efficient code in non-Python languages only need to state it once, and it will be understood. Shopping for large families has become easier, as the model can account for everyone’s needs in the grocery list.

• July 9, 2023, Code Interpreter Added

Feature Introduction

The code interpreter is a program that can understand and execute code written in programming languages. It converts source code into instructions that can be directly executed by a computer.

The process of a programming language interpreter usually involves reading the source code line by line and then parsing and executing it. This is why interpreted languages (e.g., Python, JavaScript) can be directly entered and executed line by line in the terminal. The advantage of this approach is that it provides faster results and easier debugging during development, although it usually has lower execution efficiency compared to compiled languages.

The ChatGPT code interpreter is essentially a virtual environment created by OpenAI to allow code execution within conversations and enables users to upload various types of files. Combined with code, it can achieve tasks that would normally require writing code or using complex tools. Using the code interpreter, ChatGPT can analyze data, edit files, perform mathematical operations, and more.

Use Cases

1. Uploading PDF files to summarize long texts (e.g., papers, books) and engage in dialogue;
2. Video processing, such as extracting audio or clipping specific segments;
3. Image format conversion, making it easy to convert to the desired file format;
4. Batch file processing: upload ZIP files that ChatGPT can decompress and process;
5. Data processing and chart creation: it’s very easy to create charts by uploading Excel files;
6. Creating QR codes and adding dynamic effects, which was surprisingly eye-catching when I found out the code was indeed moving.

Code Interpreter’s Functions

Text Analysis

As an AI, ChatGPT can perform various tasks related to Word documents, including but not limited to:

1. Reading Word Documents: Opening and reading the contents of Word documents, including text, headings, subheadings, etc.
2. Analyzing and Summarizing Document Content: It can analyze the contents of a document, provide a summary, or extract key information.

This feature involves a deep analysis of the content of a Word document. I can extract key information from the document and generate a summary or synopsis based on it. This process can be broken down into the following steps:

• First, I will read the full content of the document, including all paragraphs, headings, and subheadings.
• Then, I will preprocess the text, such as tokenizing, removing punctuation marks and stop words, etc.
• Next, I will use natural language processing (NLP) techniques to analyze the text. This may include identifying key sentences, extracting topics, finding keywords, etc.
• Finally, I will generate a summary or synopsis based on the analysis results. This may be a paragraph of text or a list, depending on specific needs and circumstances.

3. Text Analysis: It can perform more complex text analysis, such as sentiment analysis, topic modeling, keyword extraction, etc.

This is a more complex task involving the use of various NLP techniques to analyze and understand the meaning of the text. Some possible text analysis tasks include:

• Keyword Extraction: I can identify the most important or common words or phrases in the text. Keywords can help us quickly understand the topic or content of the text.
• Topic Modeling: I can use various algorithms (e.g., LDA) to discover hidden topics within the text. This can help us understand the main ideas or issues of the text.
• Sentiment Analysis: I can analyze the emotional tone of the text, such as determining whether a review is positive, negative, or neutral.
• Named Entity Recognition: I can identify named entities in the text, such as personal names, place names, organization names, etc.
• Text Classification: I can classify texts into predefined categories, such as classifying emails as “spam” or “non-spam.”
• Text Clustering: I can find the natural groupings of texts, such as grouping news articles based on content similarities.
• Sentiment Analysis: I can determine the emotional tone of the text, such as whether a review is positive, negative, or neutral.

These are just some of the possible text analysis tasks and can be customized based on specific needs.

4. Creating Document Summary or Mind Map: Based on the document content, I can help create a summary or a mind map.
5. Text Conversion: It can convert document content to other formats, such as Markdown, HTML, etc.
6. Searching for Specific Content: I can help you search for specific words or phrases within the document.
7. Proofreading and Editing: I can help check for grammatical errors, spelling mistakes, or other possible errors and provide suggestions for revisions.

Please note that while I can read and analyze Word documents, I cannot directly edit or change Word documents. All analyses and processes occur in memory and do not affect the original file.

Usage Tips

Role Playing

When the prompts to ChatGPT require it to play a specific role, the responses are often more professional. For example, you can ask ChatGPT to play the role of a software engineer, lawyer, or performance coach.

Task Decomposition

If a task is complex, it should be broken down into simple tasks and completed step by step.

Make Good Use of Plugins

Take advantage of plugins to complete tasks such as retrieving real-time information or querying specified websites.

Make Good Use of the Code Interpreter

The core capability of the code interpreter is to allow users to upload their own data and then ask ChatGPT to process it. On the one hand, ChatGPT can work more accurately with real data; on the other hand, with ChatGPT’s programming capabilities, it can help users achieve data visualization, keyword extraction, summary writing, and more.