Christian Heilmann

GitHub Copilot is a great example for in-context AI chat

Wednesday, August 2nd, 2023 at 11:04 am

GitHub Copilot chat in-context with a highlighted piece of code

Generative AI is only as good as its integration in your work environment. GitHub Copilot Chat in Visual Studio Code is a great example how to do that right.

Recording showing the interaction in Visual Studio Code

You can highlight code in the editor and press `CMD + I` on Mac or `Ctrl + I` on Linux/Windows and you get a text box to chat about this piece of code. For example, you can ask Copilot to explain it.

If you ask Copilot to modify the code, for example by asking it to add step-by-step instructions, it won’t replace the code immediately, but give you a diff view to see and change the recommendations before applying them.

Together with an extension to verify the validity of your code, like webhint this becomes a safe and thoroughly enjoyable way of working.

Generative AI is amazing – but good UX makes it even better.

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