alt Hacker NewsIMO this is a great example of how we're often asking loaded questions without realizing it.
IMO it's the same when we're asking:
"Should I implement X from scratch, or import a small library to do it?"
vs
"Should I add feature X to the codebase or bring in another dependency for it?"
In the first question, it sounds like a good idea to not reinvent the wheel, in the second it sounds bad to have dependency.
Replies
podgietaru • yesterday at 12:31 PM
My experience with Chatbots outside of a coding context also ends up like this.
A while ago I asked:
Is "Read more" an appropriate project for the Getting things done framework? - The answer, yes, it was.
Then I asked "Is Read More too big of a project to be appropriate for the GTD Framework" - The answer? Yes, it was far too big.
I totally agree! Interacting with LLMs at work for the past 8 months has really shaped how I communicate with them (and people! in a weird way).
The solution I've found for "un-loading" questions is similar to the one that works for people: build out more context where it's missing. Wax about specifically where the feature will sit and how it'll work, force it to enumerate and research specific libraries and put these explorations into distinct documents. Synthesize and analyze those documents. Fill in any still-extant knowledge gaps. Only then make a judgement call.
As human engineers, we all had to do this at some point in our careers (building up context, memory, points of reference and experience) so we can now mostly rely on instinct. The models don't have the same kind of advantage, so you have to help them simulate that growth in a single context window.
Their snap/low-context judgements are really variable, generalizing, and often poor. But their "concretely-informed" (even when that concrete information is obtained by prompting) judgements are actually impressively-solid. Sometimes I'll ask an inversely-loaded question after loading up all the concrete evidence just to pressure-test their reasoning, and it will usually push back and defend the "right" solution, which is pretty impressive!