Hello! As a member of the Erlang Ecosystem Foundation's Education, Training, & Adoption Working Group, I'm want to share a development. For the past few months, Lee Barney, a fellow working group member, has been creating personalized GPTs specifically designed for learning Elixir and Erlang. I'm here to walk you through how you can leverage these powerful tools.
Accessing the Erlang Ecosystem Foundation GPTs
To get started, head over to chat.openai.com and log in. Once you're in, navigate to the left-hand sidebar. You'll see a "GPTs" option represented by four circles forming a square. Click on that, and then use the "Search GPTs" bar. Type in "Erlang Ecosystem Foundation," and you'll find a selection of specialized GPTs.
Let's explore some of them:
ElixirSparq: If you're a beginner or looking to start your journey with the Elixir language, ElixirSparq is your go-to. You can kick off a chat and ask questions like, "How can I write 'Hello World' in Elixir?" It will provide you with an answer, likely demonstrating something similar to
IO.puts("Hello World")within a module.ErlangSparq: Similarly, for those diving into Erlang, ErlangSparq is designed to guide you through the language fundamentals.
OTPSparq: OTP (Open Telecom Platform) is a crucial library used in both Elixir and Erlang. OTP Spark is your resource for understanding this powerful framework. A great way to begin is by asking, "What is OTP?"
You can easily pin your favorite GPTs to your sidebar for quick access, saving you from searching every time.
New Additions and Learning Strategies
We've recently added two more specialized GPTs:
Erlang DiGraphs User Guide: This GPT is invaluable if you're looking to learn how to use digraphs in Erlang. And remember, what you learn in Erlang regarding digraphs can often be applied in Elixir as well.
Erlang SOFS Users Guide: The Erlang module covered by this GPT deals with sets of sets, finite sets, relations, and sets as first-class native structures. Asking the GPT "What is
sets?" will give you a detailed explanation.
I believe that using AI for language learning, especially with these tailored GPTs, can be effective. However, it's crucial to remember that these are learning aids, not substitutes for complete understanding. While you can ask questions, it's generally best to avoid asking the GPT to write entire programs for you. Instead, focus on asking questions that help you understand concepts and guide you toward solutions. Sometimes, you might even need to prompt the system to provide hints rather than full answers.
Of course, these GPTs should complement other learning methods, such as reading books or consulting official language documentation.
A Note on "Miscalculations"
Lee Barney, who developed these GPTs, prefers the term "miscalculation" over "hallucination" when an LLM provides incorrect information. These miscalculations can happen. For instance, a function might be described as taking two arguments when it actually requires three.
This can actually be a beneficial part of the learning process. When such a miscalculation occurs, you'll have to verify the GPT's output. This means you'll have to engage with the language directly – perhaps by testing the code in a Livebook environment for Elixir or in the Erlang terminal. This hands-on verification process helps solidify your understanding and teaches you how to debug and confirm information, which are essential skills for any developer.
Support the Erlang Ecosystem Foundation
The development of these GPTs is just one of many initiatives by the Erlang Ecosystem Foundation. If you appreciate our work and want to support the growth and education around Elixir and Erlang, please consider becoming a sponsor or joining the foundation.
Sponsorship: Companies can become sponsors to help us continue our mission. You can find more information on how to become a sponsor on our website.
Membership: Individuals can also join the foundation. We offer a basic membership (free), an annual supporting membership ($99), and a lifetime supporting membership ($999).
Thank you for your time, and we look forward to seeing you contribute to the Erlang and Elixir communities!
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