[Slartie]

Yes, but that's a perfect illustration for one of copilot's essential flaws: "a lot of flies eat poop" (side note: is that actually a saying? Asking because in German it is, and it fits perfectly here).

A lot of code is of mediocre quality. An ML service that learns from huge amounts of code without an ability to tell "good" code from "bad" code will only ever be able to produce mediocre code, at best.

[jazzyjackson]

> side note: is that actually a saying?

I've never heard it before but i'll be using it now :)

[bombcar]

It's saying "just because it's popular doesn't mean it's good" and it's doing it quite well.

[bombcar]

Which may still be of value if you know and can recognize mediocre code.

Some code is like a giant pile of dirt; you need someone to pile it up and then you can go in and clean up the edges and make it "good" whereas other code is entirely delicate all the way through.

The big question is how much is each one and can it help. I suspect it helps for many, but those who know enough to recognize where it can flaw will have an advantage.

But newer programmers may never really "learn" the code the way the older ones do, as they'll just let the computer do the basics.

[sverhagen]

So, Copilot is a _junior_ developer. Isn't that a matter of just managing expectations?