Dept of Thomas - Am I doing this right? Three factors that make learning with and about LLMs difficult

Discovered: Nov 7, 2023 12:44 Dept of Thomas - Am I doing this right? Three factors that make learning with and about LLMs difficult <– QUOTE: In this post I will outline three factors that impact learning about LLMs through code. These factors are (1) LLMs as dependably unexpected, (2) the domain is in rapid flux, and (3) documentation is highly variable and written for the most expert audiences. Together, these factor make learning about and with LLMs feel finicky, slippery, and difficult. Although all learners are impacted by each of these factors, those seeking functional competence rather than engineering mastery are particularly impacted because these factors presume the individuals are learning code to be coders rather than to achieve some other end. I conclude by offering some advice to those writing and those using tutorials for how to approach an imperfect and shifting domain.