THE HELP DESK
How Info Pros Can Use ChatGPT
by Sophia Guevara
After reading several stories about ChatGPT online, I decided to learn more about this AI-based language model from the OpenAI research and deployment company. Creating an account is free and simple. Once logged in, you see a screen that shows examples of questions you may ask, along with information about ChatGPT’s capabilities and limitations. Queries include:
- “Explain quantum computing in simple terms”
- “Got any creative ideas for a 10 year old’s birthday?”
- “How do I make an HTTP request in Javascript?”
While you may feel free to input any type of question, it is necessary to keep in mind that the conversations may be reviewed by AI specialists to help improve the system, so it is best to keep personal information out of conversations with ChatGPT. With that being said, you can clear past conversations saved to your account by clicking on the trash can that is posted next to the conversation or by clicking on the Clear Conversations option listed on the left-hand side of the screen. As for the display, you can choose to keep the screen in light mode or change it to dark mode.
ADVANTAGES AND LIMITATIONS
Taking a look at some of the sample questions, you may wonder about the difference between well-known search engines such as Google and AI tools such as ChatGPT. CNBC published an article by Sofia Pitt on Dec. 15, 2022, called, “Google vs. ChatGPT: Here’s What Happened When I Swapped Services for a Day.” It details the answers each service provided when Pitt input the same questions into each one, and she declares a winner for each question. It’s worth a read to get a feel for how effective ChatGPT is.
An advantage of ChatGPT is that it is trained to decline inappropriate requests. However, according to its homepage, it has several limitations, including:
- “May occasionally generate incorrect information”
- “May occasionally produce harmful instructions or biased content”
- “Limited knowledge of world and events after 2021”
In the Newsweek opinion piece “ChatGPT Can Write Better Essays Than My College Students. That’s a Good Thing,” Blaine Greteman, an associate professor of English at the University of Iowa, says, “When a machine can write your homework, it’s time to … return to deeper humanistic questions like, what is truth? What is beauty? How do we know what we know?” He concludes, “Time for a new final exam, one that demands students find out something about themselves and tell it to you in a voice that is their own. To do that, they will have to feel something, and find a form to express it that makes you feel it too.”
USE CASE: JOB SEARCHES
Routinely, patrons approach public service desks to request resources to develop a cover letter, so I wondered if ChatGPT could be useful in that situation. I have to say that I was impressed with the quality. After asking ChatGPT how to develop a cover letter and how to write the first paragraph, I was provided with a basic outline and a sample first paragraph. I asked about other paragraphs, including the conclusion, and the samples provided were of good quality. When I decided to copy and paste the content from a job description I found online and asked for a cover letter to be produced for me, it worked.
After this experiment, I found a Business Insider article that discusses the use of ChatGPT for this purpose. Beatrice Nolan writes, “I gave ChatGPT some real job descriptions and a few brief sentences about my made-up experience. I then sent the cover letters to hiring managers to see what they thought. … Both of the recruiters who looked at the two AI-generated cover letters, one for a social-media assistant and the other for a purchase-ledger clerk, said they seemed like they were written by genuine candidates … [but] the letters lacked personality and research about the companies [being applied to].” So using ChatGPT to write your cover letter is a good starting point, but you should add a personal touch before applying for a job.
Next, as if I were a hiring manager, I experimented with using ChatGPT to develop a sample job description for an academic librarian. In my opinion, the sample description was just OK. For example, the top qualification for the job was listed as a “master’s degree in a library field or related field.” Those who are familiar with academic librarianship may note that to be competitive, two graduate degrees—with one in the particular subject area and an M.L.I.S. or M.L.S. from an ALA-accredited institution—are often required.
OTHER USES
You can search YouTube for a variety of videos about the ways people are making use of ChatGPT. Deciding to try a few questions for information that I thought was unique, I asked ChatGPT to:
- Help me write an agreement. The result included a definition of the terms along with the need to consider a number of elements. At the end, there was a statement that indicated the importance of being specific and a suggestion to consult an attorney if there were any questions or if further guidance was needed.
- Write me a song. It did so, quickly, which amused me. See the She’s a Librarian sidebar to judge it for yourself.
So, the question remains: Do you think that the use of AI-inspired content from ChatGPT will give some people an upper hand in school or on the job hunt? I suppose time will tell.
SHE’S A LIBRARIAN
When asking ChatGPT to write a song, I typed, “make me a song for a working librarian.” Here’s the result.
—S.G.
Verse 1:
She’s got a stack of books and a head full of facts/
Helping patrons find what they’re looking for, that’s her act/
With a smile on her face and a pen in her hand/
She’s the keeper of knowledge in this quiet land
Chorus:
She’s a librarian, a guardian of the books/
She’s a librarian, she reads and she looks/
She’s a librarian, she helps us to learn/
She’s a librarian, she’s a treasure we’ve earned
Verse 2:
She’s got a computer and a card catalog too/
She’s got the Dewey Decimal System down pat, it’s true/
She’s got a love for literature and the written word/
She’s the one we turn to when we’re looking for a certain bird
Chorus:
She’s a librarian, a guardian of the books/
She’s a librarian, she reads and she looks/
She’s a librarian, she helps us to learn/
She’s a librarian, she’s a treasure we’ve earned
Bridge:
She’s got a quiet voice and a gentle way/
She’s got a wealth of knowledge that she shares each day/
She’s got a passion for the written word/
And she’s the one who’ll help us find what we’ve heard
Chorus:
She’s a librarian, a guardian of the books/
She’s a librarian, she reads and she looks/
She’s a librarian, she helps us to learn/
She’s a librarian, she’s a treasure we’ve earned
Outro:
So next time you’re in the library, be sure to say hi/
To the librarian who’s always there to help you fly/
With the power of knowledge and the love of books/
She’ll help you find what you’re looking for, with just a few looks
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Sophia Guevara received both her M.L.I.S. and master of public
administration degrees from Wayne State University. She has also
been published in Computers in Libraries, Online Searcher, and Information Outlook. Send your comments
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