Warning about using GPT-4 for code debugging on React Native projects

I spent 4 hours last Tuesday trying to fix a navigation bug in my app using GPT-4's suggestions. It kept giving me outdated solutions from React Navigation v5 when I'm on v6. The problem was it was pulling from training data before the v6 API changes were common. I finally checked the official docs and fixed it in 20 minutes. Has anyone else had issues with LLMs suggesting deprecated methods for newer frameworks?

2 comments

2 Comments

smith.jordan12d ago

Is it really that serious though? You spent 4 hours following bad advice from a chatbot. That's on you man. Same thing happens with Google search results from 2021. Gotta check the dates yourself. I've used GPT for React Native stuff and it worked fine for basic state management. But terminal commands or specific version stuff? Always double check the actual docs first. Kinda feels like blaming a calculator for a wrong answer when you typed in the wrong numbers.

caseys3011d ago

On you man" is right. I once asked ChatGPT for a React Native animation code and spent three hours wrestling with it before realizing the library it suggested was deprecated in 2022. Felt like a total clown. But your calculator analogy is spot on - I've definitely punched 5+2 into a calculator and blamed it for giving me 7 when I wanted 8. At least with Google you can see the date stamp. Chatbots just sound so confident spitting out wrong info about deprecated React Navigation v4 that it's easy to forget they're basically just smart monkeys with typewriters.