AI generated responses to problems in the community

[Bruce Mcpherson]

I've seen an increase in responses to questions on the forum being answered with responses that are clearly just a cut/paste from chatgpt/gemini etc.. 

If you must do this,  then please mark that the reponse has been AI generated and is not actually your own work/advice.

[Ian Crew]

An emphatic +1 from me. If I post to a list/forum, I'm looking for someone who has some real experience and expertise. We all have the ability to ask Gemini/ChatGPT/etc. on our own (in much the same way that we all also have the ability to do a Google search, or look in StackOverflow, or similar).

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Ian Crew

Architect, Communication and Collaboration Services
Productivity & Collaboration Services
Berkeley IT

University of California, Berkeley

On Thu, Jul 10, 2025 at 1:09 AM Bruce Mcpherson <br...@mcpher.com> wrote:

I've seen an increase in responses to questions on the forum being answered with responses that are clearly just a cut/paste from chatgpt/gemini etc.. 

If you must do this,  then please mark that the reponse has been AI generated and is not actually your own work/advice.

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[Michael O'Shaughnessy]

+1 Also.

I have found myself using AI to ASSIST me in coding, I would NOT do a flat "ask chat, copy and paste" into this forum.  I have learned SO MUCH from the expertise in this forum that I cannot thank you enough!  

Also, I believe that because I am an intermediate coder knowledgeable with HTML, CSS, JS, Apps Script and Google Sheets that my prompts and conversations with AIs are better than just a "How do i do..." prompt.  AI is here to stay BUT we still need expert coders... especially when the AI code breaks and you end up in a "Chat from Hell" going in circles with AI!!

Just my opinion....

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[SMAARTE Group]

Fascinating conversation.  If someone has taken several hours to get a script working well -- AI generated or not -- it seems like their answers are valid and should be appreciated by this forum.  "Copy and paste" without knowing seems agreeably unwelcome.

If, on the other hand, there's an "us" vs. "them" for people who know code vs. people who simply spend time learning and making code work well and the latter is frowned upon in this forum, then develop some rules and don't invite folks to participate in the group unless they certify that they are "coders."

Like it or not, Gemini and other advanced AI solutions code extremely well and many well-respected coders have taken to YouTube and other avenues to boast how it's more efficient to use AI than to do all the "grunt work" (direct quote) themselves.  For those of you who have not availed yourselves of Gemini Pro 2.5, it's amazing at times and awful at times, but it's impressive all the time.  In my opinion, everyone should be asking AI for solutions before posting here with "how do I get this to work"?

I'm not a coder, but when I spend a full day getting code to work flawlessly, I would expect that if I share that with the group in response to someone's question that the answer is respected.

Who are the moderators of the group and what do they say?  I see nothing about this in the welcome / introduction / description language at https://groups.google.com/g/google-apps-script-community.

Regards,

Steve Horvath

SMAARTE Group

802-444-1347

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[Júlio César Valladares da Fonseca]

+1

[Bruce Mcpherson]

We all know that AI generated code ranges from amazingly insightful. through good, bad to mad. Offering help to someone who has come here looking for it comes with a responsibility - that you have some expertise in the solution you're proposing, and some confidence that it will solve the problem asked.  It's very possible that a cut/paste from AI will do that, but who knows? As Ian Crew pointed out, anybody could blindly copy code from an AI chat and try it  themselves without coming here to look for help. In fact, it's often a good way to get a quick resolution. 

When it comes to suggesting a solution here,  no matter their source,  I believe the poster should show enough respect to the community that they put some effort and invest some expertise in that response. Simply pasting an ai generated solution, without indicating that's just what it is, seem disrepectful.

In answer to your question 'who are the moderators' - I'm one of them.   The list is here: https://groups.google.com/g/google-apps-script-community/c/v_V0Pfp8uEY

However the community belongs to you all, not the moderators - so these are simply my personal opinions. 

[Michael O'Shaughnessy]

Bruce - I completely agree with you.

Steve - I do understand where you are coming from and I believe we are on the "same page".  I do personally use Gemini (and other AIs) to help me code... especially the "grunt work" you speak of. I can write the html code for a table with a header row that has 3 columns and 5 rows BUT it would take me some time to do this and AI can do it in less than a minute.  So of course, use AI to assist.  I heard a quote earlier about AI and coding and it went something like this: "I can cut a piece of wood with a hand saw but a table saw would be faster and more efficient.  HOWEVER, neither the hand saw or table saw will make the coffee table."  Making the coffee table is what the coder does.

So, yes if you have used AI to find a solution to someone's problem by all means share it. BUT we are trusting that you have tried the code yourself and verified that it works as expected.

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