The latest articles on DEV Community by Abebe Mihiretu (@abex04). https://dev.to/abex04 https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=90,height=90,fit=cover,gravity=auto,format=auto/https:%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fuser%2Fprofile_image%2F4146726%2Fcc70d06e-b669-4629-a099-7fb0ce099016.jpg https://dev.to/abex04 en Abebe Mihiretu Tue, 29 Sep 2026 06:12:43 +0000 https://dev.to/abex04/33-gpt-prompts-i-use-to-learn-coding-faster-with-real-outputs-4hkb https://dev.to/abex04/33-gpt-prompts-i-use-to-learn-coding-faster-with-real-outputs-4hkb <p>While learning to code, I kept retyping the same kinds of prompts: explain this code, help me debug this, quiz me on this topic. So I started saving the ones that actually worked and turned them into an open-source collection called <strong>GPT Tips &amp; Tricks</strong>.</p> <h2> What's inside </h2> <p>There are 7 categories, about 33 prompts in total:</p> <ul> <li> <strong>Coding</strong>: explaining code, reviewing it, writing tests, refactoring</li> <li> <strong>Debugging</strong>: finding bugs, decoding error messages, wrong output, slow code</li> <li> <strong>Study</strong>: learning topics, quizzes, study plans, summarizing notes</li> <li> <strong>Project</strong>: generating ideas, scoping, breaking work into tasks</li> <li> <strong>Documentation</strong>: READMEs, commit messages, code comments</li> <li> <strong>Career</strong>: mock interviews, resumes, explaining your projects</li> <li> <strong>Dev tools</strong>: Git, terminal, SQL, regex, environment setup</li> </ul> <h2> Example </h2> <p>Here's one from the debugging category:<br> </p> <div class="highlight js-code-highlight"> <pre class="highlight plaintext"><code>I am a beginner programmer. Explain this error message in simple terms. Tell me: 1. What the error means 2. What usually causes it 3. How I can fix it 4. How I can prevent it in the future Error: [PASTE ERROR HERE] </code></pre> </div> <p>Asking for four separate parts forces GPT to teach the concept instead of just handing you a fix.</p> <h2> See real outputs </h2> <p>The repo has an <code>examples/</code> folder with real GPT responses, so you can judge a prompt before using it. Every prompt is copy-paste ready, and you just fill in the <code>[BRACKETS]</code>.</p> <h2> Repo </h2> <p><a href="https://github.com/Abex04/gpt-tips-and-tricks" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://github.com/Abex04/gpt-tips-and-tricks</a></p> <p>It's free and MIT licensed. If you have prompts that work well for you, pull requests are welcome.</p> chatgpt coding learning productivity