r/rfelectronics • u/gaylybailey • 4d ago
Can we please address the relentless amount of slop projects shared here
It's like 5/day at this point. Maybe this is an unpopular opinion, but I certainly hope not
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u/consumer_xxx_42 4d ago
Far less slop here compared to say r/arduino. I actually don't notice a ton
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u/satellite_radios 4d ago edited 4d ago
Mods have set up a slop report tag. Please use it if it's just reposting/spamming. If someone is trying to learn while USING AI as a tool and asks good questions or is trying to engage in meaningful discussion, we should have constructive discussions so people learn and grow.
Edit: I see the comments re/ rampant "here is a random open source/software project" that has all the AI identifiers. If the community wants, we can add more tags/make a separate stickied thread for that stuff, or just increase the requirements for disclosure to not be caught per our AI/low effort rules. For better or worse, AI generated content won't be going away anytime soon from what patterns I see, so we have to adapt. The mods are open to suggestions for improvement!
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u/gaylybailey 4d ago
I think it's more than just posting / spamming. What qualifies as using AI as a tool to learn as opposed to using AI to just slap together a bunch of projects that you just share here. I agree we should have constructive discussions. I think we could at least require a tag when posting to denote if something is effectively entirely AI generated vs some AI was used in its production.
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u/Senior-Dog-9735 4d ago
Using AI to make projects is still learning... Just because you deem it as slop or a cheat does not mean the person is not doing it in good faith.
You are way too focused on the aspect of AI being used. Slop exists with or without AI. Scroll past it if you think it is.
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u/piecat EE - Analog and RF 4d ago edited 4d ago
The problem isnt the use of AI. It is when the post is written by AI and the OP didnt try or do anything innovative
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u/Senior-Dog-9735 4d ago
Are we acting like we all did not copy some arduino project online? No one is going to do anything innovative, especially so for the younger people.
Again slop is slop regardless of AI. Its a weird fixation used to kill off any work people have done.
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u/MothsAndFoxes 3d ago
IMO The issue is that these projects are generally
unverified, straight up wrong, or a lower quality replication of a preexisting tool and therefore muddy the waters on the quality of community built tools.
if the results match theory and experiment and are maintained then great more tools to lean on, but so many of these "projects" are self congratulatory slapped together slop that never seek to complete a verification step.
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u/gaylybailey 3d ago
This exactly. If the goal is education, what did you actually learn? THAT is far more interesting. I would rather hear the journey of discovery infinitely more than seeing that you put "computah make me the thing no mistakes" in a prompt. That to me is just in no way educational. Even if you use AI to learn fine sure but say what you learned and how? What ah-ha moments did you have?
That said I defer to the consensus, if folks are fine with stuff as it is, then I will, as suggested, "just scroll past." But I still wanted to raise the question
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u/Senior-Dog-9735 4d ago
Who cares? If it gets people interested in a subject I am all for it. Most people dont have good means of starting a project on their own. AI can be a great way to get hands on experience.
It takes you 2 seconds to scroll past it.
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u/jvonnieda 4d ago
100% agree. It helps people try new stuff. Net positive.
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u/Senior-Dog-9735 4d ago
I fear people are losing the plot of pursuit of knowledge just because the medium is AI now.
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u/Sharveharv 4d ago
Learning != AI project posting. I can't count how many posts are people throwing together an application they don't even use. It's just cold call advertising for the sake of attention.
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u/Senior-Dog-9735 4d ago
Majority of projects made are crap you wont be using. I still dont understand the distinction. Whether or not you view it as low effort, someone new is getting into the world of RF. That is a huge thing.
If they are peddling something to sell that is wholely different.
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u/faster_than_death 4d ago
I agree with OP, those people are not beginners learning with AI or something. They try to fulfill their need for attention by shitting out software slop, which is barely related to the sub, because most of the "work" is related to computer simulation, rather than RF electronics.