A Complete How-To Guide to ChatGPT

Introduction

Despite ChatGPT’s fame, many people still have questions about what it can do and how they should use it. Those are legitimate questions to have, considering the speed of AI’s arrival into the mainstream. In this article, I'll help get everyone up to speed on ChatGPT’s features and how you can utilize them.

Here's what I'll cover:

• What is ChatGPT?
• Getting Started with ChatGPT
• Types of Inputs ChatGPT Can Handle
• Key Features
  • Model Choice
  • ChatGPT Projects
  • ChatGPT Canvas
  • ChatGPT Search
  • Image Generation in ChatGPT
  • Custom GPTs
  • ChatGPT Voice Mode
• Use Cases
• Who Can Use ChatGPT?

What is ChatGPT?

ChatGPT is an AI product that allows users to interact with a large language model (LLM) through natural conversation. These products are often called chatbots and have exploded in popularity recently. The core goal of chatbots like ChatGPT is to help people solve problems. ChatGPT can answer questions, translate, recommend books, write poetry, or generate code. It aims to be a one-stop shop for all your AI assistance.

Getting Started with ChatGPT

When you’re ready to dive into ChatGPT, you’ll first need to set up or log into your account. This is also a good time to consider which version of ChatGPT (free or paid) best suits your needs.

Creating an account

Before we go any further, it's important to note that ChatGPT has both a free and paid tier called ChatGPT Plus. Regardless of which version you’ll be using, you can access ChatGPT by heading to https://chatgpt.com. Once here, you can click “Sign In” or “Log In” and add your account details.

If you have a free tier and want to upgrade, go to your account details in the top right corner. Once you've opened your account, you can click “Upgrade Plan” to view the different tiers and their offerings.

ChatGPT Plans Comparison

As the above image shows, there are quite a few differences between the free plan and the ChatGPT Plus and Pro plans.

• Free Plan: Using the free version of ChatGPT is still great, but it has significant limitations. For example, you can’t choose which model you’re using and have much lower rate limits. You can still use the voice mode and custom GPTs, which are both powerful tools.

• ChatGPT Plus: This paid tier grants access to several excellent benefits not available to free users. The main difference between the free and Plus plan is the rate limit. Plus members can generate significantly more images and text responses. Another benefit of the Plus subscription is the model selection, allowing you to pick which model you want to use. You can also use the Projects feature, which is a great tool for organizing your work. This plan is $20 per month.

• ChatGPT Pro: The ChatGPT Pro plan is meant for super users who find themselves constantly using the product all day. This plan includes all the same benefits as Plus but with several key enhancements, primarily unlimited rate limits on OpenAI’s most advanced models (o1, GPT-4o). You also gain access to additional state-of-the-art models like o1 pro. This plan is $200 per month.

Additional Notes

• Free Plan: Great for basic tasks but with significant limitations. Limited rate limits and no model selection, though features like voice mode and custom GPTs are included.
• ChatGPT Plus: Provides better access with higher rate limits, model selection, and advanced tools like Projects for organization.
• ChatGPT Pro: Ideal for super users needing unlimited access to advanced models, voice features, and enhanced computational power.

Exploring the Interface

Now that we have created an account (or signed in), let’s examine the ChatGPT dashboard.

Starting from the top left, let's quickly go over the different elements of this interface.

• Creating new Chats (Green): By clicking on the icon circled in green, you can create a new conversation. This helps you separate topics into smaller units that are easier to organize.
• Selecting a model (Red): This drop-down menu allows you to choose which model the conversation will use. Free tier users cannot change models, so you’ll need a paid plan for model flexibility.
• Exploring the GPT marketplace (Orange): The GPT marketplace is one of the features that sets ChatGPT apart from other chatbots. We’ll cover this later, but in a nutshell, custom GPTs are specialized versions of ChatGPT that excel at specific topics.
• Chat History (Blue): All ChatGPT conversations are automatically saved and can be revisited later. By clicking “Weather Update,” for example, you can jump back into that previous conversation right where you left off.

This brings us to the right side of the dashboard. There, you’ll see the main chat area where you can interact directly with the model. Underneath the input field, you’ll also find several starter prompts designed to illustrate ChatGPT’s capabilities.

Types of Inputs ChatGPT Can Handle

Like most chatbots, ChatGPT can understand several different input types. This means it can “parse” the information you feed it and respond accordingly.

• Text Prompts: The most common way to communicate with ChatGPT is by giving it text-based questions or instructions.
• Code Snippets: Whether you’re writing your first ‘hello world’ program or creating a full-fledged application, ChatGPT allows you to paste large code blocks for feedback or suggestions.
• File Uploads: You can upload documents from your computer or cloud storage (Google Drive, OneDrive, etc.). ChatGPT can then analyze the contents to answer questions or provide targeted insights.
• Image Uploads: You can share images with ChatGPT for it to interpret or reference in its responses.
• Audio Input: All users can also speak with ChatGPT instead of typing out conversations. This is a great option that I often find myself using.

Key Features

As you’d expect from a product as widely used as ChatGPT, there are a number of important features that need to be explained. Becoming familiar with these will help you make the most of your AI-powered conversations.

Model Choice

One of the most powerful features of ChatGPT is the ability to select different models depending on your goals. As the image below shows, OpenAI allows the user to choose whichever model best fits the task. For example, if you want help with complex, multi-step problems or advanced mathematics, the OpenAI’s o1 reasoning model is the best choice. If you need more general assistance, the GPT-4o model might be your best bet. Taking the time to understand how each model can be utilized will help make ChatGPT significantly more useful. Remember that only paid tiers can access model selection.

ChatGPT Projects

If you’re anything like me, your ChatGPT chat history can quickly become an unorganized mess of random questions and partially formed ideas. Luckily, OpenAI anticipated this and created the Projects feature. By creating a project, you can save files, conversations, and custom instructions in a single location.

In the example below, I’ve created a single project where I can ask ChatGPT for book recommendations. If I wanted, I could upload my reading list or add completed books to improve ChatGPT’s recommendations. This feature is also for paid users only.

ChatGPT Canvas

Canvas mode offers a flexible way to work with text and code. Instead of updating large blocks of text through back-and-forth conversation, you can highlight and interact with specific parts without regenerating the entire output.

In the example below, I asked ChatGPT to clarify a small part of a lesson plan it created for me. I successfully edited my highlighted section without affecting the rest of the plan:

First, I highlighted the text that I didn’t understand, then clicked “Ask ChatGPT.”

Then I asked ChatGPT to be more specific:

Here was the final result. As you can see, it significantly expanded upon the group activity without impacting the rest of the week one plan. This feature is available for free users.

ChatGPT Search

Large Language Models (LLMs) can never be trained on entirely up-to-date information, and inaccuracies can remain in their training data. ChatGPT Search addresses this by allowing ChatGPT to access real-time information on the internet. This feature enables you to get the best of both worlds: LLM power and current data.

When using Search, ChatGPT cites its sources so you can verify the information or explore topics in more depth.

Image Generation in ChatGPT

My favorite feature of ChatGPT is the ability to create images through conversation. Image generators are everywhere these days, but being able to ask ChatGPT about, say, the fastest plane in the world and then request a generated image of that plane is truly impressive. This also helps visualize complex ideas in a more engaging way. You can refine and iterate on an image through further conversation.

• Free tier users can only create three images a day.
• ChatGPT Plus members can generate around 50 images per day.

Custom GPTs

One of the most unique aspects of ChatGPT is the Custom GPTs. Essentially, these are specialized versions of ChatGPT fine-tuned for specific purposes. They can range from a simple tweak, like making ChatGPT respond sarcastically, to a more advanced setup, such as a personal tutor that knows your learning style.

You can also create your own Custom GPTs. OpenAI designed GPT creation so that non-technical users can easily build solutions through natural language, rather than code. Here’s an example of a custom GPT I made for teaching history:

While anyone can use a Custom GPT, only ChatGPT Plus members can create new ones. The same rate limits apply to custom GPTs that apply to the rest of your plan.

Whether you’re looking to use a custom GPT or create your own, I highly recommend checking out the GPT marketplace.

ChatGPT Voice mode

So far, we’ve had to read and type out most of our interactions with ChatGPT. However, ChatGPT has a feature that lets you speak your requests called Voice mode. This is a great option if you’re on the go or simply prefer voice commands. To activate voice mode, click the white circle on the right of the input area and start talking!

Use Cases

Now that we’ve covered ChatGPT’s most important features, let's look at ChatGPT in action. Obviously I can’t cover every potential use case here so I’ll try to share a few broad examples.

The important thing to remember is that ChatGPT can be utilized in many different ways. Almost everyone could find a use for ChatGPT in their daily lives. The examples you’ll see below are meant to be starting points and can each become significantly more detailed based on your needs and experience.

Use Case	Description
Education	Personal tutoring, lesson planning, and more
Content creation	Outlining, brainstorming, and assisting with drafts.
Summarization	Breaking down complex concepts and articles into more digestible content.
Marketing	Idea generation for campaigns, creating captions, and providing creativity for marketing efforts.

Education

The impact that AI has on education is far reaching. Whether I want ChatGPT to be my personal tutor before an upcoming exam or need help creating a lesson plan for my 9th grade class, AI can help.

In the example below, you can see that I use ChatGPT to help write a lesson plan around reading the book The Great Gatsby. The example below is utilizing the Canvas mode to help me give more specific feedback on the lesson plan that we’re creating.

Content Creation

One of my favorite ways to use ChatGPT is for outlining possible topics and brainstorming. It can also do small-scale content generation. ChatGPT might struggle to produce highly polished, long-form writing by itself, but it’s incredibly good at providing drafts, giving feedback, or suggesting fresh angles. Using the Canvas tool is especially helpful for diving deeper into specific portions of your text.

Summarization:

Products like ChatGPT are great for summarizing complex, technical concepts and articles. When writing about AI topics, I often use AI generated summaries as a first step toward understanding a topic.

In the example below, I’ve shared a research paper with ChatGPT and asked it to summarize the article in layman's terms. If you enable ChatGPT Search mode, it can even cite real-time sources, making those summaries more reliable and easier to verify.

Marketing

As I previously mentioned, ChatGPT is a great resource when brainstorming ideas. This extends to numerous industries including marketing. By having ChatGPT generate several unique ideas, we can either be inspired or find exactly what we’re looking for.

In the below example I have ChatGPT create a caption that can be shared on social media to help promote a product. You could take this a step further by asking ChatGPT to create example images with DALL-E for your marketing campaign.

Who Can Use ChatGPT?

Hopefully these examples show that ChatGPT can be used by everyone. Whether for work, school, hobbies, or just to answer random questions, ChatGPT can save you time while providing helpful responses to a wide range of prompts. As you’ve seen, this versatile tool has features that appeal to all kinds of users: casual or professional, free or paid subscribers.

Conclusion

ChatGPT’s impressive range of features:

• Model choice
• File and image handling
• Real-time search
• And much more.

By exploring different plans, understanding how to organize your conversations, and tapping into advanced capabilities like Projects or Custom GPTs, you can customize your ChatGPT experience to fit your exact needs. Whether you’re an educator, a marketer, a coder, or a lifelong learner, ChatGPT is worth checking out as a go-to AI companion.