How to Use Google Bard

Ashley_Buckwell

Google released Bard, its answer to ChatGPT, in early 2023, and users have been testing it out to see how it compares to OpenAI’s artificial intelligence-powered chatbot, ChatGPT. We recently performed a deep dive on Google Bard, covering the basics of Google’s exciting new AI platform. Now, in this article, we will detail all of the ways that you can use Google Bard, so that you can get the most out of it.

What is Google Bard? 

Like ChatGPT, Bard is a chatbot that uses deep learning algorithms called large language models to generate text in response to user prompts. Bard was initially powered by LaMDA (short for Language Model for Dialogue Applications) during its multiyear development phase, but since March 2023, Bard has been powered by PaLM 2, which stands for Pretrained Language Model 2. PaLM 2 is Google’s latest and most advanced large language model, with enhanced logic, math, and coding capabilities compared to LaMDA. PaLM 2 is capable of understanding human language as it is written.

Bard is similar to ChatGPT in many ways. The chatbot is able to answer complex questions about the universe and give you information on a range of topics in a conversational, interactive format. Bard differs from its rival, however, because it is connected to the web and therefore able to give up-to-date responses to user prompts.

In early May 2023, Bard came out of its testing phase and officially left its waitlist behind. Bard is now officially available in more than 180 countries, and users can join using either a Workspace account or a personal Google account. 

How do I use Google Bard? 

The following steps outline how to use Google Bard: 

1) Go to the Google Bard login page & log in.

To get started on how to use Google Bard AI, visit the Bard homepage at bard.google.com. You will need to be logged in to your Google account. Note that users in unsupported countries will see the following Google Bard error: “Bard isn't currently supported in your country. Stay tuned!” 

2) Get familiar with the Bard chat window. 

Like the rest of the most popular AI chatbots available for use, the Google Bard chat window has been optimized to be user friendly and easy to navigate.

The main menu on the left side of the window contains five options:

• Reset chat: This will clear the current conversation and start a new one. 
• Bard Activity: This will open a new tab with your prompt and response history. 
• FAQ: Check the FAQ for Bard-specific questions and answers. 
• Updates: This option lists a history of the different updates that have been made to Bard AI. 
• Help: Click here to reach Bard Help or to send feedback.

The text area fills most of the screen:

• The prompt input bar sits at the bottom of the screen. Type your questions or prompts here then hit enter or click Submit on the right. 
• Dictate your prompts by clicking on the microphone at the right of the prompt input bar. 
• Your conversation with Bard AI will appear at the center of the chat window. View other drafts of Bard’s responses, give a thumbs up or down to provide feedback to the model, or submit your prompt to Google Search to get related search results. 
• Next to your prompt in the chat window, you will see an Edit Text button. This gives you the option of editing your prompt to get a new answer, which can be useful if you realize you need to be more specific but do not want to rewrite your prompt.

3) Start writing your prompts.

At this point, you are ready to start using Google’s Bard AI. Just enter your query in the text area and send it to the chatbot to see its response.

What can Google Bard do? 

Google Bard has a broad range of useful applications, and what you will find it most useful for depends on your role. A software engineer, for example, might use Google Bard to understand the complexities of a piece of code. An event planner might use Bard to brainstorm venue locations. Bard can also be used to do the following:

• Summarize articles and web pages 
• Brainstorm and generate content ideas 
• Write taglines and short descriptions for inspiration 
• Compare research and data in a chart or table 
• Obtain travel and activity recommendations 
• Translate both text and speech into several languages 
• Ask open-ended, challenging, or unusual questions 

What are some useful tips to help me make the most out of using Google Bard? 

Beginner and advanced users alike will get the most out of Google Bard by sticking to the following tips:

• Be specific with your requests. Google Bard’s AI is designed to respond to specific requests and provide relevant information. Be clear and concise with your queries to get accurate results. 
• Use natural language. Like other AI chatbots, Google Bard is designed to interpret and respond to natural language queries. Using full sentences and natural language can help you get better results. 
• Utilize multiple prompts. Google Bard is designed to provide a conversational experience, so feel free to ask multiple follow-up questions to dive deeper into a topic. 
• Experiment with different topics. Try different topics to engage with the AI and learn something new on a wide range of topics, from weather and news to fun facts and trivia. 
• Provide feedback. The system is constantly being improved, and your feedback can help make the experience better. Provide feedback or suggestions to help create a better conversational experience.

Google Bard is shaping up to be a useful and even fun addition to the toolkits of Internet users around the world. The Google Bard AI can provide users with relevant and up-to-date information from the web, and it can also spit out large walls of text from brief prompts with ease and skill. Whether Bard becomes the premier search assistant or fully fledged content creator remains to be seen.