Microsoft Copilot: What can you use it for and how?

All the biggest companies are competing to have the best artificial intelligence or language model. For now, Meta's model Llama 3 is on its tail, which, despite three development versions, has not yet managed to establish itself among users. It is preceded by the Anthropic Claude model (3.5), and Google's Gemini, Copilot and, of course, (Chat)GPT. Everyone is learning from their users' data and what they are allowed to glean from the web, although it is Microsoft and OpenAI that are facing numerous copyright infringement lawsuits. The competition will be even more varied, because the flattering title of the best also means the title of the most valuable company in the world. Microsoft and Nvidia alternate at the top. The latter supplies all companies developing artificial intelligence with AI chips.

Skoraj vsi jezikovni modeli so na voljo vsaj v obliki klepetalnika, razvijalci pa jih lahko uporabijo tudi za druge vrste aplikacij. O ChatGPT-ju smo že pisali – o tem, kako ga pravilno uporabljati in na primer, kako ga lahko med drugim uporabimo za načrtovanje dopusta.

We have also talked about Copilot before, but more in a general context. This time we would like to address the question of how it differs from ChatGPT, what we can do with it and how easy it is to use.

How to access Copilot?

Copilot je na voljo na vseh napravah s sistemom Windows 11 ali 10. To lahko najlažje ugotovite tako, da pogledate, ali imate v opravilni vrstici logo Copilota, lahko pa ga poiščete tudi z Windows iskalnikom. Vsi najnovejši Copilot+ računalniki imajo celo posebno tipko Copilot za hiter prikaz tega AI pomočnika.

Če ni neposredno nameščen na vašem računalniku, ga lahko najdete na spletu. V brskalniku Microsoft Edge se nahaja v zgornjem desnem kotu poleg menija za dodatne možnosti in nastavitve. V drugih brskalnikih (Firefox, Chrome …) ni posebne bližnjice, tako da boste do njega dostopali preko uradne spletne strani Copilot.

Mobilni uporabniki pa si lahko na svoje Android or iOS naprave naložite tudi aplikacijo.

How does Copilot differ from ChatGPT?

If you know how to use ChatGPT, then you will also master Copilot. They work on the same language model (currently GPT-4o), and Microsoft has spiced it up further, so they can deliver quite different answers.

When you open the Copilot chat, you will see the same chat window as in ChatGPT. You can use Copilot for free, but for the Pro version you will pay 20 euros per month. Copilot Pro is supposed to be faster and even more creative, while you can use it in Excel, Word and similar programs.

Are you ready? Type your question, command, prompt or something else in the chat window. If you don't know what to ask him or if you just want to experiment, you can choose from pre-prepared questions.

Kar Copilot naredi bolje od ChatGPT-ja, je, da ti po odgovoru pogosto predlaga nadaljnja vprašanja, ki so povezana s prvotnim. To je lahko zelo priročno, ko morda iščeš točno določene informacije in nisi prepričan, kako bi zastavil vprašanje. Morda so vam lahko ravno ta nadaljnja vprašanja v pomoč. Še bolje pa je, da na koncu našteje vire, na katerih slonijo odgovori, in lahko njihovo verodostojnost takoj preverimo.

When you would like to start a new conversation, click on the blue button New topic.

It can be more creative or precise

You can customize Copilot's style before starting a conversation, but you must first sign in to a Microsoft account (free). In Edge, you can access similar adjustments via a tab Assemble.

There are three options: Creative, Balanced, and Accurate. The way Balanced is selected by default, in creative mode the Copilot will be more original and use more imagination, while in accurate it will pay more attention to the accuracy of its answers, while also being more concise. The answers vary markedly between the different modes. Try all three and you'll quickly find out when one works for you.

Are you satisfied with the answer? Would you like to share or download it?

After each answer, you will find several icons under the resources that you can use to tell Copilot whether you are satisfied with the answer or not. Copilot will learn from your responses and offer similar responses in the future. You can easily copy the conversation, transfer it to a Word or PDF document, Copilot can also read it aloud, and you can also share it with others.

If you are not satisfied with the answer, you can request a new one.

Copilot is listening to you

Copilot (on the web, in the app, in Windows...) offers the possibility to talk to him like a human. Click on the microphone icon and start speaking. According to our experience, he has some problems with Slovenian, so you will have to correct his transcription. If you will speak in English, however, his perception is much better. It's also a good idea to use a solid microphone.

Let him be creative

Poleg pogovora ga lahko prosite tudi za ustvarjanje vsebine. To je lahko kaj ustvarjalnega, na primer pesem ali zgodba, ali nekaj bolj praktičnega, na primer poročilo, esej ali računalniška koda. V operacijskem sistemu Windows, na spletnem mestu ali v  aplikaciji Copilot preprosto vnesite zahtevo za želeno vsebino. Lahko zahtevate, da je dolga ali kratka, smešna ali resna, strokovna ali sproščena.

We recommend using Copilot in Edge because you'll have more creative options.

Web site summaries

Don't feel like reading the whole article? Need a summary of a PDF document? Copilot can provide you with a summary of the website you are on. Copilot will extract the most important information from you in a few sentences and paragraphs, while also suggesting questions for further research.

Analyze the photos

V Copilota lahko naložite fotografijo in ga prosite, naj jo analizira. Pripravil bo kratek povzetek, kaj je na sliki, na primer slika znanega mesta, kulturne znamenitosti, istočasno pa bo v nekaj stavkih povzel najbolj zanimive točke. Na koncu bo dodal relevantne vire – pri sliki izdelka bo na primer dodal še povezavo do spletnih trgovin, kjer se prodaja.

You can also use DALL-E 3

DALL-E 3 is another creation of the company OpenAI, in which Microsoft has invested several billions. In return, they got access to the latest photo generator, which you can also use in ChatGPT. In Copilot, this language model is built into the Designer feature, which you can use to create logos, fancy images, generic photos, murals, and more. Enter text prompts, be as specific as possible, and Copilot will eventually suggest some drafts. Choose one and refine it later with new prompts.

The style won't be to everyone's taste, and you'll notice pretty quickly that the photo was created by artificial intelligence, but what Copilot can do is impressive nonetheless.

Help yourself with plugins

There aren't as many of them as the nearest rival, but still something useful can be found. In the tab Plugins you can select up to three on the website to use at once. For example, you can play with the Suno plugin to create music, or the Shop plugin to search and compare products online.

ChatGPT and Copilot are very similar. They work on the same language model, but they differ mainly in how they answer, how precise and creative they are. Try both and eventually you will find some differences.