The Right Click By Richard Lee
How To Access ChatGPT
The Right Click – January 2024 Edition
by Richard Lee
ChatGPT was developed by OpenAI, whose chief investor is Microsoft. Microsoft also created Edge, an internet browser, and Bing, a search engine. Don’t worry if you have never heard of Edge or Bing because, prior to OpenAI’s ChatGPT, most people hadn’t. Microsoft’s multibillion-dollar investment was a marketing slam dunk for the company. The stock price is finally exciting, and the company’s products have received upgrades that make them even more powerful to use. However, you do not need to go the Microsoft route to access ChatGPT. Here are the many ways of doing so.
No matter the browser you choose to surf the web with, like Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or Edge, you can navigate to the website: chat.openai.com. This is the most direct way of accessing ChatGPT without any bells and whistles.
OpenAI offers ChatGPT access in both free and paid versions. The paid version is a monthly subscription called Plus. The difference between the free and paid versions is that the paid version is faster, offers more reliable access, and provides access to new features. Once you get accustomed to faster and always available access, you may want to splurge for the Plus version. Either version does require you to log in using an email and password combination or the convenience of using your Gmail, Microsoft, or Apple email accounts. The main benefit of logging in is that you’ll see all of your “chat sessions” on various topics and can continue them if you wish, or start a whole new chat. You can even send an entire conversation to someone else, whether they use ChatGPT or not.
The other ways of accessing ChatGPT are Microsoft-centric. Using any preferred browser, navigate to bing.com, and you’ll find that the Microsoft search engine has ChatGPT 4.0 built-in. You do have to specify that by clicking on a tab at the top that reads “Chat with GPT-4.” On that page, it offers some suggestions on how or why to use ChatGPT and even includes the option to choose the conversation style.
Another Microsoft-centric method is to use the Edge browser, which, in its latest update, includes ChatGPT functionality and the ability to use it in many ways, including helping you quickly identify a website’s purpose or information within that website. Be warned, the Edge method can be confusing, but once mastered, it’s very powerful.
The last way to access ChatGPT is by using an Apple iPhone and downloading the app from the Apple Store. Here’s the direct link: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/chatgpt/id6448311069. Do note that there is currently no native Android app, so anything you download thinking it’s ChatGPT will not be official.