# Prompt recipes

Copy a recipe, replace the bracketed text, and remove anything that does not apply.

## Understand an unfamiliar project

**Mode:** Ask

```text
Give me a practical tour of this project without changing files.

Explain what it does, how to run it, the main areas, and where [feature] lives.
Cite the files you used. Finish with the five files I should read next and why.
```

## Plan a larger change

**Mode:** Architect

```text
Plan [feature] after inspecting the current project.

Outcome:
[observable user result]

Constraints:
- preserve [important behavior]
- do not add a dependency
- ask before changing [sensitive area]

Give me the affected areas, proposed steps, risks, checks, and open decisions. Do
not implement the plan.
```

## Fix a reproducible bug

**Mode:** Debug, preferably with Virtual Edit

```text
Find and fix [symptom].

Reproduction:
1. ...
2. ...

Expected: ...
Actual: ...
Evidence: ...

Investigate before editing. Make the smallest complete fix, add a regression
check, preserve [important behavior], and report what you validated.
```

## Investigate without editing

**Mode:** Ask or Debug

```text
Diagnose [symptom] without changing files or running destructive actions.

Give me the most likely cause, the evidence, other explanations you ruled out,
the smallest safe fix, and the check that would prove it.
```

## Implement a visual target

**Mode:** Submit with the Design preset

Attach and label the current and target images.

```text
Update @path/to/component to match the target image. The first image is the
current state; the second is the target.

Preserve keyboard access, focus visibility, small-screen behavior, and the
existing visual language. Do not copy placeholder content from the image. Tell
me what you checked and any difference that remains.
```

## Review current changes

**Mode:** Ask

```text
Review the current changes without editing.

Look for incorrect behavior, regressions, unsafe assumptions, privacy or
security concerns, and missing checks. Rank only actionable findings by
severity and cite the relevant file. If nothing material is wrong, say so and
list what still needs manual validation.
```

## Prepare a clean commit

**Mode:** Submit or Git handoff

```text
Review the current workspace and prepare one commit for [purpose].

Do not include unrelated changes. Show me the intended files and commit message
before staging. After I approve, stage only those files, show the staged summary,
and commit. Do not push.
```

## Coordinate several tasks

**Mode:** Conductor

```text
Coordinate [outcome] across the selected workspaces.

Create one named room. Split the work into [task A], [task B], focused checks,
and final review. Give every task separate ownership. Start independent tasks
now and delay final review until they finish. Ask before [risk boundary]. Do not
merge, commit, or push.
```

## Create a safe recurring review

**Feature:** Scheduled Tasks

```text
Review changes from the last [period] for [risk]. Do not edit, install, commit,
push, or contact external services. Report findings with severity, evidence,
and a next step. If there are no findings, say what you reviewed.
```

## Recover a drifting thread

If the goal is still the same, compress the thread and send:

```text
Continue the same task. Treat these as the current facts:
- outcome: ...
- constraints: ...
- accepted decisions: ...
- current result or failure: ...
- next step: ...
Ignore earlier assumptions that conflict with this list.
```

If the goal changed, start a new thread.

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