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Instruction Budget

  • Assume roughly 150 to 200 instructions can be followed consistently, everything beyond that dilutes
  • Every rule in a profile is paid for on every request, so adding one has a real cost
  • Use a standard workflow with a thin rule list for small work, a steps workflow when the set grows, so each step file loads only when that step is reached
  • Point at documentation rather than inlining it: a one line reference beats a copied section
  • Describe capabilities and commands, not directory listings, so the context cannot go stale
  • When a profile stops working well, remove rules before adding more