handoff

Handoff

Use when

• You stop with work unfinished and the next session should pick it up.
• The conversation is long and a fresh start would be cheaper.
• The user asks for a handoff.
• At the start of a session, .agent-aisle/handoff.md exists.

Don't use when

• The task is finished and nothing carries over.
• The user wants documentation of the code, not of the work.

Steps

1. Write .agent-aisle/handoff.md, at most 40 lines, with exactly these sections in this order:
   • ## Goal: what we are trying to achieve, in one or two lines.
   • ## Done: what is finished and verified, as short bullets with file paths.
   • ## Next: the next concrete steps, in order, the first one specific enough to start on.
   • ## Open questions: decisions or facts still needed, or None.
2. Write facts and file paths, not history or opinions. Do not copy code.
3. Run node <this skill's folder>/scripts/check-handoff.mjs and fix what it reports.
4. When a new session starts and the file exists, read it first, tell the user in one line what it says, and continue from ## Next.

Budget

• Search first (grep, glob, symbol search). Read line ranges, not whole files.
• Read at most 8 files per step. If you need more, write down what you learned and narrow the question.
• Do not re-read a file you just wrote or edited.
• Prefer the smallest command output that answers the question: head, tail, quiet flags, filtered lists.
• A handoff is a pointer, not a diary. If you are near 40 lines, cut.

Output

• The path of the note and a one-line summary of it.

Done when

• check-handoff.mjs reports ok.
• Someone with no memory of this session could start from ## Next.