Save Context

Save to Context Library

Save information from the current conversation to the user's task management context files for future reference.

Context Library Location

$TM/.context/

Available Context Files

1. Profile (profile.md)

Save here: Personal details, roles, research areas, working style, preferences

Triggers:

• "Add this to my profile"
• "Remember that I prefer..."
• "Save my research interests"

Format: Update the relevant section, preserving existing content

2. Current Focus (current-focus.md)

Save here: What the user is actively working on, recent progress, next steps

Triggers:

• "Update my current focus"
• "I'm now working on..."
• "Save where I left off"

Preferred: For structured end-of-session updates, use /update-focus instead. It preserves the full document structure and handles session rotation, open loops, and mental state. Use /save-context only for quick, targeted saves (e.g., adding a single note or updating one field). If /update-focus is not available, read the file first and merge carefully — never overwrite with a blank template.

Format: Read the existing file and update the relevant section. Do not use a template — the file has a rich structure that must be preserved.

3. Projects Index (projects/_index.md)

Save here: Project overviews, paper status, collaborations

Triggers:

• "Add this project"
• "Update my journal paper status"
• "Save this research idea"

Format: Update the appropriate table or section

4. Individual Project Files (projects/papers/[name].md)

Save here: Detailed notes on specific papers/projects

Triggers:

• "Save these notes to my [project] file"
• "Create a project file for [name]"

Format: Create new file if doesn't exist:

# [Project Name]

## Overview
[Brief description]

## Status
[Current stage]

## Key Decisions
- [Important choices made]

## Notes
[Detailed notes]

## Action Items
- [ ] [Tasks]

5. People (people/supervisors.md or people/collaborators.md)

Save here: Information about supervisors, collaborators, contacts

Triggers:

• "Add [name] to my contacts"
• "Remember that [person] works on..."
• "Save [person]'s details"

Format:

### [Name]
- **Institution:** [Where they work]
- **Role:** [Their position]
- **Collaboration:** [What you work on together]
- **Contact:** [Email/preferred method]
- **Notes:** [Relevant context]

6. Preferences (preferences/)

Save here: Task naming conventions, priority definitions, workflow preferences

Triggers:

• "Remember I prefer tasks named like..."
• "Save my priority rules"

7. Workflows (workflows/)

Save here: How the user wants certain processes to work

Triggers:

• "Update my daily review workflow"
• "Change how I want meetings processed"

How to Save

Step 1: Identify the target file

Based on the information type, determine which context file to update.

Step 2: Read the existing file

Always read the current content first to preserve existing information.

Step 3: Merge intelligently

• Don't overwrite existing content unless explicitly asked
• Add new information in the appropriate section
• Update timestamps where relevant

Step 4: Write the updated file

Save the merged content back to the file.

Step 5: Confirm

Tell the user what was saved and where:

"Saved to .context/[file]: [brief summary of what was added]"

Examples

User: "Remember that my supervisor is a co-author, he specialises in multi-objective optimisation"

Action:

1. Read .context/people/supervisors.md
2. Find or create the Supervisor section
3. Update with: Name: a co-author, Focus: Multi-objective optimisation
4. Save file
5. Respond: "Saved to .context/people/supervisors.md: Added a co-author as your supervisor (multi-objective optimisation)"

User: "Update my current focus - I'm now deep in the journal revision, specifically rewriting section 4"

Action:

1. Read .context/current-focus.md
2. Update "What I'm Working On" section
3. Add timestamp
4. Save file
5. Respond: "Updated .context/current-focus.md: Now working on journal revision, section 4 rewrite"

User: "Save this meeting summary to my context"

Action:

1. Determine if it's project-specific or general
2. If project-specific: save to projects/papers/[project].md
3. If general: save key points to current-focus.md
4. Extract any action items and offer to create vault tasks

Integration with vault

After saving to context files, offer to:

• Create related tasks in vault tasks
• Update Research Pipeline if paper-related
• Link context to specific vault files

Tips

• Always preserve existing content unless asked to replace
• Use timestamps for time-sensitive information
• Keep entries concise but complete
• Cross-reference between files when relevant