OutlineDriven Gut sync
Contract
| Field | Bound contract |
|---|---|
| Trigger | User resumes work and needs an orientation card without full human recall. |
| Authority | Read-only. No file, VCS, credential, paid, published, deployed, or remote mutation. |
| Side effect | Reads current workspace state, recent artifacts, and session context only. |
| Done | A small orientation card is returned containing shape, invariants, and smell locations. |
Inputs
- Current workspace directory to orient on (must be supplied).
- Optional: session or handoff notes, plan/todo files, or recent artifacts the user points at. When absent, recover what is reachable from the workspace alone.
Procedure
- Bound scope to read-only inspection of the current workspace directory and any session or handoff notes the user supplies. Do not open files outside that scope. Done when: scope is bounded to the supplied workspace directory and user-named notes, and no file outside that scope is opened.
- List the workspace tree depth-limited and read the most recently modified files, any plan/todo/handoff notes, and reachable session context to recover what work was in flight. Done when: the workspace tree is listed depth-limited, the most recently modified files are read, and any plan/todo/handoff notes and session context are read or confirmed absent.
- Derive the shape: name the active work unit, its current state, and the next intended action. Done when: the shape names the active work unit, its current state, and the next intended action, each sourced from workspace reads or marked unknown.
- Derive the invariants: list constraints, contracts, or rules the work must not violate. Done when: the invariants list names every constraint, contract, or rule the work must not violate, each sourced from workspace reads or marked unknown.
- Derive the smell locations: point at files or areas where decay, drift, risk, or unfinished work is concentrated. Done when: the smell locations point at specific files or areas where decay, drift, risk, or unfinished work is concentrated, each sourced from workspace reads or marked unknown.
- Assemble the orientation card from steps 3-5 only. Mark any field that could not be recovered as unknown rather than guessing. Done when: the orientation card is assembled from the shape, invariants, and smell locations only, and every field that could not be recovered is marked unknown rather than guessed.
Failure and recovery
- Empty or unreadable workspace: return a card stating the workspace yielded no recoverable state; do not fabricate shape, invariants, or smells.
- Missing session context: mark the unrecoverable fields as unknown and return the partial card with gaps labeled.
- No mutation occurs, so no rollback is needed.
- Blocked result: a card whose every field is unknown, with the reason stated.
Output
A small orientation card with three sections - Shape, Invariants, Smell locations - each populated from workspace reads or marked unknown.