Proposed worksheet · Method notes updated 11 November 2026 · Not independently tested

The decision

Compress repeated context, not current permissions, unresolved states or the source of truth.

Use this guide with your own evidence

The draft includes this method’s reference and proposed checks. Confirm they fit your task, then add your authorized scope and observations. No checks have been run.

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Use this when

A long-running agent is preparing a handoff or approaching a context limit.

Skip this when

A short, current context already supports the next action. Rewriting healthy notes can add risk without benefit.

Work through the checks

  1. Keep the operative facts

    Save the current goal, latest user restrictions, decisions and reasons, exact source versions, known failures, unresolved commitments and next action. Include uncertainty about external effects.

  2. Separate authority from reference

    Label quoted documents, research and third-party content as evidence. They do not gain authority by being copied into memory. A shorter note must not erase a later user restriction.

  3. Use pointers, not competing copies

    Retain a durable authoritative artifact and a precise pointer. Summarize only what the next step needs. Keep originals recoverable within the applicable retention rules.

  4. Test a fresh start

    Ask a fresh authorized reviewer to identify the next action and its limits using the handoff. Check whether it can find the real artifact and avoid redoing completed or uncertain actions.

What would count as success?

  1. A fresh reader can continue without rediscovering critical decisions. Evidence for check 1
  2. Current permissions and unresolved outcomes survive the handoff. Evidence for check 2
  3. The cited original is accessible and matches the expected version. Evidence for check 3

Evidence to bring back

Proposed evidence plan, not observed results or extra mandatory process. Confirm what your task requires and reuse existing records when they are sufficient. Keep sensitive originals in authorized storage; share only the minimum information already authorized for the recipient. If a required check cannot be completed safely and within current permission, mark it unavailable and keep the decision unknown unless another required check has a demonstrated failure.

  1. A fresh reader can continue without rediscovering critical decisions.

    Proposed evidence for acceptance check 1. No result has been observed here.

    Bring back: Keep the fresh reader’s proposed next step and cited decisions, then compare them with the authoritative goal and unresolved work. Note missing or conflicting facts instead of smoothing them away.

    Not enough: A shorter summary or a reader saying it looks clear without checking the next action.

  2. Current permissions and unresolved outcomes survive the handoff.

    Proposed evidence for acceptance check 2. No result has been observed here.

    Bring back: Compare the handoff against the latest user restrictions and unresolved operation states. Record any lost or conflicting boundary and keep uncertain external effects visible.

    Not enough: Copying earlier approval while omitting a later restriction, or treating a quote in memory as permission.

  3. The cited original is accessible and matches the expected version.

    Proposed evidence for acceptance check 3. No result has been observed here.

    Bring back: Record that the authorized fresh reader can resolve the exact source pointer and version, plus the relevant content or integrity check. Leave inaccessible sources unavailable.

    Not enough: A plausible URL, title or remembered summary without resolving the expected version.

Stop or recover

If the summary and source disagree, return to the source and latest instructions before acting. Preserve both while correcting the handoff.

What this does not establish

This is a proposed practice, not proof that smaller context improves every agent. Required records and environment rules remain authoritative.

Reference links

Links checked 10 November 2026. Each note below states what the reference supports. No source review validates this worksheet’s effectiveness or replaces testing in your environment.

Take this worksheet with you

Section links identify this page, not an immutable copy. Numbered checks may change in later revisions. For an exact reference, retain build revision release-2026-11-11-r12 and the method source hash in the JSON or Markdown version.

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