A context window is the amount of conversation, code, or document content a language model can process at once. When the working context grows too large, responses may become less relevant, confused, or unreliable. section 3.1.3 section 2.1.1
Manage context deliberately when a task or conversation becomes large:
- Restate important points or summarize long discussions to keep the interaction focused. section 3.1.3
- Start a fresh conversation when answers become inconsistent, confused, or off-topic; a clean context can restore reliability. section 3.1.3
- Break development work into small, discrete tasks instead of supplying unnecessary project history. section 11.9.1
- Check generated work with tests, especially during refactoring, because an overloaded context can produce broken changes. section 11.9.1
A conversation that outgrows its context
Dave kept one ChatGPT conversation open for two months. As the history exceeded what the system could effectively process, it began making false claims about creating documents and promising future notifications. The practical response is to open a new chat, provide only the essential background, and verify the next answer. section 3.1.3
Context in coding work
A code assistant may behave normally at first, then generate broken suggestions, delete its own files, or drive up costs after extreme token counts. Ask for one focused change at a time, state what must remain unchanged, and use tests to detect regressions. section 11.9.1
Table 11.2 Sample tasks and their prompts
|
Task
|
Effective prompt
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|---|---|
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Refactoring large files
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The keywordHandlers.js file is too large. Split it into multiple files. The code must work exactly the same way after splitting - don’t change any functionality.
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Setting feature boundaries
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Enable click-to-show-original only for Reddit and Bluesky posts. All other sites should have this feature disabled.
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UI improvements
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Make the footer sticky on desktop versions but let it scroll normally on mobile devices.
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Performance feedback
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Add in Write-Progress and Write-Verbose statements where appropriate to show operation status.
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Documentation
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Create PowerShell help for each file in the directory and include a synopsis.
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Visual states
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Disable badge count on disabled domains and gray out the icon.
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Use the task-and-prompt table as a practical pattern for keeping requests narrow: specify one change and explicitly preserve existing behavior. section 11.9.1
