---
name: analysis
description: Deep analysis, comparison of options, or scratchpad for technical results. Acts as the informal precursor to permanent documentation.
category: workflow
impact: high
---

# Analysis Instructions

Analysis documents are **Decision Support Tools** and **Technical Drafts**. They serve as a sandbox for the AI to explore options or store complex results before they are solidified into documentation. They live in `tmp/` which is gitignored.

## Triggering Criteria
1. **Complexity:** More than two viable technical paths exist with different trade-offs.
2. **Context Relief:** The comparison table or logic exceeds 50 lines, threatening chat context readability.
3. **Explicit Request:** The user asks for a formal analysis or "comparison doc".

## Where to write

```
tmp/<TOPIC>/<title>.md
```
`TOPIC` is a short slug describing the subject area. `<title>.md` describes what the document contains. Use lowercase and hyphens.

**CRITICAL RULE:** Do NOT create analysis files or any temporary files in the project root. Always use the `tmp/<topic>/` folder structure.

## Scope

Analysis is strictly scoped to the question asked. Do not expand into adjacent decisions unless the user asks. The purpose is to inform a decision, not to redesign the system.

## Diamond Quality Standards (AI Freedom & Utility)
While the AI has "freer hands" in the structure of an analysis, the output must remain high-utility:
- **No Fluff:** Skip LLM politeness and focus on data.
- **Visuals:** Use comparison tables over long paragraphs.
- **Directness:** Recommendations must be justified but blunt.
- **Pre-Documentation:** Structure data so it is easy to transform into formal `docs/` later.

Structure to use when relevant:
- **Context** — Max 3 sentences describing the problem. Brief description of the problem/goal.
- **Comparison Table** — Side-by-side view of viable paths.
- **Trade-offs** — Critical Pros/Cons only.

## What analysis is not
Analysis is a disposable artifact. Once a decision is made, the final result is recorded in `docs/architecture.md` (if relevant), and the analysis file is ignored.