checkpoint

You are writing a new link in the continuum context chain for this project. A "link" is a small, durable summary of what happened since the previous link — it survives session boundaries and compaction.

What to do

1. Read the previous state to know what to summarize against:

   • .continuum/STATE.md — current project truth (do not duplicate; only note deltas).
   • The last entry in .continuum/chain/index.jsonl — tells you the previous link id and timestamp.
   • The previous link's summary.md (highest-numbered dir under .continuum/chain/links/) — so you don't repeat decisions already captured.
   • Frontend verification status (only if applicable):

     node "$(cat .continuum/.plugin-root)/lib/verify_status_cli.js"
     

     If this reports any UNVERIFIED frontend files or FAILURES, include them as Open threads in the new link summary so they survive into the next session. Don't silently skip — surfacing unfinished verification is the whole point of the loop.

2. Compose a link summary in your head with these sections (omit any that are empty). Hard cap: ~800 tokens. Be terse; pointers, not payloads.

   ## Decisions
   - <new settled decisions; if any SUPERSEDES a prior decision, say so explicitly with the prior link id>
   
   ## Changes since last link
   - <what changed at the level of intent — not line-by-line. Reference git commits, not diffs.>
   
   ## Open threads
   - <unresolved questions in flight as of this checkpoint>
   
   ## Constraints / Do not
   - <new "do not" items; e.g. "client rejected X — do not re-propose">
   
   ## Refs
   - <semantic anchors → where to find the detail. e.g. "auth-decision → commit abc123, file src/auth.ts:L40-80">
   

   Rules:

   • NEVER restate code that git already holds. Use commit ids.
   • NEVER narrate conversation flow ("then the user asked"). Record outcomes only.
   • If something contradicts a previous link, STATE the contradiction and which is authoritative now — do not silently overwrite.

3. Write the link by piping your summary to the helper, which handles ids, timestamps, git commit capture, and index update atomically:

   cat <<'CONTINUUM_SUMMARY_EOF' | node "$(cat .continuum/.plugin-root)/lib/write_link.js" --tags "tag1,tag2"
   <YOUR SUMMARY MARKDOWN HERE>
   CONTINUUM_SUMMARY_EOF
   

   The script prints the new link id (e.g. 0003). Choose tags that aid retrieval later: domain (auth, db, ui), kind (decision, bugfix, refactor, bootstrap), or topic.

4. Regenerate STATE.md to reflect new cumulative truth:

   • Read the OLD .continuum/STATE.md.
   • Apply the deltas from this new link: superseded decisions are REMOVED (not crossed out), new decisions added, open threads updated, "do not" list updated.
   • Hard cap: 150 lines. If you can't fit, suggest a rollup (do not silently truncate).
   • Use Write to overwrite .continuum/STATE.md.

5. Report back to the user in 2 lines: new link id, and one-sentence headline of what it captures.