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precision1ktoday at 6:24 PM4 repliesview on HN

I've developed a habit of adding into my prompts "please keep your response concise and succinct" or "I'm trying to cram, please only provide the minimum level of technical detail necessary to understand this topic"

I find it helps immensely but it'd be nice if I didn't have to do that.


Replies

truenotoday at 7:16 PM

i tried using claude codes output style option to do something like this and it worked for like three prompts and then it was back to normal lol

skolostoday at 7:02 PM

why so many people add 'please' when asking machine to do something? Was there actually research that when you SCREAM or curse it follows your instructions better?

P.S. Although my wife insists that I should stay polite in case AI overlords remember how I treat them ...

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anicepersontoday at 7:09 PM

add to your system prompt?

CamperBob2today at 6:30 PM

I don't understand that complaint, although it seems to be a common one. The whole problem with the way models talk nowadays is that they are succinct to a fault, going to the extent of coining new buzzwords and misusing existing ones. What I want to see is a shift towards plain language.

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