Vault Compile

• Read the raw source before deciding where it belongs.
• Treat only files outside raw/Indexed/ as unprocessed inbox material.
• Keep articles concise, but match depth to the note type rather than forcing every page into the same short shape.
• Every wiki article must contain a ## Key Takeaways section.
• Always add [[wiki links]] to related concepts across topics when relevant.
• If a raw source spans multiple topics, create or update articles in both places and cross-link them.
• Keep the wiki navigable through indexes first. Do not default to heavier retrieval machinery.
• Do not compress away distinctions, mechanisms, tradeoffs, or concrete examples that would matter in a future query.
• When answering questions from this vault, navigate in this order:
  1. wiki/_master-index.md
  2. relevant topic _index.md
  3. specific article files

Compile workflow

Follow this sequence unless the user asks for a narrower edit:

1. Inspect wiki/_master-index.md to understand the existing topic map.
2. Identify unprocessed source files in raw/, excluding anything already inside raw/Indexed/.
3. Read the relevant raw file or files.
4. Decide whether the material belongs in an existing topic or requires a new topic folder.
5. Create or update one or more wiki articles with:
   • short ## Summary
   • ## Key Takeaways
   • one or more optional explanatory sections when the source warrants them, such as ## Architecture, ## Workflow, ## Tradeoffs, ## Decision Criteria, or ## Open Questions
   • ## Related Concepts
   • ## Source
6. Update the topic _index.md with a one-line description for each article in that topic.
7. Update wiki/_master-index.md with every topic folder and a one-line description.
8. Add cross-links between related articles using [[wiki links]].
9. After the compile succeeds, move each processed source file into raw/Indexed/, preserving the filename unless a collision requires a disambiguating rename.
10. Check for duplication, broken structure, or missing navigation files before finishing.

Git workflow

When the vault is a git repository:

1. Check git status --short before compiling.
2. If the repo is already dirty, review the pending changes, stage them, commit them as a pre-compile checkpoint, and git push origin main before continuing.
3. After the repo is clean locally, run git pull --rebase origin main so new raw files and wiki changes are present locally.
4. Use git diff and git status during the run to review touched files and confirm the compile scope stayed tight.
5. If the compile changed files, stage only the files involved in the compile, commit with a concise compile-specific message, and git push origin main.
6. If nothing changed, do not create an empty commit.
7. Never force push or rewrite history from an automated compile run.

Topic selection heuristics

• Reuse an existing topic when the source extends an established concept cluster.
• Create a new topic only when the source introduces a durable concept area that would otherwise overload an existing folder.
• Prefer stable concept topics over source-type topics. Organize by idea, not by where the note came from.
• If a source is mostly comparative, place it in the topic where the comparison is most reusable and cross-link to the neighboring topic.

Article shape

Use concise markdown, but vary depth by note type.

• Atomic reference notes can stay around 100-200 words.
• Concept, comparison, or framework notes should usually land around 250-500 words.
• Strategy or decision notes should usually include at least one extra explanatory section beyond Summary and Key Takeaways.
• Prefer bullets by default, but use a short prose paragraph when it preserves meaning better than fragmented bullets.

A typical article should look like this:

# Title

## Summary

- Short bullets summarizing the source or concept.

## Key Takeaways

- Durable points worth preserving for future queries.

## Architecture

- Optional section for concept-heavy notes.

## Related Concepts

- [[topic-a/article-a|Article A]]
- [[topic-b/article-b|Article B]]

## Source

- `raw/path/to/source.md`

Index standards

Topic _index.md

• Title should be the topic name in readable form.
• List every article in the topic with a one-line description.
• Include a ## Related Topics section when cross-topic navigation helps.

wiki/_master-index.md

• Must list every topic folder in wiki/.
• Each entry should have exactly one short description focused on what the topic covers.
• Keep descriptions oriented toward retrieval, not source provenance.

Cross-linking rules

• Link concepts, not just matching words.
• Prefer a few strong links over noisy link stuffing.
• Add links across topics when they reduce future rereading.
• If you create a new topic, ensure at least one existing topic links to it or it links back out.

Duplicate and update rules

• Before creating a new article, search the topic folder for overlapping concepts.
• If the concept already exists, update the existing page instead of creating a near-duplicate.
• If two files overlap heavily but serve different purposes, make the distinction explicit in their summaries and cross-links.
• Keep sources traceable in the ## Source section. After compile, reference the exact archived path in raw/Indexed/ when that is the file's final location.

Audit pass after compile

Before finishing a compile task, quickly check:

• every touched article has ## Key Takeaways
• every touched topic has an _index.md
• wiki/_master-index.md reflects any new topic
• newly created articles are linked from at least one index
• related pages have meaningful [[wiki links]]
• each successfully processed source has been moved into raw/Indexed/

Boundaries

• Do not rewrite the raw source in full.
• Do not create speculative topics with no durable use.
• Do not move canonical wiki content into output/.
• Do not answer user questions from memory when the answer should come from vault navigation.
• Do not treat files already in raw/Indexed/ as new compile targets unless the user explicitly asks to revisit archived sources.

Rationale

This workflow follows the curated markdown wiki pattern described by the vault's own notes:

• the wiki is the durable asset, not the chat session
• indexes and summaries are the primary retrieval layer
• maintenance compounds over time through compile and audit loops
• human-readable markdown is preferred over opaque retrieval storage for this vault size