---
name: btw
description: Helps you use the /btw side-conversation workflow effectively. Use when you want to think in parallel, ask side questions without interrupting ongoing work, or inject a side thread back into the main agent.
---

# BTW

Use this skill when the user wants to work in parallel with the main agent instead of derailing the current turn.

## When to use BTW

Prefer the BTW workflow when the user wants to:

- ask a side question while the main agent keeps working
- brainstorm or compare options without interrupting the current run
- prepare a plan or summary before handing it back to the main agent
- keep exploratory discussion out of the main transcript/context

## Commands

Use these commands in your guidance to the user:

```text
/btw <question>
/side <question>
/btw --save <question>
/btw:new [question]
/btw:tangent <question>
/btw:tangent --save <question>
/btw:ask <question>
/btw:ask --save <question>
/btw:clear
/btw:model [<provider> <model> <api> | clear]
/btw:thinking [<level> | clear]
/btw:inject [instructions]
/btw:summarize [instructions]
```

`/side` is an alias for `/btw` and shares the same thread, overlay, and settings. `/btw` is canonical; the lifecycle commands stay in the `/btw:*` namespace.

## How to guide the user

### For a quick side question

Recommend:

```text
/btw <question>
```

Use this when the user wants an immediate aside and does not need a visible saved note.

Users coming from Codex may reach for `/side` instead; it is an alias for `/btw` and can be used anywhere `/btw` is used.

### For a saved one-off note

Recommend:

```text
/btw --save <question>
```

Use this when the user wants the exchange to appear as a visible BTW note in the session transcript.

### For a fresh side thread

Recommend:

```text
/btw:new
```

or

```text
/btw:new <question>
```

Use this when the previous BTW discussion is no longer relevant, but you still want the new side thread to inherit the current main-session context.

### For a contextless tangent thread

Recommend:

```text
/btw:tangent <question>
```

or

```text
/btw:tangent --save <question>
```

Use this when the user wants a side conversation that does not include the current main-session context.

### For an enforced read-only side question

Recommend:

```text
/btw:ask <question>
```

or

```text
/btw:ask --save <question>
```

Use this when the user wants a side question that inherits the current main-session context but must not be able to change anything. The read-only thread only has `read`, `grep`, `find`, and `ls`; it never has `bash`, `edit`, or `write`.

### To hand the full thread back to the main agent

Recommend:

```text
/btw:inject <instructions>
```

Use this when the exact discussion matters and the user wants the main agent to act on it.

### To hand back a condensed version

Recommend:

```text
/btw:summarize <instructions>
```

Use this when the thread is long and only the distilled outcome should go back into the main agent.

### To make BTW cheaper or faster than the main thread

Recommend:

```text
/btw:model <provider> <model> <api>
/btw:thinking <level>
```

Use these when the main thread should keep its current model or thinking level, but BTW should run with a different cost/speed profile.

## Recommendation rules

- Prefer `/btw` over normal chat when the user explicitly wants a side conversation.
- Prefer `/btw:tangent` when the user wants that side conversation to be contextless.
- Prefer `/btw:ask` when the user wants a side conversation that cannot modify the workspace.
- Prefer `/btw:summarize` over `/btw:inject` for long exploratory threads.
- Prefer `/btw:inject` when precise wording, detailed tradeoffs, or a full plan matters.
- Suggest `/btw:new` before starting a totally unrelated side topic when main-session context is still useful.
- Suggest `/btw:clear` when the widget/thread should be dismissed.
- Suggest `/btw:model` or `/btw:thinking` when the user wants BTW to be cheaper, faster, or less deliberative than the main thread.

## Response style

When helping the user use BTW:

- give the exact slash command to run
- explain briefly why that command fits
- keep the guidance short and operational

## Examples

### Example: brainstorm while coding continues

```text
/btw what are the risks of switching this to optimistic updates?
```

### Example: create a clean new thread

```text
/btw:new sketch a safer migration plan
```

### Example: start a contextless tangent

```text
/btw:tangent think through this from first principles without using the current chat context
```

### Example: ask a read-only side question

```text
/btw:ask what does the token refresh path do without changing anything?
```

### Example: send the result back

```text
/btw:summarize implement the recommended migration plan
```

### Example: make BTW cheaper than the main thread

```text
/btw:model openai gpt-5-mini openai-responses
/btw:thinking low
```