Lesson 2 of 6

Plan against the journal brief

The fictional Journal of Unnecessarily Specific Figures wants purple-and-lime grouped bars, typewriter text, exact dimensions, and accessible presentation.

Open Journal specifications for figures. This file contains all eight counts, formatting rules, and the required alternative text. It is the repair brief.

In the same Local Chat session, switch from Ask to Plan and paste:

Read docs/reference/figure-specifications.md and the R plotting code.
Plan a small repair to plot_summary() in plotting/plot_summary.R.
Name the layout changes, files to edit, behavior tests, figure checker,
and visual and alt-text checks. Preserve counts, category order, group
assignments, command behavior, and dependencies. Keep the baseline image.
Prefer a direct repair in the existing function. Do not propose a new
framework, configuration system, or unrelated refactor. Explain why any
new helper is needed and identify a simpler alternative if scope grows.
Do not implement the repair or change project files yet.

Read the proposed plan before handing it to Agent. It should connect the journal rules to the plotting function and name both kinds of automated check. Request a revision if it proposes changing the constants, test expectations, checker, or specification to obtain a pass.

Your repair is done when:

The repair stays understandable: new code and abstractions serve this task, and you can explain the changed function.
The grouped chart meets every journal rule and preserves the program’s behavior.
Behavior tests and the figure checker pass against the latest code, and you have inspected the image yourself.
The separately written runs/with-fix/summary.alt.txt accurately describes the comparison in at most 150 words.

Ready for the next step: you have reviewed a specific plan. The repository instructions provide standing rules; the journal file provides the details.

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