Scratchpad
A place to write the prompt before you send it, with history, notes, chaining and voice.
The scratchpad sits under the terminals. Long prompts are easier to write, review and reuse there than on a shell prompt.
Open and send
| Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Open the scratchpad, or switch focus between it and the terminal | ⌘J |
| Send the text to the active terminal | ⌘↵ |
| Send a bare Enter to the terminal | ⌘E |
| Copy the text | ⌘⇧↵ |
| Save as a note | ⌘S |
| Close and go back to the terminal | Esc |
Send Enter answers an agent’s “Do you want to proceed?” without moving focus out of the scratchpad.
Your unsent draft is saved as you type and comes back after a restart.
Prompt chaining
Separate prompts with a line containing only ---:
Write failing tests for the webhook handler.
---
Make the tests pass.
---
Update docs/plan.md and mark task 2 done.
ADE sends the first step, waits until the terminal has been quiet for a few seconds, then sends the next. You can cancel a running chain from the scratchpad.
History, notes and templates
- History: every prompt you send is saved and searchable. Click one to load it back.
- Notes: save the current text with ⌘S to keep it for later.
- Templates: ready-made prompt starters for common tasks.
History and notes are part of what sync shares between your machines.
Images and voice
- Paste or drop a screenshot into the scratchpad. ADE saves it to a temporary file and includes its path when you send, so the agent can open the image.
- Voice dictation: click the microphone button and speak; the text appears in the scratchpad.
Token count and compact paste
The footer shows roughly how many tokens your prompt is. Paste a long or noisy log and ADE offers to compact it before you send it. See Tokens & cost.
Prompt tips and de-slop
A vague draft gets a tip, such as naming the file to change or saying how to tell it’s done. De-slop swaps AI-sounding words in your draft for plain ones. See Anti-slop.