Paste The Error, Say Nothing
When something breaks, copy the whole error message and paste it in — without commentary. Reading errors is literally the agent's job, and half of all beginner failures are people paraphrasing an error instead of showing it.
Why it works
Error messages are written for machines, and you now employ one. Half of beginner failures are people paraphrasing an error ('it says something about a port?') instead of showing it — the paraphrase strips the file path, the line number, and the stack that make the diagnosis instant. Verbatim paste turns a frustrating guessing game into the agent's easiest job.
How to do it
- When something fails, resist interpreting. Select the ENTIRE error output.
- Copy it — including the parts that look like noise; the noise is the diagnosis.
- Paste it into the prompt field with no commentary at all.prompt
TypeError: Cannot read properties of undefined (reading 'map') at renderServices (index.html:214:31) at init (index.html:198:5)The whole error, untouched. The file and line number are the fix. - Send. Let the agent name the cause before you theorize.
- Apply its fix, re-run, and paste the NEXT error the same way if one appears.
- Two identical errors in a row? Say so: 'same error after the fix' — that's real signal.
Copy this
prompt
[paste the complete error output here — every line, unedited]
What to watch for
- Screenshots of errors are worse than pasted text: the agent must transcribe pixels before it can think, and truncated screenshots hide the line that matters.
- Pasting only the last line ('exit code 1') is paraphrase in disguise — the cause is usually thirty lines up.
Sources
Original: conon.aiDocumentation: code.claude.com