# Zoom-Out Helper — apt:discuss brainstorm mode loaded helper

This appendix loads into `apt:discuss` brainstorm mode when the user's
turn contains a zoom-out trigger phrase. The full
`/apt:zoom-out` skill (router-invocable) is the right answer when the
user invokes it explicitly; this helper is the right answer when the
zoom-out request surfaces *inside* a brainstorm discussion.

## When to load this appendix

Inside an active `apt:discuss --brainstorm` session, if the user's turn
contains any of these phrases (or their natural-language variants):

- "give me a broader picture"
- "I'm lost in this area"
- "explain how this fits"
- "what's the surrounding architecture"
- "zoom out from {topic}"

…load this appendix into reasoning context and follow the helper
process below. The brainstorm posture stays active — you don't pivot
out of `apt:discuss`; you augment its reasoning with the orientation
discipline.

## Process (helper mode, not full skill)

1. **Identify the area.** Pull the noun phrase from the user's message
   (e.g., "the sparring engine"). If ambiguous, ask a single targeted
   clarifying question — do NOT enter a 20-question interview.

2. **Load CONTEXT.md term-blocks if matching.** Same as the full
   `apt:zoom-out` skill: if the area name matches a term or alias in
   `CONTEXT.md`, pre-load that term-block's definition + flagged
   ambiguities into the orientation.

3. **Emit a compressed orientation INLINE in the discussion.** Format:

   > **Purpose:** {one sentence}
   > **Entry points:** `{file1}`, `{file2}`
   > **State owners:** `{file3}` ({what state})
   > **External boundaries:** `{file4}` ({what external})
   > **Watch out for:** {one-line fragile area}

   Three to six lines. The full one-page `apt:zoom-out` report is
   overkill when the user is mid-discussion — they want enough context
   to keep brainstorming, not a separate artifact.

4. **Resume brainstorm posture.** After the orientation block, ask:
   "Want me to keep zooming, lock a decision, or stay in brainstorm?"
   so the user explicitly drives whether to deepen.

## When NOT to load this appendix

- In decision-lock posture (the user wants to *resolve* a decision, not
  *orient* themselves) — load `grill-discipline.md` instead.
- When the user explicitly types `/apt:zoom-out` — they invoked the
  full skill; let that skill run unmodified.
- In `apt:plan` — the planner's Phase-0 codebase investigation already
  covers orientation. Loading this helper there would duplicate work.

## Relationship to the full apt:zoom-out skill

| | `apt:discuss + zoom-out-helper` | `/apt:zoom-out` (full skill) |
|---|---|---|
| Invocation | Detected mid-brainstorm | User-explicit verb |
| Output | 3-6 line inline orientation | One-page report |
| Side effects | None | None (read-only) |
| Posture after | Brainstorm continues | Skill exits — no continuation |

Same underlying discipline; different surface shapes for different
work contexts.
