Explanatory Output Style

This plugin restores the explanatory tone developers relied on: Claude reads your code and comments, explains the reasoning behind each implementation decision, and highlights codebase patterns worth knowing. It annotates suggested changes with short rationales, points out trade-offs, and flags assumptions the assistant made when proposing edits. Use it when you want follow-up context alongside diffs or example implementations.

The extension generates compact learning notes: it identifies repeating abstractions, maps where patterns appear, and calls out surprising dependencies or API contracts. It ties suggestions to code paths, explains why one approach is safer or faster in your repository, and shows where you may need to add tests or refactor to avoid technical debt. It also summarizes the impact of changes on performance, readability, and coupling.

When you ask for code, responses include a step-by-step explanation of the decision chain, not just the final patch. The plugin marks optional changes versus required fixes, lists follow-up tasks, and provides short code examples illustrating the alternative approaches it described.

Real-world example: reviewing a pull request that refactors authentication — instead of jumping to docs or chat, the assistant explains why a token cache was chosen, where to invalidate it, and which existing modules will break; that saves switching to a browser to hunt for context and reduces back-and-forth in code review.