ConeheadAI · lessons
Latest lessons
13 of 163 leftover lessons · tag=tools. Start with the takeaway, then do the exercise. Tool-use focused — use AI you already have.
- SNK3-226generalKnow your approved list — before you need itMost orgs have an approved-AI-tools list (or an implicit one); knowing it before the deadline crunch prevents policy accidents.L0–L2 · Curious–Capable (bootstrap — system rebalances) · ~5m
- SNK3-114toolsDesktop AI sidekicks see your screen — treat capture as a pasteAlways-on desktop AI helpers that read the screen or clipboard are a continuous paste surface. Before you enable capture, decide what must never appear on screen.L1–L3 · Hands On–Verifier (bootstrap — system rebalances) · ~3m
- SNK3-112toolsPDF / reader AI is a skim — verify the one number you will useDoc/PDF AI summaries and extractions are drafts. Before you file, quote, or decide, open the source page and verify the one number or claim you will act on.L0–L2 · Curious–Capable (bootstrap — system rebalances) · ~3m
- SNK3-095toolsSame UI ≠ same model — check the product model idWhen a product swaps the model behind the same chat/agent UI, re-run your smoke checks — yesterday's quality and cost no longer apply.L1–L3 · Hands On–Verifier (bootstrap — system rebalances) · ~3m
- SNK3-094toolsKeep AI out of your real browser profileAI-enhanced browsers inherit your logged-in sessions — prefer a separate browser profile for AI browsing tools so passwords and work tabs are not the tool surface.L1–L3 · Hands On–Verifier (bootstrap — system rebalances) · ~3m
- SNK3-093toolsAI inside Docs/Sheets is still a send riskWorkspace add-ons put models where you already work — powerful, and easy to leak client data if share/send is still human-owned only in theory.L0–L2 · Curious–Capable (bootstrap — system rebalances) · ~4m
- SNK3-086generalName the multi-step shape before you chain AI toolsWhen a task needs more than one AI step, pick a simple shape—serial, parallel-then-merge, branch, or bounded loop—so you know where you stop and check the result.L2–L5 · Capable–Builder (bootstrap — system rebalances) · ~5m
- SNK3-084generalScheduled tool-calls vs a product labeled 'agent'A product labeled 'agent' may just be a scheduled prompt that calls tools toward a goal — test for schedule + tools + goal + human gate, not branding.L2–L5 · Capable–Builder (bootstrap — system rebalances) · ~4m
- SNK3-083toolsConstrain tools before a long AI sessionBefore a long chat/agent session, set tool limits (domain allowlists, disable image/video gen, date cutoffs) so capability is not permission.L2–L5 · Capable–Builder (bootstrap — system rebalances) · ~4m
- SNK3-073toolsYouTube snack: Claude Cowork mobile — land at 0:47Mobile Cowork/chat is for portable assist — still not a free pass for work secrets on a phone.L0–L2 · Curious–Capable (bootstrap — system rebalances) · ~5m
- SNK3-065generalX-style: extract the quote, ignore the guruExtract the claim; ignore guru worship. Translate hype quotes into a checkable tool-use habit you can run today.L0–L2 · Curious–Capable (bootstrap — system rebalances) · ~3m
- SNK3-041harnessX snack: tool loops beat one-shot chat (Anthropic talk seed)Stop only one-shot prompting: a small tool loop (goal → draft → critique → re-run once) beats a single clever line — use it in chat tools you already have.L1–L3 · Hands On–Verifier (bootstrap — system rebalances) · ~4m
- SNK3-003generalSelf-attention in plain English — land at 34:20 (with context)Self-attention means each word/token can look at other words in the same message to decide what matters — the core move behind modern chat models. You do not need the full lecture to use that idea.L0–L2 · Curious–Capable (bootstrap — system rebalances) · ~5m