| name | scratchpad |
| description | Persistent iteration memory — prevents Groundhog Day loops by recording what was tried, what failed, and what to try next. |
Scratchpad Protocol
Use scratchpads in any iterative loop to prevent repeating failed approaches.
Location
.devkit/scratchpads/current.md — active scratchpad for the current task.
Create .devkit/scratchpads/ if it doesn't exist. Only one active scratchpad at a time.
Before Each Iteration
Read .devkit/scratchpads/current.md if it exists. Check:
- What approaches were already tried?
- What failed and why?
- What was suggested to try next?
Do not repeat a failed approach. If you're about to try something already listed as failed, stop and pick a different strategy.
After Each Iteration
Append to .devkit/scratchpads/current.md:
## Iteration {N} — {timestamp}
**Approach:** What you tried (one sentence)
**Result:** pass | fail
**Details:** What happened — error message, unexpected behavior, or success details
**Next:** What to try next if this failed, or "N/A" if it passed
On Completion
When the task succeeds or the workflow ends, delete .devkit/scratchpads/current.md.
Don't leave stale scratchpads — they'll confuse the next task.
Integration with stuck detection
If .devkit/scratchpads/current.md shows 3+ failed iterations:
- Stop iterating
- Review all failed approaches in the scratchpad
- The pattern of failures often reveals the real problem
- Escalate to the user with the scratchpad content as evidence
Rules
- One scratchpad per active task — don't create per-agent scratchpads
- Keep entries concise — the scratchpad is read every iteration
- Record failures honestly — "it didn't work" is useless; "returned 404 because endpoint expects POST not GET" is useful
- Clean up when done — stale scratchpads are worse than no scratchpads
