Summary
It would be extremely useful to support project-level extensions to the system prompt without requiring users to fork Zoo Code or modify the compiled extension after every update.
Motivation
Many advanced users build custom workflows around Zoo Code, including:
custom architect / implementation / investigation roles;
organization-specific coding standards;
project conventions;
token optimization rules;
task execution guidelines.
Currently, the only options are:
modify extension source code;
patch extension.js after every update;
maintain a custom fork.
All of these approaches increase maintenance cost and make upgrades more difficult.
Proposal
Instead of allowing complete replacement of the system prompt, support append-only project instructions.
For example:
.zoo/system-prompt.md
During prompt construction Zoo Code would simply append this file to the generated system prompt.
Conceptually:
systemPrompt =
builtInPrompt +
"\n\n" +
projectSystemPrompt
This preserves all built-in safety and tool instructions while allowing projects to define their own persistent behavior.
Benefits
No need to maintain a fork.
Survives extension updates.
Easy to version in Git.
Team members automatically share the same project behavior.
Works well with existing project rule files.
Possible Use Cases
Custom software architecture standards.
Internal development processes.
Enterprise coding conventions.
Domain-specific terminology.
Persistent task execution rules.
Token usage optimization.
Preferred response formatting.
Optional Enhancements
Future versions could support additional files, for example:
.zoo/prompts/
architect.md
implementation.md
investigation.md
or allow extensions to specific prompt sections rather than only appending to the end.
Why append instead of replace?
Allowing users to completely replace the system prompt can easily break the agent's behavior and make support difficult.
Appending project-specific instructions provides most of the flexibility while preserving Zoo Code's built-in prompt structure, tool guidance, and safety mechanisms.
I believe this would be a good balance between flexibility and maintainability for advanced users.
Summary
It would be extremely useful to support project-level extensions to the system prompt without requiring users to fork Zoo Code or modify the compiled extension after every update.
Motivation
Many advanced users build custom workflows around Zoo Code, including:
custom architect / implementation / investigation roles;
organization-specific coding standards;
project conventions;
token optimization rules;
task execution guidelines.
Currently, the only options are:
modify extension source code;
patch extension.js after every update;
maintain a custom fork.
All of these approaches increase maintenance cost and make upgrades more difficult.
Proposal
Instead of allowing complete replacement of the system prompt, support append-only project instructions.
For example:
.zoo/system-prompt.md
During prompt construction Zoo Code would simply append this file to the generated system prompt.
Conceptually:
systemPrompt =
builtInPrompt +
"\n\n" +
projectSystemPrompt
This preserves all built-in safety and tool instructions while allowing projects to define their own persistent behavior.
Benefits
No need to maintain a fork.
Survives extension updates.
Easy to version in Git.
Team members automatically share the same project behavior.
Works well with existing project rule files.
Possible Use Cases
Custom software architecture standards.
Internal development processes.
Enterprise coding conventions.
Domain-specific terminology.
Persistent task execution rules.
Token usage optimization.
Preferred response formatting.
Optional Enhancements
Future versions could support additional files, for example:
.zoo/prompts/
architect.md
implementation.md
investigation.md
or allow extensions to specific prompt sections rather than only appending to the end.
Why append instead of replace?
Allowing users to completely replace the system prompt can easily break the agent's behavior and make support difficult.
Appending project-specific instructions provides most of the flexibility while preserving Zoo Code's built-in prompt structure, tool guidance, and safety mechanisms.
I believe this would be a good balance between flexibility and maintainability for advanced users.