{ "schema": "aiblocks-page/1", "id": "read-any-file-in-plain-english-builder-prompt", "type": "prompt", "name": "Plain-text file reader code planner", "summary": "Name a code file in your project. Claude Code explains it block by block in plain English, then sums up what the file does in one paragraph.", "headline": "Plain-text file reader code planner", "subhead": "Give Claude Code the path to one code file in your project. It labels each block as one of five kinds, explains it in everyday words and ends with a one-paragraph summary. It reads the file and changes nothing.", "job": { "id": "build-software", "name": "Build and ship software" }, "level": "intermediate", "thinking": "medium", "tested": true, "updated": "2026-11-03", "first_published": "2026-10-25", "inputs": [ { "type": "codebase", "required": true, "label": "Codebase", "what": "a project's code, in a folder or repo the AI can open" } ], "outputs": [ { "type": "document", "required": true, "label": "Document", "what": "a finished document, such as a Word file, a PDF or a page of notes" } ], "you_give": [ "Claude Code, open in your project folder", "The path to one code file, for example src/queue.ts", "Who is reading, such as a business owner with no coding background (optional)" ], "you_get": [ "The file split into blocks, each with its line range, one of five labels and a plain English explanation", "A one-paragraph summary: what the file is for, what goes in and what comes out", "A short list of things this file does not show, such as which files call it" ], "use_when": [ "A developer or an AI wrote a file for you, and you want to know what it does before you rely on it.", "You inherited a project and need to understand one file at a time.", "A bug report names a file, and you want to know what that file is for.", "You are learning to read code and want to practise on files from your own project." ], "skip_when": [ "You have no project folder and only want to paste a snippet into a chat: use the Code explainer for beginners.", "You want a guide for a whole team, with the reason beside every piece: use the Code walkthrough writer.", "You want the file changed, fixed or tested. This prompt only explains.", "The file is a document, a spreadsheet or a picture, not code. This prompt only reads code." ], "output_sample": { "input": [ "The path to one code file in your project", "Who is reading (optional)" ], "prerequisites": [ "Claude Code, or another coding AI that can read your project folder" ], "output": [ { "name": "Block-by-block explanation", "contains": "Each block with its line range, one of five labels and a plain English sentence or two." }, { "name": "IMPORTS (shopping list)", "contains": "What the file borrows from other files or tools, and why it needs each one." }, { "name": "TYPES (contract)", "contains": "The shape the data must have, in everyday words." }, { "name": "FUNCTIONS (recipes) and WAITING CALLS", "contains": "What the file can do, and which outside services it waits on." }, { "name": "EXPORTS (front door)", "contains": "What the file offers to the rest of the project." }, { "name": "Summary paragraph", "contains": "The file's job, what it takes in and what it produces, in one paragraph." }, { "name": "Not clear from this file", "contains": "What depends on other files or settings, so nothing is guessed." } ] }, "output_shape": "**Lines -: