@SUOHA_AI: You must change how you use Codex — the results will be an order of magnitude better. 90% of people treat Codex like a god and go straight to /goal: help me write an app. In reality, it can hardly understand your specific needs. Share a trick used by OpenAI researcher @reach_vb: first let Co…
Summary
Share a tip to improve Codex usage: don't set the final goal immediately, but first let Codex do requirements gathering and research, then set a concrete executable /goal based on the findings, which can significantly improve code generation quality.
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Cached at: 08/11/26, 09:44 AM
You Must Change How You Use Codex — The Results Will Be an Order of Magnitude Better
90% of people treat Codex like magic — they jump straight in with /goal: help me build an app, when in reality it can barely understand your specific needs.
Here’s a tip that even OpenAI researcher @reach_vb uses: First, have Codex do research, then set an appropriate /goal based on the findings — instead of going straight to /goal.
For example:
I want to build a XXX. Don’t write any code yet. First, help me with requirements gathering and research:
- What are the core constraints of this problem?
- What mature solutions / similar implementations can I reference?
- What are the main technical risks and common pitfalls?
- What should the minimum deliverable version include, and what should it exclude?
Once the research findings are organized clearly, set an appropriate /goal based on the conclusions.
You can also have a conversation with Codex:
- Ask it to clarify the requirements and boundaries
- Map out existing solutions and risks thoroughly
- Then lock in a goal that is truly executable
Once the goal is precise, let it start writing code — the results will be noticeably more stable.
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