Claude Code /btw: keep a quick question separate from the working conversation

Decide whether the question belongs in the main task

The 14 March 2026 description introduces /btw as a way to ask quick questions without adding them to the main context window. Luke uses visualisations and a real SaaS example to compare ordinary questions with an ephemeral overlay. Begin by distinguishing a request to change the project from a question you only need answered while work continues.

1. Write down the active coding goal and the side question before trying the comparison.
2. Follow the explanation at 0:18 and the context-versus-overlay discussion at 1:49.
3. Use the exact command named by the source, /btw, for a bounded question rather than silently turning it into a new implementation instruction.

Inspect what context the side answer uses

At 2:52 the video explains cached session context. Reusing context is different from opening a separate terminal that may not share the same conversation. It also raises a practical freshness question: an explanation based on session context should be checked against any files or decisions that have changed since that context was formed.

1. Ask about a known part of the current task and compare the answer with the relevant code or saved decision.
2. Keep observed behaviour separate from the source’s explanation of how caching works internally.
3. If a side answer reveals a real requirement change, restate that change deliberately in the main task so it can be reviewed as work.

Return to the long-running task and verify continuity

The description says /btw can be used during long tasks without waiting and frames it as a way to reduce context pollution and token use. The final recommendation starts at 4:10. This companion does not independently measure token savings or establish that every kind of question is isolated in the same way across versions.

1. After the side question, inspect whether the original task remains the active job and whether its next action still matches the agreed scope.
2. Record the useful answer separately if you need it later rather than assuming a temporary overlay becomes durable project documentation.
3. Compare one ordinary question and one side-question interaction on a small task before adopting the pattern throughout a large session.

The takeaway

Use /btw for orientation, and make actual changes to the project explicit in the main workflow.