BetterPrompt for GitHub Copilot

Turn vague prompts into detailed, actionable requests for GitHub Copilot Chat

BetterPrompt analyzes your prompts for vagueness and automatically enhances them to get better responses from GitHub Copilot. Works seamlessly with @workspace chat in VS Code.

✨ Features

🔍 Instant Vagueness Detection - Analyzes prompts in <100ms for unclear patterns
🤖 AI-Powered Enhancement - Uses GitHub Copilot to automatically improve your prompts
💬 Chat Integration - Use @betterprompt in GitHub Copilot Chat for inline enhancement
📊 Before/After Diff - See exactly what changed and why
🎯 Persona-Based - Auto-detects beginner vs developer level
🚀 Zero Config - Works instantly with GitHub Copilot (no API keys needed)

🎬 Quick Start

Method 1: Chat Participant (Recommended)

Use @betterprompt in GitHub Copilot Chat:

@betterprompt make a login system

BetterPrompt will analyze and enhance your prompt, then show you the improved version.

Method 2: Command Palette

Open Command Palette (Cmd+Shift+P or Ctrl+Shift+P)
Type "BetterPrompt: Optimize Current Prompt"
Enter your prompt
Review the enhanced version

📖 Example

❌ Before (Vague):

make a login page

✅ After (Enhanced):

Create a secure login page with the following requirements:

Technical Implementation:
- Frontend: React component with form validation
- Authentication: JWT token-based authentication
- Security: Password hashing (bcrypt), CSRF protection, rate limiting
- Validation: Email format, password strength (min 8 chars, uppercase, number, special char)

Features to Include:
1. Email and password input fields
2. "Remember me" checkbox (optional)
3. "Forgot password?" link
4. Error handling with user-friendly messages
5. Loading state during authentication
6. Redirect to dashboard on success

Best Practices:
- Use HTTPS only
- Implement proper error messages (avoid revealing if email exists)
- Add CAPTCHA after failed attempts
- Follow WCAG accessibility guidelines
- Responsive design for mobile/desktop

Step-by-step approach:
1. Create login form component with controlled inputs
2. Add client-side validation
3. Implement authentication API call
4. Handle JWT token storage
5. Set up protected route navigation
6. Add error handling and loading states
7. Write tests for authentication flow

🎯 Chat Modes

Review Mode (Default)

Shows you the enhanced prompt before sending to Copilot:

@betterprompt /review build an API

Auto Mode (Transparent)

Automatically enhances and sends to Copilot:

@betterprompt /auto build an API

⚙️ Configuration

Open Settings (Cmd+,) and search for "BetterPrompt":

Setting	Description	Default
`betterprompt.enabled`	Enable/disable extension	`true`
`betterprompt.userLevel`	Your experience level (auto/beginner/developer)	`auto`
`betterprompt.vaguenessThreshold`	Min score to trigger rewrite (0-100)	`30`
`betterprompt.preferredModel`	Preferred AI model	`auto` (uses Copilot)
`betterprompt.chatMode`	Default chat behavior (review/auto)	`review`
`betterprompt.showDiff`	Show before/after diff view	`true`

📋 Requirements

VS Code 1.85.0 or higher
GitHub Copilot subscription (for AI enhancement)
Optional: Groq API key (free alternative if Copilot unavailable)

🔧 Commands

Command	Description
`BetterPrompt: Optimize Current Prompt`	Manually optimize a prompt
`BetterPrompt: Open Settings`	Quick access to settings
`BetterPrompt: Reset Onboarding`	Reset first-run setup (testing)

🎓 How It Works

Analysis - Scans prompt for vague verbs, missing context, unclear scope
Scoring - Assigns vagueness score (0-100, higher = more vague)
Enhancement - Uses GitHub Copilot to rewrite with:
- Specific technical requirements
- Security best practices
- Step-by-step implementation plan
- Error handling considerations
Review - Shows diff and lets you approve/copy/dismiss

🔐 Privacy

Client-side analysis - Vagueness detection runs locally (<100ms)
No telemetry - Zero tracking or analytics
Your choice - Enhancement only happens when you trigger it
Transparent - See exactly what changes before accepting

🐛 Troubleshooting

"No language model available" error

Make sure GitHub Copilot extension is installed and active.

Enhancement not working

Check GitHub Copilot is enabled
Try setting a Groq API key as fallback (free at console.groq.com)
Verify betterprompt.enabled is true in settings

Prompts not being enhanced

Increase betterprompt.vaguenessThreshold in settings (try 20 instead of 30)

📝 License

MIT License - See LICENSE for details

🤝 Contributing

Issues and pull requests welcome at GitHub

💡 Tips for Best Results

Start vague, let BetterPrompt enhance - Type naturally, we'll add the details
Use chat mode - @betterprompt is faster than command palette
Review enhancements - Learn what makes a good prompt
Adjust threshold - Lower it if you want more suggestions
Set your level - Manual "developer" mode gives TDD/architecture focus

Made with ❤️ for better AI interactions

BetterPrompt

KarlSeryani