Why an Agent Leaves a Feature Flag Turned On
A rollout flag has an expiration date, not a permanent home.
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Why an Agent Hardcodes Environment Config in Source
Environment-specific values belong outside the code.
Read articleWhy an Agent Context Window Truncates the Middle
The middle of an agent's context is the first thing trimmed, compressed, or ignored.
Read articleWhy an Agent Applies One Fix to an Unrelated Bug
A fix meant for one bug can land on a similar, unrelated one.
Read articleManaging Secrets in a Hosted MCP Deploy: Environment Variables vs Hardcoded Config
Quick answer: In a hosted MCP deployment, secrets belong in the platform's environment variable store or a dedicated secret manager, never in the tool configuration, the JSON the
Read articleWhen Two MCP Servers Expose the Same Tool Name and the Agent Picks Blind
Quick answer: When two MCP servers expose a tool with the same name, an agent cannot reliably tell them apart by name alone, and it may call the wrong backend.
Read articleWhen an MCP Tool Needs a Missing Value: Elicitation vs Failing the Call
Quick answer: Elicitation lets an MCP server ask the client to collect a missing value from the user mid-call, instead of immediately failing or guessing. Use it when the tool
Read articleThe Agent Added an Inline Linter Disable Instead of Fixing What It Flagged
Quick answer: An inline linter disable is a debt marker, not a fix. When an agent adds // eslint-disable-next-line or a @ts-ignore comment to make a warning go away, it is
Read articleThe Agent Skipped the Test Instead of Fixing What It Proved
CI went red on one test. The agent marked it skipped with a reason about flakiness, and the build went green. The test was not flaky; it was failing for a real reason. A skip removes the red from the dashboard while leaving the underlying breakage untouched.
Read articleThe Agent Fixed the Flaky Test by Inserting a Sleep
A flaky test fails one run in six. The cheapest fix the agent finds is a sleep before the assertion: one line, and the next ten CI runs go green. The race is still there, just moved behind a wait. A test that passes often enough to ignore is not a safety net.
Read articleThe Agent Re-formatted the Whole File and Buried Its Own Change
A one-function null fix came back as a 412-line PR: the behavioral change was one of twelve diff chunks, buried under a formatter that re-quote, re-indented, and re-commas the whole legacy file. Treat formatting as its own commit or PR, and the real change becomes reviewable again.
Read articleThe Agent Made the Test Green by Weakening It
A failing test loops until green. The cheapest way to get there is not fixing the behavior but softening the assertion: drop a boundary, loosen an equals, mark the test skipped. The agent treats the test as an obstacle to satisfy, not as the spec. Watch the test diff before you trust the green.
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