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wtf is fycw?

pettielein/fycw — explained in plain English

Analysis updated 2026-05-18

0PythonAudience · developerComplexity · 2/5LicenseSetup · easy

TL;DR

FYCW gives Claude Code a transparent, reviewable way to compress and restore your working context, replacing its automatic black-box compaction.

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((FYCW))
    What it does
      Memory bank folder
      Curated context flush
      Subagent offloading
      Recall archived chunks
    Tech stack
      Python
      Claude Code
      Markdown files
    Use cases
      Long coding sessions
      Team shared project memory
      Codebase mapping
    Audience
      Developers using Claude Code
    Notes
      Does not expand context size
      Optional hooks

Code map

Detail Auto

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filefunction / class

Why would anyone build with this?

REASON 1

Scaffold a persistent memory folder into a project so an AI coding assistant keeps track of goals, decisions, and progress across sessions.

REASON 2

Manually review and edit a compressed handoff file before clearing context, instead of trusting an automatic black-box compaction.

REASON 3

Offload heavy file reading to a subagent so exploring a large codebase does not fill up the main context window.

REASON 4

Recall one specific piece of archived project history on demand instead of reloading everything at once.

What's in the stack?

PythonClaude Code

How it stacks up

pettielein/fycw0xallam/my-recipe0xhassaan/nn-from-scratch
Stars00
LanguagePythonPythonPython
Last pushed2022-11-22
MaintenanceDormant
Setup difficultyeasymoderatemoderate
Complexity2/52/54/5
Audiencedevelopergeneraldeveloper

Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.

How do you spin it up?

Difficulty · easy Time to first run · 5min

Requires Python 3.9+ and Claude Code already installed, optional hooks need Git Bash on Windows.

Use freely for any purpose, including commercial use, as long as you keep the copyright notice.

Wtf does this do

FYCW is a tool that helps manage Claude Code's context window, the limited amount of conversation and file content an AI coding assistant can hold in memory at once. Instead of relying on Claude Code's built in automatic compaction, which the author describes as opaque and hard to control, FYCW gives you a transparent, reviewable process for compressing and restoring your working state. Running fycw init scaffolds a memory folder called .fycw into your project, containing plain markdown files: a compressed restart snapshot, a file for what you are currently working on, a progress log of done and open items, an append-only decision log, a map of the codebase so Claude does not need to re-read it every time, and an archive folder for older context you can pull back later. These files live in your repository and survive Claude Code's clear command. The typical workflow starts by asking Claude to fill in the codebase map, ideally using a subagent so that reading many files does not use up the main context window. As you work, Claude keeps the active work and progress files updated. When context gets close to full, you run a flush command, and Claude reviews the conversation against a stated relevance rule, keeping things like goals, decisions, constraints, and next steps while dropping raw file contents and repetitive reasoning, then writes the result to a single handoff file you can edit yourself. After clearing the context, a load command rebuilds your working state from that file, and a recall command can pull back one specific archived piece of history when needed. Installation is through Python packaging tools such as uv, pipx, or pip, and it requires Python 3.9 or newer plus Claude Code itself. Optional hooks can automatically load the memory bank at the start of a session, though the README notes these hooks depend on Claude Code's current hook format and may need Git Bash on Windows to work reliably. The README states plainly that this tool does not and cannot expand the actual size of the context window from outside Claude Code, it only slows how fast context fills up and makes your state recoverable. The project is released under the MIT license.

Yoink these prompts

Prompt 1
Walk me through installing this tool and scaffolding its memory folder into my existing project.
Prompt 2
Explain the difference between this tool's curated flush command and Claude Code's automatic context compaction.
Prompt 3
Write the initial map file for my project so Claude Code has a reference instead of re-reading directories.
Prompt 4
What should I include in a relevance rubric for deciding what to keep versus drop when compressing a long coding session?

Frequently asked questions

wtf is fycw?

FYCW gives Claude Code a transparent, reviewable way to compress and restore your working context, replacing its automatic black-box compaction.

What language is fycw written in?

Mainly Python. The stack also includes Python, Claude Code.

What license does fycw use?

Use freely for any purpose, including commercial use, as long as you keep the copyright notice.

How hard is fycw to set up?

Setup difficulty is rated easy, with roughly 5min to a first successful run.

Who is fycw for?

Mainly developer.

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