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- 01 Sequential Edit is simple but carries line drift risk at 10+ changes
- 02 Atomic Write makes the fewest tool calls, but token cost grows 4x on large files
- 03 Script Generation delivers the lowest token count and duration across all scenarios
- 04 The edit-guard hook provides a deterministic safety layer against 3 types of risk
+ Why do AI coding agents make errors when editing files?
Three main breaking points: line drift (insertions/deletions shift subsequent line numbers), lost-in-the-middle (middle lines silently disappear in large files), and match failure (if a formatter runs, the expected text no longer exists).
+ Why is Script Generation the most efficient file editing strategy?
Script Generation does not include file content in tokens, only sed commands. On a 1053-line file with 10 changes: 7,000 tokens, 10 seconds. Same operation with Sequential Edit takes 25,000 tokens and 65 seconds.
+ What is the difference between Atomic Write and Sequential Edit?
Sequential Edit makes a separate Edit call per change and carries line drift risk. Atomic Write rewrites the entire file in a single Write call but has the highest token cost.
+ What is the edit-guard hook and how does it work?
edit-guard is a deterministic protection layer using Claude Code's PostToolUse hook. It runs automatically after every Edit or Write and performs 3 checks: consecutive edit counter, line count verification, and lost-in-the-middle detection.
+ Which editing strategy should I use based on file size?
For 1-2 changes, Edit works at any file size. For 3-5 changes, use Script Generation or Unified Diff. For 6+ changes, Script Generation is recommended. Atomic Write is only suitable for files under 200 lines.