One file. No plugin. He would have wanted it this way.
"Ponytail Lite" is [Ponytail](https://github.com/DietrichGebert/ponytail) without the plugin madness.
Not to be confused with Ponytail's `lite` mode. This is a separate one-file version.
Just copy [`AGENTS.md`](AGENTS.md) into the place your agent reads instructions. That's it. No plugin, hooks, commands, MCP, or mode switching.
## The Joke
Ponytail is a beautiful contradiction: an anti-overengineering tool delivered as a whole plugin ecosystem, with lifecycle hooks, slash commands, MCP, statuslines, adapter tests, and enough install paths to make a senior engineer stare silently at the wall.
Ponytail Lite is what a lazy senior dev would have expected:
```text
AGENTS.md
```
## Why This Exists
Could you just copy `AGENTS.md` from [Ponytail](https://github.com/DietrichGebert/ponytail)? Yes... But:
The `AGENTS.md` here is not a byte-for-byte copy. It is an opinionated cleanup of the original: same lazy senior dev idea, less plugin baggage, and guardrails rewritten for people who just want the file.
## Install
Copy [`AGENTS.md`](AGENTS.md), or copy the same text into whatever your agent calls "project instructions" or "rules".
| Agent | Put the Ponytail Lite text here |
| ------------------ | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Aider | Your project instructions / conventions file |
| Antigravity CLI | `AGENTS.md` or `.agents/rules/ponytail.md` |
| Claude Code | `CLAUDE.md` or project instructions |
| Cline | `.clinerules/ponytail.md` |
| CodeWhale | `AGENTS.md` |
| Codex | `AGENTS.md` or Settings > Personalization > Custom instructions |
| Cursor | `.cursor/rules/ponytail.mdc` |
| Devin CLI | Custom instructions / project instructions |
| Gemini CLI | `AGENTS.md` |
| GitHub Copilot | `.github/copilot-instructions.md` |
| GitHub Copilot CLI | `AGENTS.md`, `.github/copilot-instructions.md`, or `~/.copilot/copilot-instructions.md` |
| Hermes Agent | Custom instructions / system prompt |
| Kiro | `.kiro/steering/ponytail.md` |
| OpenClaw | Custom skill / instruction file |
| OpenCode | `AGENTS.md` or OpenCode instructions |
| Pi agent | Custom instructions / system prompt |
| Swival | `AGENTS.md` or `~/.config/swival/AGENTS.md` |
| Windsurf | `.windsurf/rules/ponytail.md` |
| Zed | Custom instructions / rules |
## Uninstall
Delete the file you copied.
If you pasted the text into a global instructions file, delete that paragraph.
No leftover mode flag, statusline entry, and hidden MCP server still thinking about your dependency graph.
## What It Does
Before writing code, the agent climbs this ladder:
1. Does this need to exist?
2. Does it already exist in the codebase?
3. Does the standard library do it?
4. Does a native platform feature cover it?
5. Does an installed dependency solve it?
6. Can this be one line?
7. Only then, write the minimum code that works.
## License
MIT
