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Understanding AI Responses

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The AI Model

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Claude Sonnet 4

• Advanced reasoning about spreadsheet operations
• Understanding of complex data relationships
• Natural language processing for Excel tasks
• Multi-step problem solving

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Capabilities

• Context awareness: Understands your workbook structure, selected ranges, and sheet names
• Tool orchestration: Breaks down complex requests into appropriate Excel operations
• Explanation: Provides reasoning for its decisions
• Learning: Adapts responses based on your feedback

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Response Streaming

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Real-Time Updates

1. Immediate start: Text begins appearing within seconds
2. Token-by-token: Words stream as the AI generates them
3. Live updates: No waiting for complete responses
4. Cancellation: Stop generation anytime with the Cancel button

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What You See

User: Analyze the sales data in my selection

AI: [streaming starts]
I'll analyze your selection...
[more text appears]
[thinking block expands]
[response continues]

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Thinking Blocks

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What Are Thinking Blocks?

💭 Thinking...
I need to read the selected range first to understand
the data structure. Then I'll calculate statistics and
identify patterns. I'll use the read_values tool.

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Why They’re Useful

• Transparency: See how the AI approaches your request
• Trust: Understand the logic behind actions
• Learning: Discover better ways to phrase requests
• Debugging: Identify when the AI misunderstands

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Thinking Duration

• Complex requests: Longer thinking (5-10 seconds)
• Simple operations: Brief thinking (1-2 seconds)
• The AI has a 1,600 token “thinking budget” per request

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Response Components

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Text Blocks

Your selection contains sales data for Q1 2024.
I found 150 transactions with a total revenue of $45,230.

• Markdown formatting (bold, italic, lists)
• Syntax highlighting for code
• Excel range links (clickable)

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Tool Use Blocks

🔧 write_values
Status: Pending Approval
Target: Sheet1!A1:A10
Operation: Update values

• Pending: Awaiting your approval
• Approved: Ready to execute
• Rejected: Declined by you
• Completed: Successfully executed
• Errored: Failed with error message

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Code Blocks

=SUMIF(A:A, "Complete", B:B)

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Token Usage

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What Are Tokens?

• ~4 characters = 1 token
• “Hello” = 1 token
• “spreadsheet” = 2 tokens

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Token Counter

📊 Tokens: 1,234 / 200,000

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Token Limits

• Conversation limit: 200,000 tokens total
• Output reserve: 32,000 tokens per response
• Thinking budget: 1,600 tokens for reasoning

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What Counts Toward Tokens

• Your prompts
• AI responses
• Tool definitions (background)
• Previous conversation messages
• Attached files (estimated: 100KB per PDF page)

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When Limits Are Reached

1. Compacts the conversation (summarizes old messages)
2. Preserves recent context
3. Continues without interruption

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Reading AI Responses

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Range References

The formula in B5 calculates the total from A1:A4.

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Sheet References

Comparing @Sales data with @Forecast...

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Tool Results

✓ Updated 10 cells in Sheet1!A1:A10
The values now range from 100 to 500.

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Response Patterns

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Read-Then-Act

1. AI reads your selection first
2. Analyzes the data
3. Proposes specific changes
4. Waits for approval
5. Executes and confirms

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Explanation-First

1. AI explains its approach
2. Breaks down steps
3. Executes each part
4. Summarizes results

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Batch Operations

I'll perform three operations:
1. Read current values
2. Calculate new values
3. Write updated values

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What the AI Knows

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Automatic Context

• Active sheet name
• Selected range (if any)
• All sheet names in the workbook
• Used range (data boundaries)
• Workbook name
• Display language (for localization)

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What It Doesn’t Know

• Data from other workbooks (unless you tell it)
• Your intent beyond the current prompt
• External systems or databases
• Previous conversations (unless in same session)

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Error Messages

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Common Errors

⚠️ Rate limit reached. Please wait 30 seconds.

⚠️ Request exceeds size limit. Try removing attachments or starting a new conversation.

⚠️ Cannot connect to Deno server. Check that the backend is running.

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Tool Errors

❌ Error executing write_values
Range 'Sheet1!A1:A1000000' exceeds worksheet limits

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Best Practices

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Clear Requests

✓ "Make cells A1:A10 bold"
✗ "Format this"

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Context Provision

✓ "Column C contains prices in USD. Convert to EUR using 0.85 rate."
✗ "Convert column C"

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Verify Complex Changes

1. Use View to preview changes
2. Review the modified cells
3. Apply only if correct
4. Use Revert if needed

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Provide Feedback

• 👍 Thumbs up for accurate results
• 👎 Thumbs down with comments for issues
• Specific feedback helps refine the system

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Advanced Understanding

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Model Limitations

• May occasionally misinterpret ambiguous requests
• Works best with clear, structured data
• Requires approval for safety on writes
• Has token limits for very long conversations

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Continuous Improvement

• Ratings influence future responses
• Comments help identify issues
• Usage patterns inform tool improvements

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Next Steps

• Learn about Tool Management to control what the AI can do
• Explore Tool Permissions to understand approval workflows
• Read Best Practices for expert prompting tips