The BaseHalf product model
Understand the core objects in BaseHalf: Map, Point, Block, and Reference.
BaseHalf turns AI work into objects you can keep using. The model is intentionally small: Map, Point, Block, and Reference. Each object has one job, and together they keep the work visible, editable, and reusable.
The short version
A Map gives the work a surface. A Point gives one piece of the work a durable place. A Block keeps the material editable. A Reference lets context travel without copy-paste.
| Object | Job | Use it when | Avoid using it for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Map | Show the shape of a project | The work has multiple moving parts | A single disposable answer |
| Point | Hold one openable unit of work | An idea, file, decision, or task needs independent attention | A pile of unrelated notes |
| Block | Keep material granular and editable | A section may be rewritten, reused, or reviewed | Metadata or navigation |
| Reference | Connect context across Points | One Point should inform another | Linking everything to everything |
Map
A Map is the visible surface for a project. It holds the questions, files, decisions, drafts, and follow-ups that belong together.
Use a Map when the work has more than one moving part. A single prompt can answer a question, but a Map can preserve the structure around the question: what the source was, which assumptions mattered, which decisions were made, and what should happen next.
A good Map is not a perfect diagram. It is a working surface. Put related Points near each other, keep unfinished questions visible, and let the Map show what still needs attention.
Create a new Map when the boundary of the work changes. A course, research project, product brief, hiring loop, or operating process usually deserves its own Map because each one has its own sources, decisions, and follow-up.
Do not create a Map just because the answer is long. If the work will not be revisited, compared, connected, or revised, it can stay as a simple output.
Point
A Point is one idea, file, question, decision, or task that can be opened as a durable page.
Points are small on the Map so you can scan the project quickly. They become deep when you open them. Inside a Point, you can write, revise, ask AI to improve a section, attach source material, and keep the result for later.
Use one Point when a piece of work needs independent attention. If two ideas need different context, different decisions, or different follow-up, they should probably be separate Points.
A Point should have a clear reason to exist. Good Point titles sound like objects you can work on: Lecture 3: attention mechanisms, Pricing tradeoffs, Open questions from customer calls, Decision: delay team sharing.
Split a Point when the page starts mixing jobs. A source note, a decision, and a draft can reference each other, but they usually should not be the same Point.
Block
A Block is editable material inside a Point. A Block can be a note, summary, checklist, extracted source paragraph, draft section, decision record, or AI-generated revision.
Blocks keep work granular. Instead of treating a page as one long answer, BaseHalf can operate on smaller pieces of material. That makes the work easier to revise and easier to reuse.
Use Blocks for material that might change. If a paragraph needs a rewrite, a checklist needs another item, or a source excerpt needs to be compared with another source, it should live as editable material instead of being trapped in one answer.
Blocks are also the level where AI work becomes reviewable. You can keep the parts that are good, revise the parts that are vague, and ask for a new version without throwing away the whole Point.
Reference
A Reference connects Points so context can travel without being copied by hand.
If a Point depends on a source, reference the source Point. If a plan depends on a decision, reference the decision Point. If a draft should keep a comparison in mind, reference the comparison Point.
The goal is not to create more links for their own sake. The goal is to make context available at the moment it is useful.
Use References when a connection changes the work. A source Reference should make a claim stronger. A decision Reference should constrain a plan. A comparison Reference should change how a recommendation is written.
Avoid decorative linking. If a Reference does not affect what AI should consider, what a teammate should review, or what you need to remember, it is probably noise.
How the objects work together
Start with a Map. Split the work into Points. Write or revise inside those Points using Blocks. Add References wherever context should stay connected.
This gives AI a better working environment. Instead of asking it to infer the entire project from one prompt, you give it a structured surface where the right context can be applied in the right place.
Here is the pattern in practice:
- Put the source material in a Source Point.
- Create separate Points for definitions, claims, decisions, open questions, and outputs.
- Turn important material inside each Point into Blocks.
- Reference the source and decision Points from the output Point.
- Reuse the same decision or source Reference when the next output needs it.
The system compounds because each useful piece stays available. A decision can shape a plan, then shape a launch checklist, then shape a follow-up review. The context is not pasted again each time. It is applied again.
Common modeling mistakes
Making one Point do too much
If a Point contains source notes, strategy, decisions, tasks, and a final draft, AI has to guess which part matters. Split the Point into smaller objects and use References to keep them connected.
Treating a Map like a folder
A folder only stores things. A Map should show relationships. Put related Points near each other, keep unresolved questions visible, and let the arrangement reveal what the work is becoming.
Linking without intent
Every Reference should answer: what context should this Point carry forward? If the answer is unclear, leave the link out.
A useful rule
When in doubt, choose the smallest object that can still be reused.
Use a Block for reusable material inside a page. Use a Point when that material needs its own context, references, or follow-up. Use a Map when several Points need to stay visible together.