The first Ctrl+G
- After
v8-prompt setup, open a new terminal and startclaudeorcodexin a repository you work on. - Type a small task you really need, the way you would say it. For example: "Fix the login form validation and add a regression test".
- Press Ctrl + G (Control on a Mac, not Command). A progress screen shows while the prompt is written, usually in a few seconds.
- The advanced prompt replaces your text in the same input box. Read it, change anything you like, then press Enter to send it to your agent.
Nothing is sent to your coding agent until you press Enter. v8 refines text: it reads a few facts about the repository with git, and never runs your project's code. To get your original text back, press the shortcut again right away.
The one-time preview
The first time you press the key on a computer, v8 shows exactly what is about to go to v8labs.app and waits: your request, the repository facts that are really there (name and branch, stack, commands, a few matched file paths, function and class names, instruction file names, CI commands, recent commit subjects, remembered answers), Claude Code's last reply when it goes along, and what every request carries (this terminal's random key, your time zone and your operating system).
- Enter sends it.
- n sends the request alone, without the repository facts and the agent's reply, for this one send.
- Esc sends nothing and leaves your text exactly as typed.
After your first send it is not shown again. v8-prompt context preview brings it back for the next press. It only appears when someone is at the keyboard: never for v8-prompt improve, the /v8:prompt plugin or scripts. What leaves your computer explains each field.
Free, per terminal
You do not need an account to start. Each terminal (a computer's v8 installation, identified by a random key in ~/.v8-prompt) gets 10 advanced prompts a week, up to 3 a day. The daily count resets at 00:00 UTC and the weekly count on Monday at 00:00 UTC. v8-prompt status shows how many are left.
On a shared network, such as an office or a university, only the first few new terminals each day get the free plan, and free use is also limited per network. If yours says free prompts aren't available, sign in and go Pro, or contact support. Plans and limits has the details.
Link a terminal to your account
Linking connects this terminal to your v8labs.app account, so a Pro or Team plan applies to it. You need an account for that, not for the free plan.
v8-prompt login- Your browser opens a "Connect your terminal" page on v8labs.app with a short code.
- Sign in or create your account. There is no password: you get a 6-digit code by email, valid for 10 minutes. The first time, you accept the Terms and give the separate consent for transfers abroad described in the Privacy Policy.
- Check that you started this from your own terminal a moment ago, then press Connect. If someone sent you the link, do not connect.
Back in Claude Code or Codex, press the shortcut as usual. With Pro, every terminal you link shares one weekly allowance. A free account does not add prompts: a linked terminal on the free plan keeps its own 10 a week. If you upgrade later, press the shortcut again; you do not need to reconnect.
When the free prompts run out
The terminal says so and your text stays exactly as typed. The first time, v8 also opens your browser on a page where you can sign in, link this terminal and choose Pro; it does not open it again for the next five minutes. You can also wait for the reset: the message says when.
See and disconnect terminals
Your Account page lists every terminal linked to your account with when it was last used. Disconnect any you do not recognise. A disconnected terminal goes back to the free plan; run v8-prompt login on it to link it again.