Module 3.2: Plan
Reference Guide
- Time to Complete: 20-30 minutes
- Prerequisites: Module 3.1 complete;
quiz-projectfolder created
Start this lesson interactively: Type
/start 3 2in the Codex app to define your quiz through a guided interview.
Overview
Before building, you need to get clear on what you’re building. This is requirements — a description of how your quiz should work and look. The clearer the brief, the better the result. By the end, Codex saves everything to a REQUIREMENTS.md file that becomes the spec for the build.
Key takeaway: Vague instructions produce something you didn’t expect. Specific requirements produce what you actually want — whether you’re briefing Codex, a designer, or a developer.
How the Interview Works
Codex interviews you to nail down the design of your coffee personality quiz. Along the way it uses a structured multiple-choice tool that gives you buttons to pick from instead of typing — you can ask for this anytime by saying “ask me” or “give me options.”
The interview covers the decisions below.
1. Number of results
How many personality-to-coffee pairings should the quiz have — 3 (simple), 4 (good variety, recommended), 5, or 6 (maximum variety)?
2. Question vibe
What style of questions? Fun pop culture, lifestyle & preferences, abstract & quirky, or a mix.
3. Personality-to-coffee pairings
Pick your pairings from a menu, each with a tagline. For example:
- Bold Adventurer → Double Espresso — “You live for intensity”
- Cozy Classic → Medium Roast Drip — “Comfort in every cup”
- Zen Minimalist → Black Coffee, Single Origin — “Simple. Clean. Perfect.”
- Social Butterfly → Cappuccino — “Coffee is better with company”
4. The logic
Logic is the behind-the-scenes “if this, then that” rules of how something works. Every app, website, or tool has logic, and planning means thinking through how it should behave. Here, each answer maps to a personality, and the quiz tallies which personality wins. You choose how to show the result:
- Option A — Single recommendation: “You’re a Bold Adventurer! Try our Double Espresso.”
- Option B — All percentages: “You’re 50% Bold Adventurer, 30% Cozy Classic, 20% Sweet Enthusiast,” with each coffee recommendation.
5. Visual style
Codex generates a few HTML style preview pages and opens them in your browser so you can see real options — for example, playful/colorful, minimal/clean, bold/dramatic, and warm/cozy. You pick one, or mix elements (“the colors from #2 with the layout from #3”).
6. Images and icons
- Images: Codex can search the web and download a photo for each result (takes a bit longer), or you can skip images for now and add them later.
- Icons: small icons next to each answer make the quiz feel more polished, or you can keep it text-only.
7. The questions
Based on your chosen vibe, Codex generates 5-7 questions, each with answers that map to your personalities. You can approve them, request changes, or write your own.
The Output: REQUIREMENTS.md
Codex saves all your decisions to REQUIREMENTS.md in the quiz-project folder:
- Personality-to-coffee pairings with taglines
- Result display style (single or percentages)
- Visual style description
- Image/icon decisions
- All quiz questions with answer-to-personality mappings
This file is the spec the build lesson works from, so it’s worth reviewing carefully and correcting anything that’s off.
Where This Applies Beyond the Course
- Briefing a designer or developer on any project
- Writing a product spec or PRD
- Planning any creative project — the clearer the vision, the better the result
- Working with any AI tool — the more specific you are, the better the output
What’s Next
Next up is Module 3.3: Build & Iterate — Codex builds your quiz from the requirements, and you refine it until you love it.
Start it by typing /start 3 3 in the Codex app, or read the reference guide: