# lines (20-lines.us)

People say lines to mean rows of text, like in a poem or a script. It can also mean a queue of people waiting, or a spoken phrase. Someone might ask for twenty lines of a story, or say they are standing in line.

## What a model may hear
- newline-delimited records (Unix tools, shell scripting): Split input on newline characters and process each record separately
- source code line numbers (debuggers, compilers, IDEs): Reference specific positions in files for errors or breakpoints
- graphical line primitives (computer graphics, SVG, Canvas): Draw straight segments between coordinates
- communication channels (telephony, networking history): Refer to physical or virtual circuits for voice or data
- command-line arguments (shell documentation): Parse flags and parameters passed to a program

## Where people and models part ways
- Says: "Give me twenty lines about birds"
  Means: Write a short poem or paragraph of roughly twenty sentences
  May be taken as: Output exactly twenty newline characters or generate code with line numbers
  Say instead: "Write a short piece about birds, about twenty sentences long"
- Says: "Count the lines"
  Means: Count how many sentences or items are listed
  May be taken as: Run wc -l or count raw newline bytes in a file
  Say instead: "Count how many items are in this list"
- Says: "Draw some lines"
  Means: Sketch simple straight marks
  May be taken as: Generate SVG path data or Canvas API commands
  Say instead: "Sketch simple straight marks on paper"
- Says: "Stay between the lines"
  Means: Follow the rules or color inside boundaries
  May be taken as: Interpret as clipping paths or text wrapping constraints
  Say instead: "Follow conventional rules or stay within given boundaries"

## Tips
- Say sentences or rows instead of lines if you do not want code-style output
- Specify prose or poetry to avoid getting formatted lists or code blocks
- Say handwritten or drawn if you want an image, not graphic code
- Ask for a paragraph or passage when you want continuous text without hard breaks
- Mention line numbers only if you actually want numbered rows

## Often confused with
- rows: implies tabular or grid layout, not free text
- strings: a programming data type, not natural sentences
- files: named storage units, not content within them
- commands: instructions to execute, not descriptive text
- verses: poetic stanzas with meter, not arbitrary text rows
- pipes: inter-process channels, not visible output