← Back to Foundation

PROFESSOR PROMPT

Documentation for PROFESSOR_PROMPT from the Foundation repository.

Prompt for Google Professor

Request for Distributed Systems Architecture Review

Dear Professor,

I’m seeking your expertise on architecting a system for future distribution while avoiding over-engineering. We’re building JidoSystem, an agent-based framework in Elixir that currently targets single-node deployment but must evolve smoothly to distributed operation.

Context: Please review the attached documentation package, particularly:

  • GOOGLE_PROFESSOR_CONTEXT.md - Overview and specific questions
  • JIDO_DISTRIBUTION_READINESS.md - Our analysis of minimum distribution requirements
  • JIDO_ARCH.md - Current system architecture
  • Other attached files for deeper context

Core Question: What is the minimum set of architectural changes needed in our single-node system to enable smooth evolution to distributed operation without carrying unnecessary complexity?

Specific Areas for Review:

  1. Architectural Boundaries: Are we drawing the right abstraction boundaries? The proposed changes include:

    • Replacing direct PID usage with logical AgentRef
    • Adding message envelopes with routing metadata
    • Creating a Communication abstraction layer
    • Making operations idempotent by default

  2. State Management: How should we structure our state management APIs today to avoid major refactoring when adding distributed consensus/replication later?

  3. Testing Without Distribution: What testing strategies can validate our architecture is distribution-ready without actually implementing distribution?

  4. Critical Oversights: Based on your experience, what are we likely missing that will cause pain during the transition to distributed operation?

  5. Incremental Path: Could you recommend a specific incremental path from single-node → multi-node datacenter → geo-distributed system?

Our Constraints:

  • Must work perfectly on single node first (current target)
  • Using Elixir/OTP (actor model, supervision trees available)
  • Will eventually use Kubernetes
  • Performance matters but correctness is paramount
  • Want to defer complex distribution concerns (consensus, CRDTs, etc.) until actually needed

What We’re NOT Asking:

  • How to implement specific distributed algorithms
  • Which distributed libraries to use (libcluster vs. alternatives)
  • How to optimize network protocols

What We ARE Asking:

  • Are we preparing the right foundations?
  • What minimal changes ensure we won’t need major refactoring later?
  • How to validate our distribution readiness incrementally?

Thank you for your time and expertise. Your guidance on avoiding common pitfalls while preparing for future distribution would be invaluable.

Best regards, [Your name]