Tools All levels 2 minute read Updated 2026-06-26 UTC

Planning tools

Interactive, client-side worksheets for viability scoring, architecture selection, and release readiness—without storing or transmitting project data.

Research statusEngineering decision support Publication statePublished Reviewed byMichael Kappel Source reports3

Tools for disciplined decisions

Model breeding adds options: more candidate types, more routing policies, more deployment shapes, and more ways to spend evaluation budget. The tools in this section make those choices explicit. They do not replace an evaluation suite or approval process; they create a structured starting point that can be copied into an architecture decision record.

ToolUse it whenOutput
Viability calculatorComparing a structural change with the no-op optionWeighted benefit, weighted cost, decision margin, and sensitivity prompts
Architecture selectorChoosing a first implementation patternRanked pattern shortlist and the assumptions behind it
Release-readiness checklistPreparing a descendant for shadow or canary deploymentLocal completion state, exportable checklist, and unresolved gates

Privacy model

All calculations run in the browser. The site has no database, analytics service, remote form handler, or third-party JavaScript. Reloading the page clears the viability and architecture worksheets. The release checklist is stored only in the current browser when local storage is available; it can be cleared from the page.

Use the outputs as evidence, not truth

A numerical viability score is only as reliable as its inputs. A pattern recommendation is only as reliable as the stated constraints. Treat each result as a hypothesis that must be tested against measured latency, quality, safety, and operational evidence.

pseudocode
PROCEDURE use_decision_tool(tool, project_context)
    assumptions <- WRITE_DOWN(project_context.assumptions)
    estimate <- tool.CALCULATE(project_context)
    risks <- IDENTIFY_MISSING_EVIDENCE(estimate, assumptions)

    CREATE_ARCHITECTURE_DECISION_RECORD(
        recommendation = estimate,
        assumptions = assumptions,
        validation_plan = risks
    )

    DO_NOT_DEPLOY_UNTIL(validation_plan_is_complete)
END PROCEDURE

Start with the architecture selector, use the viability calculator for each proposed structural change, and run the release checklist before any candidate leaves an isolated lab. Revisit all three after a meaningful change in workload, hardware, risk tier, or evaluation coverage.

Source reports used for this guide

These reports are preserved verbatim in the site archive. The guide above is an editorial synthesis and may narrow, qualify, or reorganize claims from the source material.