Drop Zone
Universal inbox for your project materials - just drop anything and let AI sort it out.
The drop zone is a universal inbox for your project materials. Don't know where to put something? Just drop it in the drop/ folder and let AI analyze and categorize it for you.
What is the Drop Zone?#
The drop zone (drop/) is a special folder within your preseed context that accepts any file type. Instead of manually organizing your files into categorized folders, you can simply drop everything into this single location.
When you run bootspring preseed start and select "Analyze your drop zone files", Bootspring generates an AI-ready prompt that analyzes your files and extracts relevant information for each preseed document.
Location#
.bootspring/preseed/context/
├── drop/ # Drop anything here - AI sorts it out
├── ideas/ # (optional) Rough ideas, brainstorms
├── research/ # (optional) Market research
├── competitors/ # (optional) Competitor analysis
├── audience/ # (optional) User interviews
├── business/ # (optional) Business model notes
└── technical/ # (optional) Technical requirements
How It Works#
1. Drop Your Files#
Put any files related to your project in the drop zone:
2. Run Preseed Start#
3. Select "Analyze your drop zone files"#
Bootspring will generate a comprehensive AI prompt based on your files.
4. Use the Generated Prompt#
Copy the prompt and paste it into your AI assistant (ChatGPT, Claude, etc.) to get structured analysis.
Supported File Types#
| Category | Extensions | How They're Processed |
|---|---|---|
| Documents | .md, .txt | Full text content included |
| PDFs | .pdf | Noted as binary, content described |
| Word | .docx | Noted as binary, content described |
| Data | .json, .yaml, .csv | Structure summarized |
| Images | .png, .jpg, .gif | Noted as visual content |
| Code | .js, .ts, .py, etc. | Can be analyzed for context |
| Presentations | .pptx, .key | Noted as presentation |
| Spreadsheets | .xlsx, .numbers | Noted as data |
Example Generated Prompt#
When you select "Analyze your drop zone files", Bootspring generates a prompt like this:
Best Practices#
What to Drop#
- Pitch decks - Even rough versions help AI understand your vision
- Notes - Any brainstorming or planning notes
- Research - Industry reports, market data
- Screenshots - Competitor interfaces, design inspiration
- Survey results - User feedback data
- Business documents - Pricing models, revenue projections
- Technical specs - Architecture diagrams, API docs
File Naming Tips#
Use descriptive names to help AI understand context:
Good:
- competitor-analysis-acme-corp.md
- user-interview-john-developer.txt
- pricing-strategy-v2.md
Less helpful:
- doc1.pdf
- notes.txt
- screenshot.png
Free Tier Usage#
If you're on the free tier without AI generation:
- Run
bootspring preseed start - Select "Analyze your drop zone files"
- Copy the generated prompt
- Paste into ChatGPT, Claude, or any AI assistant
- Use the AI's analysis to answer the preseed wizard questions
This gives you the same quality of document generation without needing a paid tier.
Integration with Workflow#
After analyzing your drop zone:
Troubleshooting#
"No files found in drop zone"#
Make sure files are in the correct location:
.bootspring/preseed/context/drop/
Not:
.bootspring/context/drop/ # Wrong!
.bootspring/drop/ # Wrong!
Binary files not being read#
Binary files (PDFs, images, etc.) are noted but not fully read. The generated prompt asks AI to describe what it expects these files to contain based on their names.
Large files#
Very large files (>10MB) may be summarized rather than fully included in the prompt.
Related#
- Context Folders - Organized alternative to drop zone
- AI Prompts - Free tier prompt generation
- preseed start - CLI command reference