Prompt Engineering: The New Programming Paradigm

In the age of AI-assisted development, the ability to write effective prompts has become as important as writing code itself. Let's explore the art and science of prompt engineering.

What is Prompt Engineering?

Prompt engineering is the practice of crafting inputs for AI models to produce desired outputs. It's part art, part science, and entirely essential for modern developers.

The Anatomy of a Good Prompt

1. Context Setting

You are an expert Angular developer working on a large-scale
enterprise application. The codebase uses Angular 20 with
signals, standalone components, and strict TypeScript.

2. Clear Instructions

Create a reusable data table component that:
- Supports sorting by clicking column headers
- Has pagination with configurable page sizes
- Allows row selection (single and multiple)
- Is fully accessible (WCAG AA compliant)

3. Examples (Few-Shot Learning)

Here's an example of our component style:

@Component({
  selector: 'app-example',
  changeDetection: ChangeDetectionStrategy.OnPush,
  template: `...`
})
export class Example {
  protected data = input.required<Data>();
}

Follow this pattern for the new component.

4. Output Format

Provide the component in three separate files:
1. data-table.ts (component class)
2. data-table.html (template)
3. data-table.css (styles)

Prompt Patterns That Work

The Persona Pattern

"Act as a senior TypeScript developer who prioritizes type safety and clean code..."

The Recipe Pattern

"Step 1: Analyze the requirements
Step 2: Design the interface
Step 3: Implement the core logic
Step 4: Add error handling
Step 5: Write tests"

The Constraint Pattern

"Generate a solution that:

• Uses no external dependencies
• Works in both browser and Node.js
• Has O(n) time complexity"

Common Mistakes to Avoid

❌ Too Vague

Make a good component

✅ Specific and Detailed

Create a modal dialog component in Angular 20 that:
- Uses signals for open/close state
- Traps focus when open
- Closes on Escape key press
- Has smooth enter/exit animations
- Accepts custom content via ng-content

❌ No Context

Fix this bug

✅ With Context

I have an Angular component where the computed signal isn't
updating when the source signal changes. Here's my code:

[code block]

The expected behavior is X, but I'm seeing Y.
What's wrong and how do I fix it?

Iterative Refinement

Prompt engineering is iterative. Start with a basic prompt and refine:

1. Initial Prompt → Get baseline output
2. Analyze → What's missing or wrong?
3. Refine → Add constraints, examples, or clarifications
4. Repeat → Until output meets requirements

Prompt Templates for Developers

Code Review

Review this code for:
- Security vulnerabilities
- Performance issues
- Code style consistency
- Potential bugs

Code:
[paste code]

Provide feedback in order of severity (critical → minor).

Debugging

I'm encountering [error message] when [action].

Environment:
- Angular version: 20
- Node version: 22
- Browser: Chrome 120

Steps to reproduce:
1. [step 1]
2. [step 2]

Expected: [expected behavior]
Actual: [actual behavior]

Relevant code:
[code block]

Feature Implementation

Implement [feature] following these requirements:

Functional Requirements:
- [requirement 1]
- [requirement 2]

Non-Functional Requirements:
- Performance: [constraint]
- Accessibility: [constraint]

Existing Code Context:
[relevant existing code]

Output: Complete implementation with tests.

The Future of Prompt Engineering

As AI models improve, prompts may become more conversational. But the core principles will remain:

• Be specific about what you want
• Provide context for better results
• Include examples when possible
• Iterate based on outputs

Conclusion

Prompt engineering is a skill that amplifies your effectiveness as a developer. Master it, and you'll unlock the full potential of AI-assisted development.

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What prompt techniques have worked best for you? Share your experiences!