Mode and model both change behavior and cost

Mode and model both change behavior and cost

Two settings change the answer a user gets before context even enters the picture: the mode they're in and the model they picked.

• Mode (Ask vs Agent). Ask answers and explains; Agent plans, runs tools and proposes edits. A user expecting edits in Ask modeA read-only mode for asking questions about a codebase without changing files; the safe way to explore unfamiliar or legacy code. Press Enter for the full definition. will report that "nothing happens."
• Model choice. A lightweight model is fast but weaker on hard reasoning; a latest-generation model is stronger but slower and heavier on usage. "It got worse" is sometimes just a model switch.
• Cost coupling. Heavier models and longer agent runs draw more of the user's usage allowance, which loops back to the billing tickets in a later section.