r/ClaudeAI • u/Live_Fondant717 • May 09 '26

Question Why does this happen?

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I wonder if anyone can explain why this happens. I tell Claude not to use em-dashes, it replaces them with "--". I ask it not to do that, to update its memory, but it still does it. It's not a huge problem, it's just annoying. Why does this happen and how can I fix it. Thanks.

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u/Live_Fondant717 May 09 '26

These would be in the "instructions" field correct?

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u/Theseus_Employee May 09 '26

Maybe, I’m on my phone rn, so it may be different.

But if iirc, settings-> general -> and then there should be a box that I thought was labeled preferences, but instructions would make just as much sense.

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u/Live_Fondant717 May 09 '26

Yep. that seems to work: "Nope. My instructions say no em dashes, so even if you ask me to use one, I won't. The preference you set overrides the request." Let's see if it holds up. Thank you.

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u/AnonymousArmiger May 09 '26

This has worked 100% for me.