Commit Messages

commits I hate commit messages, i feel like theyre often the hardest part of the work.

• .gitmessage – pre populates the commit window
• using copilot commit-instructions.md – set directions to copilot on how you want messages formatted

50/72 rule : https://dev.to/noelworden/improving-your-commit-message-with-the-50-72-rule-3g79

A consistent commit format means your git log becomes actually readable. Tags like FEAT, BUG, or REFAC let you scan history at a glance. A 50-character title cap forces clarity.

A body that explains why — not how — gives future teammates (and future you) real context instead of a description of the diff they can already see.

#FEAT – feature, new stuff to the site

#BUG – any bug fix you put in place

#CHG – change that is NOT a refactor or a COPY change

#REFAC – refactors existing code but does not change functionality

#PERF – effects the performance of the application, ie: adding sidekiq or where-exists

#DATA – only effects the data directly, ie: add to or remove from the seed file

#TOOL – does not directly effect site users, developer or testing space, ex: pry or rubocop

#COPY – only text changes

#DOC – changes to documentation

#SPEC – any test or spec changes

#WIP – work in progress. USE SPARINGLY