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commit-helper▌

charon-fan/agent-playbook · updated Apr 8, 2026

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$npx skills add https://github.com/charon-fan/agent-playbook --skill commit-helper
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summary

A skill for creating properly formatted Git commit messages following the Conventional Commits specification.

skill.md

Commit Message Helper

A skill for creating properly formatted Git commit messages following the Conventional Commits specification.

When This Skill Activates

This skill activates when you:

  • Ask to commit changes
  • Mention commit messages
  • Request git commit formatting
  • Say "commit" or "git commit"

Commit Message Format

<type>(<scope>): <subject>

<body>

<footer>

Types

Type Description
feat A new feature
fix A bug fix
docs Documentation only changes
style Changes that do not affect the meaning of the code (formatting, etc.)
refactor A code change that neither fixes a bug nor adds a feature
perf A code change that improves performance
test Adding missing tests or correcting existing tests
chore Changes to the build process or auxiliary tools
ci Changes to CI configuration files and scripts
build Changes that affect the build system or external dependencies

Scope

The scope should indicate the area of the codebase affected:

  • For frontend: components, hooks, store, styles, utils
  • For backend: api, models, services, database, auth
  • For devops: ci, deploy, docker
  • Project-specific scopes are also acceptable

Guidelines

Subject Line

  • Use imperative mood ("add feature" not "added feature" or "adds feature")
  • No period at the end
  • Maximum 50 characters
  • Be specific and concise

Body

  • Separate subject from body with a blank line
  • Use the body to explain what and why, not how
  • Wrap at 72 characters per line
  • Mention any breaking changes

Footer

  • Reference issues: Closes #123, Fixes #456, Refs #789
  • Multiple issues: Closes #123, #456, #789
  • Breaking changes: Start with BREAKING CHANGE: followed by description

Examples

Good Examples

feat(auth): add OAuth2 login support

Implement OAuth2 authentication flow to allow users to log in
with their Google or GitHub accounts.

This change adds:
- New OAuth2 middleware for handling callbacks
- Updated login UI with social login buttons
- User profile synchronization

Closes #123

fix(api): resolve race condition in user creation

The concurrent user creation requests could result in duplicate
email entries. Added unique constraint and proper error handling.

Fixes #456

refactor(user): simplify profile update logic

Extracted common validation logic into a reusable function
to reduce code duplication across profile update endpoints.

docs: update API documentation with new endpoints

Added documentation for the v2 user management endpoints
including request/response examples and error codes.

Bad Examples

updated stuff                    # Too vague, no type/scope
fixed bug                        # No context about which bug
feat: added feature              # Redundant ("feat" means new feature)
Feat(User): Add Login            # Incorrect capitalization
feat: A really really really long subject line that exceeds the recommended limit  # Too long

Breaking Changes

When introducing breaking changes, add BREAKING CHANGE: to the footer:

feat(api): migrate to REST v2

The API endpoints have been restructured for better consistency.
Old endpoints are deprecated and will be removed in v3.0.

BREAKING CHANGE: `/api/v1/users` is now `/api/v2/users`.
All consumers must update their integration by 2025-03-01.

Workflow

When writing a commit message:

  1. Review changes - Run git diff to understand what changed
  2. Identify type - Determine the type of change
  3. Identify scope - Determine which area is affected
  4. Write subject - Create a clear, concise subject line
  5. Write body - Explain what and why (if needed)
  6. Add footer - Reference issues or note breaking changes

Validation

Use the validation script to check commit message format:

python scripts/validate_commit.py "your commit message"

Reference Documents

  • See references/conventional-commits.md for full specification
  • See references/examples.md for more examples
  • See references/scopes.md for recommended scope naming
how to use commit-helper

How to use commit-helper on Cursor

AI-first code editor with Composer

1

Prerequisites

Before installing skills in Cursor, ensure your development environment meets these requirements:

  • ›Cursor installed and configured on your development machine
  • ›Node.js version 16.0+ with npm package manager (verify with node --version)
  • ›Active project directory or workspace where you want to add commit-helper
2

Execute installation command

Execute the skills CLI command in your project's root directory to begin installation:

$npx skills add https://github.com/charon-fan/agent-playbook --skill commit-helper

The skills CLI fetches commit-helper from GitHub repository charon-fan/agent-playbook and configures it for Cursor.

3

Select Cursor when prompted

The CLI will show a list of available agents. Use arrow keys to navigate and space to select Cursor:

◆ Which agents do you want to install to?
│
│ ── Universal (.agents/skills) ── always included ────
│ • Amp
│ • Antigravity
│ • Cline
│ • Codex
│ ●Cursor(selected)
│ • Cursor
│ • Windsurf
4

Verify installation

Confirm successful installation by checking the skill directory location:

.cursor/skills/commit-helper

Reload or restart Cursor to activate commit-helper. Access the skill through slash commands (e.g., /commit-helper) or your agent's skill management interface.

⚠

Security & Verification Notice

We perform automated surface-level scans (Gen AI Scanner, Socket, Snyk) during installation. These checks detect common vulnerabilities but do not guarantee complete security. Always review skill source code and verify the publisher's reputation before production use.

Skills execute code in your development environment. Always verify the publisher's identity, review recent commits, and test in isolated environments before production deployment.

Additional Resources

›View source code on GitHub›Skills CLI documentation›Learn more about Cursor›What are agent skills?

List & Monetize Your Skill

Submit your Claude Code skill and start earning

GET_STARTED →

Use Cases▌

User Story & Requirements Generation

Create detailed user stories, acceptance criteria, and feature specs

Example

Generate user stories for 'password reset feature' with acceptance criteria, edge cases, and test scenarios

✓

Reduce spec writing time by 50%, ensure comprehensive coverage

Competitive Analysis

Research competitors, compare features, identify gaps

Example

Analyze 5 competitor products, create feature comparison matrix, suggest differentiation opportunities

✓

Complete competitive research in 2 hours instead of 2 days

Roadmap Prioritization

Evaluate features using frameworks (RICE, ICE, Kano) and create prioritized backlogs

Example

Score 20 feature ideas using RICE framework, generate prioritized roadmap with rationale

✓

Make data-driven prioritization decisions faster

Stakeholder Communication

Draft PRDs, status updates, and stakeholder presentations

Example

Create executive summary of Q3 roadmap, monthly progress report, feature launch announcement

✓

Save 3-5 hours/week on communication overhead

Implementation Guide▌

Prerequisites

  • ›Claude Desktop or compatible AI client
  • ›Access to product documentation and roadmap tools (Jira, Notion, etc.)
  • ›Understanding of product management frameworks (RICE, Jobs-to-be-Done, etc.)
  • ›Stakeholder contact information and communication channels

Time Estimate

30-60 minutes to see productivity improvements

Installation Steps

  1. 1.Install product management skill
  2. 2.Start with user story generation for known feature
  3. 3.Progress to competitive analysis: research 2-3 competitors
  4. 4.Use for roadmap prioritization: apply RICE/ICE scoring
  5. 5.Draft stakeholder communications and refine based on feedback
  6. 6.Build template library for recurring PM tasks
  7. 7.Share effective prompts with product team

Common Pitfalls

  • ⚠Not validating competitive research—verify facts before sharing
  • ⚠Accepting user stories without involving engineering team
  • ⚠Over-relying on frameworks without qualitative judgment
  • ⚠Not customizing outputs to company culture and communication style
  • ⚠Skipping stakeholder validation of generated requirements

Best Practices▌

✓ Do

  • +Validate research and competitive analysis with real data
  • +Collaborate with engineering when generating technical requirements
  • +Customize frameworks and templates to your company context
  • +Use skill for first drafts, refine with stakeholder input
  • +Document successful prompt patterns for PM tasks
  • +Combine AI efficiency with human judgment and intuition

✗ Don't

  • −Don't publish competitive analysis without fact-checking
  • −Don't finalize user stories without engineering review
  • −Don't make prioritization decisions solely on AI scoring
  • −Don't skip customer validation of generated requirements
  • −Don't ignore company-specific context and culture

💡 Pro Tips

  • ★Provide context: company goals, constraints, customer feedback
  • ★Ask for alternatives: 'Show 3 ways to prioritize this roadmap'
  • ★Request stakeholder-specific formatting: 'Executive summary vs. engineering spec'
  • ★Use skill for 70% generation + 30% customization to company needs

When to Use This▌

✓ Use When

Use for user story writing, competitive research, roadmap prioritization, stakeholder communication, and PRD drafting. Best for reducing repetitive documentation and research work.

✗ Avoid When

Avoid for strategic product vision (requires deep customer empathy), pricing decisions (needs market and financial expertise), or when face-to-face customer discovery is more valuable than speed.

Learning Path▌

  1. 1Basic: user stories, feature specs, status updates
  2. 2Intermediate: competitive analysis, prioritization frameworks, PRDs
  3. 3Advanced: product strategy, go-to-market planning, OKR setting
  4. 4Expert: product vision, market positioning, business model innovation

Discussion

Product Hunt–style comments (not star reviews)
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general reviews

Ratings

4.6★★★★★64 reviews
  • ★★★★★Ava Brown· Dec 28, 2024

    We added commit-helper from the explainx registry; install was straightforward and the SKILL.md answered most questions upfront.

  • ★★★★★Valentina Nasser· Dec 24, 2024

    I recommend commit-helper for anyone iterating fast on agent tooling; clear intent and a small, reviewable surface area.

  • ★★★★★Ganesh Mohane· Dec 20, 2024

    Keeps context tight: commit-helper is the kind of skill you can hand to a new teammate without a long onboarding doc.

  • ★★★★★Hiroshi Torres· Dec 20, 2024

    Useful defaults in commit-helper — fewer surprises than typical one-off scripts, and it plays nicely with `npx skills` flows.

  • ★★★★★Ishan Tandon· Dec 12, 2024

    commit-helper fits our agent workflows well — practical, well scoped, and easy to wire into existing repos.

  • ★★★★★Valentina Abbas· Dec 8, 2024

    commit-helper is among the better-maintained entries we tried; worth keeping pinned for repeat workflows.

  • ★★★★★Li Thompson· Dec 4, 2024

    Registry listing for commit-helper matched our evaluation — installs cleanly and behaves as described in the markdown.

  • ★★★★★Kabir Kim· Nov 27, 2024

    Solid pick for teams standardizing on skills: commit-helper is focused, and the summary matches what you get after install.

  • ★★★★★Camila Bhatia· Nov 23, 2024

    Useful defaults in commit-helper — fewer surprises than typical one-off scripts, and it plays nicely with `npx skills` flows.

  • ★★★★★Ira Tandon· Nov 15, 2024

    commit-helper reduced setup friction for our internal harness; good balance of opinion and flexibility.

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