Decisions

Decisions

Overview

This skill maintains a chronological record of significant project decisions in docs/decisions.md. It captures important architectural and design decisions, especially those involving tradeoffs, to create a permanent record of why key choices were made.

When to Use This Skill

Proactive (Conservative): Suggest recording decisions only when there is a clearly significant architectural choice, such as:

• Choosing between database systems (e.g., SQLite vs PostgreSQL)
• Selecting major frameworks or libraries
• Deciding on core architectural patterns (e.g., monolith vs microservices, rendering approach)
• Making fundamental design choices that will shape the project long-term

Do NOT proactively suggest for:

• Minor implementation details
• Routine coding decisions
• Small refactoring choices
• Trivial technical choices

Manual: Record decisions when explicitly requested by the user with phrases like:

• "Record this decision"
• "Document this in the decision log"
• "Add this to decisions.md"

Recording a Decision

Step 1: Identify the Decision

From the conversation context, identify:

• What decision was made
• Why it was needed (context)
• What alternatives were considered (if applicable)
• Key tradeoffs evaluated (if applicable)
• Rationale for the final choice

Step 2: Determine Detail Level

Adapt the level of detail based on decision complexity:

Brief (simple decisions):

• Title and 1-2 sentence summary
• Example: Choosing a well-established library

Moderate (typical decisions):

• Decision description
• Brief context (why it was needed)
• The choice made

Detailed (complex decisions):

• Decision description
• Context and motivation
• Alternatives considered
• Key tradeoffs evaluated
• Rationale for final choice

Step 3: Format the Entry

Use this format:

## YYYY-MM-DD: [Decision Title]

[Description paragraph(s) adapted to the complexity level]

Example (brief):

## 2025-10-23: Use httprouter for HTTP routing

Chose httprouter for its simplicity and performance. It's a well-established library that fits our needs without unnecessary complexity.

Example (detailed):

## 2025-10-23: Choose SQLite for primary database

After evaluating PostgreSQL and SQLite, we chose SQLite for the following reasons:

Context: Need a reliable database for the application that handles moderate traffic (< 1000 concurrent users) and simple relational data.

Alternatives considered:
- PostgreSQL: More features and better for high concurrency, but adds operational complexity
- SQLite: Simpler deployment, embedded database, sufficient performance for our scale

Tradeoffs: SQLite has limitations with high write concurrency and some advanced features, but offers zero-configuration deployment and excellent read performance. Given our expected load and preference for operational simplicity, these tradeoffs favor SQLite.

Decision: Use SQLite with WAL mode enabled for improved concurrency. We can migrate to PostgreSQL later if scaling needs change.

Step 4: Write to File

1. Check if docs/ directory exists; create it if needed
2. Check if docs/decisions.md exists:
   • If not, create it with this header:

     # Project Decisions
     
     This document records significant architectural and design decisions made throughout the project's development.
     

   • If it exists, read the current content
3. Append the new decision entry to the bottom of the file
4. Ensure proper spacing (blank line before the new entry)

Step 5: Confirm with User

After recording the decision, briefly confirm what was recorded. For example:

• "Recorded the decision to use SQLite in docs/decisions.md"
• "Added the routing decision to the decision log"

Proactive Suggestion Pattern

When detecting a significant architectural decision during conversation, suggest recording it:

This seems like a significant architectural decision. Would you like me to record it in docs/decisions.md?

Wait for user confirmation before recording.

Important Notes

• Always append to the bottom (chronological order from oldest to newest)
• Use today's date (YYYY-MM-DD format) for new entries
• Maintain formatting consistency with existing entries
• Don't create duplicate entries for the same decision
• Create docs/ directory if it doesn't exist
• Avoid recording trivial decisions that don't have long-term architectural impact