Gitvow Why

Before changing code you did not write, or when asked why code exists, ask the gitvow record which sessions shaped a file, what each intended, and how much a person changed afterwards. Use when the user asks "why does this look like this", before refactoring unfamiliar code, or when a reviewer questions a design.

wirevow 648fa17 1.4 KB Updated

File contents

Why does this file look the way it does?

Run:

gitvow why <path>

The output lists the file's commits newest first. Agent commits show the session, the step within that session, the agent's stated plan before committing, and the attribution: agent share is the fraction of added lines that match what the agent wrote; lines changed by a person afterwards means a human reworked it before committing. Commits marked (person) were made by a human with no session.

How to use the answer:

  • If a person changed lines after the agent, treat that region as deliberate; do not "fix" it back.
  • If a plan names a constraint (an ordering, a compatibility reason, a boundary), keep it unless the user asks otherwise, and cite the session in your explanation.
  • If it says a session note is not available, the author has not pushed notes; say so rather than guessing.
  • For a specific region, follow with gitvow trace <path>:<start>-<end>.

Never read transcripts or ledger files directly; the command already returns the redacted record.

wirevow/gitvow-skills/tree/main/skills/gitvow-why commit 648fa17b31

Frequently asked questions

npx skillmds@latest add wirevow/gitvow-why