Pull Request Template

A Pull Request Template for Creating Meaningful PRs

Add this file PULL_REQUEST_TEMPLATE.md to the root directory of your repository.

Check out the Pull-Request-Template Lunch and Learn presented at The Frontstide

Purpose

Describe the Purpose of the pull request. Include background information if necessary

A PULL_REQUEST_TEMPLATE helps to standardize the important information in a Pull Request. Software is hard and appications are large, so no matter how self-documenting the code is today, we need to provide a healthy environment for discussion tomorrow.

Writing a Pull Request can feel like a hurdle that stands between the developer and shipping code. This leads to some common issues with Pull Requests:

This Pull Request . . .

• has no description

• does not solve the problem

• just wordsplains the code

• is way over my head

Approach

The Approach section details ‘HOW does this change fulfill the purpose?’

This PULL_REQUEST_TEMPLATE.md adds structure to our PRs in order to solve some common issues

Write a Description

This Pull Request has no description

• Write Write a Description Write `Write a Description` Section :confounded:

Research the Problem

This Pull Request does not solve the problem

• Write Research the Problem Write `Research the Problem` Section

Let the Code Tell Us About the Code

This Pull Request just wordsplains the code

• Write Let the Code Tell Us About the Code Write `Let the Code Tell Us About the Code` Section

Share the Knowlege

This Pull Request is way over my head

• Write Share the Knowlege Write `Share the Knowlege` Section

Just a reminder, writing a Pull Request, like code, is a process. It requites more than one iteration to get it right.

Learning

The Learning section explains ‘WHAT I learned in boating school today is …’

Approach each PR as a docuement for sharing knowledge. When we teach the assignee/reviewer through a Pull Request, we build confidence that the developer has taken due dilligence during the research phase.

The assignee is not treated as a Merge Button Gatekeeper, but a collaborator. Awell written PR invites everyone to learn and and be part of the process of shipping code.

• Thanks to Github Templates for making this possible
• More fine-grained reading on Writing the Perfect Pull Request