AI coding agents read AGENTS.md automatically, not README. Make AGENTS.md
a thin pointer: the stable first-action facts plus links to CONTRIBUTING.md,
README.md, and package.json#scripts. Keep the rules prose in CONTRIBUTING.md
so humans and agents don't diverge (same anti-drift move as dropping
project-specs.md).
Clarify the agent's verification loop: npm run test is the mandatory gate;
the pre-commit hook already runs the fast offline checks (tsc, oxlint, oxfmt,
cspell) on staged files, and npm run check (knip + outdated) is repo-maintenance,
not part of the feature loop. Forbid type-system escape hatches (@ts-nocheck,
oxlint-disable, as-casts) as agent-only rules; a human may still add a
review-visible disable as a last resort, so the location convention stays in
CONTRIBUTING.md with a forward reference.
Adds the earliest feedback tier to the ladder: `npm run watch`
re-runs tests on file save, started manually in a dedicated
terminal pane. Built on Node 26's native `node --test --watch`
(no new dependency).
Structure follows the existing prefix convention:
- `watch:test` — runs the test suite in watch mode
- `watch` — umbrella that aggregates `watch:*` children
(currently just `watch:test`; future `watch:oxlint` etc.
would aggregate here, switching to concurrent execution)
CONTRIBUTING.md documents the new tier in three places: the
prefix convention list, the feedback tiers table (new top row),
and a 'Why these splits?' bullet explaining why watch is a
manual tier rather than a hook. README's Development section
gains a one-line pointer.
After dropping project-specs.md last commit, three categories of
content were lost that have no other home in the repo:
1. The script prefix convention with its 'pick the right prefix,
don't invent one' rule
2. The feedback-tier system (table + 'why these splits?')
3. The publishing workflow (tagged-release flow)
These are maintainer/contributor-facing material, not user-facing.
The standard OSS location for this kind of doc is CONTRIBUTING.md,
which keeps it separate from README.md (user docs) so the two
don't drift. README.md gains a pointer at the bottom.
The content is condensed: no config dumps, no restatements of
package.json, no historical commit-message examples. Only the
rationale that isn't already in the actual config files.
tmu