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changelog-generator

Document & Processing

Automatically creates user-facing changelogs from git commits by analyzing commit history, categorizing changes, and transforming technical commits into clear, customer-friendly release notes. Turns hours of manual changelog writing into minutes of automated generation.

How Skills Work

Skills are markdown files that extend Claude's knowledge. Place them in ~/.claude/skills/ to make them available. Claude reads relevant skills automatically based on context.

Installation

Step 1: Create the skill directory

mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills/changelog-generator

Step 2: Save SKILL.md to

~/.claude/skills/changelog-generator/SKILL.md

Skill Instructions


# Changelog Generator


This skill transforms technical git commits into polished, user-friendly changelogs that your customers and users will actually understand and appreciate.


When to Use This Skill


  • Preparing release notes for a new version
  • Creating weekly or monthly product update summaries
  • Documenting changes for customers
  • Writing changelog entries for app store submissions
  • Generating update notifications
  • Creating internal release documentation
  • Maintaining a public changelog/product updates page

    • What This Skill Does


  • **Scans Git History**: Analyzes commits from a specific time period or between versions
  • **Categorizes Changes**: Groups commits into logical categories (features, improvements, bug fixes, breaking changes, security)
  • **Translates Technical → User-Friendly**: Converts developer commits into customer language
  • **Formats Professionally**: Creates clean, structured changelog entries
  • **Filters Noise**: Excludes internal commits (refactoring, tests, etc.)
  • **Follows Best Practices**: Applies changelog guidelines and your brand voice

    • How to Use


    Basic Usage


    From your project repository:


    ```

    Create a changelog from commits since last release

    ```

    ```

    Generate changelog for all commits from the past week

    ```

    ```

    Create release notes for version 2.5.0

    ```

    With Specific Date Range


    ```

    Create a changelog for all commits between March 1 and March 15

    ```

    With Custom Guidelines


    ```

    Create a changelog for commits since v2.4.0, using my changelog

    guidelines from CHANGELOG_STYLE.md

    ```

    Example


    **User**: "Create a changelog for commits from the past 7 days"


    **Output**:

    ```markdown

    # Updates - Week of March 10, 2024


    ✨ New Features


  • **Team Workspaces**: Create separate workspaces for different

    • projects. Invite team members and keep everything organized.


  • **Keyboard Shortcuts**: Press ? to see all available shortcuts.

    • Navigate faster without touching your mouse.


    🔧 Improvements


  • **Faster Sync**: Files now sync 2x faster across devices
  • **Better Search**: Search now includes file contents, not just titles

    • 🐛 Fixes


  • Fixed issue where large images wouldn't upload
  • Resolved timezone confusion in scheduled posts
  • Corrected notification badge count
    • ```

    **Inspired by:** Manik Aggarwal's use case from Lenny's Newsletter


    Tips


  • Run from your git repository root
  • Specify date ranges for focused changelogs
  • Use your CHANGELOG_STYLE.md for consistent formatting
  • Review and adjust the generated changelog before publishing
  • Save output directly to CHANGELOG.md

    • Related Use Cases


  • Creating GitHub release notes
  • Writing app store update descriptions
  • Generating email updates for users
  • Creating social media announcement posts