Re: [PATCH] [v5] Documentation: Provide guidelines for tool-generated content

Dave Hansen
2026-01-13T18:05:18Z

On 1/13/26 02:36, Lee Jones wrote:
...
>> +Even if your tool use is out of scope, you should still always consider
>> +if it would help reviewing your contribution if the reviewer knows
>> +about the tool that you used.
>
> Parsing ... okay, that took a few goes. How about:
>
> Even if disclosure of your tool isn't mandated, providing this context
> often helps reviewers evaluate your contribution more effectively.
> Clear documentation of your workflow ensures a faster review with less
> contention.
I agree that the sentence is hard to parse. But, I want to explicitly
say "out of scope" to tie this in to the rest of the section. How about
this?

Even if your tool use is out of scope, consider disclosing how
you used the tool. Clear documentation of your workflow often
helps reviewers do their jobs more efficiently.

BTW, I do think we're well into diminishing returns territory. I'll roll
this into a v6 if there's a v6. But, if it's pulled in as-is, I think
the original can stay without causing too much harm.

...>> +Some examples:
>> + - Any tool-suggested fix such as ``checkpatch.pl --fix``
>> + - Coccinelle scripts
>> + - A chatbot generated a new function in your patch to sort list entries.
>> + - A .c file in the patch was originally generated by a coding
>> + assistant but cleaned up by hand.
>> + - The changelog was generated by handing the patch to a generative AI
>> + tool and asking it to write the changelog.
>> + - The changelog was translated from another language.
>
> Nit: Suggest removing the sporadic use of full-stops (periods) across all lists.
>
> Or add them everywhere - so long as it's consistent.

The rule that I read is that when the bullets are full, complete
sentences, you should use periods. When they are just nouns or shards of
sentences, leave off the periods.

I _think_ that's the consensus for how to punctuate bulleted list items.

But I don't remember where I read that, if it was in Documentation/
somewhere or it was some random rule on the Internet I decided to apply.