Put commit message guidelines in ChangeLog

1 files changed, 47 insertions, 1 deletions

diff --git a/ChangeLog b/ChangeLog
index 2430fd1..17cf553 100644
--- a/ChangeLog
+++ b/ChangeLog
@@ -1 +1,47 @@
-No ChangeLog for now. See git log.
+=== No ChangeLog ===
+
+ Since this module is using git, we rely on commit messages to provide change
+ history. Please write commit messages in the format described at
+ http://live.gnome.org/Git/CommitMessages
+
+ Below is a copy of this format:
+
+=== begin example commit ===
+[tag] Short explanation of the commit
+
+Longer explanation explaining exactly what's changed, whether any
+external or private interfaces changed, what bugs were fixed (with bug
+tracker reference if applicable) and so forth. Be concise but not too brief.
+=== end example commit ===
+
+  - The commit message is mainly for the other people, so they should be able
+    to understand it now and six months later. 
+
+  - Always add a brief description of the commit to the _first_ line of the
+    commit and terminate by two newlines (it will work without the second
+    newline, but that is not nice for the interfaces).
+
+  - First line (the brief description) must only be one sentence and should
+    start with a capital letter unless it starts with a lowercase symbol or
+    identifier. Don't use a trailing period either. Don't exceed 72 characters.
+
+  - You can prefix the first line with one tag, to make it easier to know to
+    which part of the module the commit applies. For example, a commit with
+    "[fish] Make it work with newer fortune" in the gnome-panel module clearly
+    applies to the fish applet.
+
+  - The main description (the body) is normal prose and should use normal
+    punctuation and capital letters where appropriate. Normally, for patches
+    sent to a mailing list it's copied from there. This main description can be
+    empty if the change is self-explanatory (eg: "Add DOAP file").
+
+  - When committing code on behalf of others use the --author option, e.g. git
+    commit -a --author "Joe Coder <joe@coder.org>".
+
+  - When referring to a bug, you can use this form: bgo#12345. Use bgo for
+    bugzilla.gnome.org, but you can also reference bugs in other bug trackers:
+    rh means bugzilla.redhat.com, bnc means bugzilla.novell.com, lp means
+    launchpad.net, etc.
+
+  - When a commit closes a bug, the commit message should contain a line like:
+    Closes: http://bugzilla.gnome.org/show_bug.cgi?id=12345