DinoCommitz — VSCode Extension

Generate clean, Odoo-style commit messages with Gemini, then drop them straight into the Source Control input box.

This is the VSCode extension port of DinoCommitz, the Next.js web app. Same opinionated commit-message generator, now living next to your code.

Features

AI commit messages powered by Gemini (2.5-flash by default, 2.5-pro available).
SCM integration — one click pushes the generated message into the active git repository's commit input box.
Three tag presets — Odoo-style, Conventional Commits, or fully custom tag arrays in settings.json.
Customisable title format with optional groups ({tag} [{module}: ]{title} adapts when module is empty).
Smart Odoo module detection — walks up from each changed file looking for __manifest__.py (or __openerp__.py) and uses the containing directory as the module name. Falls back to path heuristics for non-Odoo repos.
Branch ticket detection — auto-extracts JIRA-123 / #456 style refs from the current branch and surfaces them in the prompt.
Generate from staged diff — load the actual git diff --cached into the body, or include it in the prompt automatically.
Sign-off footer — appends Signed-off-by: from your local git config user.name / user.email on demand.
Sidebar view in the activity bar and a full-window panel — same React tree, different container.
Encrypted API key storage via VSCode SecretStorage.
Per-workspace draft persistence — your in-flight commit survives reloads.
Theme-aware UI — follows whichever VSCode theme you have installed.
Custom prompt guidelines — keep the bundled Odoo rules or paste your own (or load from a file).
Quick-pick tag command for keyboard-driven workflows.

Quick start

Run npm install.
Press F5 in VSCode (or run npm run watch and launch the Extension Development Host).
In the new VSCode window:
- Open the Command Palette → DinoCommitz: Set Gemini API Key and paste your key from https://aistudio.google.com/apikey.
- Click the dino icon in the activity bar, or run DinoCommitz: Open Commit Builder.
Pick a tag, type a short reason, click Generate, then ↳ Insert into SCM.

Commands

Command	Default keybinding	What it does
`DinoCommitz: Open Commit Builder`	`Ctrl+Alt+P` (`Cmd+Alt+P`)	Opens the main webview panel.
`DinoCommitz: Pick Commit Tag`	`Ctrl+Alt+T` (`Cmd+Alt+T`)	Quick pick over all 11 commit tags.
`DinoCommitz: Generate & Insert into SCM`	—	Opens the panel and primes you to generate.
`DinoCommitz: Set Gemini API Key`	—	Stores the key in `SecretStorage`.
`DinoCommitz: Clear Gemini API Key`	—	Removes the stored key.
`DinoCommitz: Clear Form`	—	Resets the in-flight commit draft.

Settings

Setting	Default	Notes
`dinoCommits.model`	`gemini-2.5-flash`	Choose between flash, pro, or 2.0-flash.
`dinoCommits.tagPreset`	`odoo`	`odoo`, `conventional`, or `custom`.
`dinoCommits.customTags`	`[]`	Array of `{tag, label, description, shortcutLabel?}` used when preset is `custom`.
`dinoCommits.titleFormat`	`{tag} [{module}: ]{title}`	Template. `[...]` groups disappear when their placeholders are empty.
`dinoCommits.showModuleField`	`true`	Show/hide the module field in the builder.
`dinoCommits.maxTitleLength`	`80`	Title length limit, shown in the meter.
`dinoCommits.guidelineMode`	`default`	`default` ships the Odoo-style rules; `custom` uses your text.
`dinoCommits.customGuideline`	(empty)	Multiline string used when mode is `custom`.
`dinoCommits.customInstructions`	(empty)	Extra rules appended to the prompt.
`dinoCommits.insertChapterFooter`	`false`	Show chapter input and append `Chapter #n` to the message.
`dinoCommits.appendSignOff`	`false`	Append `Signed-off-by` from local git config.
`dinoCommits.includeStagedDiffInPrompt`	`false`	Auto-include staged diff in every generation prompt.
`dinoCommits.detectOdooManifest`	`true`	Walk up to `__manifest__.py` for Odoo module detection.
`dinoCommits.detectTicketRef`	`true`	Auto-extract ticket refs (`JIRA-123`, `#456`) from branch names.

Title format templates by preset

Preset	Default format	Example
`odoo`	`{tag} [{module}: ]{title}`	`[FIX] website_sale: prevent checkout crash on empty cart`
`conventional`	`{tag}[({module})]: {title}`	`feat(api): add reply-to header for thread tracking`
`custom`	up to you	up to you

The [...] groups are conditional — they disappear entirely if any placeholder inside is empty. So {tag}[({module})]: {title} with module="" becomes feat: my title, not feat(): my title.

Defining custom tags

Add to settings.json:

"dinoCommits.tagPreset": "custom",
"dinoCommits.customTags": [
  { "tag": "[BUG]",   "label": "BUG",   "description": "Bug fix" },
  { "tag": "[FEAT]",  "label": "FEAT",  "description": "New feature" },
  { "tag": "[CHORE]", "label": "CHORE", "description": "Misc maintenance" }
],
"dinoCommits.titleFormat": "{tag} {title}",
"dinoCommits.showModuleField": false

Building

npm install
npm run compile        # one-shot build → dist/
npm run watch          # continuous rebuilds
npm run package        # minified, production-ready build
npm run check-types    # type-check both bundles

The build produces three files under dist/:

extension.js — Node CommonJS bundle for the extension host.
webview.js — IIFE bundle for the React UI.
webview.css — Bundled stylesheet for the webview.

Architecture

┌─────────────────────────┐         ┌──────────────────────────┐
│ extension.ts (Node)     │         │ webview React UI (DOM)   │
│  ├─ DinoCommitsPanel   │ ←────→  │  ├─ App.tsx              │
│  ├─ ViewProvider        │ message │  ├─ CommitBuilder        │
│  ├─ WebviewBridge       │ passing │  ├─ PreviewPanel         │
│  ├─ GitBridge           │         │  ├─ SetupCard            │
│  ├─ DinoState          │         │  ├─ GitContextCard       │
│  └─ gemini.ts           │         │  └─ TipsCard             │
└─────────────────────────┘         └──────────────────────────┘
        │                                      ▲
        │ SecretStorage / WorkspaceState        │
        ▼                                      │
   workspaceState ──────── draft restored ─────┘

The extension host owns the API key and the Gemini network call; the webview is purely a UI layer that talks to the host via typed messages defined in src/messages.ts.

Documentation

docs/VSCODE_EXTENSION_GUIDE.md — General guide to building VSCode webview extensions (architecture, manifest, security, build pipeline).
docs/CONVERSION_NOTES.md — Step-by-step record of how this extension was built from the original Next.js app.

Before publishing

The extension manifest does not currently reference media/icon.png. The marketplace requires a 128×128 PNG icon — drop one in media/icon.png and re-add "icon": "media/icon.png" to package.json before running vsce package.

License

MIT.

DinoCommitz — AI Commit Messages

arbaazosaurus