ADR-0081: An optional commit message body

• Status: Accepted
• Date: 2026-09-08
• Deciders: jka
• Decision: D81

Context

The commit bar (ADR-0045) accepts one summary line. Larger changes deserve a body.

Decision

A ＋ toggle on the commit bar reveals a multi-line description field below the summary (− hides it). The bar starts collapsed. The GUI joins the parts as summary, a blank line, and body, which is git's own convention, so git.commit {message} is unchanged.

Enter in the summary commits; in the body Enter inserts a newline and Ctrl+Enter commits (Ctrl+Enter works in the summary too). The body has a grey placeholder that is never part of its text.

Consequences

• The one-line case is unchanged, and no core change was needed.