Release Notes Generation

Release notes inform users what changed. Good release notes highlight value and important changes. Bad release notes are jargon-filled lists nobody reads. This guide covers creating release notes that matter.

Release Note Types

Writing Good Notes

Structure and Content

RELEASE NOTES STRUCTURE
═══════════════════════

STANDARD SECTIONS:
─────────────────────────────────────
## Version X.Y.Z (Date)

### 🚀 New Features
[Major new capabilities]

### ✨ Improvements
[Enhancements to existing features]

### 🐛 Bug Fixes
[User-facing issues resolved]

### ⚠️ Breaking Changes
[What will break, migration steps]

### 🗑️ Deprecations
[What's going away, timeline]

EXAMPLE ENTRY:
─────────────────────────────────────
### 🚀 New Features

**Export to CSV**
You can now export your project data to CSV format.
Click Export → Choose CSV → Done.
Great for reporting and analysis.

**Team Inbox**
Shared inbox for team notifications.
Never miss an important update.
Find it in Settings → Team → Inbox.

### 🐛 Bug Fixes

- Fixed: Dashboard loading slowly for large projects
- Fixed: Email notifications not sending on weekends
- Fixed: Date picker showing wrong timezone

GOOD vs BAD:
─────────────────────────────────────
Bad:
├── "Refactored backend service"
├── "Updated dependencies"
├── "Fixed bug in UserController"
└── Technical, no user value

Good:
├── "Reports now load 50% faster"
├── "Fixed issue where exports sometimes failed"
├── "Added dark mode (finally!)"
└── User-focused, clear value

Automation

Generating Release Notes

AUTOMATION APPROACH
═══════════════════

CONVENTIONAL COMMITS:
─────────────────────────────────────
Commit format:
├── feat: Add export feature
├── fix: Resolve loading issue
├── docs: Update API guide
├── chore: Update dependencies
├── BREAKING: Remove old API

Benefits:
├── Parseable by tools
├── Generates changelog
├── Consistent format
├── Categorization automatic
└── Semi-automated

LINKING TO ISSUES:
─────────────────────────────────────
Commit: "feat: Add CSV export (#123)"
├── Links to issue/PR
├── Context available
├── Full story accessible
├── Traceability
└── Connected history

GENERATION TOOLS:
─────────────────────────────────────
├── Release Please (GitHub)
├── semantic-release
├── conventional-changelog
├── GitHub Release Notes
├── GitLab auto-changelog
└── Tool options

HUMAN + AUTOMATION:
─────────────────────────────────────
├── Automation: Draft notes
├── Human: Edit for clarity
├── Human: Add context
├── Human: Highlight important
├── Best of both
└── Efficient quality

GitScrum Integration

Release Tracking

GITSCRUM FOR RELEASES
═════════════════════

RELEASE MILESTONES:
─────────────────────────────────────
├── Create milestone for release
├── Link stories to milestone
├── Progress visible
├── Release scope clear
└── Organized release

GENERATING NOTES:
─────────────────────────────────────
From milestone:
├── List completed stories
├── Categorize by type
├── Export for notes
├── Draft from data
└── Data source

NOTEVAULT:
─────────────────────────────────────
├── Store release notes
├── Historical record
├── Searchable
├── Version archive
└── Documentation

LABELS:
─────────────────────────────────────
├── feature
├── bug-fix
├── improvement
├── breaking-change
├── Auto-categorization
└── Organized

Publishing

Sharing Release Notes

PUBLISHING NOTES
════════════════

CHANNELS:
─────────────────────────────────────
├── In-app notification
├── Email to users
├── Blog post (major releases)
├── Documentation site
├── GitHub/GitLab releases
├── Social media (major features)
└── Multiple touchpoints

TIMING:
─────────────────────────────────────
├── Notes ready before release
├── Publish with deployment
├── Email within 24 hours
├── Blog for planned releases
└── Coordinated communication

FORMATTING FOR CHANNEL:
─────────────────────────────────────
In-app:
├── Brief, highlights only
├── Link to full notes
└── Quick scan

Email:
├── Summary + details
├── Screenshots if visual
├── Call to action
└── Skimmable

Blog:
├── Full context
├── Use cases
├── Screenshots/video
├── Detailed
└── Marketing angle

Best Practices

For Release Notes

1. User-focused — Value, not implementation
2. Categorized — Easy to scan
3. Semi-automated — Draft + edit
4. Multi-channel — Reach users
5. Breaking changes prominent — Don't hide

Anti-Patterns

RELEASE NOTES MISTAKES:
✗ Only technical details
✗ No release notes at all
✗ Jargon-filled
✗ Giant undifferentiated list
✗ Breaking changes buried
✗ No user benefit explained
✗ Only automation (robotic)
✗ Only major releases noted

Related Solutions

• Continuous deployment strategies
• Managing releases without deployment freezes
• Product roadmap execution