The .out-of-scope/ directory in a repo stores persistent records of rejected feature requests. It serves two purposes:
.out-of-scope/
├── dark-mode.md
├── plugin-system.md
└── graphql-api.md
One file per concept, not per issue. Multiple issues requesting the same thing are grouped under one file.
The file should be written in a relaxed, readable style — more like a short design document than a database entry. Use paragraphs, code samples, and examples to make the reasoning clear and useful to someone encountering it for the first time.
# Dark Mode
This project does not support dark mode or user-facing theming.
## Why this is out of scope
The rendering pipeline assumes a single color palette defined in
`ThemeConfig`. Supporting multiple themes would require:
- A theme context provider wrapping the entire component tree
- Per-component theme-aware style resolution
- A persistence layer for user theme preferences
This is a significant architectural change that doesn't align with the
project's focus on content authoring. Theming is a concern for downstream
consumers who embed or redistribute the output.
ts // The current ThemeConfig interface is not designed for runtime switching: interface ThemeConfig { colors: ColorPalette; // single palette, resolved at build time fonts: FontStack; }
## Prior requests
- #42 — "Add dark mode support"
- #87 — "Night theme for accessibility"
- #134 — "Dark theme option"
Use a short, descriptive kebab-case name for the concept: dark-mode.md, plugin-system.md, graphql-api.md. The name should be recognizable enough that someone browsing the directory understands what was rejected without opening the file.
The reason should be substantive — not "we don't want this" but why. Good reasons reference:
The reason should be durable. Avoid referencing temporary circumstances ("we're too busy right now") — those aren't real rejections, they're deferrals.
.out-of-scope/During triage (Step 1: Gather context), read all files in .out-of-scope/. When evaluating a new issue:
dark-mode.md.out-of-scope/dark-mode.md — we rejected this before because [reason]. Do you still feel the same way?"The maintainer may:
.out-of-scope/Only when an enhancement (not a bug) is rejected as wontfix. This applies to enhancement PRs exactly as it does to issues — a rejected PR is recorded here so the same request doesn't return as fresh code.
Do not write here when something is closed as wontfix because it's already implemented. That's a built feature, not a rejected one; recording it would poison the dedup checks with false rejections. Instead, the closing comment points to where the feature already lives.
The flow:
.out-of-scope/ file already exists.out-of-scope/ filewontfix labelIf the maintainer changes their mind about a previously rejected concept:
.out-of-scope/ file