TL;DR
The Ghostty project does not allow users to open Issues directly; contributors must start a GitHub Discussion first. Maintainers will create an Issue from a Discussion once a clear, actionable problem is identified.
What happened
A maintainer opened a Meta issue explaining that Ghostty does not accept user-created Issues directly. The project asks contributors to raise questions, bug reports, and feature proposals in GitHub Discussions rather than the issue tracker. According to the post, maintainers will convert a Discussion into an Issue when it reaches a point where a well-understood, actionable item has been identified and can be reproduced. The policy is presented as the result of long-term experience running open-source projects: most user reports turn out to be misunderstandings, environment or configuration problems, or underspecified feature requests. The issue was labeled documentation, pinned, and its conversation was locked and limited to collaborators; it was opened by contributor mitchellh. The post points readers to the repository's CONTRIBUTING.md for additional detail.
Why it matters
- Directing early reports into Discussions reduces noise in the issue tracker and surfaces items that are ready for work.
- Maintainers can reserve Issues for tasks that are actionable and reproducible, improving triage efficiency.
- The approach aims to filter misunderstanding- or environment-related reports before they become tracked Issues.
- Requiring Discussions first encourages contributors and maintainers to clarify scope and requirements for feature requests.
Key facts
- Repository: ghostty (issue #3558).
- Policy: Users are asked to open a GitHub Discussion before an Issue; users cannot create Issues directly.
- Conversion: A maintainer will convert a Discussion into an Issue when it identifies a clear, reproducible problem or actionable task.
- Rationale: The maintainers report that 80–90% of user-reported problems are misunderstandings, environment issues, or configuration errors.
- Feature requests are frequently underspecified and often need maintainer guidance before becoming actionable.
- The issue was opened by contributor mitchellh and labeled 'documentation'.
- The issue was pinned and the conversation was locked and limited to collaborators.
- Readers are referred to CONTRIBUTING.md for more details on contribution guidance.
What to watch next
- Whether maintainers update CONTRIBUTING.md or other documentation to further clarify the Discussion-to-Issue workflow (not confirmed in the source).
- How quickly maintainers convert qualifying Discussions into Issues in practice (not confirmed in the source).
- Any community response or changes to the policy after this pinned Meta issue was posted (not confirmed in the source).
Quick glossary
- GitHub Discussions: A forum-like feature on GitHub for community conversation, planning, and Q&A separate from the issue tracker.
- Issue tracker: A repository feature used to record bugs, tasks, and actionable work items that contributors can assign and resolve.
- Maintainer: A person or team responsible for reviewing contributions, making decisions about project direction, and managing repository workflow.
- Feature request: A proposal to add new functionality or change existing behavior in a project; typically requires specification to be actionable.
- Reproducible: A description of a bug or problem that can be consistently observed using the same steps and environment, allowing developers to diagnose it.
Reader FAQ
Why can't I create an Issue directly in Ghostty?
The project asks users to start with a GitHub Discussion so reports can be clarified; maintainers will create Issues from Discussions when they identify actionable, reproducible items.
Will maintainers convert my Discussion into an Issue?
Yes—per the post, any Discussion that clearly identifies a problem and can be confirmed or reproduced will be converted by a maintainer.
Do users need to do additional work to get a problem tracked?
According to the maintainer's note, if you find a valid, reproducible problem you won't have to do extra work because maintainers will convert suitable Discussions into Issues.
Where can I find more detail on contributing?
See the repository's CONTRIBUTING.md for further guidance.
ghostty-org / ghostty Public Notifications Fork 1.4k Star 40.5k Code Issues 135 Pull requests 59 Discussions Actions Why users cannot create Issues directly #3558 New issue Open Meta Description mitchellh opened…
Sources
- Why users cannot create Issues directly
- ghostty-org ghostty · Discussions
- Why users cannot create Issues directly (Ghostty)
- Discussion #10030 – `zg` · ghostty-org …
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