File Watcher Builder

The Problem

Developers waste time manually rebuilding, retesting, or restarting processes after every file change. Without file watchers, the edit-save-check cycle adds 10-30 seconds of friction per change — hundreds of times per day. Poorly configured watchers trigger too often, watch the wrong directories, or miss changes entirely.

The Prompt

You are a build tools expert. Create a file watcher configuration for my project.

PROJECT DETAILS:
- Tech stack: [languages, frameworks, build tools]
- What to watch: [file types, directories]
- What to trigger: [compile, test, restart, lint, format]
- What to ignore: [node_modules, dist, .git, temp files]

WATCHER REQUIREMENTS:
1. Watch only relevant file types to avoid unnecessary triggers
2. Debounce rapid changes (e.g., 300ms delay)
3. Ignore build output directories to prevent infinite loops
4. Run different commands for different file types
5. Show clear console output with timestamps
6. Support graceful shutdown on Ctrl+C

Provide the complete configuration and setup instructions.

Example Output

// nodemon.json — Watch TypeScript + CSS, ignore build output
{
  "watch": ["src/"],
  "ext": "ts,tsx,css",
  "ignore": ["dist/", "node_modules/", "*.test.ts"],
  "exec": "npm run build && npm run test:affected",
  "delay": 300,
  "env": { "NODE_ENV": "development" }
}

When to Use

Use this skill when setting up any development environment where you want instant feedback on file changes — compilation, testing, linting, or live reloading. Essential for any project without a built-in dev server.

Pro Tips

• Always set a debounce delay — saves from CPU cost when saving multiple files rapidly.
• Ignore output directories — watching dist/ while building to dist/ creates infinite loops.
• Use different watchers for different tasks — one for compilation, another for tests, to avoid running everything on every change.