Fix CLI messages using stdout instead of stderr with console formatting

[Copilot]

Five user-facing messages were incorrectly writing to stdout without console formatting, breaking piped output and inconsistent with the codebase standard of stderr + console helpers.

Changes

• pkg/cli/file_tracker.go: "No files to stage" → stderr with FormatInfoMessage
• pkg/cli/pr_command.go: PR creation message → stderr with FormatProgressMessage
• pkg/cli/run_workflow_validation.go: Workflow validation messages (2 instances) → stderr with FormatProgressMessage
• pkg/cli/add_workflow_pr.go: Removed unused addPRLog logger (unrelated lint blocker)

Before:

fmt.Printf("Creating PR: %s\n", title)

After:

fmt.Fprintln(os.Stderr, console.FormatProgressMessage(fmt.Sprintf("Creating PR: %s", title)))

JSON output (--json) and Mermaid graphs continue using stdout as intended.

Original prompt

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This section details on the original issue you should resolve

<issue_title>[Code Quality] Fix stdout anti-patterns in CLI commands</issue_title>
<issue_description>## Description

Found 5 instances of user-facing messages using stdout without console formatting. Messages should use stderr with proper console formatting for consistency and to avoid breaking piped output.

Locations to Fix

File	Line	Current Pattern	Issue
pkg/workflow/file_tracker.go	86	fmt.Println("No files to stage")	Should use stderr
pkg/cli/pr_command.go	770	fmt.Printf("Creating PR: %s\\n", title)	Should use stderr + console formatting
pkg/workflow/run_workflow_validation.go	288, 315	fmt.Printf(...)	Should use stderr + console formatting

Note: JSON output (--json flag) and graph output (Mermaid) correctly use stdout and don't need changes.

Proposed Fixes

Example 1: Simple message

Before:

fmt.Println("No files to stage")

After:

fmt.Fprintln(os.Stderr, console.FormatInfoMessage("No files to stage"))

Example 2: Formatted message

Before:

fmt.Printf("Creating PR: %s\\n", title)

After:

fmt.Fprintln(os.Stderr, console.FormatProgressMessage(fmt.Sprintf("Creating PR: %s", title)))

Files Affected

• pkg/workflow/file_tracker.go (1 instance)
• pkg/cli/pr_command.go (1 instance)
• pkg/workflow/run_workflow_validation.go (2 instances)

Success Criteria

• All 5 instances updated to use stderr
• Console formatting applied (FormatInfoMessage, FormatProgressMessage)
• Verify JSON output still goes to stdout
• Verify graph output still goes to stdout
• All existing tests pass
• Messages appear consistently styled in terminal

Impact

• Severity: Low-Medium - Improves consistency
• Effort: Low - Estimated 30 minutes
• Risk: Minimal - Well-defined pattern changes
• Benefit: Consistent message styling, proper stdout/stderr separation

Source

Extracted from Terminal Stylist Report: Console Output Analysis

Priority

Medium - Improves CLI consistency and output handling

AI generated by Discussion Task Miner - Code Quality Improvement Agent

• expires on Feb 11, 2026, 9:11 AM UTC

Comments on the Issue (you are @copilot in this section)

• Fixes [Code Quality] Fix stdout anti-patterns in CLI commands #12222

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