Strategy for maintaining extension code in a github repository

[empiricompany]

Hello devs,
I want to ask you what is your best strategy for keeping an extension code updated in a GitHub repository?

I usually use modman, which allows me to work separately in another folder, but if there are new files and directories, I have to remember to update the modman file and redeploy.

I would like to keep it a simple process, best for me is to work directly in the root with the entire OpenMage core with any other extensions files then tracking only the files that I want to keep under version control.
I have read about different strategies with .gitignore that first esclude all then include specific file and folders, but they seem too complicated to me.

[empiricompany]

I think I have found a good solution using Composer.
I create a folder locally to use as a local repository for Composer.
Inside, I place my packages, each with its own Git repository.

Below is my configuration:

1. Create a local repo directory, for example:
   mkdir localdev

2. Create new git repo and clone into ./localdev, for example
   cd localdev && git clone https://github.com/empiricompany/openmage_ignition

3. Add local repository to your root composer.json:

"repositories": [
    {
        "type": "path",
        "url": "./localdev/*",
        "canonical": false
    }
],

4. Require local package with dev-main branch
   composer require empiricompany/openmage_ignition dev-main
   you will see:
   Installing empiricompany/openmage_ignition (dev-main): Symlinking from ./localdev/openmage_ignition

5. Switch to packagist public package with
   composer require empiricompany/openmage_ignition
   you will see:
   Installing empiricompany/openmage_ignition (1.4.2): Extracting archive

This way I can work directly on the linked files to have autocompletion and everything else (not in localdev directory).
And i have a separate git repository to push them (plus vscode already recognize and separate more gitrepo).