**refactor(readme): rewrite README for multi-distro focus and Nix-based workflows**

Expanded and modernized the README to reflect PKGMGR's purpose as a
multi-distro development and packaging orchestrator. Added explanations for
Nix-based cross-distro workflows, clarified installation steps, documented the
full CLI capabilities, and embedded the architecture diagram.

Also replaced the verbose CLI DESCRIPTION_TEXT with a concise summary suitable
for `--help` output.

Included updated `assets/map.png`.

https://chatgpt.com/share/693b1d71-ca08-800f-a000-f3be49f7efb5

README.md

@@ -1,68 +1,184 @@
 # Package Manager 🤖📦
+
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-*Kevins's* Package Manager is a configurable Python tool designed to manage multiple repositories via Bash. It automates common Git operations such as clone, pull, push, status, and more. Additionally, it handles the creation of executable wrappers and alias links for your repositories.
+**Kevin's Package Manager (PKGMGR)** is a *multi-distro* package manager and workflow orchestrator.
+It helps you **develop, package, release and manage projects across multiple Linux-based
+operating systems** (Arch, Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora, CentOS, …).
+
+PKGMGR is implemented in **Python** and uses **Nix (flakes)** as a foundation for
+distribution-independent builds and tooling. On top of that it provides a rich
+CLI that proxies common developer tools (Git, Docker, Make, …) and glues them
+together into repeatable development workflows.
+
+---
+
+## Why PKGMGR? 🧠
+
+Traditional distro package managers like `apt`, `pacman` or `dnf` focus on a
+single operating system. PKGMGR instead focuses on **your repositories and
+development lifecycle**:
+
+* one configuration for all your repos,
+* one CLI to interact with them,
+* one Nix-based layer to keep tooling reproducible across distros.
+
+You keep using your native package manager where it makes sense – PKGMGR
+coordinates the *development and release flow* around it.
+
+---
 
 ## Features 🚀
 
-- **Installation & Setup:**  
-  Create executable wrappers with auto-detected commands (e.g. `main.sh` or `main.py`).
+### Multi-distro development & packaging
 
-- **Git Operations:**  
-  Easily perform `git pull`, `push`, `status`, `commit`, `diff`, `add`, `show`, and `checkout` with extra parameters passed through.
+* Manage **many repositories at once** from a single `config/config.yaml`.
+* Drive full **release pipelines** across Linux distributions using:
 
-- **Configuration Management:**  
-  Manage repository configurations via a default file (`config/defaults.yaml`) and a user-specific file (`config/config.yaml`). Initialize, add, delete, or ignore entries using subcommands.
+  * Nix flakes (`flake.nix`)
+  * PyPI style builds (`pyproject.toml`)
+  * OS packages (PKGBUILD, Debian control/changelog, RPM spec)
+  * Ansible Galaxy metadata and more.
 
-- **Path & Listing:**  
-  Display repository paths or list all configured packages with their details.
+### Rich CLI for daily work
 
-- **Custom Aliases:**  
-  Generate and manage custom aliases for easy command invocation.
+All commands are exposed via the `pkgmgr` CLI and are available on every distro:
+
+* **Repository management**
+
+  * `clone`, `update`, `install`, `delete`, `deinstall`, `path`, `list`, `config`
+* **Git proxies**
+
+  * `pull`, `push`, `status`, `diff`, `add`, `show`, `checkout`,
+    `reset`, `revert`, `rebase`, `commit`, `branch`
+* **Docker & Compose orchestration**
+
+  * `build`, `up`, `down`, `exec`, `ps`, `start`, `stop`, `restart`
+* **Release toolchain**
+
+  * `version`, `release`, `changelog`, `make`
+* **Mirror & workflow helpers**
+
+  * `mirror` (list/diff/merge/setup), `shell`, `terminal`, `code`, `explore`
+
+Many of these commands support `--preview` mode so you can inspect the
+underlying Git or Docker calls without executing them.
+
+### Full development workflows
+
+PKGMGR is not just a helper around Git commands. Combined with its release and
+versioning features it can drive **end-to-end workflows**:
+
+1. Clone and mirror repositories.
+2. Run tests and builds through `make` or Nix.
+3. Bump versions, update changelogs and tags.
+4. Build distro-specific packages.
+5. Keep all mirrors and working copies in sync.
+
+The extensive E2E tests (`tests/e2e/`) and GitHub Actions workflows (including
+“virgin user” and “virgin root” Arch tests) validate these flows across
+different Linux environments.
+
+---
 
 ## Architecture & Setup Map 🗺️
 
-The following diagram provides a full overview of PKGMGR’s package structure,
-installation layers, and setup controller flow:
+The following diagram gives a full overview of:
+
+* PKGMGR’s package structure,
+* the layered installers (OS, foundation, Python, Makefile),
+* and the setup controller that decides which layer to use on a given system.
 
 ![PKGMGR Architecture](assets/map.png)
 
-**Diagram status:** *Stand: 11. Dezember 2025*  
-**Always-up-to-date version:** https://s.veen.world/pkgmgrmp
+**Diagram status:** 11 December 2025
+**Always-up-to-date version:** [https://s.veen.world/pkgmgrmp](https://s.veen.world/pkgmgrmp)
+
+---
 
 ## Installation ⚙️
 
-Clone the repository and ensure your `~/.local/bin` is in your system PATH:
+### 1. Get the latest stable version
+
+For a stable setup, use the **latest tagged release** (the tag pointed to by
+`latest`):
 
 ```bash
 git clone https://github.com/kevinveenbirkenbach/package-manager.git
 cd package-manager
+
+# Optional but recommended: checkout the latest stable tag
+git fetch --tags
+git checkout "$(git describe --tags --abbrev=0)"
 ```
 
-Install make and pip if not installed yet:
+### 2. Install via Make
+
+The project ships with a Makefile that encapsulates the typical installation
+flow. On most systems you only need:
 
 ```bash
-pacman -S make python-pip
+# Ensure make, Python and pip are installed via your distro package manager
+# (e.g. pacman -S make python python-pip, apt install make python3-pip, ...)
+
+make install
 ```
 
-Then, run the following command to set up the project:
+This will:
+
+* create or reuse a Python virtual environment,
+* install PKGMGR (and its Python dependencies) into that environment,
+* expose the `pkgmgr` executable on your PATH (usually via `~/.local/bin`),
+* prepare Nix-based integration where available so PKGMGR can build and manage
+  packages distribution-independently.
+
+For development use, you can also run:
 
 ```bash
 make setup
 ```
 
-The `make setup` command will:
-- Make `main.py` executable.
-- Install required packages from `requirements.txt`.
-- Execute `python main.py install` to complete the installation.
+which prepares the environment and leaves you with a fully wired development
+workspace (including Nix, tests and scripts).
+
+---
+
+## Usage 🧰
+
+After installation, the main entry point is:
+
+```bash
+pkgmgr --help
+```
+
+This prints a list of all available subcommands, for example:
+
+* `pkgmgr list --all` – show all repositories in the config
+* `pkgmgr update --all --clone-mode https` – update every repository
+* `pkgmgr release patch --preview` – simulate a patch release
+* `pkgmgr version --all` – show version information for all repositories
+* `pkgmgr mirror setup --preview --all` – prepare Git mirrors (no changes in preview)
+* `pkgmgr make install --preview pkgmgr` – preview make install for the pkgmgr repo
+
+The help for each command is available via:
+
+```bash
+pkgmgr <command> --help
+```
+
+---
 
 ## License 📄
 
 This project is licensed under the MIT License.
+See the [LICENSE](LICENSE) file for details.
+
+---
 
 ## Author 👤
 

src/pkgmgr/cli/__init__.py

@@ -18,52 +18,17 @@ USER_CONFIG_PATH = os.path.expanduser("~/.config/pkgmgr/config.yaml")
 
 DESCRIPTION_TEXT = """\
 \033[1;32mPackage Manager 🤖📦\033[0m
-\033[3mKevin's Package Manager is a multi-repository, multi-package, and multi-format 
-development tool crafted by and designed for:\033[0m
-  \033[1;34mKevin Veen-Birkenbach\033[0m
-  \033[4mhttps://www.veen.world/\033[0m
+\033[3mKevin's multi-distro package and workflow manager.\033[0m
+  \033[1;34mKevin Veen-Birkenbach\033[0m – \033[4mhttps://www.veen.world/\033[0m
 
-\033[1mOverview:\033[0m
-A powerful toolchain that unifies and automates workflows across heterogeneous
-project ecosystems. pkgmgr is not only a package manager — it is a full 
-developer-oriented orchestration tool.
+Built in \033[1;33mPython\033[0m on top of \033[1;33mNix flakes\033[0m to manage many
+repositories and packaging formats (pyproject.toml, flake.nix,
+PKGBUILD, debian, Ansible, …) with one CLI.
 
-It automatically detects, merges, and processes metadata from multiple 
-dependency formats, including:
-  • \033[1;33mPython:\033[0m pyproject.toml, requirements.txt  
-  • \033[1;33mNix:\033[0m flake.nix  
-  • \033[1;33mArch Linux:\033[0m PKGBUILD  
-  • \033[1;33mAnsible:\033[0m requirements.yml  
-
-This allows pkgmgr to perform installation, updates, verification, dependency
-resolution, and synchronization across complex multi-repo environments — with a
-single unified command-line interface.
-
-\033[1mDeveloper Tools:\033[0m
-pkgmgr includes an integrated toolbox to enhance daily development workflows:
-
-  • \033[1;33mVS Code integration:\033[0m Auto-generate and open multi-repo workspaces  
-  • \033[1;33mTerminal integration:\033[0m Open repositories in new GNOME Terminal tabs  
-  • \033[1;33mExplorer integration:\033[0m Open repositories in your file manager  
-  • \033[1;33mRelease automation:\033[0m Version bumping, changelog updates, and tagging  
-  • \033[1;33mBatch operations:\033[0m Execute shell commands across multiple repositories  
-  • \033[1;33mGit/Docker/Make wrappers:\033[0m Unified command proxying for many tools 
-
-\033[1mCapabilities:\033[0m
-  • Clone, pull, verify, update, and manage many repositories at once  
-  • Resolve dependencies across languages and ecosystems  
-  • Standardize install/update workflows  
-  • Create symbolic executable wrappers for any project  
-  • Merge configuration from default + user config layers  
-
-Use pkgmgr as both a robust package management framework and a versatile 
-development orchestration tool.
-
-For detailed help on each command, use:
+For details on any command, run:
   \033[1mpkgmgr <command> --help\033[0m
 """
 
-
 def main() -> None:
     """
     Entry point for the pkgmgr CLI.