The README says whether the project is maintained
A project that stopped four years ago and one that shipped last week look the same in a search result. Saying which costs a sentence and saves a reader a day.
Observable check
README.md carries a statement of maintenance or support status, or the repository carries an equivalent signal: DEPRECATED as the first heading of README.md, DEPRECATED at the start of the repository description, a no-maintenance-intended badge, or the archived flag set.
Where this comes from
No upstream source. This is oss-kit's own position, and the argument for it is below.
No specification requires a project to state whether it is maintained. The archived flag and the no-maintenance-intended badge are the two mechanisms that exist, both opt-in signals rather than requirements, which is why this check accepts either in place of a sentence. Observed: a project that stopped four years ago and one that shipped last week are indistinguishable in a search result, and a last-commit date reports activity rather than intent. Retire this rule if a forge ever displays maintenance intent on the repository page.