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authorRussell Belfer <rb@github.com>2013-03-02 13:51:31 -0800
committerRussell Belfer <rb@github.com>2013-03-02 13:51:31 -0800
commit1631147c196ff32a82f8775e3979fdf42729de6b (patch)
treea5cdd6e6a79eebc569e9dfcbd98d3992fdee77ba /CONTRIBUTING.md
parent01be786319238fd6507a08316d1c265c1a89407f (diff)
downloadlibgit2-1631147c196ff32a82f8775e3979fdf42729de6b.tar.gz
Updates to CONTRIBUTING and CONVENTIONS
The discussion about converting some of our foreach-style APIs to use iterator objects got me wanting to make a list of good starter projects. I put it in CONTRIBUTING.md and then went crazy with updates to that file and to CONVENTIONS.md.
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@@ -7,41 +7,94 @@ your help.
We hang out in the #libgit2 channel on irc.freenode.net.
+Also, feel free to open an
+[Issue](https://github.com/libgit2/libgit2/issues/new) to start a discussion
+about any concerns you have. We like to use Issues for that so there is an
+easily accessible permanent record of the conversation.
+
## Reporting Bugs
-First, know which version of libgit2 your problem is in. Compile and test
-against the `development` branch to avoid re-reporting an issue that's already
-been fixed.
+First, know which version of libgit2 your problem is in and include it in
+your bug report. This can either be a tag (e.g.
+[v0.17.0](https://github.com/libgit2/libgit2/tree/v0.17.0) ) or a commit
+SHA (e.g.
+[01be7863](https://github.com/libgit2/libgit2/commit/01be786319238fd6507a08316d1c265c1a89407f)
+). Using [`git describe`](http://git-scm.com/docs/git-describe) is a great
+way to tell us what version you're working with.
+
+If you're not running against the latest `development` branch version,
+please compile and test against that to avoid re-reporting an issue that's
+already been fixed.
-It's *incredibly* helpful to be able to reproduce the problem. Please include
-a bit of code and/or a zipped repository (if possible). Note that some of the
-developers are employees of GitHub, so if your repository is private, find us
-on IRC and we'll figure out a way to help you.
+It's *incredibly* helpful to be able to reproduce the problem. Please
+include a list of steps, a bit of code, and/or a zipped repository (if
+possible). Note that some of the libgit2 developers are employees of
+GitHub, so if your repository is private, find us on IRC and we'll figure
+out a way to help you.
## Pull Requests
-Life will be a lot easier for you if you create a named branch for your
-contribution, rather than just using your fork's `development`.
+Our work flow is a typical GitHub flow, where contributors fork the
+[libgit2 repository](https://github.com/libgit2/libgit2), make their changes
+on branch, and submit a
+[Pull Request](https://help.github.com/articles/using-pull-requests)
+(a.k.a. "PR").
-It's helpful if you include a nice description of your change with your PR; if
-someone has to read the whole diff to figure out why you're contributing in the
-first place, you're less likely to get feedback and have your change merged in.
+Life will be a lot easier for you (and us) if you follow this pattern
+(i.e. fork, named branch, submit PR). If you use your fork's `development`
+branch, things can get messy.
+
+Please include a nice description of your changes with your PR; if we have
+to read the whole diff to figure out why you're contributing in the first
+place, you're less likely to get feedback and have your change merged in.
## Porting Code From Other Open-Source Projects
-The most common case here is porting code from core Git. Git is a GPL project,
-which means that in order to port code to this project, we need the explicit
-permission of the author. Check the
+`libgit2` is licensed under the terms of the GPL v2 with a linking
+exception. Any code brought in must be compatible with those terms.
+
+The most common case is porting code from core Git. Git is a pure GPL
+project, which means that in order to port code to this project, we need the
+explicit permission of the author. Check the
[`git.git-authors`](https://github.com/libgit2/libgit2/blob/development/git.git-authors)
-file for authors who have already consented; feel free to add someone if you've
-obtained their consent.
+file for authors who have already consented; feel free to add someone if
+you've obtained their consent.
-Other licenses have other requirements; check the license of the library you're
-porting code *from* to see what you need to do.
+Other licenses have other requirements; check the license of the library
+you're porting code *from* to see what you need to do. As a general rule,
+MIT and BSD (3-clause) licenses are typically no problem. Apache 2.0
+license typically doesn't work due to GPL incompatibility.
-## Styleguide
+## Style Guide
-We like to keep the source code consistent and easy to read. Maintaining this
-takes some discipline, but it's been more than worth it. Take a look at the
+`libgit2` is written in [ANSI C](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ANSI_C)
+(a.k.a. C89) with some specific conventions for function and type naming,
+code formatting, and testing.
+
+We like to keep the source code consistent and easy to read. Maintaining
+this takes some discipline, but it's been more than worth it. Take a look
+at the
[conventions file](https://github.com/libgit2/libgit2/blob/development/CONVENTIONS.md).
+## Starter Projects
+
+So, you want to start helping out with `libgit2`? That's fantastic? We
+welcome contributions and we promise we'll try to be nice.
+
+If you want to jump in, you can look at our issues list to see if there
+are any unresolved issues to jump in on. Also, here is a list of some
+smaller project ideas that could help you become familiar with the code
+base and make a nice first step:
+
+* Convert a `git_*modulename*_foreach()` callback-based iteration API
+ into a `git_*modulename*_iterator` object with a create/advance style
+ of API. This helps folks writing language bindings and usually isn't
+ too complicated.
+* Write a new `examples/` program that mirrors a particular core git
+ command. (See `examples/diff.c` for example.) This lets you (and us)
+ easily exercise a particular facet of the API and measure compatability
+ and feature parity with core git.
+* Submit a PR to clarify documentation! While we do try to document all of
+ the APIs, your fresh eyes on the documentation will find areas that are
+ confusing much more easily.
+