docs: reorganize documents

Our non-technical documents are currently floating around loosely in our
project's root, making it harden than necessary to discover what one is
searching for. We do have a "docs/" directory, though, which serves
exactly that purpose of hosting documentation.

Move our non-technical documentation into the "docs/" directory. Adjust
all links to these documents.

1 files changed, 266 insertions, 0 deletions

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+# Libgit2 Conventions
+
+We like to keep the source consistent and readable.  Herein are some
+guidelines that should help with that.
+
+## External API
+
+We have a few rules to avoid surprising ways of calling functions and
+some rules for consumers of the library to avoid stepping on each
+other's toes.
+
+ - Property accessors return the value directly (e.g. an `int` or
+   `const char *`) but if a function can fail, we return a `int` value
+   and the output parameters go first in the parameter list, followed
+   by the object that a function is operating on, and then any other
+   arguments the function may need.
+
+ - If a function returns an object as a return value, that function is
+   a getter and the object's lifetime is tied to the parent
+   object. Objects which are returned as the first argument as a
+   pointer-to-pointer are owned by the caller and it is responsible
+   for freeing it. Strings are returned via `git_buf` in order to
+   allow for re-use and safe freeing.
+
+ - Most of what libgit2 does relates to I/O so as a general rule
+   you should assume that any function can fail due to errors as even
+   getting data from the filesystem can result in all sorts of errors
+   and complex failure cases.
+
+ - Paths inside the Git system are separated by a slash (0x2F). If a
+   function accepts a path on disk, then backslashes (0x5C) are also
+   accepted on Windows.
+
+ - Do not mix allocators. If something has been allocated by libgit2,
+   you do not know which is the right free function in the general
+   case. Use the free functions provided for each object type.
+
+## Compatibility
+
+`libgit2` runs on many different platforms with many different compilers.
+
+The public API of `libgit2` is [ANSI C](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ANSI_C)
+(a.k.a. C89) compatible.
+
+Internally, `libgit2` is written using a portable subset of C99 - in order
+to maximize compatibility (e.g. with MSVC) we avoid certain C99
+extensions.  Specifically, we keep local variable declarations at the tops
+of blocks only and we avoid `//` style comments.
+
+Also, to the greatest extent possible, we try to avoid lots of `#ifdef`s
+inside the core code base.  This is somewhat unavoidable, but since it can
+really hamper maintainability, we keep it to a minimum.
+
+## Match Surrounding Code
+
+If there is one rule to take away from this document, it is *new code should
+match the surrounding code in a way that makes it impossible to distinguish
+the new from the old.* Consistency is more important to us than anyone's
+personal opinion about where braces should be placed or spaces vs. tabs.
+
+If a section of code is being completely rewritten, it is okay to bring it
+in line with the standards that are laid out here, but we will not accept
+submissions that contain a large number of changes that are merely
+reformatting.
+
+## Naming Things
+
+All external types and functions start with `git_` and all `#define` macros
+start with `GIT_`.  The `libgit2` API is mostly broken into related
+functional modules each with a corresponding header.  All functions in a
+module should be named like `git_modulename_functioname()`
+(e.g. `git_repository_open()`).
+
+Functions with a single output parameter should name that parameter `out`.
+Multiple outputs should be named `foo_out`, `bar_out`, etc.
+
+Parameters of type `git_oid` should be named `id`, or `foo_id`.  Calls that
+return an OID should be named `git_foo_id`.
+
+Where a callback function is used, the function should also include a
+user-supplied extra input that is a `void *` named "payload" that will be
+passed through to the callback at each invocation.
+
+## Typedefs
+
+Wherever possible, use `typedef`.  In some cases, if a structure is just a
+collection of function pointers, the pointer types don't need to be
+separately typedef'd, but loose function pointer types should be.
+
+## Exports
+
+All exported functions must be declared as:
+
+```c
+GIT_EXTERN(result_type) git_modulename_functionname(arg_list);
+```
+
+## Internals
+
+Functions whose *modulename* is followed by two underscores,
+for example `git_odb__read_packed`, are semi-private functions.
+They are primarily intended for use within the library itself,
+and may disappear or change their signature in a future release.
+
+## Parameters
+
+Out parameters come first.
+
+Whenever possible, pass argument pointers as `const`.  Some structures (such
+as `git_repository` and `git_index`) have mutable internal structure that
+prevents this.
+
+Callbacks should always take a `void *` payload as their last parameter.
+Callback pointers are grouped with their payloads, and typically come last
+when passed as arguments:
+
+```c
+int git_foo(git_repository *repo, git_foo_cb callback, void *payload);
+```
+
+## Memory Ownership
+
+Some APIs allocate memory which the caller is responsible for freeing; others
+return a pointer into a buffer that's owned by some other object.  Make this
+explicit in the documentation.
+
+## Return codes
+
+Most public APIs should return an `int` error code.  As is typical with most
+C library functions, a zero value indicates success and a negative value
+indicates failure.
+
+Some bindings will transform these returned error codes into exception
+types, so returning a semantically appropriate error code is important.
+Check
+[`include/git2/errors.h`](https://github.com/libgit2/libgit2/blob/development/include/git2/errors.h)
+for the return codes already defined.
+
+In your implementation, use `giterr_set()` to provide extended error
+information to callers.
+
+If a `libgit2` function internally invokes another function that reports an
+error, but the error is not propagated up, use `giterr_clear()` to prevent
+callers from getting the wrong error message later on.
+
+
+## Structs
+
+Most public types should be opaque, e.g.:
+
+```C
+typedef struct git_odb git_odb;
+```
+
+...with allocation functions returning an "instance" created within
+the library, and not within the application.  This allows the type
+to grow (or shrink) in size without rebuilding client code.
+
+To preserve ABI compatibility, include an `int version` field in all opaque
+structures, and initialize to the latest version in the construction call.
+Increment the "latest" version whenever the structure changes, and try to only
+append to the end of the structure.
+
+## Option Structures
+
+If a function's parameter count is too high, it may be desirable to package
+up the options in a structure.  Make them transparent, include a version
+field, and provide an initializer constant or constructor.  Using these
+structures should be this easy:
+
+```C
+git_foo_options opts = GIT_FOO_OPTIONS_INIT;
+opts.baz = BAZ_OPTION_ONE;
+git_foo(&opts);
+```
+
+## Enumerations
+
+Typedef all enumerated types.  If each option stands alone, use the enum
+type for passing them as parameters; if they are flags to be OR'ed together,
+pass them as `unsigned int` or `uint32_t` or some appropriate type.
+
+## Code Layout
+
+Try to keep lines less than 80 characters long.  This is a loose
+requirement, but going significantly over 80 columns is not nice.
+
+Use common sense to wrap most code lines; public function declarations
+can use a couple of different styles:
+
+```c
+/** All on one line is okay if it fits */
+GIT_EXTERN(int) git_foo_simple(git_oid *id);
+
+/** Otherwise one argument per line is a good next step */
+GIT_EXTERN(int) git_foo_id(
+	git_oid **out,
+	int a,
+	int b);
+```
+
+Indent with tabs; set your editor's tab width to 4 for best effect.
+
+Avoid trailing whitespace and only commit Unix-style newlines (i.e. no CRLF
+in the repository - just set `core.autocrlf` to true if you are writing code
+on a Windows machine).
+
+## Documentation
+
+All comments should conform to Doxygen "javadoc" style conventions for
+formatting the public API documentation.  Try to document every parameter,
+and keep the comments up to date if you change the parameter list.
+
+## Public Header Template
+
+Use this template when creating a new public header.
+
+```C
+#ifndef INCLUDE_git_${filename}_h__
+#define INCLUDE_git_${filename}_h__
+
+#include "git/common.h"
+
+/**
+ * @file git/${filename}.h
+ * @brief Git some description
+ * @defgroup git_${filename} some description routines
+ * @ingroup Git
+ * @{
+ */
+GIT_BEGIN_DECL
+
+/* ... definitions ... */
+
+/** @} */
+GIT_END_DECL
+#endif
+```
+
+## Inlined functions
+
+All inlined functions must be declared as:
+
+```C
+GIT_INLINE(result_type) git_modulename_functionname(arg_list);
+```
+
+`GIT_INLINE` (or `inline`) should not be used in public headers in order
+to preserve ANSI C compatibility.
+
+## Tests
+
+`libgit2` uses the [clar](https://github.com/vmg/clar) testing framework.
+
+All PRs should have corresponding tests.
+
+* If the PR fixes an existing issue, the test should fail prior to applying
+  the PR and succeed after applying it.
+* If the PR is for new functionality, then the tests should exercise that
+  new functionality to a certain extent.  We don't require 100% coverage
+  right now (although we are getting stricter over time).
+
+When adding new tests, we prefer if you attempt to reuse existing test data
+(in `tests-clar/resources/`) if possible.  If you are going to add new test
+repositories, please try to strip them of unnecessary files (e.g. sample
+hooks, etc).