Add Submitting-patches.md

This adds a file that describes the standards expected for patches and
pull requests.  The standards are different from those for most
projects on github.com and hence need to be spelled out.

Signed-off-by: Paul Mackerras <paulus@ozlabs.org>

1 files changed, 105 insertions, 0 deletions

diff --git a/Submitting-patches.md b/Submitting-patches.md
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+How to contribute patches to the PPP project.
+=============================================
+
+The PPP project source code is maintained in a Git repository, which
+is publicly available at
+
+git://git.ozlabs.org/~paulus/ppp.git
+
+and
+
+https://github.com/paulusmack/ppp.git
+
+The linux-ppp@vger.kernel.org mailing list is a suitable place to
+discuss issues relating to the PPP code and to post patches.
+
+Although there is a copy of the repository on github.com, the PPP
+project is not a "github project", in the sense that the development
+of the code does not depend on github infrastructure.  In particular,
+patch descriptions should be understandable without reference to any
+github.com web page.  Thus, patches or commits whose description
+consists only of something like "Closes #123" will be rejected.  See
+below for the minimum standards for patch descriptions.
+
+There are two ways in which patches can be submitted for review:
+
+1. Post the patch on the linux-ppp@vger.kernel.org mailing list.  This
+   is my preferred way to receive patches, because it provides more
+   opportunity for other interested people to review the patches.
+
+2. Create a pull request on github.com.  However, please don't make
+   the mistake of creating a commit with a minimal commit message and
+   then explaining the rationale for the change in the pull request.
+   Put the rationale in the commit message.
+
+Requirements for patch/commit description
+-----------------------------------------
+
+The description on a patch, which becomes the commit message in the
+resulting commit, should describe the reason why the change is being
+made.  If it fixes a bug, it should describe the bug in enough detail
+for the reader to understand why and how the change being made fixes
+the bug.  If it adds a feature, it should describe the feature and how
+it might be used and why it would be desirable to have the feature.
+
+Normally the patch description should be a few paragraphs in length --
+it can be longer for a really subtle bug or complex feature, or
+shorter for obvious or trivial changes such as fixing spelling
+mistakes.
+
+The first line of the commit message is the "headline", corresponding
+to the subject line of an emailed patch.  If the patch is concerned
+with one particular area of the package, it is helpful to put that at
+the beginning, followed by a colon (':'), for example, "pppd: Fix bug
+in vslprintf".  The remainder of the headline should be a sentence and
+should start with a capital letter.
+
+Note that as maintainer I will edit the headline or the commit message
+if necessary to make it clearer or to fix spelling or grammatical
+errors.  For a github pull request I may cherry-pick the commits and
+modify their commit messages.
+
+References to information on web sites are permitted provided that the
+full URL is given, and that reference to the web site is not essential
+for understanding the change being made.  For example, you can refer
+to a github issue provided that you also put the essential details of
+the issue in the commit message, and put the full URL for the issue,
+not just the issue number.
+
+Signoff
+-------
+
+In order to forestall possible (though unlikely) future legal
+problems, this project requires a "Signed-off-by" line on all
+non-trivial patches, with a real name (not just initials, and no
+pseudonyms).  Signing off indicates that you certify that your patch
+meets the 'Developer's Certificate of Origin' below (taken from the
+DCO 1.1 in the Linux kernel source tree).
+
+Developer's Certificate of Origin
+---------------------------------
+
+By making a contribution to this project, I certify that:
+
+ (a) The contribution was created in whole or in part by me and I
+     have the right to submit it under the open source license
+     indicated in the file; or
+
+ (b) The contribution is based upon previous work that, to the best
+     of my knowledge, is covered under an appropriate open source
+     license and I have the right under that license to submit that
+     work with modifications, whether created in whole or in part
+     by me, under the same open source license (unless I am
+     permitted to submit under a different license), as indicated
+     in the file; or
+
+ (c) The contribution was provided directly to me by some other
+     person who certified (a), (b) or (c) and I have not modified
+     it.
+
+ (d) I understand and agree that this project and the contribution
+     are public and that a record of the contribution (including all
+     personal information I submit with it, including my sign-off) is
+     maintained indefinitely and may be redistributed consistent with
+     this project or the open source license(s) involved.
+