Contributing to MetaGEAR Pipeline Wrapper

Thank you for your interest in contributing to the MetaGEAR Pipeline Wrapper! This document provides guidelines for contributors.

🚀 Getting Started

Prerequisites

• Bash 4.0+ (for the wrapper scripts)
• Bats (for running tests)
• Git

Development Setup

1. Fork the repository on GitHub
2. Clone your fork locally:

   git clone https://github.com/YOUR_USERNAME/metagear.git
   cd metagear
   

3. Install Bats for testing:

   # On Ubuntu/Debian
   sudo apt-get install bats
   
   # On macOS
   brew install bats-core
   

🧪 Testing

Always run tests before submitting changes:

# Run all tests
bats tests

# Run specific test file
bats tests/install.bats

# Run with verbose output
bats -t tests

📝 Making Changes

1. Create a Feature Branch

git checkout -b feature/your-feature-name

2. Code Style Guidelines

Bash Scripts

• Use set -euo pipefail for strict error handling
• Quote variables: "$variable"
• Use local for function variables
• Follow existing naming conventions
• Add comments for complex logic

Function Documentation

# Description: Brief function description
# Parameters:
#   $1 - Parameter description
# Returns: Description of return value
function_name() {
    local param1="$1"
    # Implementation
}

3. Writing Tests

Add tests for new functionality in the tests/ directory:

@test "function should do something" {
    source lib/common.sh
    run function_name "input"
    [ "$status" -eq 0 ]
    [[ "$output" == *"expected"* ]]
}

4. Documentation Updates

• Update relevant documentation files
• Add examples for new features
• Update help text if adding new options

🔄 Submission Process

1. Commit Guidelines

Use clear, descriptive commit messages:

# Good examples
git commit -m "Add support for custom config directory"
git commit -m "Fix workflow argument parsing for spaces"
git commit -m "Update installation documentation"

# Follow conventional commits format when applicable
git commit -m "feat: add debug logging option"
git commit -m "fix: handle missing input file gracefully"
git commit -m "docs: update contributing guidelines"

2. Pull Request Process

1. Push your changes:

   git push origin feature/your-feature-name
   

2. Create a Pull Request on GitHub with:
   • Clear title describing the change
   • Detailed description of what was changed and why
   • Reference any related issues
   • Screenshots/examples if applicable
3. PR Template (use this structure):

   ## Description
   Brief description of changes
   
   ## Type of Change
   - [ ] Bug fix
   - [ ] New feature
   - [ ] Documentation update
   - [ ] Performance improvement
   - [ ] Code refactoring
   
   ## Testing
   - [ ] Tests pass locally
   - [ ] New tests added for new functionality
   - [ ] Manual testing completed
   
   ## Checklist
   - [ ] Code follows project style guidelines
   - [ ] Self-review completed
   - [ ] Documentation updated
   - [ ] Tests added/updated
   

3. Review Process

• Maintainers will review your PR
• Address any feedback or requested changes
• Once approved, your PR will be merged

🐛 Reporting Issues

Bug Reports

Use the issue template and include:

• Environment: OS, Bash version, installation method
• Steps to reproduce: Exact commands and inputs
• Expected behavior: What should happen
• Actual behavior: What actually happens
• Error messages: Full error output
• Additional context: Any other relevant information

Feature Requests

• Describe the feature and its use case
• Explain why it would be valuable
• Provide examples of how it would work
• Consider implementation complexity

📋 Issue Labels

• bug: Something isn’t working
• enhancement: New feature or request
• documentation: Improvements or additions to docs
• good first issue: Good for newcomers
• help wanted: Extra attention is needed
• priority:high: High priority issues
• priority:low: Low priority issues

🎯 Areas for Contribution

High Priority

• Bug fixes
• Performance improvements
• Test coverage improvements
• Documentation updates

Medium Priority

• New workflow support
• Configuration enhancements
• Error handling improvements
• Code refactoring

Good First Issues

• Documentation improvements
• Small bug fixes
• Test additions
• Help text updates

💬 Communication

• Issues: Use GitHub issues for bug reports and feature requests
• Discussions: Use GitHub discussions for questions and ideas
• Email: Contact maintainers for sensitive issues

📜 Code of Conduct

Our Standards

• Be respectful and inclusive
• Focus on constructive feedback
• Help create a welcoming environment
• Be patient with newcomers

Unacceptable Behavior

• Harassment of any kind
• Discriminatory language or behavior
• Public or private attacks
• Publishing private information

📚 Resources

Documentation

• Development Guide
• Architecture Overview

External Resources

• Bash Style Guide
• Bats Testing Framework
• Conventional Commits

🙏 Recognition

Contributors will be:

• Listed in the repository contributors
• Mentioned in release notes for significant contributions
• Acknowledged in project documentation

Thank you for contributing to MetaGEAR!

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