Basics¶
All development should be made available publicly under open source licences.
- Use version control right from the beginning of a new project.
- If in doubt, use Git.
- Implement a Code Hosting Policy.
- Use meaningful commit messages, cf. [ProGit] Sec. 5.2:
- Capitalised summary with a maximum of 50 characters followed by a blank line.
- Detailed but concise explanations in paragraphs or bullet points at 72 characters line length.
- Explain what you do and why, but not how.
- Never include any secrets in the code.
- Use an appropriate OSI approved license.
- Decide on an appropriate license before you first commit.
- Ensure the license is compatible with all dependencies.
- If in doubt, choose APACHE-2.0 or EUPL-1.2.
- Add the text in a
LICENSE.txt
. - Add license statements to code files, consider using SPDX <https://spdx.org/specifications>__ identifiers.
- Maintain a README.
- Document your software properly.
- Use existing tooling to support development workflows.
- Ensure maximal interoperability.
- Ensure your software is usable and accessible.
- Implement a release policy and keep a changelog.
- Add a code of conduct in a
CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md
, likewe do
. - Specify contribution policies in a
CONTRIBUTING.md
, likewe do
. Don’t ignore non-code contributions. A legitimate policy can be that external contributions are not accepted and merged.