Merge pull request #250 from carlaKC/contributing-details

docs: Outline preferred commit structure and use of fixups

Author: carlaKC

CONTRIBUTING.md

@@ -58,7 +58,7 @@ sim-cli
 
 Run `sim-cli -h` for details on `--data-dir` and `--sim-file` options that allow specifying custom simulation file locations.
 
-Interested in contributing to the project? See [CONTRIBUTING](CONTRIBUTING.md) for more details.
+Interested in contributing to the project? See [CONTRIBUTING](docs/CONTRIBUTING.md) for more details.
 
 ### Simulation File Setup
 The required access details will depend on the node implementation.  

README.md

@@ -0,0 +1,44 @@
+## Contributing 
+
+SimLN is open and welcomes contributions from the community. A good place to start if you have questions is our [discussions forum](https://github.com/bitcoin-dev-project/sim-ln/discussions/123). 
+
+## Pull Request (PR) Requirements
+
+The list below contains mandatory checks to be adhered to before a PR can be opened and/or reviewed. 
+
+1. [Testing](#testing)
+2. [Formating and Linting](#formatting-and-linting)
+4. [Commit history](#commit-history)
+
+**Note**: Reviews are contigent on these checks passing locally and in CI.
+
+### Testing
+
+All tests must pass. Do so by running the command
+
+```sh
+$ cargo test
+```
+
+### Formatting and Linting
+
+Formatting and linting should adhere to the rules specified by default and/or specifically in `rustfmt.toml`. Adhere to the linter suggestions made by `clippy`.
+In addition to these check, the recipe `stable-output` ensures consistent and reliable output locally and in CI environment.
+
+```sh
+$ make check
+```
+
+### Commit history
+
+This project strictly adheres to an [atomic commit structure](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atomic_commit#Atomic_commit_convention). This means that:
+- Each commit should be a small, coherent logical change described with a [good commit message](https://tbaggery.com/2008/04/19/a-note-about-git-commit-messages.html)
+- Refactors, formatting changes and typo fixes should be in separate commits to logical changes
+- Every commit should compile and pass all tests so that we can use [git bisect](https://git-scm.com/docs/git-bisect) for debugging
+
+When your PR is in review, changes should be made using [fixup commits](https://andrewlock.net/smoother-rebases-with-auto-squashing-git-commits/) to maintain the structure of your commits.
+When your PR is complete, reviewers will give the instruction to `squash` the fixup commits before merge.
+
+For historical reasons, commit titles in the project are formatted as `<scope>/<type>: commit message`. A list of different commit types is available [here](https://graphite.dev/guides/git-commit-message-best-practices#2-types-of-commits).
+
+For example, a commit that refactors the `sim-cli` package will be titled: `sim-cli/refactor: {message about refactor}`.