Contributing

Source: A free-standing CONTRIBUTING.md at the repository root is the canonical contribution guide; this page summarises the lanes most contributors will use.

NeuroDock is built by neurodivergent contributors using the very system being built. Contribution should take fifteen minutes from “I want to add this” to “PR opened”. If it takes longer, the documentation has failed.

Pick a lane first

Skim these four lanes and pick the one that matches the time and energy you actually have right now. Then worry about setup. None of them are second-class.

Lane	Time	What fits here
Drive-by	~15 minutes	Fix a typo, broken link, or stale reference. Improve an error message. Add a missing test case for an existing behaviour. No dev environment required.
One afternoon	A focused session	Contribute a new skill (copy packages/skills/adhd-daily-planner/). Add a tool to an existing MCP server. Wire a new MCP client into cli init.
Multi-day	Open an issue first	A new MCP server. A new CLI command. Architectural changes to packages/core/. Implementing one of the deferred detectors. Expect 2–4 review rounds.
No-code	Any	Run the substrate for a week and file one issue. Review an open PR — lived-experience review is explicitly welcomed. Improve doc tone for clarity, accessibility, or warmth. Triage older issues.

See CONTRIBUTING.md for the canonical lane definitions.

Your first contribution, in one command

git clone https://github.com/tlennon-ie/neurodock.git
cd neurodock
./scripts/dev-setup.sh

dev-setup.sh installs JS + Python dependencies, builds the workspace, and runs the test suites. Re-runnable after every git pull. Drive-by typo fixes do not need this; everything else does.

Ways to contribute

What	Where	Best for
Write a skill	packages/skills/<name>/	Skill authors
Add an eval example	HuggingFace neurodock org (corpus growth planned — see ROADMAP.md §Next)	Eval contributors
Add a profile preset	profiles/<name>.yaml	Anyone with a stable set of preferences worth sharing
Write a new MCP server	plugins/<name>/	Experienced developers
Translate the docs	docs/src/content/i18n/<locale>/ (planned — see ROADMAP.md §Later)	Native speakers of the locale
Fix a typo or unclear sentence	docs/	Anyone

The contribution principles

1. Lower friction. Every PR template asks one question that genuinely matters and nothing else.
2. Lived-experience review. Skills targeted at a neurotype are reviewed by at least one contributor with that neurotype. Self-identification is sufficient.
3. No solo bus factors. Every package has at least two CODEOWNERS.
4. Latency is normalised. No contributor owes immediate availability. Reviews reassign automatically when a maintainer declares AFK.
5. Direct communication is welcomed. Requests for explicit clarification are not interpreted as aggression.

ND-aware code of conduct additions

Beyond the CC4 base, three explicit additions:

• Direct communication is welcomed and not pathologised.
• Requests for explicit clarification are not interpreted as aggression.
• Latency in async response is normalised; no contributor owes immediate availability.

First-time contributor checklist

• Read the manifesto.
• git clone of github.com/tlennon-ie/neurodock.
• Run ./scripts/dev-setup.sh (drive-by typo fixes can skip this).
• Pick the matching lane above.
• Open a draft PR early. Drafts are welcome; perfect first PRs are not the bar.

What’s next

• Write a skill for the most welcoming contribution lane.
• Governance for how decisions are made.
• Ethics for what the project will and will not do.