Hi, I want to propose additions to the contributor guidelines that place stronger emphasis on open collaboration and the early part of the contribution process.
Specifically, I would like to suggest that *thought process* and *design discussion* are more important than the final code produced. It is necessary to develop the community and invest in the future of the project. I start this discussion based on observation over time. I have seen cases (non trivial changes) where code and JIRAs appear at the same time, where the big picture is discussed after the PR is already open, or where information that would be valuable to other contributors or users isn't on record. Let's consider a non-trivial change or a feature. It would normally start with engagement on the mailing list to ensure time is well spent and the proposal is welcomed by the community, does not conflict with other initiatives etc. Once that is cleared, we would want to think about design, the how in the larger picture. In many cases that would involve discussion, questions, suggestions, consensus building towards agreed approach. Or maybe it is done through prototyping. In any case, before a PR is raised, it will be good to have as prerequisite that *thought process and approach have been documented*. I would prefer to see that on the JIRA, what do others think? Benefits: * Contributor does not waste time and there is no frustration due to a PR being turned down for reasons that could be avoided with upfront communication. * Contributor benefits from suggestions, questions, guidance of those with in depth knowledge of particular areas. * Other community members have an opportunity to learn from discussion, the knowledge base broadens. * Information gets indexed, user later looking at JIRAs will find valuable information on how certain problems were solved that they would never obtain from a PR. The ASF and "Apache Way", a read for the bigger picture with more links in it: http://krzysztof-sobkowiak.net/blog/celebrating-17-years-of-the-apache-software-foundation/ Looking forward to feedback and discussion, Thomas
