From 861ea3e1d2a6af709c9d853e102fd09f035723d6 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: "Adolfo R. Brandes" <adolfo@axim.org>
Date: Thu, 7 Mar 2024 16:59:50 -0300
Subject: [PATCH] docs: Add maintainer community standards

Adds a few explicit community standards for maintainers in the repo
maintenance howto.
---
 source/developers/how-tos/maintain-a-repo.rst | 84 +++++++++++++++++++
 1 file changed, 84 insertions(+)

diff --git a/source/developers/how-tos/maintain-a-repo.rst b/source/developers/how-tos/maintain-a-repo.rst
index a5be2b42..100c2366 100644
--- a/source/developers/how-tos/maintain-a-repo.rst
+++ b/source/developers/how-tos/maintain-a-repo.rst
@@ -145,6 +145,90 @@ outlined in :doc:`OEP-54 <openedx-proposals:processes/oep-0054-core-contributors
 
 .. _CCs Wiki Page: https://openedx.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/COMM/pages/3156344833/Core+Contributors+to+the+Open+edX+Project
 
+Hold Yourself to Community Standards
+************************************
+
+A prerequisite for a Maintainer is to be a Core Contributor.  Part of what this
+means is that you must hold yourself to the same standards as any CC - any
+contributor, really - in your repository.  You are still a member of the
+community, after all!
+
+Here are a few rules-of-thumb to keep in mind:
+
+* Participate!  Make yourself available in the several community communication
+  channels - `Discourse`_, `Slack`_, `working group meetings`_, and, of course,
+  `Github issues`_ - to discuss matters related to your maintenance role
+  publicly.  Don't restrict yourself to private conversation channels: this
+  would make for an opaque project.
+
+.. _Discourse: https://discuss.openedx.org/
+
+.. _Slack: https://openedx.slack.com/
+
+.. _working group meetings: https://openedx.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/COMM/pages/3707371565/Active+Working+Groups#Joining-Working-Group-Meetings
+
+.. _GitHub issues: https://github.com/openedx
+
+* Treat any change you or your organization want to make to the codebase as an
+  open source contribution.  This means that any and all PRs must be properly
+  reviewed by somebody other than the submitter.  And if the change is
+  user-facing, it must necessarily undergo the public `Product Review Process`_.
+
+.. _Product Review Process: https://openedx.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/COMM/pages/3875962884/How+to+submit+an+open+source+contribution+for+Product+Review
+
+.. important::
+
+   Adding a feature toggle around a piece of code does not exempt it from being
+   put through the Product Review Process!  Even experiments must be approved
+   beforehand, for even if a feature is not shown by default, the code that
+   builds it must still be dealt with by the community as part of the
+   maintenance, testing, and release processes.
+
+* Please do not use the main branch as a way to debug your deployments.
+  Commits to ``main`` or ``master`` should not contain debugging code unless
+  there's value in it staying there permanently (in which case it would likely
+  have to sit behind a runtime ``DEBUG`` toggle).
+
+* Your own PRs should have full descriptions, including testing instructions
+  and screenshots: anybody should be able to understand not only the How, but
+  the Why.  Descriptions consisting solely of a link to a private page are a
+  big no-no! Hint: Try viewing your link in an incognito browser to see if it
+  is publicly available.
+
+* Just because you've been entrusted with write access doesn't mean you should
+  use the repository as you would a personal one:
+
+  * Always consult the community with respect to important changes.  Possibly
+    even small ones!  When in doubt, go public.
+
+  * Unless there's communal value in creating a new public git branch (such as
+    feature branches, for instance), you should prefer to create PR branches on
+    personal or organizational Github forks.  It is just as easy to issue PRs
+    from them, and it avoids branch pollution in the main repository.  Plus,
+    it's what regular community members have to do to contribute: it's an
+    opportunity to lead by example!
+
+* If the repository you maintain is an official part of the Open edX release,
+  make sure any and all incoming changes are developed with the next one in
+  mind.  In other words, even if they come from your own team, and even if your
+  organization's deployment method is far from standard, PRs must, among other
+  things:
+
+  * Work with the current officially recommended installation method, which at
+    the time of writing is `Tutor`_;
+
+  * Not contain strings that are not properly internationalized;
+
+  * Not contain code, strings, variable names, or feature flags that are
+    organization- or site-specific.
+
+.. note::
+
+   Changes to MFEs must futher conform to the `Requirements for an MFE`_ as
+   established by the Build Test Release Working Group.  Failing to do so would
+   make the MFE in question ineligible for release.
+
+.. _Requirements for an MFE: https://openedx.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/COMM/pages/3561521275/Requirements+for+an+MFE
 
 Congratulations!
 ****************