Adds project contribution guidance

CONTRIBUTING.md

@@ -0,0 +1,142 @@
+# Contributing to this project
+
+Please take a moment to review this document in order to make the contribution
+process easy and effective for everyone involved.
+
+Following these guidelines helps to communicate that you respect the time of
+the developers managing and developing this open source project. In return,
+they should reciprocate that respect in addressing your issue or assessing
+patches and features.
+
+
+## Using the issue tracker
+
+The issue tracker is the preferred channel for [bug reports](#bugs),
+[features requests](#features) and [submitting pull
+requests](#pull-requests), but please respect the following restrictions:
+
+* Please **do not** use the issue tracker for personal support requests (use
+  [Stack Overflow](http://stackoverflow.com) or IRC).
+
+* Please **do not** derail or troll issues. Keep the discussion on topic and
+  respect the opinions of others.
+
+
+<a name="bug-reports"></a>
+## Bug reports
+
+A bug is a _demonstrable problem_ that is caused by the code in the repository.
+Good bug reports are extremely helpful - thank you!
+
+Guidelines for bug reports:
+
+1. **Use the GitHub issue search** &mdash; check if the issue has already been
+   reported.
+
+2. **Check if the issue has been fixed** &mdash; try to reproduce it using the
+   latest `main` or development branch in the repository.
+
+3. **Isolate the problem** &mdash; create a [reduced test
+   case](http://css-tricks.com/reduced-test-cases/) and a live example.
+
+A good bug report shouldn't leave others needing to chase you up for more
+information. Please try to be as detailed as possible in your report. What is
+your environment? What steps will reproduce the issue? What Java versions(s), 
+Maven version(s) and OS experience the problem? What would you expect to be the
+outcome? All these details will help people to fix any potential bugs.
+
+Example:
+
+> Short and descriptive example bug report title
+>
+> A summary of the issue and the Java/Maven/OS environment in which it occurs. If
+> suitable, include the steps required to reproduce the bug.
+>
+> 1. This is the first step
+> 2. This is the second step
+> 3. Further steps, etc.
+>
+> `<url>` - a link to the reduced test case
+>
+> Any other information you want to share that is relevant to the issue being
+> reported. This might include the lines of code that you have identified as
+> causing the bug, and potential solutions (and your opinions on their
+> merits).
+
+
+<a name="feature-requests"></a>
+## Feature requests
+
+Feature requests are welcome. But take a moment to find out whether your idea
+fits with the scope and aims of the project. It's up to *you* to make a strong
+case to convince the project's developers of the merits of this feature. Please
+provide as much detail and context as possible.
+
+
+<a name="pull-requests"></a>
+## Pull requests
+
+Good pull requests - patches, improvements, new features - are a fantastic
+help. They should remain focused in scope and avoid containing unrelated
+commits.
+
+**Please ask first** before embarking on any significant pull request (e.g.
+implementing features, refactoring code, porting to a different language),
+otherwise you risk spending a lot of time working on something that the
+project's developers might not want to merge into the project.
+
+Please adhere to the coding conventions used throughout a project (indentation,
+accurate comments, etc.) and any other requirements (such as test coverage).
+
+Follow this process if you'd like your work considered for inclusion in the
+project:
+
+1. [Fork](http://help.github.com/fork-a-repo/) the project, clone your fork,
+   and configure the remotes:
+
+   ```bash
+   # Clone your fork of the repo into the current directory
+   git clone https://github.com/<your-username>/<repo-name>
+   # Navigate to the newly cloned directory
+   cd <repo-name>
+   # Assign the original repo to a remote called "upstream"
+   git remote add upstream https://github.com/<upstream-owner>/<repo-name>
+   ```
+
+2. If you cloned a while ago, get the latest changes from upstream:
+
+   ```bash
+   git checkout <dev-branch>
+   git pull upstream <dev-branch>
+   ```
+
+3. Create a new topic branch (off the main project development branch) to
+   contain your feature, change, or fix:
+
+   ```bash
+   git checkout -b <topic-branch-name>
+   ```
+
+4. Commit your changes in logical chunks. Please adhere to these [git commit
+   message guidelines](http://tbaggery.com/2008/04/19/a-note-about-git-commit-messages.html)
+   or your code is unlikely be merged into the main project. Use Git's
+   [interactive rebase](https://help.github.com/articles/interactive-rebase)
+   feature to tidy up your commits before making them public.
+
+5. Locally merge (or rebase) the upstream development branch into your topic branch:
+
+   ```bash
+   git pull [--rebase] upstream <dev-branch>
+   ```
+
+6. Push your topic branch up to your fork:
+
+   ```bash
+   git push origin <topic-branch-name>
+   ```
+
+7. [Open a Pull Request](https://help.github.com/articles/using-pull-requests/)
+   with a clear title and description.
+
+**IMPORTANT**: By submitting a patch, you agree to allow the project owner to
+license your work under the same license as that used by the project.

README.md

@@ -259,6 +259,15 @@ This file allows you to:
 ```
 
 
+# Contributing to this project
+
+Anyone and everyone is welcome to contribute. Please take a moment to
+review the [guidelines for contributing](CONTRIBUTING.md).
+
+* [Bug reports](CONTRIBUTING.md#bug-reports)
+* [Feature requests](CONTRIBUTING.md#feature-requests)
+* [Pull requests](CONTRIBUTING.md#pull-requests)
+
 # License
 [Apache License Version 2.0](https://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0)