Add CONTRIBUTING.md with guidelines for new contributors

[Nimra-Fayaz]

Description

The project would benefit from a CONTRIBUTING.md file that guides new contributors on how to contribute effectively. This would help streamline the contribution process and make it easier for new contributors to get started.

Current State

• Project accepts contributions (has issues labeled "good first issue")
• But lacks clear contributing guidelines
• New contributors may not know:
  • How to set up development environment
  • Code style guidelines
  • How to submit pull requests
  • Testing requirements
  • Commit message conventions
  • How to report bugs

Proposed Solution

Create CONTRIBUTING.md with:

• Development setup instructions
• Code style guide (PEP 8 for Python, etc.)
• Pull request process and guidelines
• Testing guidelines
• How to report bugs
• How to propose features
• Commit message conventions

Benefits

• Easier for new contributors to get started
• More consistent contributions
• Better code quality
• Reduced maintainer workload answering questions
• Clearer expectations for contributors

Additional Context

Having clear contributing guidelines is a best practice that helps both contributors and maintainers. It's especially helpful for projects with "good first issue" labels, as it provides a clear path for new contributors to follow.

Type

• Bug report
• Documentation improvement
• Feature request
• Code quality improvement

Checklist

• I have searched existing issues to ensure this is not a duplicate
• I have checked that CONTRIBUTING.md does not exist
• I am willing to help implement this improvement if needed

[pavelkomarov]

Be the change you'd like to see in this repo. I'll more than likely merge whatever you come up with.

[Nimra-Fayaz]

Hi @florisvb! 👋

I've created a Pull Request (#170) that addresses this issue. The PR adds a comprehensive CONTRIBUTING.md file with all the sections mentioned in the issue description:

• Development setup instructions
• Code style guidelines (PEP 8, pylint)
• Testing guidelines (pytest)
• Pull request process
• Bug reporting templates
• Feature proposal templates
• Commit message conventions

The file follows best practices and is tailored to the PyNumDiff project structure. I've based it on the existing project setup (pytest for testing, pylint for code quality, GitHub Actions for CI, etc.).

Please take a look when you have a chance and let me know if you'd like any changes or additions! I'm happy to adjust based on your feedback.

PR: #170