Contribution policy for first-time contributors

[chalin]

If you have not yet had a non-trivial PR merged in this repository, you are a first-time contributor here. Welcome!

As a first-time contributor, you can do one of the following:

• Open a single issue describing a problem or proposal, and wait for maintainer feedback before doing anything else. Keep to one open issue at a time.
• Submit a single PR for one of:
  • A trivial editorial fix (typo, broken link) without an issue; such PRs are accepted at maintainer discretion. Important: A merged trivial fix doesn't change your first-time contributor status.
  • An open issue labeled good first issue:
    • If there are no such issues, check back later.
    • Link to the issue from your PR description.
    • Note: issues can't be claimed or reserved.

Note that issue or PR spamming, including repeatedly soliciting feedback through any channel, or otherwise repeatedly disregarding this policy, can result in interaction limits, being blocked, or escalation per the CNCF Code of Conduct process.

[chalin]

What this means in practice, as of today:

• I will close, without detailed review, issues and PRs from first-time contributors that don't comply with the policy above, with a comment linking here. Closure is about process, not about you or the potential merit of the change.
• Closed ≠ rejected forever: we reserve the right to reopen a closed issue or PR later if it turns out to have merit and capacity allows.
• If you believe your PR was closed in error (for example, a trivial drive-by fix), say so in a comment on the PR; a maintainer will reconsider.