Contributing

We welcome contributions to SpecAlign! This guide will help you get started.

Getting Started

Fork the repository on GitHub

Clone your fork locally:

git clone https://github.com/YOUR-USERNAME/specalign.git
cd specalign

Install development dependencies:
```
pip install -e ".[dev]"
```

Create a branch for your changes:

git checkout -b feature/your-feature-name

Development Setup

Run Tests

pytest tests/
pytest tests/ -v --cov=specalign

Code Formatting

We use ruff for linting and formatting:

ruff check src/
ruff format src/

Type Checking

mypy src/specalign

Build Documentation

cd docs
pip install -r requirements.txt
sphinx-build -b html . _build/html

Contribution Guidelines

Code Style

Follow PEP 8 guidelines
Use type hints for function signatures
Write docstrings for public functions and classes
Keep functions focused and single-purpose

Commit Messages

Use clear, descriptive commit messages:

Add feature: context pool diversity scoring

- Implement MMR-based retrieval for diverse examples
- Add diversity_weight configuration option
- Update documentation with new feature

Pull Requests

Ensure all tests pass
Update documentation if needed
Add tests for new functionality
Keep PRs focused on a single change
Reference related issues in the PR description

Testing

Write unit tests for new functionality
Maintain test coverage above 80%
Use pytest fixtures for common setup
Test edge cases and error conditions

Areas for Contribution

We especially welcome contributions in these areas:

New attack strategies: Implement novel adversarial techniques
Provider integrations: Add support for new API providers
Evaluation metrics: New ways to measure attack/defense quality
Documentation: Tutorials, examples, and guides
Bug fixes: Help us squash bugs!

Reporting Issues

When reporting issues, please include:

SpecAlign version (specalign --version)
Python version
Operating system
Steps to reproduce
Expected vs actual behavior
Relevant logs or error messages

Code of Conduct

Be respectful and inclusive
Focus on constructive feedback
Help others learn and grow
Follow project maintainer decisions

Thank You!

Thank you for contributing to SpecAlign! Your efforts help make AI systems safer and more aligned.