Getting Your Pull Accepted

So you've made a change to the code/sprites and want to make a Pull Request so it can be added to the game!

Before you do this, though, there are have some requirements so your code doesn't make SS13's infamous spaghetti code problems even worse. Make sure your code fits these requirements or your pull will not be accepted. You may also want to read through the suggestions section.

Pull Request Requirements

1. You must follow the coding standards

Please read through these Coding Standards. The standards will change over time. Hopefully you already read through and made sure your code adhered to them before opening your pull request!

2. Your code must compile.

This is a given. While your pull request will not be closed over this, it will not be accepted until it does compile cleanly. The Travis bot will check for this automatically, but you should check before you even commit. Warnings should also be cleared.

Sometimes Travis is a silly bot and something unrelated to your code causes his compile to fail. If this happens you can force a rebuild by closing and reopening your pull request. Alternatively, you can ask a maintainer to force a rebuild from the Travis page (must be logged in).

If you change an object's path, you must update any maps that have that item placed on it. Travis checks all maps, including Ministation and Metastation. If Travis is failing you after a path change and you don't know why, check the other maps!

3. Do not automatically add FILE_DIR.

A recurring problem is people adding commits that needlessly spam changes to the DME due to having "Automatically add FILE_DIR" set in their project settings. You'll know if you have this problem if you see this in your commit (as seen through github):

PRs that add things to FILE_DIR will be rejected.

To fix this problem:

1. Open up DreamMaker
2. Build > Preferences for tgstation.dme...
3. Uncheck "Automatically set FILE_DIR for sub-directories"
4. Check compile.
5. Close DreamMaker and commit again.

4. Pull requests must be atomic

Pull requests must add, remove, or change only ONE feature or related group of features. Do not "bundle" together a bunch of things, as each change may be controversial and hold up everything else. In addition, it's simply neater.

Bugfix-only PRs are granted some leniency, however not all bugfixes are made equal. It's possible to have a change that technically fixes a bug, but does so in a way that's hacky or otherwise undesirable.

5. Make explicit commit logs

Be clear in exactly what each of your commits do. Esoteric or jokey commit logs are hard for future coders to interpret which makes tracing changes harder. Don't make it too long however since an actual description of your changes goes into your pull request's comment. Ideally the first line should be a short summary, then you have a more fleshed out commentary below that.

Make sure you also add a changelog entry if you're making a big player facing change. The guide to adding changelogs can be found in the Guide_to_Changelogs

6. Clearly state what your pull request does

Don't withhold information about your pull request. This will get your pull request delayed, and if it happens too often your pull request will be closed.

Suppose you fixed bug #1234 and changed the name and description of an item as a gag.

Bad:

In this PR I fixed bug #1234.

Acceptable:

In this PR I fixed bug #1234 and also modified the baton's name and description.

7. Upstream Compatibility

NSV tries to maintain compatibility with our upstream and host, BeeStation, when possible. If your code only changes core files, not NSV-specific mechanics, consider making an upstream pull request. BeeStation requires pre-approval by a maintainer before opening any species-related pull requests.

Code will not be automatically rejected if not ported upstream, but our maintainers may ask you to port it as good practice. If this happens, please leave a comment to tell us whether you will be porting it, or mention the NSV pull request in the BeeStation one so that GitHub links them together. Large PRs of this nature that are ported upstream are more likely to be approved (see the coding standards sections on modular code and bloated code). If the PR is not ported upstream it is up to our staff to decide whether the feature is worth it.

If your upstream PR is rejected or you decide to close it, but still want the PR to be considered on NSV, please also let us know that with a comment for faster response time. We will check the overall status occasionally, but do not closely monitor the progress of upstream PRs.

8. The balance of power

While maintainer requests are often good to follow, your PR can still be merged with a change request on it. Repository staff have the ability to dismiss change requests, and leads can bypass normal merge requirements for approval. Leave us a comment or a discord note if you need a second opinion or have questions about whether something is a requirement or just a desirement.

How to Deal with Merge Conflicts

Most of the time, Git is pretty smart about merging code files. However, if one PR is merged before yours that edits the same file, your PR will be in a state of conflict and will not be able to be automatically merged via GREEN BUTTON. Because there are more contributors than there are maintainers, most of the time resolving these conflicts falls to the maker of the PR.

An easy way to fix merge conflicts is to make a new branch (you should especially do this if your PR is just a small one):

1. Switch to your master branch: Right-click your working folder, go TortoiseGit --> Git Switch/Checkout...
2. Look at the Branch-list and select master
3. Close the window that pops up (assuming it changed successfully)
4. Right-click your working folder, go TortoiseGit --> Git Pull...
5. On the top, from the Remote-list, select upstream and from the Remote Branch -list select master.
6. Close the window that pops up (assuming it updated successfully)
7. Make the same exact changes to the code which you have on your PR
8. Commit and MAKE A NEW BRANCH
9. Push your new branch to your PR branch, and tick Force: unknown changes

If it's a map file that's conflicted, remember to start the Map Merger before you pull from upstream.

Contribution guides
General	Hosting a server, Setting up git, Guide to working with tgstation as an upstream repository, Downloading the source code, Guide to contributing to the game, Reporting issues, Game resources category, Guide to changelogs
Database (MySQL)	Setting up the database, MySQL
Coding	Coding standards, Understanding SS13 code, SS13 for experienced programmers, Binary flags‎, Getting Your Pull Accepted, Text Formatting
Mapping	Guide to mapping, Map merger
Spriting	Guide to spriting
Wiki	Guide to contributing to the wiki, Wikicode, Maintainer Assignments