Contributing to Sidef

April 1, 2026 · View on GitHub

Thank you for your interest in contributing to Sidef! We appreciate your support in making this modern programming language better for everyone.

Code of Conduct
Getting Started
How Can I Contribute?
Development Setup
Style Guidelines
Testing
Pull Request Process
Community

Code of Conduct

By participating in this project, you agree to maintain a respectful and inclusive environment. We expect all contributors to:

Use welcoming and inclusive language
Be respectful of differing viewpoints and experiences
Accept constructive criticism gracefully
Focus on what's best for the community
Show empathy towards other community members

Getting Started

Familiarize yourself with Sidef:
- Read the Beginner's tutorial
- Browse the Documentation
- Try examples at Try It Online
- Explore RosettaCode examples
Set up your environment:
- Fork the repository on GitHub
- Clone your fork locally
- Install dependencies (see Development Setup)
Find something to work on:
- Check the Issues page
- Look for issues labeled good first issue or help wanted
- Review the TODO file

How Can I Contribute?

Reporting Bugs

Before creating a bug report, please check existing issues to avoid duplicates. When filing a bug report, include:

Required Information:

Clear title: Brief, descriptive summary
Sidef version: Output of sidef --version
Operating system: Your OS and version
Perl version: Output of perl --version
Description: Clear explanation of the problem
Steps to reproduce: Minimal code example demonstrating the issue
Expected behavior: What you expected to happen
Actual behavior: What actually happened
Error messages: Complete error output, if any

Example:

## Bug: Division by zero not properly caught

**Version:** Sidef 25.12
**OS:** Ubuntu 22.04
**Perl:** 5.34.0

**Code:**

```ruby
say (10 / 0)
```

**Expected:** Error message about division by zero
**Actual:** [paste actual output]

Suggesting Enhancements

We welcome suggestions for new features! Please include:

Clear use case: Why is this enhancement valuable?
Detailed description: What should the feature do?
Examples: Show how it would work with code samples
Alternatives considered: Other approaches you've thought about
Implementation ideas: If you have technical suggestions

Code Contributions

We accept contributions in several areas:

Core Language Features:

Parser improvements
New built-in methods
Performance optimizations
Bug fixes

Standard Library:

New modules
Enhancements to existing modules
Better Perl module integration

Tools and Utilities:

REPL improvements
Development tools
Build system enhancements

Documentation

Documentation contributions are highly valued:

Fix typos and grammatical errors
Clarify confusing explanations
Add missing documentation
Improve code examples
Translate documentation
Create tutorials or guides

Examples and Scripts

Share your Sidef code:

Add examples to sidef-scripts
Contribute to RosettaCode
Write tutorials or blog posts
Create educational materials

Development Setup

Prerequisites

Perl 5.16.0 or higher
Git
Basic familiarity with Perl (for core development)

Installation for Development

# Clone your fork
git clone https://github.com/YOUR_USERNAME/sidef.git
cd sidef

# Add upstream remote
git remote add upstream https://github.com/trizen/sidef.git

# Install dependencies
perl Build.PL
./Build installdeps

# Build
./Build

# Run tests
./Build test

# Install locally (optional)
./Build install

Running Sidef from Source

# Run directly from the bin directory
./bin/sidef your_script.sf

# Or add to your PATH
export PATH="$PWD/bin:$PATH"
sidef your_script.sf

Style Guidelines

Sidef Code Style

When writing Sidef code examples:

Use 4 spaces for indentation
Follow the style in existing examples
Use meaningful variable names
Add comments for complex logic
Keep lines under 100 characters when reasonable

# Good
func fibonacci(n) {
    n < 2 ? n : (__FUNC__(n-1) + __FUNC__(n-2))
}

# Also good with clear formatting
func factorial(n) {
    n == 0 ? 1
           : (n * __FUNC__(n - 1))
}

Perl Code Style (for core development)

Follow Perl Best Practices
Use meaningful variable names
Add POD documentation for new modules
Keep functions focused and small
Use strict and warnings

Commit Messages

Write clear, descriptive commit messages:

Brief summary (50 chars or less)

More detailed explanation if needed. Wrap at 72 characters.
Explain what changed and why, not just what was done.

- Bullet points are okay
- Use present tense: "Add feature" not "Added feature"
- Reference issues: "Fixes #123" or "Relates to #456"

Examples:

Fix regex parsing for nested quantifiers
Add Number.harmonic_mean method
Improve error messages for undefined variables
Update documentation for Array methods

Testing

Running Tests

# Run all tests
./Build test

# Run specific test file
prove -v t/specific_test.t

# Run tests verbosely
./Build test verbose=1

Writing Tests

When adding new features:

Add tests in the t/ directory
Follow existing test file patterns
Test both success and failure cases
Include edge cases
Ensure tests are reproducible

Example test structure:

#!/usr/bin/perl

use 5.016;
use strict;
use warnings;

use Test::More tests => 3;

# Your tests here
is($result, $expected, "Test description");

Test Coverage

Aim for comprehensive coverage of new code
Don't break existing tests
Update tests when changing functionality

Pull Request Process

Before Submitting

Create a feature branch:

git checkout -b feature/your-feature-name

Make your changes:
- Follow the style guidelines
- Add tests for new features
- Update documentation as needed
Test thoroughly:
```
./Build test
```

Commit with clear messages:

git commit -m "Add feature: description"

Update your branch:

git fetch upstream
git rebase upstream/master

Submitting the Pull Request

Push to your fork:

git push origin feature/your-feature-name

Create the PR:
- Go to the repository on GitHub
- Click "New Pull Request"
- Select your branch
- Fill out the PR template
PR Description should include:
- What changes were made
- Why these changes are needed
- How to test the changes
- References to related issues
- Screenshots (if UI changes)

PR Template Example

## Description
Brief description of changes

## Motivation
Why is this change needed?

## Changes Made
- Change 1
- Change 2
- Change 3

## Testing
How to test these changes

## Related Issues
Fixes #123
Relates to #456

## Checklist
- [ ] Tests pass locally
- [ ] Documentation updated
- [ ] CHANGES file updated (if applicable)
- [ ] Code follows style guidelines