Want to contribute to the SLG-Business-Applications repository but don't know where to start? This is for you!
You will need a GitHub account to contribute to any repo on GitHub. Make an account for yourself at https://github.com/signup.
Once logged in to your new account, you must fork this repository. Essentially, this will create a personal copy of the SLG-Business-Applications repo that you own, within your account. You'll be making changes to this new forked repository that you own, and then will propose that we include changes that you made to your copy of the repo, to the SLG-Business-Applications repo.
To fork this repository, click on Fork in the top right:
The Fork button will take you to a page that looks like this. The defaults look fine, hit "Create fork"!
After you fork the repository, you will now have your own copy of the repository, living within your account. You'll see GitHub will clearly indicate this with "forked from microsoft/SLG-Business-Applications" at the top!
With our new personal copy, we're now ready to make changes to this repo, including add our solution!
You can make changes however you'd like - if you're a pro-dev, you can clone this repo to your local machine and then make changes in an editor of your choice, like VS Code. If you'd prefer to take a more casual approach, you can also make contributions directly in the browser!
For example, you can click on the "edit" pencil icon...
... to edit a markdown file directly in the browser. After you make your changes in the browser, be sure to commit your changes to this file via the "Commit changes..." button in the top right!
That is only an example on how to edit an existing file. To create your own folder to serve as a home for your new contribution, navigate to your repository's demo/ folder. From within the demo folder, click on "Add file" in the top right:
Once you get to "add file" interface, at the top in the "breadcrumbs", enter the name you intend for your new solution folder, then "/" (to denote it as a folder), and then the README.md. Then, customize your README.md file in the edit pane below! This is demonstrated in this short video.
After you make your commit ("committing" your changes to your copy of the repo), on the repo's main page, you'll see a dialog box indicating that your personal copy of the repo is ahead of the SLG-Business-Applications repo it was forked from - those are your changes!
Finally, once you are pleased with what you have contributed to your copy, it is time to propose that the changes you have made to your repo also be made to the SLG-Business-Applications repo.
This proposal to "merge" your changes to the official SLG-Business-Applications repo is called a "pull request". To begin the pull request process, click on the "contribute" button on that dialog, and click "open pull request":
Clicking this will take you to a page in which you are reviewing all the changes you made to your copy of the SLG-Business-Applications repo that you are now going to be proposing be merged to the official SLG-Business-Applications repo.
Next, hit "Create pull request" again and it will take you to a screen where you can create a title and description to your pull request. This is your opportunity to provide context as to what you are proposing the admins of the SLG-Business-Applications repo accept.
Give it a nice, clear, and descriptive title and description (unlike what I did here!), giving the admins a good idea of what you are proposing. Finally, click "Create pull request"!
You are done! You have proposed an addition to the SLG-Business-Applications repo via a pull request. You will now see an outstanding pull request has been opened under the "Pull requests" tab of the SLG-Business-Applications repo (see outstanding PR's here).
The admins will review your pull request, ensure it meets the contribution guidelines of this repo, and will accept/reject the PR accordingly. Be sure to check back regularly! Admins may provide feedback/comments to point out areas that still need work before it can be merged!