data/CONTRIBUTING.md

Contributing to OpenEvolve

Thank you for your interest in contributing to OpenEvolve! This document provides guidelines and instructions for contributing to the project.

Getting Started

1. Fork the repository
2. Clone your fork: git clone https://github.com/codelion/openevolve.git
3. Install the package in development mode: pip install -e ".[dev]"
4. Set up environment for testing:

   # Unit tests don't require a real API key, but the environment variable must be set
   export OPENAI_API_KEY=test-key-for-unit-tests
   

5. Run the tests to ensure everything is working: python -m unittest discover tests

Note: The unit tests do not make actual API calls to OpenAI or any LLM provider. However, the OPENAI_API_KEY environment variable must be set to any non-empty value for the tests to run. You can use a placeholder value like test-key-for-unit-tests.

Development Environment

We recommend using a virtual environment for development:

python -m venv env
source env/bin/activate  # On Windows: env\Scripts\activate
pip install -e ".[dev]"

# For running tests (no actual API calls are made)
export OPENAI_API_KEY=test-key-for-unit-tests

# For testing with real LLMs during development
# export OPENAI_API_KEY=your-actual-api-key

LLM Configuration for Development

When developing features that interact with LLMs:

1. Local Development: Use a mock API key for unit tests
2. Integration Testing: Use your actual API key and configure api_base if using alternative providers
3. Cost Management: Consider using cheaper models or optillm for rate limiting during development

Pull Request Process

1. Create a new branch for your feature or bugfix: git checkout -b feat-your-feature-name
2. Make your changes
3. Add tests for your changes
4. Run the tests to make sure everything passes:

   export OPENAI_API_KEY=test-key-for-unit-tests
   python -m unittest discover tests
   

5. Commit your changes: git commit -m "Add your descriptive commit message"
6. Push to your fork: git push origin feature/your-feature-name
7. Submit a pull request to the main repository

Adding Examples

We encourage adding new examples to showcase OpenEvolve's capabilities. To add a new example:

1. Create a new directory in the examples folder
2. Include all necessary files (initial program, evaluation code, etc.)
3. Add a README.md explaining the example
4. Make sure the example can be run with minimal setup

Reporting Issues

When reporting issues, please include:

1. A clear description of the issue
2. Steps to reproduce
3. Expected behavior
4. Actual behavior
5. Environment details (OS, Python version, etc.)

Feature Requests

Feature requests are welcome. Please provide:

1. A clear description of the feature
2. The motivation for adding this feature
3. Possible implementation ideas (if any)

Code of Conduct

Please be respectful and considerate of others when contributing to the project. We aim to create a welcoming and inclusive environment for all contributors.