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🤝 Contributing to YT re:Watch

We welcome contributions from the community! Whether you're fixing bugs, adding features, improving documentation, or translating the extension, your help makes YT re:Watch better for everyone.

🚀 Getting Started

1. Fork and Clone

# Fork the repository on GitHub
git clone https://github.com/YOUR_USERNAME/YouTubeLocalHistory.git
cd YouTubeLocalHistory

2. Set Up Development Environment

Follow the Build Instructions to set up your development environment.

3. Create a Feature Branch

git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature
# or
git checkout -b fix/important-bug

📝 Contribution Types

🐛 Bug Fixes

  • Test thoroughly - Ensure your fix works across different scenarios
  • Add tests - Include unit tests for your bug fix
  • Update documentation - If the fix changes user-facing behavior

✨ New Features

  • Follow existing patterns - Match the current codebase style and architecture
  • Add comprehensive tests - Unit, integration, and e2e tests as appropriate
  • Update documentation - Add user-facing documentation for new features
  • Consider browser compatibility - Test on both Chrome and Firefox

🌐 Translations

  • Edit the appropriate JSON files in src/_locales/{language}/
  • Test your translations - Load the extension and verify text appears correctly
  • Follow existing key naming - Use consistent patterns for message keys

📚 Documentation

  • Keep it user-friendly - Write for end users, not just developers
  • Include examples - Show before/after where helpful
  • Test links - Ensure all internal links work correctly

💻 Development Workflow

Code Style Guidelines

  • JavaScript ES6+ - Use modern JavaScript features
  • Consistent naming - Follow existing variable and function naming patterns
  • JSDoc comments - Add documentation for public APIs and complex functions
  • 2-space indentation - Match the existing codebase style
  • Meaningful variable names - Use descriptive names that explain purpose

Pull Request Process

  1. Create feature branch from main
  2. Make your changes following the guidelines above
  3. Write tests for new functionality
  4. Run all tests to ensure nothing is broken
  5. Update documentation if needed
  6. Submit pull request with clear description

Code Review Guidelines

When reviewing contributions, focus on:

  • Functionality - Does it work as intended?
  • Performance - Any performance regressions?
  • Security - Are there any security vulnerabilities?
  • Browser compatibility - Works on both Chrome and Firefox?
  • Test coverage - Are there appropriate tests?
  • Documentation - Is it properly documented?

🔧 Technical Guidelines

Browser Extension APIs

  • Use Manifest V3 patterns for Chrome
  • Ensure WebExtensions compatibility for Firefox
  • Follow security best practices for extension development

Storage Management

  • Use chrome.storage or browser.storage APIs appropriately
  • Handle storage quotas gracefully
  • Implement data migration for schema changes

Error Handling

  • Graceful degradation - Extension should work even if features fail
  • User-friendly errors - Show helpful messages to users
  • Comprehensive logging - Enable debug mode for troubleshooting

Testing Requirements

  • Unit tests for individual functions
  • Integration tests for feature interactions
  • E2E tests for complete user workflows
  • Cross-browser testing on Chrome and Firefox

🌍 Localization

Adding New Languages

  1. Create new folder in src/_locales/{language_code}/
  2. Copy structure from existing language (e.g., en/)
  3. Translate all JSON files
  4. Update manifest.json files to include the new language

Translation Guidelines

  • Keep keys consistent - Use the same message keys as English
  • Cultural adaptation - Adapt content for cultural context when needed
  • Length considerations - Some UI elements have space constraints

📞 Getting Help

Community Support

Before Asking Questions

  1. Search existing issues - Someone may have already reported your problem
  2. Check documentation - The answer might already be documented
  3. Try troubleshooting steps - Basic debugging often solves issues

🎉 Recognition

Contributors are recognized in: - CHANGELOG.md - For significant contributions - GitHub repository - All contributors listed - Community shoutouts - In our Telegram community

Thank you for contributing to YT re:Watch! Your help makes YouTube better for everyone. 🚀