Please take a moment to review this document in order to make the contribution process easy and effective for everyone involved.
Following these guidelines helps to communicate that you respect the time of the developers managing and developing this open source project. In return, they should reciprocate that respect in addressing your issue or assessing patches and features.
- Building the Specification Document
- Validating the Files
- Generating the XSD Schema Figures
- Using the Issue Tracker
- Bug Reports
- Feature Requests
- Commit Messages
- Pull Requests
- Branching and Versioning
- Release Checklist
- Corporate Contributor License Agreement
- Formatting Rules
- Adding and Editing Figures
The FMI Specification is written in AsciiDoc, a plain-text mark-up format that can be converted to HTML, PDF and other formats.
If you haven’t already done so clone the repository with
git clone https://github.com/modelica/fmi-standard.git git submodule update --init --recursive
or your favorite Git client. To build the HTML document you have two alternatives.
Alternative 1:
Docker (recommended)
-
Install Docker
-
Run the Asciidoctor Docker Container (in the directory of the cloned repository)
-
Linux, Mac:
docker run --rm -it -v $PWD:/documents/ asciidoctor/docker-asciidoctor asciidoctor -B /documents/ -b html5 --failure-level WARN -v docs/index.adoc
where
$PWD
is the current directory. If the command is not called in the directory of the cloned repository, the path has to be given explicitly. -
Windows:
docker run --rm -it -v %cd%:/documents/ asciidoctor/docker-asciidoctor asciidoctor -B /documents/ -b html5 --failure-level WARN -v docs/index.adoc
where
%cd%
is the current directory. If the command is not called in the directory of the cloned repository, the path has to be given explicitly.
-
Alternative 2:
Ruby and the AsciiDoctor gem
-
Install the AsciiDoctor Ruby gem
-
Generate the HTML document
asciidoctor -B <fmi-standard> -b html5 --failure-level WARN -v docs/index.adoc
where
<fmi-standard>
is the path to the cloned repository
The generated docs/index.html
can be viewed with any modern web browser.
To validate the files run the following Python scripts in the root of the repository
python .circleci/lint_docs.py
python .circleci/validate_xml.py
Some of the figures used in the FMI Specification are automatically generated from the XSD schema. To generate these figures, change into the directory where you cloned the repository and run
PowerShell -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -Command generate_figures.ps1
to generate the figures in docs/images/schema
.
The issue tracker is the preferred channel for [Bug reports], [Feature requests] and submitting [Pull requests], but please respect the following restrictions:
-
Please do not use the issue tracker for personal support requests (use Stack Overflow).
-
Please do not derail or troll issues. Keep the discussion on topic and respect the opinions of others.
A bug is a demonstrable problem that is caused by the code in the repository. Good bug reports are extremely helpful - thank you!
Guidelines for bug reports:
-
Use the GitHub issue search — check if the issue has already been reported.
-
Check if the issue has been fixed — try to reproduce it using the latest
master
or development branch in the repository. -
Isolate the problem — create a reduced test case or example.
A good bug report shouldn’t leave others needing to chase you up for more information. Please try to be as detailed as possible in your report. What is your environment? What steps will reproduce the issue? What browser(s) and OS experience the problem? What would you expect to be the outcome? All these details will help people to fix any potential bugs.
Example:
Short and descriptive example bug report title A summary of the issue and the platform/OS environment in which it occurs. If suitable, include the steps required to reproduce the bug. 1. This is the first step 2. This is the second step 3. Further steps, etc. `<url>` - a link to the reduced test case Any other information you want to share that is relevant to the issue being reported. This might include the lines of code that you have identified as causing the bug, and potential solutions (and your opinions on their merits).
Feature requests are welcome. But take a moment to find out whether your idea fits with the scope and aims of the project. It’s up to you to make a strong case to convince the project’s developers of the merits of this feature. Please provide as much detail and context as possible.
Please follow the seven rules of a great Git commit message when committing your changes:
-
Separate subject from body with a blank line
-
Limit the subject line to 50 characters
-
Capitalize the subject line
-
Do not end the subject line with a period
-
Use the imperative mood in the subject line
-
Wrap the body at 72 characters
-
Use the body to explain what and why vs. how
For example:
Summarize changes in around 50 characters or less More detailed explanatory text, if necessary. Wrap it to about 72 characters or so. In some contexts, the first line is treated as the subject of the commit and the rest of the text as the body. The blank line separating the summary from the body is critical (unless you omit the body entirely); various tools like `log`, `shortlog` and `rebase` can get confused if you run the two together. Explain the problem that this commit is solving. Focus on why you are making this change as opposed to how (the code explains that). Are there side effects or other unintuitive consequences of this change? Here's the place to explain them. Further paragraphs come after blank lines. - Bullet points are okay, too. - Typically a hyphen or asterisk is used for the bullet, preceded by a single space, with blank lines in between, but conventions vary here. If you use an issue tracker, put references to them at the bottom, like this: Resolves: #123 See also: #456, #789
Good pull requests - patches, improvements, new features - are a fantastic help. They should remain focused in scope and avoid containing unrelated commits.
Please ask first before embarking on any significant pull request (e.g. implementing features, refactoring code, porting to a different language), otherwise you risk spending a lot of time working on something that the project’s developers might not want to merge into the project.
Please adhere to the coding conventions used throughout a project (indentation, accurate comments, etc.) and any other requirements (such as test coverage).
Follow this process if you’d like your work considered for inclusion in the project:
-
Fork the project, clone your fork, and configure the remotes:
# Clone your fork of the repo into the current directory git clone https://github.com/<your-username>/fmi-standard # Navigate to the newly cloned directory cd fmi-standard # Assign the original repo to a remote called "upstream" git remote add upstream https://github.com/modelica/fmi-standard
-
If you cloned a while ago, get the latest changes from upstream:
git checkout master git pull upstream master
-
Create a new topic branch (off the main project development branch) to contain your feature, change, or fix:
git checkout -b <topic-branch-name>
-
Commit your changes in logical chunks. Please adhere to the above rules when crafting [Commit messages] or your code is unlikely be merged into the main project. Use Git’s interactive rebase feature to tidy up your commits before making them public.
-
Locally merge (or rebase) the upstream development branch into your topic branch:
git pull [--rebase] upstream master
-
Push your topic branch up to your fork:
git push origin <topic-branch-name>
-
Open a Pull Request with a clear title and description.
IMPORTANT: By submitting a patch, you agree to allow the project owner to license your work under the same license as that used by the project.
We use a branching scheme with support branches that allows us to maintain multiple major and minor releases concurrently.
- Main development branch
master
-
Holds the latest development version. This is where the next version of the standard is developed.
- Support branches
support/v<major>{.<minor>}.x
-
Upon every major release the latest version of
master
is taggedv<major>.0
. The maintenance of this release is performed on a support branchsupport/v<major>.x
starting at this tag.Examples:
support/v3.x
,support/v2.0.x
- Tags
v<major>.<minor>{.<patch>}{-{alpha|beta|rc}.<number>}
-
Releases and pre-releases are tagged on the respective branches following the Semantic Versioning when the API, XSD schema or file structure of the FMU archive change.
Examples:
v3.0-alpha.3
,v3.0-beta.2
,v3.0-rc.1
,v3.0
master
|
+--->+ branch "support/v2.0.x", tag "v2.0.1"
| |
| + tag "v2.0.2"
|
+<--- merge PR "fix-typo-in-fmi-spec"
|
+ tag "v3.0-alpha.6"
|
+--->+ branch "support/v3.x", tag "v3.0"
| |
| +--->+ branch "support/v3.0.x", tag "v3.0.1"
| | |
| | + tag "v3.0.1"
| |
| + tag "v3.1"
| |
. .
. .
Follow these steps to create a (pre-)release:
-
update the FMI version in the schema, XML examples, and header files
-
download the
fmi-standard.zip
artifact from https://github.com/modelica/fmi-standard/actions and check for completeness -
create a tag on
master
(e.g.v3.0-rc.1
) and push it together with a commit to trigger the CI -
create a new release on GitHub for the tag
-
check
This a pre-release
if it’s not the final release -
add a description of the changes
-
add the version to
fmi-standard.zip
(e.g.fmi-standard-3.0-rc.1.zip
) and upload it to the release
-
All contributors have to sign the Corporate Contributor License Agreement (CCLA). Therefore, the first step is getting your company to agree and sign the CCLA. The CCLA ensures that all IP contributed to the FMI standard will be licensed to the Modelica Association (MA) which in turn will sublicense the FMI standard to tool vendors implementing it and end users using it, free of charge.
When writing or editing the specification documents please follow the AsciiDoc Recommended Practices, particularly:
-
Use Atx style section titles
-
Use four dashes (
----
) for delimited blocks -
Use the asterisk (
*
) as marker for nested lists -
Use angle brackets and backticks when citing XML elements. Example:
The internal step size can be provided by the attribute <<fixedInternalStepSize>> in element `<fmiModelDescription><CoSimulation>`.
-
Headings may not contain any additional formatting.
-
Only the following strings are formatted as literals (using surrounding back ticks):
-
source, markup and pseudo code (and parts thereof)
-
file names and paths
Quotes must only be included if they are part of the original source or markup code.
Code examples should be included from .c
, .h
or *.xml
files that are validated during CI.
When creating a cross reference (xref) use dash-separated, all-lowercase names. Example:
== FMI Common Concepts for Model Exchange and Co-Simulation [[fmi-common-concepts]] // ... These parts are defined in <<fmi-common-concepts>>.
To reference a function, type, definition or argument, use its name as xref and add a pre-formatted label. Do not add brackets to function names. Example:
[[fmi3SetIntervalDecimal,`fmi3SetIntervalDecimal`]] [source, C] ---- typedef fmi3Status fmi3SetIntervalDecimalTYPE(fmi3Instance instance, const fmi3ValueReference valueReferences[], size_t nValueReferences, const fmi3Float64 interval[]); ---- A Clock interval is set by the environment for the current time instant by the function <<fmi3SetIntervalDecimal>>.
Names start with a capital letter. Example:
A Co-Simulation FMU is different from a Model Exchange FMU.
General concepts are lower case. Example:
A co-simulation environment is different from a model exchange environment.
Segments of C or XML are cited exactly as they appear in the code. Example:
The [fmiModelDescription] of a Model Exchange FMU must contain a
<ModelExchange>
element.
Headings are to be capitalized with the following rules:
-
Capitalize the first and last word of the title or heading.
-
All other words are capitalized unless they are conjunctions (and, or, but, nor, yet, so, for), articles (a, an, the), or prepositions (in, to, of, at, by, up, for, off, on).
To avoid encoding problems AsciiDoc files may only contain ASCII characters. Non-ASCII characters can be escaped using the decimal representation of the Unicode character. Example:
`°F` is not a SI unit.
will be rendered as
°F
is not a SI unit.
For mathematical characters and operators, use latexmath
commands, e.g. latexmath:[\neq]
.
To improve readability, text should not be formatted using font styles (e.g. bold, italic or underline) with two exceptions:
-
cited code elements like types, functions, variables and values are formatted as code
-
states are formatted as bold text and are always references to their description, e.g. [InitializationMode].
Example:
The function <<fmi3DoStep>> may only be called in <<StepMode>>.
will be rendered as
The function [fmi3DoStep] may only be called in [StepMode].
The figures in the document should be provided as SVGs (Scalable Vector Graphics) and stored in docs/images
.
We use draw.io to create and edit the figures.
When you have created or edited a figure
-
select
File > Export as > SVG…
-
check
Transparent Background
-
uncheck
Include a copy of my diagram
to export the SVG that can be embedded into the AsciiDoc document.
Make sure you also save the original file using File > Save as…
with the same name as the SVG (file extension .xml
) and commit the files together.