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+# MIDIMonster development guide
+
+This document serves as a reference for contributors interested in the low-level implementation
+of the MIDIMonster. It is currently a work in progress and will be extended as problems come
+up and need solving ;)
+
+## Basics
+
+All rules are meant as guidelines. There may be situations where they need to be applied
+in spirit rather than by the letter.
+
+### Architectural guidelines
+
+* Change in functionality or behaviour requires a change in documentation.
+* There is more honor in deleting code than there is in adding code.
+* The `master` branch must build successfully. Test breaking changes in a branch.
+* Commit messages should be in the imperative voice ("When applied, this commit will: ").
+* The working language for this repository is english.
+
+### Code style
+
+* Tabs for indentations, spaces for word separation
+* Lines may not end in spaces or tabs
+* There should be no two consecutive spaces (or spaces intermixed with tabs)
+* There should be no two consecutive newlines
+* All symbol names in `snake_case` except where mandated by external interfaces
+* When possible, prefix symbol names with their "namespace" (ie. the relevant section or module name)
+* Variables should be appropriately named for what they do
+	* The name length should be (positively) correlated with usage
+	* Loop counters may be one-character letters
+		* Prefer to name unsigned loop counters `u` and signed ones `i`
+
+#### C specific
+
+* Prefer lazy designated initializers to `memset()`
+* Avoid `atoi`/`itoa`, use `strto[u]l[l]()` and `snprintf()`
+
+## Architecture
+
+TBD