adding contributing guide

CONTRIBUTING.md

@@ -0,0 +1,66 @@
+# Contributing to docli
+
+**First:** if you're unsure or afraid of _anything_, just ask
+or submit the issue or pull request anyways. You won't be yelled at for
+giving your best effort. The worst that can happen is that you'll be
+politely asked to change something. We appreciate any sort of contributions,
+and don't want a wall of rules to get in the way of that.
+
+However, for those individuals who want a bit more guidance on the
+best way to contribute to the project, read on. This document will cover
+what we're looking for. By addressing all the points we're looking for,
+it raises the chances we can quickly merge or address your contributions.
+
+## Issues
+
+### Reporting an Issue
+
+* Make sure you test against the latest released version. It is possible
+  we already fixed the bug you're experiencing.
+
+* If you experienced a panic, please create a [gist](https://gist.github.com)
+  of the *entire* generated crash log for us to look at. Double check
+  no sensitive items were in the log.
+
+* Respond as promptly as possible to any questions made by the _docli_
+  team to your issue. Stale issues will be closed.
+
+### Issue Lifecycle
+
+1. The issue is reported.
+
+2. The issue is verified and categorized by a _docli_ collaborator.
+   Categorization is done via tags. For example, bugs are marked as "bugs".
+
+3. Unless it is critical, the issue is left for a period of time (sometimes
+   many weeks), giving outside contributors a chance to address the issue.
+
+4. The issue is addressed in a pull request or commit. The issue will be
+   referenced in the commit message so that the code that fixes it is clearly
+   linked.
+
+5. The issue is closed. Sometimes, valid issues will be closed to keep
+   the issue tracker clean. The issue is still indexed and available for
+   future viewers, or can be re-opened if necessary.
+
+## Setting up Go to work on docli
+
+If you have never worked with Go before, you will have to complete the
+following steps in order to be able to compile and test docli.
+
+1. Install Go. Make sure the Go version is at least Go 1.4. 
+   Go 1.4. On a Mac, you can `brew install go` to install Go 1.4.
+
+1. Set and export the `GOPATH` environment variable and update your `PATH`.
+   For example, you can add to your `.bash_profile`.
+
+    ```
+    export GOPATH=$HOME/Documents/golang
+    export PATH=$PATH:$GOPATH/bin
+    ```
+
+1. Make your changes to the docli source, being sure to run the basic
+   tests.
+
+1. If everything works well and the tests pass, run `go fmt` on your code
+   before submitting a pull request.