CONTRIBUTING.md

CONTRIBUTING.md

Environment Setup and Installation

To run this project, you'll need to set up a Python environment and install several dependencies. The instructions below will guide you through the process of creating a virtual environment and installing everything you need from the requirements.txt file.

Prerequisites

• Python 3.8 or higher
• pip (Python package installer)

Creating a Virtual Environment

Creating a virtual environment is recommended to keep the dependencies required by different projects separate. Follow these steps based on your operating system:

For Unix/macOS

# Create a virtual environment
python3 -m venv env

# Activate the virtual environment
source env/bin/activate

For Windows

# Create a virtual environment
python -m venv env

# Activate the virtual environment
.\env\Scripts\activate

Installing Dependencies

Once the virtual environment is active, you can install all required dependencies by running:

# Install dependencies from the requirements.txt file
pip install -r requirements.txt

This command reads the requirements.txt file in your project directory and installs all the listed packages along with their specific versions.

Updating Dependencies

Keep the dependencies up-to-date with the latest versions to ensure compatibility and security. Regularly check for updates and test your application with new versions of libraries:

# Update all packages
pip list --outdated
pip install -U [package-name]

Deactivating the Virtual Environment

When you are done working on the project, you can deactivate the virtual environment by running:

# Deactivate the virtual environment
deactivate

This command will return you to your global Python environment.

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By following these setup instructions, you will create a robust environment for developing and testing the project with consistent results across different setups.