HELP-US.md: "How to get started helping out in the curl project"

Closes #1837

docs/HELP-US.md

@@ -0,0 +1,70 @@
+# How to get started helping out in the curl project
+
+We are always in need of more help. If you are new to the project and are
+looking for ways to contrbute and help out, this document aims to give a few
+good starting points.
+
+A good idea is to start by subscribing to the [curl-library mailing
+list](https://cool.haxx.se/mailman/listinfo/curl-library) to keep track of the
+current discussion topics.
+
+## Scratch your own itch
+
+One of the best ways is to start working on any problems or issues you have
+found yourself or perhaps got annoyed at in the past. It can be a spelling
+error in an error text or a weirdly phrased section in a man page. Hunt it
+down and report the bug. Or make your first pull request with a fix for that.
+
+## PR-welcome
+
+In the issue tracker we occasionally mark bugs with
+[PR-welcome](https://github.com/curl/curl/labels/PR-welcome), as a sign that
+the bug is acknowledged to exist and that there's nobody known to work on this
+issue for the moment. Those are bugs that are fine to "grab" and provide a
+pull request for. The complexity level of these will of course vary, so pick
+one that piques your interest.
+
+## Work on known bugs
+
+Some bugs are known and haven't yet received attention and work enough to get
+fixed. We collect such known existing flaws in the
+[KNOWN_BUGS](https://curl.haxx.se/docs/knownbugs.html) page. Many of them link
+to the original bug report with some additional details, but some may also
+have aged a bit and may require some verification that the bug still exists in
+the same way and that what was said about it in the past is still valid.
+
+## Fix autobuild problems
+
+On the [autobuilds page](https://curl.haxx.se/dev/builds.html) we show a
+collection of test results from the automatic curl build and tests that are
+performed by volunteers. Fixing compiler warnings and errors shown there is
+something we value greatly. Also, if you own or run systems or architectures
+that aren't already tested in the autobuilds, we also appreciate more
+volunteers running builds automatically to help us keep curl portable.
+
+## TODO items
+
+Ideas for features and functions that we have considered worthwhile to
+implement and provide are kept in the
+[TODO](https://curl.haxx.se/docs/todo.html) file. Some of the ideas are
+rough. Some are well thought out. Some probably aren't really suitable
+anymore.
+
+Before you invest a lot of time on a TODO item, do bring it up for discusson
+on the mailing list. For discussion on applicability but also for ideas and
+brainstorming on specific ways to do the implementation etc.
+
+## You decide
+
+You can also come up with a completely new thing you think we should do. Or
+not do. Or fix. Or add to the project. You then either bring it to the mailing
+list first to see if people will shoot down the idea at once, or you bring a
+first draft of the idea as a pull request and take the discussion there around
+the specific implementation. Either way is fine.
+
+## CONTRIBUTE
+
+We offer [guidelines](https://curl.haxx.se/dev/contribute.html) that are
+suitable to be familiar with before you decide to contribute to curl. If
+you're used to open source development, you'll probably not find many
+surprises in there.

docs/Makefile.am

@@ -46,7 +46,7 @@ EXTRA_DIST = MANUAL BUGS CONTRIBUTE.md FAQ FEATURES INTERNALS.md SSLCERTS.md
  README.netware MAIL-ETIQUETTE HTTP-COOKIES.md SECURITY.md RELEASE-PROCEDURE    \
  SSL-PROBLEMS.md HTTP2.md ROADMAP.md CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md CODE_STYLE.md           \
  CHECKSRC.md CMakeLists.txt README.md CIPHERS.md INSTALL.cmake README.cmake     \
- $(noinst_man_MANS)
+ $(noinst_man_MANS) HELP-US.md
 
 MAN2HTML= roffit $< >$@