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+# AGENTS.md: dstoolbox
+
+## Project Overview
+
+**dstoolbox** (v0.14.0) is a scikit-learn and pandas utility library, maintained by Otto Group BI in **life support mode** (compatibility updates only, no new major features).
+
+- **Python**: 3.8, 3.9, 3.10 | **License**: Apache 2.0 | **Default branch**: `master`
+
+## Tech Stack
+
+- **Core**: numpy >=1.22.3, pandas >=1.4.2, scikit-learn >=1.1.0, scipy >=1.8.0
+- **Dev**: pytest, pytest-cov, pylint, jupyter
+- **Build**: setuptools, build, wheel
+
+## Repository Structure
+
+```
+dstoolbox/
+├── dstoolbox/
+│   ├── pipeline.py             # SliceMixin, DictFeatureUnion, DataFrameFeatureUnion, TimedPipeline, PipelineY (deprecated)
+│   ├── cluster.py              # HierarchicalClustering
+│   ├── utils.py                # normalize_matrix, cosine_similarity (NO internal imports!)
+│   ├── visualization.py        # NOT production-ready (untested, deps not in requirements)
+│   ├── transformers/
+│   │   ├── casting.py          # ToDataFrame
+│   │   ├── preprocessing.py    # XLabelEncoder, ParallelFunctionTransformer
+│   │   ├── slicing.py          # ItemSelector
+│   │   ├── padding.py          # Padder2d, Padder3d
+│   │   ├── text.py             # TextFeaturizer
+│   │   └── tests/
+│   ├── models/text.py          # W2VClassifier
+│   └── tests/                  # test_pipeline.py, test_cluster.py, test_utils.py
+├── notebooks/                  # Example Jupyter notebooks
+├── setup.py / setup.cfg        # pytest config: testpaths, coverage, suffixes=Spec
+├── requirements.txt / requirements-dev.txt
+├── VERSION                     # Plain text version string (read by setup.py)
+└── pylintrc                    # Strict: max line 80, docstrings >=10 chars required
+```
+
+## Local Setup
+
+```bash
+pip install -r requirements.txt
+pip install -r requirements-dev.txt
+pip install -e .
+```
+
+## Commands
+
+```bash
+pytest dstoolbox                # All tests + coverage (from setup.cfg)
+pytest dstoolbox -vv --pdb     # Verbose + debugger
+pylint dstoolbox               # Must pass in CI
+python -m build                # Wheel + sdist
+```
+
+## Key Classes
+
+### `pipeline.py`
+- **`PipelineY`** — DEPRECATED; use `sklearn.compose.TransformedTargetRegressor`
+- **`SliceMixin`** — enables `pipeline[0:2]` slicing
+- **`DictFeatureUnion`** — FeatureUnion returning dicts
+- **`DataFrameFeatureUnion`** — FeatureUnion returning DataFrames with column names
+- **`TimedPipeline`** — per-step timing stored in `timing_summary_`
+
+### `transformers/`
+All extend `BaseEstimator + TransformerMixin`:
+- **`ToDataFrame`** — arrays/Series/dicts/lists → DataFrame
+- **`XLabelEncoder`** — maps unknowns to `<UNKNOWN>` instead of raising
+- **`ParallelFunctionTransformer`** — joblib.Parallel execution
+- **`ItemSelector`** — select by key(s), callable, or slice
+- **`Padder2d/3d`** — sequence padding
+
+## Conventions
+
+- **`utils.py`**: NEVER import other dstoolbox modules — prevents circular imports
+- **Pylint**: max line 80, docstrings required (>=10 chars) for all non-test non-dunder
+- **Test naming**: `test_*.py` (not `*_test.py`), class-based grouping
+- **Coverage target**: 100%
+- **Pylint good names**: i, j, k, X, y, Xt, Xs, yt, f
+
+### Transformer Pattern
+```python
+class MyTransformer(BaseEstimator, TransformerMixin):
+    def __init__(self, param): self.param = param
+    def fit(self, X, y=None): return self
+    def transform(self, X): return X_transformed
+```
+
+## CI/CD
+
+- **`build_test_python.yml`**: Push to `master` or `dev` → Python 3.8/3.9/3.10 → pylint → pytest
+- **`deploy_to_pypi.yml`**: GitHub Release → `python -m build` → PyPI trusted publishing
+- **Release**: Edit `VERSION` file → commit → tag `v{version}` → create GitHub Release
+
+## Key Gotchas
+
+1. **`visualization.py` is NOT production-ready** — deps not in requirements; don't use in prod
+2. **`utils.py` must have no internal imports** — circular import risk
+3. **`PipelineY` deprecated** — don't add features; logs DeprecationWarning
+4. **Test discovery**: `python_files = test*py` in setup.cfg (not `*_test.py`)
+5. **Default branch is `master`** (not `main`)\n
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