feat: automated releases via github action

- Composite actions for code quality and dependency installations for python and frontend
- Update code quality & pytest workflows
- Add release workflow to handle checks/tests, build and publish to PyPI
- Update `create_installer.sh` to work with the release workflow
- Add docs/RELEASE.md explaining the workflow

.github/workflows/check-python.yml

@@ -0,0 +1,55 @@
+name: Check Python
+
+on:
+  pull_request:
+  push:
+    branches: [main]
+  workflow_dispatch:
+    inputs:
+      force:
+        description: 'Force check even if no files were changed'
+        required: true
+        default: false
+        type: boolean
+  workflow_call:
+    inputs:
+      force:
+        description: 'Force check even if no files were changed'
+        required: true
+        default: false
+        type: boolean
+
+jobs:
+  check-backend:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    steps:
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
+        with:
+          fetch-depth: 0
+
+      - name: Check python changes
+        uses: ./.github/actions/check-python-changes
+        id: check-python-changes
+
+      - name: Determine if checks should run
+        id: should-run
+        run: |
+          echo Files changed: ${{ steps.check-python-changes.outputs.python_any_changed == 'true' }}
+          echo Force: ${{ inputs.force == true || inputs.force == 'true' }}
+          echo "bool=${{ steps.check-python-changes.outputs.python_any_changed == 'true' || inputs.force == true || inputs.force == 'true' }}" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
+
+      - name: Install python dependencies
+        uses: ./.github/actions/install-python-deps
+        if: steps.should-run.outputs.bool == 'true'
+
+      - name: Install ruff
+        if: steps.should-run.outputs.bool == 'true'
+        run: pip install ruff
+
+      - name: Ruff check
+        if: steps.should-run.outputs.bool == 'true'
+        run: ruff check --output-format=github .
+
+      - name: Ruff format
+        if: steps.should-run.outputs.bool == 'true'
+        run: ruff format --check .