How to get Started as an Open Source Contributor

The open source space is consistently improving, with a growing number of initiatives and projects built in the open. As the community continues to engage and advocate for new contributors, it can often be overwhelming and intimidating to know where to start.

Join Gift Egwuenu for a live discussion on the importance of open source as well as how you can get started as a contributor, including:

How to make your first open-source contribution

Ways to overcome awkwardness and conflict in the open-source process

Tips for finding and making meaningful contributions to the projects you love

And more!

Transcript

1. How To Get Started as an Open Source Contributor PLURALSIGHT WEBINAR Gift Egwuenu @lauragift_
2. Gift Egwuenu Frontend Developer at Passionate People & Tech Content Creator Find me @lauragift_ on social media. Hi I'm
3. What is Open Source and Why Contribute? How to make your first open source contribution? Ways to overcome awkwardness and conflict in the open source process. Tips for finding and making meaningful contributions. How Maintainers can make the process more open and welcoming. What'll Cover In this Webinar?
4. What is Open Source? REDHAT.COM Open source is a term that originally referred to open source software (OSS). Open source software is code that is designed to be publicly accessible—anyone can see, modify, and distribute the code as they see fit.
5. Why Contribute? Do you want to contribute to open source but not certain what's in it for you? Help Build the Tools you love using Improve and Grow your Skills Find Mentors and Teach Others Build a Professional Network and Portfolio
6. How Can You Contribute? Open Source can be done in many different ways you're not locked in to only contributing code to a project. The main goal of contributing to help improve the project and create value in one way or another. There are more ways than one you can make a contribution and be involved in a project let's cover them.
7. CONTRIBUTE CODE You can make code contributions to a tool or project by helping with open issues or bug fixes can be a valuable contribution or even helping build out a new feature.
8. DESIGN Design in Open Source is another untapped area. If you're a designer, there's a space for you in open source, contributing logo designs for projects, creating style guides, conducting user research are some examples of activities you can participate in as a contributor.
9. COMMUNITY BUILDING There's a community behind every open source project, you can contribute to a project by helping answer questions on Stack Overflow, Issues, Discord. Write articles, speak at conferences, organize workshops and conferences doing any of these counts as open source.
10. DOCUMENTATION Documentation is the backbone of any project. Writing documentation can help more developers on board and use a project quickly when it's well written. There's a lot of open opportunities to help improve the documentation of the project you use.
11. How to Make Your First Contribution? source: upsplash.com
12. What to Consider? Understand the structure and setup of the project. Familiarize yourself with the processes used in the project. Look up the Contributing Guidelines, Readme, License, Code of Conduct, Wiki to get all the context required. Find a project you want to make a contribution to. Browse through the Issue tracker to figure out where help is needed. First Contribution? If you've not made a contribution before and this is your first one, I'll recommend reading a bit about how contributing works and how to contribute to the specific project. Resources like - First Timers Only, Open Source Friday, 24 Pull Requests, Up for Grabs, GitHub Explorer can help you find a good place to start.
13. How to Overcome Awkwardness and Conflict in the Open Source Process.
14. Clear Communication is important. Treat people with equality and respect. Open Source is all about the people and the project...
15. Tips for finding and making meaningful contributions READ ISSUES AND DISCUSSION Join in the discussions in issues or pull requests and engage with the project.
16. Tips for finding and making meaningful contributions READ ISSUES AND DISCUSSION Join in the discussions in issues or pull requests and engage with the project. PROVIDE CONTEXT Provide as much context and information as possible when submitting a pull request to enable the reviewer to understand your contribution.
17. Tips for finding and making meaningful contributions READ ISSUES AND DISCUSSION Join in the discussions in issues or pull requests and engage with the project. BE KIND When communicating with other contributors be kind to them and communicate in the best way possible. PROVIDE CONTEXT Provide as much context and information as possible when submitting a pull request to enable the reviewer to understand your contribution.
18. Tips for finding and making meaningful contributions READ ISSUES AND DISCUSSION Join in the discussions in issues or pull requests and engage with the project. ASK QUESTIONS No question is irrelevant, ask away and be patient. BE KIND When communicating with other contributors be kind to them and communicate in the best way possible. PROVIDE CONTEXT Provide as much context and information as possible when submitting a pull request to enable the reviewer to understand your contribution.
19. Maintainers HOW TO MAKE THE OPEN SOURCE PROCESS MORE OPEN AND WELCOMING.
20. Maintainer's Note Being a maintainer has a huge impact in shaping in the project. Creating a space where new contributors can thrive and feel welcome is important for the project. How do you create a space where contributors can feel welcome: source: wocintechchat.com WRITE USEFUL DOCUMENTATION ORGANIZE AND TRIAGE ISSUES BE KIND IN CODE REVIEWS ENGAGE WITH THE COMMUNITY - DISCUSSIONS, BLOGS, CONFERENCES, HELP NEW CONTRIBUTORS BE SUCCESSFUL
21. MAINTAINING OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE WRITE USEFUL DOCUMENTATION Documentation is the pillar of any project. Having documentation that is both easy to understand and use will go a long way in helping developers use and contribute to the project.
22. MAINTAINING OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE WRITE USEFUL DOCUMENTATION Documentation is the pillar of any project. Having documentation that is both easy to understand and use will go a long way in helping developers use and contribute to the project. ORGANIZE & TRIAGE ISSUES Provide as much context and information as possible when submitting a pull request to enable the reviewer to understand your contribution.
23. MAINTAINING OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE WRITE USEFUL DOCUMENTATION Documentation is the pillar of any project. Having documentation that is both easy to understand and use will go a long way in helping developers use and contribute to the project. BE KIND IN CODE REVIEWS When communicating with other contributors be kind to them, show empathy and communicate in the best way possible. ORGANIZE & TRIAGE ISSUES Provide as much context and information as possible when submitting a pull request to enable the reviewer to understand your contribution.
24. MAINTAINING OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE WRITE USEFUL DOCUMENTATION Documentation is the pillar of any project. Having documentation that is both easy to understand and use will go a long way in helping developers use and contribute to the project. BE KIND IN CODE REVIEWS When communicating with other contributors be kind to them, show empathy and communicate in the best way possible. ORGANIZE & TRIAGE ISSUES Provide as much context and information as possible when submitting a pull request to enable the reviewer to understand your contribution. HELP ONBOARD NEW CONTRIBUTORS Have a good Contributing guide in place to help onboard new contributors to the project.
25. MAINTAINING OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE WRITE USEFUL DOCUMENTATION Documentation is the pillar of any project. Having documentation that is both easy to understand and use will go a long way in helping developers use and contribute to the project. BE KIND IN CODE REVIEWS When communicating with other contributors be kind to them, show empathy and communicate in the best way possible. ORGANIZE & TRIAGE ISSUES Provide as much context and information as possible when submitting a pull request to enable the reviewer to understand your contribution. HELP ONBOARD NEW CONTRIBUTORS Have a good Contributing guide in place to help onboard new contributors to the project. ENGAGE WITH THE COMMUNITY Be open to discussion, connecting with the members of the community through meetups, live chats etc.
26. What is Open Source and Why Contribute? How to make your first open source contribution? Ways to overcome awkwardness and conflict in the open source process. Tips for finding and making meaningful contributions. How Maintainers can make the process more open and welcoming. Summary
27. Resources First Timers Only These are helpful resources that can help you navigate your journey to contributing to open source. FreeCodeCamp's Guide on Contributing to Open Source GitHub Explore Open Source Friday Up for Grabs
28. Questions? Thank you! SOCIAL MEDIA @lauragift_ WEBSITE giftegwuenu.com