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The next generation of contributors is not on IRC

The next generation of contributors is not on IRC

Discussing communication channels for inclusive open source communities.

Matthew (Brender) Broberg

February 02, 2020
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  1. The next
    generation of
    contributors
    is not on IRC.
    Discussing communication channels for inclusive open source
    communities
    Matt Broberg
    @mbbroberg

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  2. Hi, I’m Matt
    Technical Editor for Opensource.com
    &
    Student in “The Business of Open
    Source” at Brandeis University
    @mbbroberg

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  3. My impression
    You
    1) Seasoned open source participant
    2) Can recite the FSF four freedoms
    3) Contributed before git was cool
    4) Are active on IRC
    5) Care about your community
    GitHub Generation of open source
    Recently learned FSF & OSI are different
    See git as the lingua franca of tech
    Active everywhere but IRC
    Care about your community
    Me
    @mbbroberg

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  4. I don’t get IRC
    What’s with the wizard-like syntax?
    How do I find channel history?
    What are the fewest commands needed?
    What’s with the offensive spam?
    Why does NAMESERV hate me?
    What clients consistently work?
    @mbbroberg

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  5. I don’t get IRC
    Well RTFM
    F is for “friendly”
    @mbbroberg

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  8. @mbbroberg

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  9. My path to open source
    ● Proprietary hardware community
    ● Proprietary virtualization community
    ● Joining a proprietary code sharing site
    ● Open source on a proprietary OS
    ● Open core startups
    ● Growing communities on GitHub
    ● Open source communities
    ● Opensource.com
    ● A maturing obsession with licenses
    My path was not one of open source
    @mbbroberg

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  10. I don’t get IRC
    What’s with the wizard-like syntax?
    How do I find channel history?
    What are the fewest commands needed?
    What’s with the offensive spam?
    Why does NAMESERV hate me?
    What clients consistently work?
    @mbbroberg

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  11. imposter syndrome
    or otherwise
    @mbbroberg

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  12. “This means that the default behaviors for almost all
    the non-player characters in the game are easier on
    you than they would be otherwise. The default
    barriers for completions of quests are lower. Your
    leveling-up thresholds come more quickly. You
    automatically gain entry to some parts of the map that
    others have to work for. The game is easier to play,
    automatically, and when you need help, by default
    it’s easier to get.”
    Straight White Male: The Lowest Difficulty Setting There Is by John Scalzi
    @mbbroberg

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  13. @mbbroberg

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  14. “Where do I go to join an
    open source community?”
    @mbbroberg

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  17. IRC
    < empty space >
    < empty space >
    < empty space >
    < empty space >
    @mbbroberg

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  18. IRC
    (400k)
    Slack
    (12 million)
    Microsoft Teams
    (13 million)
    Google Chat
    (4 million)
    Riot.im (Matrix)
    (11 million)
    @mbbroberg

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  19. *
    Twitter
    (126 million)
    Reddit
    (330 million)
    Slack
    (12m)
    Telegram
    (200 million)
    Goo
    g
    Discord
    (250 million)
    GitHub
    (40 m)
    @mbbroberg
    MSFT
    (13m)
    Riot
    (13m)

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  20. The bar is higher than ever
    Modern sign up experience
    Mobile access by default
    In-app onboarding and guide
    Accessibility options
    Shared discussion history
    Emoji support
    IRC | Slack | Riot.im
    @mbbroberg

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  21. More importantly
    Synchronous chat is rarely the
    right place for your community
    @mbbroberg

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  22. More importantly
    1. Requires always-on participation
    2. Difficult to follow multiple discussions
    3. Sets expectation of immediacy in response
    4. Divides participation by time zone
    5. No continuation of knowledge
    @mbbroberg

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  23. Choosing community channels
    @mbbroberg

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  24. The 3rd place
    The Great Good Place by Ray Oldenburg
    1st place 2nd place 3rd place
    @mbbroberg

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  25. The 3rd place
    ● Neutral ground
    ● A leveling place
    ● Conversational
    ● Accessible
    ● The regulars
    ● A low profile
    ● Playful mood
    ● Home away from home
    Thanks Jory Burson
    "your third place is where you
    relax in public, where you
    encounter familiar faces and
    make new acquaintances."

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  26. Sync
    For casual, high throughput discussion
    Async
    For a definitive, recorded answer
    News
    To stay informed and empowered
    F2F
    To build a formidable bond
    @mbbroberg

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  27. Async
    Sync
    F2F News
    User groups &
    Conferences
    @mbbroberg

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  28. Async
    Sync
    F2F News
    MozFest
    @mbbroberg
    Mozilla
    The Mozilla Blog

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  29. Async
    Sync
    F2F News
    GopherCon
    & Go Meetups
    @mbbroberg
    Go
    The Go Blog

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  30. Async
    Sync
    F2F News
    KubeCon & Cloud
    Native Meetups
    @mbbroberg
    Kubernetes
    The Kubernetes Blog
    ++

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  31. Async
    Sync
    F2F News
    & Fringe events
    @mbbroberg
    Defaults
    &

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  32. Contribution is
    essential
    @mbbroberg

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  33. Actual footage
    of maintainers recruiting contributors
    @mbbroberg

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  34. firstcontributions.github.io

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  35. Contributors
    @mbbroberg

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  36. *Contributors
    Potential contributors
    @mbbroberg

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  37. *Contributors
    Potential contributors
    Maintainers
    @mbbroberg

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  38. Communication
    channels matter
    They imply who is welcome and who
    needs to “try harder” to be welcome.
    @mbbroberg

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  39. *
    Twitter
    (126 million)
    Reddit
    (330 million)
    Slack
    (12m)
    Telegram
    (200 million)
    Goo
    g
    Discord
    (250 million)
    GitHub
    (40 m)
    @mbbroberg
    MSFT
    (13m)
    Riot
    (13m)
    multi-channel

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  40. Async
    Sync
    F2F News
    & Fringe events
    @mbbroberg
    Defaults
    &

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  41. All communities that
    contribute to open source are
    open source communities
    @mbbroberg

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  42. Thank you
    And thanks:
    ◂ To Fosdem and the Community Devroom leads! This is such an
    honor.
    ◂ To the Mozilla team for inspiring research on this topic.
    ◂ To Jory Burson for inspiration on the third place.
    ◂ To the Opensource.com team for their support. If you’re
    interested in sharing your open source story there, DM me!
    ◂ Presentation template by Slidesgo, icons by Flaticon.
    @mbbroberg

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  43. 1. Daily publication with over 2.1 million articles read a month
    2. Publishing articles on anything with a strong open source story
    3. Staff available to coach authors on telling great stories
    4. Top articles in Linux, Python, Rust, Kubernetes, and open source news
    5. An ever-evolving community of active participants
    Interested in writing with us? Go to Opensource.com/writers
    (or at me! @mbbroberg)

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