Beginner wants to get involved in some Open Source project

H2O

H2O

Skilled
I am a 2nd year student and will be applying for GSOC this time, before I actually apply I wanted to get a little hands-on experience on how it is like working on an open source project.

I have checked out git, sourceforge and some other places. But, I'm still not sure about how I should get involved in minor bux fixing/how can I access the source/etc.

I'm comfortable working with C, C++ and Java and am ready to put in the effort it takes to learn those things which I do not know. So, if someone could guide me in the right direction it would be really helpful.

Thanks,

H2O
 
Start by picking a project that actually interests you. Unless you actually use the software, you'll be lost for a while.

Look up bug reports and outstanding issues. Start following their mailing lists, also posting to them as well.

Eventually, you'll come across something you can contribute to. Create a patch and submit it to the mailing list, from where it will get tested and possibly accepted.

It's gonna take a while though, the whole process.
 
1) Start with a simple, small sized project. Understanding code that you didn't right is difficult and takes time.

2) Read up on documentation, bug reports, mailing lists, etc

3) Easiest is to contribute to documentation once you understand the software

4) Try to replicate bugs, and to diagnose the problem (use logging or debugging tools)

5) Recommend new features, and contribute patches

I'd recommend starting off with a Github hosted project as there is extensive support for popular projects and you can also learn to deal with Git which does have a steep learning curve.
 
H2O said:
I am a 2nd year student and will be applying for GSOC this time, before I actually apply I wanted to get a little hands-on experience on how it is like working on an open source project.

I have checked out git, sourceforge and some other places. But, I'm still not sure about how I should get involved in minor bux fixing/how can I access the source/etc.

I'm comfortable working with C, C++ and Java and am ready to put in the effort it takes to learn those things which I do not know. So, if someone could guide me in the right direction it would be really helpful.

Thanks,

H2O
Click to expand...

Since you are targeting GSoC, jump in NOW. Its already a bit late to get a relaxed entry

Look at the last 2-3 years participating organisations, esp. the bigger ones

Then see which of those projects you use on a regular basis.

Identify some small bug/feature that you would want to add for your own use.

The operative word being small

Set up a dev environment and compile the said software, interact on IRC

Get a hang of how the community functions, get a hang of their coding practices and policies as well

Try to get a patch accepted in the organisations you are interested in BEFORE the list is out for this year

Oh, and pls dont send mails to the GSoC mailing list which make you look dumb.
 
Okay so here it goes. Thanks to all your advice, I've narrowed down to 2 projects that I would wish to perform. But, I am not too sure how I should go about it.

The 2 organizations that I have chosen are Abiword and GNU, Gedit in particular.

If someone could point me into how I should exactly setup the developer environment. It would be great.

I've read up and understood that Abiword uses Microsoft Visual Studio C++, the source code I've downloaded is in tar.gz format but how exactly do I set it up on VS?

Thanks,

H2O
 
H2O said:
Okay so here it goes. Thanks to all your advice, I've narrowed down to 2 projects that I would wish to perform. But, I am not too sure how I should go about it.

The 2 organizations that I have chosen are Abiword and GNU, Gedit in particular.

If someone could point me into how I should exactly setup the developer environment. It would be great.

I've read up and understood that Abiword uses Microsoft Visual Studio C++, the source code I've downloaded is in tar.gz format but how exactly do I set it up on VS?

Thanks,

H2O
Click to expand...

Go through

http://www.abisource.com/developers/download.phtml

and

www.abisource.com/wiki/Compiling_AbiWord

I didnt see any mention of VS, didnt go theough it carefully though

http://www.abisource.com/developers/

Join the mailing list and IRC as well. Infact, check the Linux vs Windows thing on the IRC before you start trying
 
H2O said:
I've configured the Environment according to

http://www.abisource...a_Source_Folder

Now, I need to go through some documentation to understand how and where to start. Can I talk to somebody on the Dev-team who might be a mentor about my idea with the confidence that there will be no plagiarism?
Click to expand...

Have you been able to build and run?

Also, hang out on the IRC a bit before discussing your idea. Plagarism isnt much of an issue, but make sure you are communicating with someone on the dev team.

And use private communication initially, dont use the public chat for idea discussions till its established that this is your idea

Their org admin is

Martin Sevior

So, if you want to discuss your idea, I would advise you start with him.

He will guide you best
 
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