How to be good at Open Source 🧑‍💻🌏

What's the coolest thing about open source software? 💭

If you need a new feature, you can just go ahead and add it yourself!

I recently did this with lazygit, a terminal-based git client I use every day.
I wanted to add co-authors to commits, which is handy for pair programming at Incubyte

My pull request for this feature got merged recently, and now I'm thrilled to use it with the latest release!

Here are some tips I learned along the way:

Add Value

Make sure your contribution adds value to the project. Don't just contribute because it's trendy.

Ask for Help

Don't expect to get everything right on the first try. Ask the project maintainers for feedback and guidance.

Be Patient

Remember, many open source projects are labors of love. Be patient if things take time or responses are slow.

Accept Rejection

Sometimes your ideas might not fit with the project's goals. Be polite and be prepared to fork the project if necessary (and maybe even become a maintainer yourself!).

Most importantly, be a good open sourcerer, and may the code be with you! 🖖

#OpenSource #Community #SoftwareDevelopment