DEV Community

Cover image for My Journey Through Hacktoberfest 2024
Angel Chinenye
Angel Chinenye

Posted on

My Journey Through Hacktoberfest 2024

When I first heard about Hacktoberfest in the She Code Africa Slack channel, I was intrigued but unsure. The beautifully animated website immediately hooked me, though the vast list of GitHub repositories felt daunting.

Finding My Feet

The turning point came during an Expo session where Busayo Ojo broke down the event and shared strategies for finding projects that matched my skills. Armed with newfound confidence, I registered and began scouting for projects where I could contribute as both a developer and technical writer.

First Contributions: Struggling and Succeeding

By October 9, just days after registering, I felt a sense of frustration. It seemed like everyone around me was securing tasks and getting assigned issues, while I was still pitching myself to project maintainers. My first project, Minifolio, led me to propose more edits than I had planned, pushing me to up my contributions. Shortly after, I found AgencyWebsite, where I enhanced the README and CONTRIBUTING.md files—a natural fit for my technical writing skills.

My journey continued with Flowinance and my first Wiki page contribution, which was a valuable learning experience. My final PR was with JobSewa, where I revamped the UI on the job application page, blending design and development for a user-friendly interface.

Projects

  • Minifolio
    Minimal portfolio template for developers
    Repo | Live link
    Contributions: Proposed significant UI improvements.

  • AgencyWebsite
    React/Vite-based agency website enhanced with 3D elements
    Repo
    Contributions: Enhanced documentation with a refined README and CONTRIBUTING.md.

  • Flowinance
    Financial management app for transaction tracking
    Repo | Wiki
    Contributions: Created Wiki documentation to improve project navigation.

  • JobSewa
    Job portal for connecting agricultural workers and employers
    Repo | Live link
    Contributions: Redesigned the UI for the job application page.

Each of these projects allowed me to apply and grow my skills as both a developer and technical writer while collaborating with fantastic maintainers and contributors!

Key Takeaways

  1. Open source is for everyone, regardless of your experience level.
  2. Share your ideas freely; it’s how the best outcomes happen.
  3. Embrace feedback; corrections help you grow.
  4. Open-source projects can feel overwhelming, but the rewards outweigh the hurdles.

Special Thanks

Heartfelt appreciation to the Hacktoberfest organizers and project maintainers who made this journey worthwhile—your dedication made open-source accessible and welcoming.

Big thanks to Victory Ejike for encouraging me to bid for projects, even when I lacked experience. To the incredible, badass product designers who, despite their busy schedules, took the time to give me valuable feedback — Faith Egwenu and Sophia Adepoju; thank you for the design inspirations that elevated my contributions. Your creativity and guidance were instrumental in shaping my UI enhancements!

Looking Ahead

Hacktoberfest was a rollercoaster of emotions and wins. With each PR, I became more comfortable in open-source spaces, learned to balance roles as a developer and writer, and built valuable skills. I’m eager to continue contributing to open-source, knowing persistence pays off and every project offers fresh lessons. Here’s to many more Hacktoberfests!

Top comments (8)

Collapse
 
faith_egwuenu profile image
Phaye ✨

Well done Angel, great work on your contribution 👏🚀

Collapse
 
angel_afube profile image
Angel Chinenye

Thank you so much

Collapse
 
angel_afube profile image
Angel Chinenye

Thank you for contributing to the great work ❤️

Collapse
 
adebisi_adeyemi_10e570014 profile image
Adebisi Adeyemi

Well done senior dev. Angel you didn’t include my name anywhere in the write up for the moral support

Collapse
 
angel_afube profile image
Angel Chinenye

Thank you senior senior dev. 😍

Collapse
 
akinwuntan_ayomide_bcd79c profile image
Akinwuntan Ayomide

Weldone Angel❤️

Collapse
 
angel_afube profile image
Angel Chinenye

Thank you dear

Collapse
 
afube_terence_934b59b23ef profile image
Afube Terence

Great work!