Quick Reference for Contributing to Open Source

punkadeedle — Fri, 28 May 2021 14:29:43 +0000

Adapted from this Guide from DataSchool

Finding a Project

https://goodfirstissues.com/
https://www.codetriage.com/
https://up-for-grabs.net/
https://firstcontributions.github.io/
http://www.pullrequestroulette.com/

Setup Steps (Once Per Project)

In GitHub, fork project repo
From your personal repo, clone code

git clone [URL]
Verify your repo is the origin remote

git remote -v
Add project repo by cloning code

git remote add upstream [URL]

Contribution Steps (Once Per Change)

Pull latest project changes

git pull upstream main
Comment on issue requesting to be assigned (or assign yourself if allowed)
Create new branch for your development

git checkout -b [branch-name]
Make changes, add, and commit; link PR to the issue by writing "Resolves #[issue-number]"
- Be sure to follow any contributing guidelines or formatting specific to the project
git add . git commit -m "Resolves #123; message here"
Push to fork

git push origin [branch-name]
In GitHub, click 'Compare & Pull Request'
Review details and click 'Create Pull Request'

Wait for comments/corrections or for project owner to approve the change

After merge, delete branch from fork on GitHub and from local

git checkout main git branch -D [branch-name]
To sync fork with project, Pull latest changes from upstream to local

git pull upstream main
Push local to origin fork

git push origin main

Obligatory "Hello World!" Post

punkadeedle — Mon, 01 Mar 2021 14:36:41 +0000

Hello World!

As a first-time blogger, I wanted to start with how I aim to use this forum and to share my journey (so far).

My Plan

This blog is for me...

I enjoy writing, and I enjoy tracking my progress. I am starting this blog mostly for myself, as an effort to document the projects I am working on, new topics or ideas I come across, and lessons learned along the way. To me, this is another step of planning and setting goals, of holding myself accountable, and of celebrating the little things.

...and hopefully others too

For those that do stumble upon my blog, I would consider it an added bonus if they

Learn something new
Find help or support through my words
Relate to my experiences
Provide feedback or a new perspective
Explain advantages of solving a problem differently

These reasons above are why I'm hosting my blog publicly. In college, it was easy to talk with peers on a daily basis to hear about a technology they were trying, a new tool, an upcoming event. Today, it takes a little more effort and initiative, but I generally get this information through blogs, tutorials, and group collaboration (with an occasional question sent to those college classmates who live around the world now). Being part of the larger tech community is exciting because it is what drives discussions, support, ideas, and action. And I'm continuing to look for ways to get more involved (which I will share in future posts).

The blog

These are the topics I look forward to writing about:

Current projects
Code challenges
New courses/learning
Questions
General thoughts
My personal journey to improve

My journey (so far)

Education

I received a B.S. in Information Systems (with minors in Business Administration and French language). At the time that I attended classes, the technical curriculum focused on Java and SQL, with some general instruction on infrastructure, security, and systems analysis. I took my first-ever programming class that first semester of Freshman Year and after some initial doubt, I remember the moment, sitting in a Java Lab session, when my understanding finally clicked into place.

Career

My junior year of college, I started an internship, where I primarily worked on various scripts for DB2 maintenance. Around this time, I also learned that I could graduate a semester early, thanks to the college credits I completed in high school. The same week that I walked across the stage to get my diploma, I transitioned from intern to full-time Systems Analyst on a new project. After a couple years, I was promoted to Technical Lead on the same project, which is where I am today.

There are so many things in my job I am grateful for – amazing coworkers, challenging problems, flexible work environment -- but there have been things I have struggled with as well. My move to Tech Lead is when my Impostor Syndrome started to set in, often making me question my ability and strengths. And more importantly, the passion for programming that I found in college had no outlet. The job description of Tech Lead required extensive design and critical thinking -- but my exposure to hands-on coding were few and far between.

Self-Teaching

Enter the Internet and its vast resources. When I was finally able to identify this gap – my desire to code and the fact that I wasn't coding – I started searching for ways to refresh my skills and learn new ones. This is where I've been the past few years, and where I'll continue to be. It has made me happy to revive my curiosity and growth, and I am open to any form of it.

Here are the resources I've been using:

Online courses (mostly Udemy)
- Full Stack Developer (instructor: Steele)
- Python Introduction (instructor: Portilla)
- Docker & Kubernetes (instructor: Grider)
StackOverflow
Chingu
Code challenges
Various tutorials, blogs, and news sites

If you're reading this, please feel free to share your own journey or resources that you've found helpful along the way!

DEV Community: punkadeedle