My First Open Source PR — Done During Hacktoberfest 2025!

#beginners #opensource #java #hacktoberfest

Hey devs!
After years of building full stack apps, I finally checked off something that was long overdue — my first OSS contribution!

This happened during Hacktoberfest 2025, and I wanted to share the real journey — with all the steps, wins, and lessons for beginners or even pros who haven’t yet jumped into open source.

Even though I’ve been coding professionally for years, I never actively contributed to open source.

This October, I wanted to be more than a consumer. So I searched for beginner-friendly Java issues, and I found this gem:

JEP 507 - Primitive Types in Patterns, instanceof, and switch

Goal: Add a demo for a cool upcoming Java 25 feature

My Step-by-Step OSS Journey

Here’s the exact workflow I followed, in case it helps you replicate it!

1. Find a Good Issue

Look for repos with:

hacktoberfest
help wanted
Your language of interest

2. Fork + Clone

git fork https://github.com/AloisSeckar/demos-java.git
git clone <your-fork-url>
cd demos-java

3. Understand the Code

Before writing anything, I read:

The existing demo structure

CONTRIBUTING.md
JEP 507 details (super useful!)

4. Code the Demo

I built PrimitiveTypesDemo.java, which included:

instanceof with primitives
Record pattern narrowing
Pattern-based switch blocks (with guards and fallbacks)

Also added print statements so devs could easily understand what’s happening at runtime.

5. Push and PR

git checkout -b add-jep507-demo
git add .
git commit -m "Add JEP 507 demo: instanceof and switch with primitive types"
git push origin add-jep507-demo

Then raised the Pull Request

6. Link to Issue & Thank the Maintainer

Got it linked to the issue. Said thanks to the maintainer.
Small gestures go a long way in OSS!

What I Learned