dgplug Newsletter #2
Open Source Contribution - A Case Report
The cool thing about open source software is its openness. Not just that everyone can examine the code, and reproduce it, but that everyone can participate and contribute to it’s growth; this is the biggest strength of FOSS and also the principle that many projects depend on.
Who knows, you might find yourself in a situation where you have the possibility to contribute sooner than you think.
Here’s a recent example. Diceware is a convenient tool to create strong random passwords. Bhavin found an uncaught exception, and decided to commit a fix.
To write the code and create a pull request is however just the start. Read Bhavin's blog post about this pull request for all details about the exciting progress from discovering a bug to get their own code merged into the project, making it a little better.
And all of this, would not have been possible, had the code not been open for Bhavin to comb through and suggest improvements and fixes.
It's encouraging to see how core developers take care, make suggestions and guide contributors to deliver a professional fix. The things you learn and experience during a process like this, are priceless.
A post worth for everyone who’re interested in how open source really works.
