Want to contribute to an open source project but don’t know where to begin? Don’t worry — with a bit of effort and dedication, you too can contribute to open source.
Before you begin, it’s helpful to acknowledge the history of open source. Historically, the term “open source” refers to software published under an open source license. These days, “open source” refers to both the software license and the community around the project. The community can be large, or it can be small. The people could be involved on a daily basis, or weekly basis, or rarely. “Open source” is almost an incomplete term, because it can refer to a broad spectrum of projects.
What project should I contribute to?
You get to choose! Which brings us to the first rule: make yourself happy first.
Contributing to open source can be an emotionally fraught activity. You may getting a fight with someone about whether an idea is good or bad. You may spend hours working on a pull request or new piece of documentation, only to have it rejected. Or, you may go weeks without hearing a reply to that issue you wrote. While it’s easy to construe these experiences as “bad”, often they can occur as a matter of circumstance — not the fault of a specific person.
Going into the open source, know your own motivations: Why do you want to contribute? What do you hope to gain from the experience? How much time are you willing to commit?
Also know that it’s not about you. The scope of the project may include that feature you want to contribute, or it may not. In contributing to an open source project, you’re delegating final decision making authority to the project maintainer.
If you manage your own expectations accordingly, you can keep contributing a rewarding experience.
How do I contribute to a project?
Just like many cultures have their own customs and norms, open source projects can have a variety of ways to manage the contributing process.
One good place to start would be to see if the project has a CONTRIBUTING.md file in its repository. For example, here is the CONTRIBUTING.md for WP-CLI. Or, there may be an equivalent document on the project’s website. For example, here’s the contributing page for WordPress.org. The project will likely outline guidelines for contributing code, writing documentation, providing support, etc.
Another place to look would be the project’s issue tracker. Specifically, look for issues tagged “good first bug” (or some equivalent label). These are issues they have been identified as starting points for new contributors.
Please keep in mind, libre != gratis. The open source license grants you the freedom to use and modify, but not commitments of other people’s time. Most contributors are involved in the project on a volunteer basis (potentially even nights and weekends). Please be respectful, and set your expectations accordingly.