Contributing
to core

Without losing your mind

Lee Rowlands

drupal.org/u/larowlan twitter/@larowlan

The who slide

Source: http://alldylan.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/The+Who.jpg

Note:

I was told my second slide should be the who slide
maintain 4 modules in core
near 350 commit mentions in d8
number 12 contributor to d8
sec team
senior drupal dev at pnx
doing this since 2008
frustration with d7 changes as catalyst

Where it all starts

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Register

Note:

if you don't have an account, get one now, even if you don't want to comment
I wish I had have registered earlier - waited until I needed to post a patch

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What is Drupal?

Note:

content modelling
cms
the community

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Are you missing 33%?

Source: https://deadhomersociety.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/kingsizehomer8.png

Note:

IRC is window to the community

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Get on IRC

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Where to say hi

#drupal-au
#drupal-contribute

Note:

I was a freelancer for many years sime told me to get on drupalau
window to the community

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IRC Resources

drupal.org/irc

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IRC Clients

pidgin
limechat
adium
web client on freenode

Negotiating issue queues

Note:

Start slow
Don't have a drupal.org account - get one now! user/register

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First step - watch an issue

Note:

Start by watching issues

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Step 2 - setup email
notifications

Note:

Make sure your email settings are sane

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Step 3 - Observe

Source:http://bit.ly/1zHPFfq

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Step 4 - Absorb

Note:

Get to know the personalities
Observe the interactions and process

Finding your niche

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Scratch an itch

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Find something that
annoys you

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Find something that
you care about

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Find something
no-one cares about

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Find something

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Use the tools

Issue queue search
RSS feed

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Find what works for you

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I use Gmail tags

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Find something that suits my mood

Git and patch workflows

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One branch per issue

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Commit your patches locally

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Everything is easier

interdiff > git diff > interdiff.txt
re-roll > git fetch origin && git merge origin/8.0.x
patches > git diff origin/8.0.x > some-file.patch
applying > curl http://drupal.org/files/some-file.patch | git apply

Dealing with politics and
personalities

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Egos are big

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Stakes are high

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Sleep on it

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Don't get drawn into the
Karpman Drama Triangle

Sad it has a name

Note:

Avoid being the victim
Avoid being the persecutor
Avoid being the rescuer

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Sometimes...

Source:http://www.vh1.com/celebrity/bwe/images/2011/06/Stop-That-Mr-Simpson-1308333673.jpg

Note:

Sometimes people are just jerks.

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Ask questions when unsure

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Real-time communications
> issue queues

Solving things much easier on IRC.

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Call out inappropriate
behaviour

Silence = acceptance
Constructive feedback

Note:

Explain process
Yeah there's a u in that

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Don't forget language barriers

Note:

Not everyone speaks English as their first language
Don't take offence at language quirks
Be prepared to explain local slang and lingo

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Switch off

Note:

Best way to avoid burnout is drift in and out
Have a live outside Drupal

Not sweating details

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If you patch it, they will come

Note:

What will come? re-rolls, reviews, new-patches, feedback, commit mentions
https://www.drupal.org/node/1821620

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Review trades

Note:

Everyone has their own pet issues

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A broken patch is better than none

Note:

It doesn't have to be perfect

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Magic fairies in the night

Note:

Timezones have some benefits

Development approaches

A tale of two developers

Note:

embrace the chaos

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Sloppy Sam

Note:

Asks on IRC if anyone knows about it
Follows leads from community
Puts up half-baked patch
Learns from reviews
Reviews others work
Rapid increments

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Perfectionist Pat

Note:

First patch is perfect
Works in isolation
Slow feedback loop
Concerned about perceptions
Fails to build karma/reputation

Learning through reviews

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Core is vast

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You cannot know everything

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Seriously

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Reviewers teach as they review

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Reviewers learn as they go

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Explore new areas as
a reviewer

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Learn new techniques as
a reviewee

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Get a free CS education

Building networks and
friendships

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How do you know who
handles X?

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Maintainers.txt

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From observation

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Ask on IRC

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Build networks

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Build karma

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Build respect

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Build comrades

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Build friends

Automating your processes with phing

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Automation > remembering stuff

phing simpletest:class
phing reinstall
https://github.com/nickschuch/vd8/blob/master/build.xml

Note:

Simpletest commands
Reinstall
PHP Unit testing

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Git aliases

git interdiff
git merge8x
git genpatch {number}
git fetchpatch {url}
https://gist.github.com/larowlan/18624d5554c52e90c613

Automated tests

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Don't be afraid

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Become a better developer

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Transfer skills learned to dayjob

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Sleep easier

Resources

Questions?

See you at the sprint

larowlan@previousnext.com.au