Contribute in large open source projects
A great way to start solving real world problems
How I started:
On June 18, I created my GitHub account, never expecting to reach out to you and offer you some helpful advice. This includes everything I couldn't find online as well as some observations based on personal experience. After Hacktoberfest and doing some work in K8s, I applied for many jobs, got my resume shortlisted, and got rejected. Both positions are paid between 5,000rs-3,000rs per month. It's excellent for a beginner, but it doesn't particularly interest me. Yes, I would get experience and discover how a real business runs. However, there is a lot of competition, it's difficult to find good seniors and mentors, and the pay is on par with my monthly allowance. So I started looking into it, and if you've read any of my previous blogs, you know that whenever I start looking into something, I find some solid information. However, I am not a genius. It rarely occurs. I learned about the MLH Fellowship, Outreachy, and many other programs. These three, however, are well known and have good pay. from good I mean really good. Just google it! Then I started looking into how I could be a part of this program.
MLH:
When I found out about the MLH fellowship, That was the final day to register, so I quickly and carelessly filled out the form. I later learned that many students are making a genuine effort to get involved. and it was clear from this that I would soon receive a rejection email. As anticipated, I received a rejection email. To be clear, I applied for a three-month internship at MLH. There is also a one-month preparation program that is geared toward beginners. and you stand a good chance of landing a three-month internship if you join that.
GSOC:
This does not need an introduction. It's a common misconception that you can't be chosen for GSOC in your first year. I will break this myth soon, and so many other people have done so as well. The goal of GSOC is to introduce students to open source, give them some practical work assignments, and let them put their ideas into practice.
Outreachy:
It's for non-GSOC applicants, minorities, women, and people of color. In Outreachy 2022, there were 92% of women, so my chances are pretty high. Their stipend exceeds $7,000, which is roughly Rs 5 lakh in Indian currency.
Tips, tricks and my experience:
my experience:
Shhh, these are my secrets. So read quietly....
A good person in tech will look at your GitHub contributions before your LinkedIn profile, trust me on that one. GSOC needs contributions from open-source developers. My comfort level with GitHub is low. I made my initial contribution for Hacktoberfest swags. I am currently participating in some fantastic GSOC projects. Your brain requires rewards. No one can stop you from achieving your goals if you keep setting small goals for yourself.
I started by going through the GSOC 2022 projects. I started with all the GSOC CNCF-participated projects, specifically Kubernetes. I went through their first good issue as well. The project discussions and PR were overwhelming at first. I shut down my PC for an hour. I was afraid. New thoughts started to come. "Why in the hell do you want to try it in the first year?" Another one from anxiety "You are in tech for one year, and you can't even understand good first issues." I calmed myself and made some plans for where to start. I attempted to read the same line more than five times and then translated it into my native language. and then I add comments there like, "I have understood this one part; can you please explain this other part?"
Tip:
If you are in a similar situation, take this to their specific Slack channel. People would love to help you out. If you understand the basics. Try to make some small changes. Don't be afraid. The worst is that your PR would not be accepted. Don't think it would feel dumb. No, it's not. I had asked the stupidest questions. Do it, and ask them to review your PR.
Kubebuilder:
I got to know about KubeBuilder, which was used in more than two projects. In simple terms, if you want to add a plugin to k8s you can make it with KubeBuilder. It's in Golang. So I started deep diving and struck with installation, got one blog series that helped me with installation, but still it got some errors, and the blog owner did not reply, so I left it as well, and then I met Camilla Macedo. She is great and sweet. She has a wealth of knowledge and would gladly assist you in any way she can, and with her assistance, I created my first operator. You can check it out here. Sadly, I got to know that Kubebuilder is not ready enough to take part in GSOC. So I started searching for more.
Community:
I believe this blog would not exist if these wonderful people had not assisted me. They are so down to earth, even after maintaining different CNCF projects. They will guide you, mentor you, reply to your silly questions, and provide you with resources. Try to join the beginner's meeting. Some big projects have beginner's greet and meet meetings once a month, depending on the repository maintainer. You can meet with like-minded people and start your journey.
Requesting membership for Kubernetes:
If you have five PRs merged in Kubernetes. You can apply for membership. You need two members to sponsor your membership. Despite the fact that I have not completed the five PR criteria, after getting connected with members, two members were happy to sponsor me. Connections can work wonders.
My first pr merged in k8s.
Conclusion:
My journey had so many ups and downs. Anxiety, fear, and problems were my friends, and they would not let me go. From having issues with Kubernetes installation to finally contributing to Kubernetes The journey is awesome. Mentors like Eddie Jaoude and Kunal Kuswaha and friends like Rajat Sharma, Vishwa, and Bilal can encourage you to push yourself hard in every possible way. I am grateful to have them. Special thanks to the CNCF community and its whole ecosystem. They have some amazing members.
A huge thanks If you have read to the end... Now go and start contributing to large projects. ping me if you have any doubts. We need your contributions to make projects more efficient. If you think we share similar minds, let's connect and have a techie chat.