Panel Discussion: OSS101 - Introduction to Open Source for Students

Tips for choosing an open source project to contribute to

• Self-evaluate your interests before choosing a project
• Explore different projects, not just popular ones
• Engage with the community and ask questions
• Accept mistakes as part of the learning curve
• Be patient when waiting for responses from maintainers

One of the speakers shared their personal experience of feeling like an imposter and being intimidated to ask questions. They encouraged newcomers to ask for help and not be afraid of asking 'silly' questions. They also emphasized the importance of being welcoming to new contributors and passing on the favor.

But this is such a huge Open-Source project, where to start?, "Oh, I am from a non-coding background, Open-Source is not for me", "I am fixing a typo, is this even an Open-Source Contribution?" Okay, okay - if you have any such questions in your mind and if Open-Source feels daunting to you - you are not alone. This talk aims to allay all your fears and doubts related to Open-Source. Whatever skills you have - Open-Source is open for you and this talk will help you learn how you can make your first move with any of them. From fixing a typo to designing a logo or writing a blog post, asking a question in the community, or maybe simply hosting a local-community meetup related to even a huge open-source project like Kubernetes or Helm - Open Source has a lot of doors for you to enter and this talk aims to knock a lot of them for you! This talk will make you more confident in open-source and help you understand the value of your contributions to the open-source communities.