A KEYNOTE ON GOOGLE SUMMER OF CODE. PS: I USED LOT OF CONTENT FROM FELLOW OPEN SOURCE CONTRIBUTORS OF SRILANKA. I AM VERY GRATEFUL TO THEM : SURANGA[OPENMRS] PRADEEBAN[ABIWORD] AND HARSHA[OPENMRS]

1. google summer of code
101
sri harsha.P - cooking bits
from past 6 years!

2. agenda
•
why gsoc?
•
before you begin.
•
right project?
•
how to integrate yourself into
the community?
•
how to apply?
•
being a competitive applicant.
•
wrapping up in style.

3. it’s not child’s play!

4. why gsoC ?
•
money? …YES!
•
but something
more important:
•
opportunity,
expertise,
recommendations,
fame and glory.

5. gsoc stats over the
years
•
Over 7,500 successful student
participants since 2005 from 97
countries
•
50 million lines of code produced by
students
•
over 7,000 mentors from over 100
countries worldwide
•
440 open source projects
•
2,010 universities represented
•
success rate is pretty high.. isn't
it?

6. what do you need?

7. timeline
•
Oct 8th 2013: program
announced.
•
feb 3rd -14th: org’s
application period.
•
feb 24th: list of accepted
org’s.
•
feb 24th - 10th Mar: students
discussing project ideas.
•
mar 10th - 21st: student
application period.

8. timeline after
acceptance
•
apr 21st: accepted students
announcement.
•
may 19th: coding begins.
•
jun 23rd- 27th: mid evaluations.
•
aug 11th: suggested pencils down.
•
aug 18th: firm pencils down.
•
aug 22nd: final evaluation
deadline. submitting code samples.
•
aug 25th: final results announced.

9. pre- planning
•
gsoc is all
about being open
source.
•
get your basics
and motives
right.
•
etiquette’s.
•
sign up to the
lists.
•
joining relevant
channel.

11. technologies
•
version control
systems - git,
cvs, svn,
mercurial,…
•
build tools ant, maven,…
•
ide’s - intellij
idea, eclipse,
aptana studio,
netbeans,…
•
bug trackers bugzilla, jira,
trac,…

12. communication is the key
•
mailing lists dev, users.
•
internet relay
chat [irc]
•
issue trackers.
•
forums and wiki.
•
blogs.
•
personal mails,
Skype, conference
calls.

13. network etiquettes
•
creating a good impression is
everything!
•
be specific and clear.
•
google before asking.
•
be polite.
•
be helpful.
•
be mature.
•
never use caps [unless you are
shouting!]
•
dnt use sms lang. you will be
mocked to embarrassment.

14. proper addressing over
irc/lists
•
Address the dev’s and users
properly.
•
first name is always preferred.
•
NO sir, madam, bro, pal even if
you know them personally.
•
no mr. dr. prof. either.
•
be gender neutral. EX:“folks over
guys and girls”
•
and dont be too personal - use
hi instead of dear.

15. more on mailing lists
•
post only to the relevant lists.
•
check the mail archives first
before asking a question.
•
do not use [urgent]/[important]
tags.
•
do not add attachments.
•
do not spam.
•
do not post off topics in dev
mailing lists.

16. little more on irc
•
be an observer first.
•
refer to others using their irc nick.
•
create an irc nickname for
yourself. ex: hydra
•
be patient. do not expect immediate
replies.
•
do not post bulks of text into irc.
They will kick you out of their
channel.
•
post error logs using paste bin.

17. how to find an org?
•
there are 190
organizations
this year.
•
first, have a
look at them.
•
go through
their websites.
•
check whether
they are new
or not?

18. finding the right
project
•
go through org’s project ideas
list.
•
talk to the mentors.
•
select a project to suit your
needs.
•
consider your skill set.
•
go for the best fit.
•
don’t limit yourself to
‘popular’ projects.

19. writing a good proposal
•
spell checking tools - use
them.
•
do ground work on the
project idea.
•
good proposal is very
crucial.
•
be open, even with your
proposal.
•
cheating in anyway wont
help.

20. future contributions
•
willingness to contribute
after gsoc?
•
org’s need committers and
long term volunteers.

21. be an ideal candidate
•
coding skills.
•
past
contributions.
•
attitude.
•
learning ability.
•
communication[co
herent, rapid
and meaningful].

22. experience
•
adept in any language?
•
prove it to the dev’s!
•
contribute before gsoc to
increase your acceptance
rates.
•
assist other students.

23. applications?
•
how to apply? - google melange
•
how many can you apply?
•
is it restricted to one organization?
•
register as a student for GSOC.
•
use the projects wiki for draft
proposal.
•
you can edit it later. You can improve
the proposal by taking inputs from
your mentors.
•
check often for your mentor
comments on your proposal.

24. key points in proposal
•
project goals.
•
deliverables - code, test cases,
documentation…
•
rough timeline for the project.
•
research which you have done on the
project.
•
add mockups if you have. - added
grade.
•
why do you fit? - your skill set.
•
list of previous open source
contributions and internships if any.

25. how to write a rough
timeline
•
finer details.
•
break it into periods of 5-6
days.
•
testing takes time - assign
considerable time for it.
•
don’t be over optimistic.
•
some projects require
considerable work hrs/week.
maybe 40?

26. after submission
•
don’t disappear.
•
you may be asked to
provide additional
information.- may be a
small interview!!
•
start working on the
project if you have applied
only to a single project.
•
be motivated always.

27. got selected?
•
YAY! your battle has begun!
•
don’t panic. be prompt, be truthful.
•
you have one more month - community
bonding period.
•
mentors are your friends. they are
there to help you out.
•
keep in touch with the fellow dev’s.
•
remember! mentors wont write code or
write abstracts or do documentation
for you.
•
they are here to guide you and tell
you what to be done.

28. •
start with small tasks to make your
life easy.
•
never make your own decisions. consult your mentor.
•
send status updates every day. - do
not procrastinate.
•
communicate like an engineer! - don’t
give stupid reasons.
•
keep track of your progress and
backup!
•
don’t limit your scope to your project.
•
work as hard as you can, because gsoc
is one job that really pays off.

29. statutory warning!
•
don’t make incoherent excuses.
•
don’t vanish without any
explanation.
•
don’t be slow in responding to
emails.
•
don’t be unprofessional.
•
don’t be lazy.

30. but most importantly,
a word of advice from
my previous mentor…..

31. “I can accept failure, but I can’t accept not
trying.”
–Michael Jordan

32. Life after gsoc
•
the end of gsoc program is the
inception for great opportunities… if
you play your cards right!
•
jobs.
•
recommendations.
•
experience working with foreign
clients.
•
a positive online presence.
•
conferences. speaking opportunities.
•
scholarships. chance to get into
google :D

33. resources
•
https://www.google-melange.com/
gsoc/org/list/public/google/
gsoc2014
•
http://nrnb.org/gsoc/
index.html#ideas-tab
•
https://wiki.openmrs.org/display/
RES/Summer+Of+Code+2014
•
http://www.booki.cc/
gsocstudentguide/
•
https://developers.google.com/
open-source/soc/?csw=1

34. fork me @github.com/applecool;
tweet @shellzero
drop a mail: kmitharsha@gmail.com