Contributing to the communityAn introduction to Drupal stardom
Sunday 22 September 13
O! Hai there!
• Matthias “Netsensei” Vandermaesen
• Full time Drupal ninja @xiobelgium
• @netsensei
• http://www.colada.be
Sunday 22 September 13
“Community?”
Sunday 22 September 13
• What is this “Community”?
• How do I join?
• Why should I join?
• What’s next?
Big questions
Sunday 22 September 13
Keywords
• Community contributing
• “ The Drop is always moving”
• “Come for the software, stay for the community”
• Dries B.
• ...
Sunday 22 September 13
This is the community
Sunday 22 September 13
It’s about sharing
• Code
• Knowledge
• Common goals & values
• Friendship
Sunday 22 September 13
Drupal project
• The Drupal project
• Open source
• Community driven
• Dries (Our Beloved Leader)
Sunday 22 September 13
Where are they?
• http://drupal.org AKA d.o
• IRC: Freenode: #drupal, #drupal-contribute
• Meetings, conferences, user groups,...
• Social media
Sunday 22 September 13
How do I join?
Sunday 22 September 13
Contributions!
Sunday 22 September 13
Code(obviously)
Sunday 22 September 13
Hold your horses!Collaborative participation is key
Sunday 22 September 13
Sunday 22 September 13
Patches
• Most code is contributed in this way!
• Bug fixes
• Improvements
• Some are small, some are massive
Sunday 22 September 13
The d.o issue queue!And your personal d.o profile
Sunday 22 September 13
Dreditor
• Drupal Editor
• Chrome extension
• Inline code review of patches
• Souper easy!!
Sunday 22 September 13
Simplytest.me
• http://simplytest.me
• Provides sandbox environments
• Test modules & patches
• Simple, fast, free!
Sunday 22 September 13
Creating patches
• Git
• Tutorial
• http://jacine.net/post/8419331209/patches
Sunday 22 September 13
Co-maintain
• Projects looking for co-maintainers
• https://drupal.org/taxonomy/term/9990
• Get in touch via their issue queue
• Gauge the level of expected engagement
• Maintain a subsystem, a branch,...
• Take over the entire module
Sunday 22 September 13
A new project
• Start a d.o sandbox
• https://drupal.org/node/1011196
• Apply for promotion to a full project
• https://drupal.org/node/1015224
Sunday 22 September 13
A new project
• Pro’s
• Get your name known
• See people use your code
• Learn valuable lessons about coding, managing, collaboration, communication,...
Sunday 22 September 13
A new project
• Con’s
• Responsibility
• Engagement can be demanding
• “have to” keep up with the Drop
Sunday 22 September 13
Drupal Ladder
• http://drupalladder.org/
Sunday 22 September 13
Knowledge
Sunday 22 September 13
Learning / Sharing
Sunday 22 September 13
Learning
• Self study
• Via mentors
• Dedicated training
• Events
Sunday 22 September 13
Learning!
• Pick a concrete problem
• Something that nags you
• Don’t look very far!
• Pick a topic which intrigues you
• Shouldn’t get boring too quickly
Sunday 22 September 13
Learning!
• Documentation
• No-brainers:
• d.o documentation
• http://planet.drupal.org
• #freenode IRC
• YouTube, Vimeo,...
Sunday 22 September 13
Learning!
• Look for a mentor
• d.o profile!
• Hook up with other Drupal users
• Local hackerspace, DUG, school, workplace,...
Sunday 22 September 13
Blogging
• Keep it simple at first!
• Register a blog
• wordpress.com, drupalgardens.com,...
• Make sure you have an RSS feed!
• Focus on writing great content ...
Sunday 22 September 13
Blogging
• ... but write about... what?
• Solutions for daily annoyances
• Something awesome you did
• Keep a list with topics & ideas!
• Evernote, Wunderlist,... or a moleskine
• Topic should intrigue you first!
Sunday 22 September 13
Screencasts
• Videos of how you do X or Y
• Verbose / Terse
• Short (10 - 15 min)
• YouTube = place 2 publish
Sunday 22 September 13
Screencasts
• Notable examples
• http://mustardseedmedia.com/podcast
• http://codekarate.com
• http://nodeone.se/sv/learn-drupal
Sunday 22 September 13
Speaking
Sunday 22 September 13
(Psst! I really want to be in my happy place right now)
Sunday 22 September 13
Speaking
• Propose a session
• DUG, DrupalCamp, DrupalCon
• Preparation
• Pick a topic you’re in to
• Start preparing in time
• Practice!
Sunday 22 September 13
Don’t be scared!You’ll do better then you think
Sunday 22 September 13
Uh-oh!Impediments
Sunday 22 September 13
Excuses
• Family life
• Other activities
• “I already do enough Drupal at work”
• “Work for me ends at 5PM”
• “I just don’t care”
• ...
Sunday 22 September 13
TimeEffort
Sunday 22 September 13
Find ways
• Be realistic about available time
• Don’t be under/over ambitious
• Prioritize
• You can contribute in <30 minutes
• During daily commute
• Instead of watching TV
Sunday 22 September 13
You are not ...It’s not a competition
Sunday 22 September 13
So, why should I contribute?
Sunday 22 September 13
Level up your code
• Gain new knowledge
• Experiment with new technology
• Get feedback from others
• Improve your own code
Sunday 22 September 13
Improve soft skills
• Lurk in the community
• Actively engage in discussions
• Try to see the bigger picture
• Don’t be an ***hole
• Become an authoritative voice
Sunday 22 September 13
Know thy selve
• Learn to deal with people
• Be focussed
• Be committed
• Be realistic
• Pay it forward
• Impress yourself
Sunday 22 September 13
Keep up with the DropPsst! Drupal 8 is coming!!
Sunday 22 September 13
Why should my company contribute?
Sunday 22 September 13
Level up your team
• Challenge your team members
• Look for problems/applications on the workfloor
• Establish a positive feedback loop
• Knowledge is The Prize
• Learning = evolution
• Developer happiness
Sunday 22 September 13
Level up your workflow
• Be critical about yourself
• Can it be done better, next time?
• Increases productivity
• Avoid re-inventing the wheel
• Apply soft skills when engaging with clients
Sunday 22 September 13
“Do no evil”
• Collaborate beyond your company
• Share knowledge
• Share code
• Be open about what you do
• Your offices should not be isolated islands
Sunday 22 September 13
Then again...
• It’s great advertising/marketing!
• Your team knows their toolbelt
• Your team is engaged & proactive
• Shows genuine concern
• You’re open about how you work
• Displays craftmanship
Sunday 22 September 13
How?
• Create creative space
• Get interesting clients/projects
• Don’t go for the easy ones
• Engage/Empower your team
• Ask their commitment, don’t take it
• Give them responsibility
Sunday 22 September 13
How?
• Show you care about community
• Validate your employees’ ideas
• Provide regular feedback
• Don’t stand on the side-line
• Create enough “creative headroom”
Sunday 22 September 13
How?
• Assign an internal “community manager”
• Set up regular community meetings
• Open up your offices for events
• Organize training sessions
Sunday 22 September 13
How?
• What about “Google time”?
• Doesn’t work...
• ... unless there’s are concrete ideas
• ... unless there are clear goals
• ... part of company culture
Sunday 22 September 13
Drupal Give
• https://drupal.org/drupalgive
Sunday 22 September 13
Thanks! Questions?
Sunday 22 September 13