Are you contributing to Hacktoberfest? A few tips for you.
Tags: hacktoberfest, github, codenewbie, opensource
Published: 2021-10-04 10:22:57

`Hacktoberfest` is a month-long event to celebrate opensource by encouraging all to contribute to the opensource ecosystem. This year is no exception. `Hacktoberfest 2021` has been started in full swing. There are a considerable amount of contributions already. But we still have a long way to go.

This article discusses a few facts to keep us involved well with the open-source communities.

# First thing first, how to get STARTED?
To get started with Hacktoberfest, please register yourself [here](https://hacktoberfest.digitalocean.com/). You can register yourself as a contributor, project maintainer, event organizer, or all of them. Ayushi Rawat wrote an excellent article guiding us about Hacktoberfest 2021. It is a must-read.

> [https://ayushirawat.com/beginners-guide-to-hacktoberfest-2021](https://ayushirawat.com/beginners-guide-to-hacktoberfest-2021)

If you are new to open-source, this Twitter thread may come in handy.

{% twitter 1435590663035310086 %}

Also, do not miss to read this incredible article by Catalin Pit,

- [Getting Started With Open-Source: How To Contribute As A Beginner](https://catalins.tech/getting-started-with-open-source-how-to-contribute-as-a-beginner)

Alright, now the tips.

# It's NOT just the CODING alone
The Opensource contributions are not only about coding, enhancements, and bug fixes. It is way more than that. Please find your opportunities to contribute to a project's documentation, automation, build, test, and many more.

{% twitter 1444353790753214464 %}

# We all love swags, but the QUALITY Contributions first
Who doesn't love Hacktoberfest swags? The stickers, t-shirts are the most fantastic rewards that one can get. But hold on. Do not target that alone. It would be a wrong move on your part to spam the open-source projects for swags.

{% twitter 1444908441898786816 %}

# FOUR contributions are too less and way more
You need to try creating at least 4 `quality` pull requests to get acknowledged by the Hactoborfest community.

![Acknowledgement](https://cdn.hashnode.com/res/hashnode/image/upload/v1633338717393/TfuWKuSYX.png)

The number four could be very few for some or a bit more for a few. Try your best to reach this mark without creating spam. If you can continue beyond the four, it's truly amazing.

# Maintainers ENCOURAGE Contributors
The open-source project maintainers have a significant stake in the Hacktoberfest event. They put forward their projects, guide issues, handle PRs, may mentor contributors. 

If you have a public GitHub repository and want others to contribute, please make it ready by following a few simple steps documented in this thread,

{% twitter 1440296182396309513 %}

When you start receiving contributions to your project, please acknowledge contributors' hard work, time, and effort. Something trivial to you may be just very challenging to others and vice-versa. Please be respectful. Thank them publicly for their quality contributions.

At the same time, do not tolerate malpractices. As mentioned in the thread above, create clear CODE-OF-CONDUCT and CONTRIBUTING guides.

# LIFE beyond Hacktoberfest
An event like Hacktoberfest is an excellent opportunity for the tech communities to come together, build networking, make friends for a lifetime. Try to continue to be associated with the open-source project you have contributed to before. Try to learn from the project maintainers and plan for it yourself.

> Opensource contribution is a habit. Once you build it, there is no looking back.

# Looking for a project to get started?
You can start looking here for all the projects taking part in the hacktoberfest.

- [https://github.com/topics/hacktoberfest](https://github.com/topics/hacktoberfest)

Take a look at this article by Catalin Pit on how to,

- [Find Open Source Projects To Contribute As A Beginner](https://catalins.tech/find-open-source-projects-to-contribute-as-a-beginner) 

I'm maintaining these four projects you can contribute to,

- A playground for JavaScript Web APIS

 {% github atapas/webapis-playground no-readme %}

- A tool to create, manage, export, and share shapes

 {% github TryShape/tryshape no-readme %}

- A notification widget

 {% github atapas/notifyme no-readme %}

- A bunch of resources/quizzes help you to prepare with JavaScript Async operations and promises.

 {% github atapas/promise-interview-ready no-readme %}

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That's all for now. I hope you found this article informative, and it will help you to get started with Hacktoberfest.

Let's connect. You can find me on,
- [GitHub(atapas)](https://github.com/atapas)
- [Twitter](https://twitter.com/tapasadhikary)