Welcome new Contributors! | Important information for GSoC 2023 (bookmark this email)

[Joseph P. De Veaugh-Geiss]

An update: With GitLab it is *no longer necessary* to have a developer 
account to fully contribute to KDE software. You can ignore step 2 in 
the announcement below. My apologies for any confusion!

I also wanted to add: There is active discussion among KDE developers at 
the *KDE Development Matrix room*, if you would like to join us there too.

   https://matrix.to/#/#kde-devel:kde.org

All the best as you get started with GSoC 2023!

Joseph

On 5/5/23 12:28, Joseph P. De Veaugh-Geiss wrote:
> Welcome, new Contributors! We are thrilled to have you working with KDE 
> in GSoC 2023. Congratulations on having your proposal accepted!
> 
> In this email we will help guide you through 5 steps for a successful 
> project. There is no tl;dr because all Contributors should read all the 
> way through this text to make sure GSoC goes as smoothly as possible. 
> Please bookmark this email so you can refer back to it later when needed.
> 
> The five steps to a successful project are:
> 
>   1. Subscribing To Various *Communication Channels* (KDE Mailing Lists, 
> Matrix Rooms)
>   2. Getting A *Developer Account*
>   3. Keeping *Status Reports* Up-To-Date During GSoC
>   4. *Blogging* Progress Updates With Planet KDE
>   5. Understanding *Expectations For Communication* During GSoC
> 
> Each of the above is important and should not be seen as optional. Read 
> through the information here carefully. We want success for you and the 
> mentors and this information will help us all achieve our goals!
> 
> If you have an administration issue, you may write to us directly, but 
> please read through this email before doing so: kde-soc-management [at] 
> kde.org
> 
> _1. Communication Channels_
> 
> This is the first topic for a reason: it enables good communication 
> across Contributors and teams, which is critical for success. The last 
> topic is what we expect for communication during GSoC. Communication is 
> so important it both starts and ends this email!
> 
> For the duration of GSoC, it is necessary to sign up to a few mailing 
> lists (kde-soc, your team's list, kde-devel, kde-community, etc.) and a 
> Matrix room (#kde-soc:kde.org).
> 
> Mailing lists are an old technology, but they are very useful when 
> communicating with multiple teams. Most KDE lists are used for 
> well-defined discussions. For GSoC, the most critical ones are the 
> *kde-soc* list and *your team's list* (if they have one) -- see below 
> for more information. When subscribing to these lists, make sure "Digest 
> Mode" is *disabled* so you receive single posts in real time. For all 
> other mailing lists, you can enable "Digest Mode" to get posts bundled 
> together (usually one per day but possibly more on busy lists).
> 
> The most important mailing list is "*kde-soc*". This is where KDE 
> contacts Contributors to programs like GSoC (FYI it is also used for 
> Season of KDE, or SoK). While GSoC is ongoing, you must stay subscribed 
> to the list so we can address all Contributors at one time. This is the 
> official channel of communication between KDE and GSoc Contributors!
> 
>      https://mail.kde.org/mailman/listinfo/kde-soc
> 
> Another important mailing list, if the team has one, is to subscribe to 
> *your own team's mailing list*. Ask the project mentors about a team 
> mailing list which you should subscribe to.
> 
> Yet another list very important for KDE developers, now including you, 
> is the list "*kde-devel*". This is where KDE developers discuss 
> development of KDE applications. The kde-devel list is for /all/ 
> developers contributing to KDE. This is your opportunity to discuss with 
> the wider KDE developer community.
> 
>     https://mail.kde.org/mailman/listinfo/kde-devel
> 
> You will also need to join the *kde-community* mailing list, which is a 
> place for non-technical information and discussions which are relevant 
> to the KDE community as a whole. Non-technical work and community 
> discussions are as important to KDE as software engineering!
> 
>    https://mail.kde.org/mailman/listinfo/kde-community
> 
> Finally, we strongly recommend registering for Akademy. Akademy is a 
> week-long event when the KDE community comes together to exchange 
> information about what is happening at KDE. This year Akademy will take 
> place 15-21 July online and in Thessaloniki, Greece. It will be 
> informative and, as always, great fun!
> 
>    https://akademy.kde.org/2023/
> 
> Beyond mailing lists, Matrix is also used at KDE to chat in real-time. 
> Using your preferred Matrix client -- consider trying out KDE's NeoChat 
> :) [1] -- sign up to the *#kde-soc:kde.org* room for GSoC Contributors 
> and mentors (again, the room is also used for Season of KDE):
> 
>    https://webchat.kde.org/#/room/#kde-soc:kde.org.
> 
> Your team may also have a Matrix room they use. Ask your mentors about 
> this!
> 
> Although Matrix is very useful for quick and ephemeral communication, 
> never forget: the "*kde-soc*" mailing list is the official channel of 
> communication between KDE and GSoc Contributors!
> 
> A list of additional Free Software communication and collaboration tools 
> used at KDE (such as BigBlueButton and NextCloud) can be found here:
> 
>    https://community.kde.org/Welcome_to_KDE#Get_involved
> 
> Talk to the team about their preferred communication channels and 
> collaboration tools, and use them!
> 
> _2. Developer Account_
> 
> By now you should have your developer account set up so that you can 
> commit to your team's codebase and review the commits of your fellow 
> developers.
> 
> If you do not have a developer account, ask at the kde-soc [at] kde.org 
> mailing list for help.
> 
> _3. Status Reports_
> 
> We have created a wiki page for Status Reports. You can copy the content 
> from the template there and use it to write your own report over the 
> course of GSoC. *Keep these reports up-to-date during GSoC.* Upon 
> completion of GSoC the full report will be the final link to send to 
> Google.
> 
>     https://community.kde.org/GSoC/2023/StatusReports
> 
> _4. Blogging With Planet KDE_
> 
> Don't forget to add your blog to Planet KDE (https://planet.kde.org/) if 
> you have not yet done so. Planet KDE is an aggregator that collects blog 
> posts from people who contribute to KDE. Here you will share your 
> progress updates with the community. Posting frequently is important. 
> The community is eager to learn about your exciting work, and successful 
> Free Software projects keep the community engaged.
> 
>    https://invent.kde.org/websites/planet-kde-org/
> 
> Here is an example MR for adding a blog to Planet KDE:
> 
> 
> https://invent.kde.org/websites/planet-kde-org/-/merge_requests/115/diffs.
> 
> _5. Expectations For Communication_
> 
> Communication is critical for success in GSoC and beyond. Please read 
> carefully and ask if you have questions!
> 
> Use the kde-soc mailing list to ask one another questions, keeping in 
> mind that most subscribers are fellow students, although some 
> administrators, mentors, and former students in GSoC and SoK are 
> subscribed as well. Although many issues will be discussed directly with 
> your project's team and KDE members over public channels (e.g., GitLab), 
> questions that your fellow GSoC Contributors can answer are very welcome 
> here!
> 
> KDE's reason for participating in Google Summer of Code is not to get 
> code from you. Instead, our goal is new KDE Developers! This is why we 
> require frequent communication from you, each of you, with your team and 
> your mentor(s).
> 
> Like with any Free Software project developed in the open, KDE 
> contributors notice who asks questions, and who is helpful to their 
> fellow students. Asking questions can be scary, but it also shows 
> engagement with a project and an eagerness to learn, two qualities that 
> will take you far in GSoC and in life.
> 
> Private communication is OK if you are passing along truly private 
> information, such as your private contact information. Otherwise, it is 
> important that all communication be public. Open development is 
> fundamental to a healthy project, and like many Free Software projects 
> we at KDE develop software completely in the open.
> 
> Remember, this is not a competition. We are all in this together, and 
> helping one another is what KDE is all about. We are a community who 
> makes software. We welcome each of you into this diverse and growing 
> group of software engineers, artists, writers, translators and creators, 
> and more!
> 
> The KDE Code of Conduct offers some guidance to ensure KDE participants 
> can cooperate effectively in a positive and inspiring atmosphere, and to 
> explain how together we can strengthen and support each other. Please 
> read it here:
> 
>    https://kde.org/code-of-conduct/
> 
> Feel free to respond to this email at kde-soc with questions and 
> requests for clarification.
> 
> All the best and welcome to the community!
> 
> Joseph (on behalf of the KDE GSoC administration team)
> 
> [1] NeoChat (Matrix client): https://apps.kde.org/neochat/
> 

-- 
Joseph P. De Veaugh-Geiss
KDE Internal Communications & KDE Eco Community Manager
OpenPGP: 8FC5 4178 DC44 AD55 08E7 DF57 453E 5746 59A6 C06F
Matrix: @joseph:kde.org

Generally available Monday-Thursday from 10-16h CET/CEST. Outside of 
these times it may take a little longer for me to respond.

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