71–80 of 80 posts
I imagine Google, like many tech companies, still depends on many Open Source projects and appreciates cheap labor, so it may be worth it to keep GSoC running for a while.
Can I still take part in Summer of Code even though I have graduated college? When I graduated in December 2020 I did a bit of Help Desk work and then moved on to be a Systems Analyst, but I have been thinking pretty heavily on switching over to being a software engineer. Having this on my resume would absolutely help my prospects
I really wanted to do GSoC last year. However, I am in the Southern Hemisphere, and in contrast to the long Northern Hemisphere summer holiday, during this time we have a short winter holiday of only a few weeks. This year I still want to do it, but I have the same problem — April to August is simply not a workable time period for me. Thus: does anyone know if there are similar initiatives to connect students with me…
Some advices for a first timer? I'm considering sending a proposal to strace but I'm reading some part of the source code, (git-blaming around) but I don't think I understand it enough to modify it ...
Sure[0]:
* Send a proposal to strace. :)
Additionally:
(a) As others have mentioned, it's entirely normal to initially feel like one doesn't understand a new code-base of non-trivial size enough to modify it. One of the skills that participating in a programme like GSoC can provide is learning the tools & strategies that you can use to assist in growing your understanding of new code bases.[1]
(b) From an outside perspective, the fact you're aware of the existence of `strace`, have an interest in contributing to the project & have already poked around in the source code in an attempt to understand it are big positive indicators & differentiate you.
(c) That you're using a tool like `git blame` to assist in your exploration indicates that you've already learned some of the tools/strategies you can use which is also a positive. (As an aside, today I learned about the tool `git-dive` which is intended to be a more powerful form of `git blame`, you might be interested in checking it out: https://github.com/gitext-rs/git-dive>)
(d) Also, with regard to `strace` specifically, you might gain some insight from this recent video: "strace feels like magic — let's fix that (with Rust)" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=engduNoI6DE>. While the video uses Rust for the implementation it also provides a general overview of how `strace` works. (This might be a useful intro to Rust syntax, if you're not currently familiar: https://fasterthanli.me/articles/a-half-hour-to-learn-rust> (BTW, it is also extremely normal to not understand everything/anything about Rust code on first sight. :) ))
(e) Personally, in the past I've found it extremely easy to talk myself out of submitting proposals for opportunities such as this but my current perspective is: if I have doubts about whether or not I'm experienced/qualified enough to submit a proposal then I'm definitely not qualified to evaluate whether I should submit a proposal--so I definitely should submit a proposal to give those who are qualified the opportunity to evaluate it. (After all, if you don't currently maintain the `strace` project you have no idea what their experience has taught them is important in order for people to successfully contribute.)
Hope some of that is useful.
[0] re: "advices" -- in this context, "advice" is the preferred word[2]. I mention this as written communication is important & based on your previous HN comments this seems to be a pattern of incorrect pluralization rather than a typo. Note: I do not have perfect grammar. :)
[1] Also, I would encourage you to take notes of what you don't understand or issues you ran into when you start exploring a project. You can then document these hurdles/barriers to new contributors for the project so that maintainers are (at least) aware of them. This is one situation where your relative inexperience with a project is in itself valuable because your perspective is one maintainers no longer have. (And such hurdles are important to identify for projects that are actively looking to attract & nurture new contributors.)
[2] https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/advices>
Mixxx I don't use it myself. But it's good to see an open source solution in the DJ ecosystem. More and more DJ software go the monthly subscription route. Oh BTW, if someone is bored: I think this library needs some RUST dev help: https://github.com/Holzhaus/rekordcrate/pull/71 In theory, this library would allow open source project to write "Pioneer rekordbox usb keys" Pioneer hardware are used in a lot of clubs ar…
Out of curiosity, is that because you don't DJ, so have no use for the software; or, because you do DJ but use something else? :)
Either way, I concur with your Mixxx assessment!
While I haven't mixed or mixxxed for a while (too long?), I have used Mixxx for all my DJing (with a Vestax controller) over the years in a variety of environments from house parties to the playa to camp outs to a community hall to a local bar (perhaps the pinnacle of my DJing "career" as the dance floor included an A-List actor who I didn't even notice because I was just happy that I'd managed to get dance floor so crowded :D ).
It was a reliable & useful tool and even at that time offered features that other "free" versions of closed/proprietary DJ software specifically excluded such as set recording.
At one point I was exploring running Mixxx on a Raspberry Pi 3 with a dedicated small screen in an attempt to move past the "DJ Staring at Laptop" look but while I did get it (barely) running on that platform it really required more RAM & processor power. (My understanding is that people have by now successfully gotten it running on RPi 4 in that sort of configuration.)
Mixxx has the potential to be an interesting FLOSS project case study, I think, because they have unusually thorough & well-presented documentation (https://manual.mixxx.org/2.3/en/); they compete with multiple extremely popular "free" versions of commercial/proprietary software in the non-trivial audio software niche; they have what I consider one of the best (if not the best) custom UI styles in FLOSS which is functional, visually distinct & stylish (e.g. https://manual.mixxx.org/2.3/en/_images/mixer-section.png>); and, have enough community participation to manage at least yearly releases of various sizes.
So, yes, Mixxx is a great project & surely one that is more exciting to work on for GSoC than... I dunno, some database system that isn't used by super-cool DJs to entertain hundreds of people around the world. :D
GSoC basically changed my entire career. I'm glad that Google keeps this running, especially given that they got rid of other cool competitions like Codejam. Hopefully, they can continue finding the budget for these extremely valuable contributions to open-source.
How did it impact you, if I may ask?
GSoC basically allowed me to jump into an open-source project (no credentials needed), prove that I'm skilled enough to contribute and gain meaningful experience solving real world problems. This then snowballed into larger career opportunities later down the line.
GSoC basically changed my entire career. I'm glad that Google keeps this running, especially given that they got rid of other cool competitions like Codejam. Hopefully, they can continue finding the budget for these extremely valuable contributions to open-source.
do share some google employment stories, as these are aging well haha
Earlier quoted context omitted.
do share some google employment stories, as these are aging well haha
Sigh. Lots, arguably most, of those laid off were tech-adjacent, not necessarily the core-engineering types that would have been doing GSoC. Plus GSoC is for the youngbloods, the noobs, and getting their feet wet with real code and big orgs. It's a career starter, not a career bastion.
Mixxx I don't use it myself. But it's good to see an open source solution in the DJ ecosystem. More and more DJ software go the monthly subscription route. Oh BTW, if someone is bored: I think this library needs some RUST dev help: https://github.com/Holzhaus/rekordcrate/pull/71 In theory, this library would allow open source project to write "Pioneer rekordbox usb keys" Pioneer hardware are used in a lot of clubs ar…
> I don't use it myself. Out of curiosity, is that because you don't DJ, so have no use for the software; or, because you do DJ but use something else? :) Either way, I concur with your Mixxx assessment! While I haven't mixed or mixxxed for a while (too long?), I have used Mixxx for all my DJing (with a Vestax controller) over the years in a variety of environments from house parties to the playa to camp outs to a co…
Used Rekordbox and now I use traktor. I only quickly tried it 2 years ago with a DDJ-400 and somehow the mapping was not working correctly. I did not want to fiddle with it at that time. Buy maybe I will give it a go again at some point.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
> I don't use it myself. Out of curiosity, is that because you don't DJ, so have no use for the software; or, because you do DJ but use something else? :) Either way, I concur with your Mixxx assessment! While I haven't mixed or mixxxed for a while (too long?), I have used Mixxx for all my DJing (with a Vestax controller) over the years in a variety of environments from house parties to the playa to camp outs to a co…
I do DJ from time to time and use something else. Used Rekordbox and now I use traktor. I only quickly tried it 2 years ago with a DDJ-400 and somehow the mapping was not working correctly. I did not want to fiddle with it at that time. Buy maybe I will give it a go again at some point.
Also, apparently someone used a DDJ-400 as part of a RPi-based standalone setup: https://djtechtools.com/2020/11/05/building-a-standalone-ddj...