How to find your happy place in the world of R package development

Why contribute to open-source?

• Enjoy it?

• Giving back?

• Skill development?

• Exposure?

R package development?

There are other ways to contribute including community building.

This slidedeck focuses on R package development. 😉

Find your happy place

Especially is open-source work happens in your free time.

Right amount of time, right task fit.

Your package(s)

• Ownership can be great! Your rules, your name.

• Beware of burn-out

Your package(s)

Your package(s)

Interactions with users and contributors!

Both rewarding and time-consuming

Make your repo a friendly place

• Contributing guide (what are your expectations?)

• Code of Conduct

• Governance file?

Others’ packages?

• A way for you to start

• A way for you to concentrate on your strengths

• What you actually want to do!

Others’ packages

• First watch development and interactions, read contributing guide.

• Start interacting in the repo.

Others’ packages

What packages? Packages…

• … that you use

• … corresponding to your skillset or skills you want to learn

• … that have room for external contributions

• … where your work is valued!

[blog] Thank you to our contributors. Our community, built on trust, binds us together and helps us see who we are working for. A blog post, and a thread. 1/8https://t.co/s6yCPwJMtc#rstats

— rOpenSci (@rOpenSci) December 23, 2019

A big thanks to @chrisderv who has been a great help throughout the tidyverse and r-lib filing issues, helping with reprexes, and making pull requests!

— Hadley Wickham (@hadleywickham) December 12, 2018

Others’ packages

Now often your name won’t be on it, maybe only in the changelog.

How to still display your skills? Blogging, talks?

Disclaimer

This was a very brief presentation, and a complex topic.

Further resources

• book “Working in Public: The Making and Maintenance of Open Source Software” by Nadia Eghbal

• rOpenSci contributing guide by Stefanie Butland and Steffi LaZerte

• rOpenSci collaborating guide by the rOpenSci editorial team

Thank you!

Thanks for listening, thanks R-Ladies Bergen for organizing! 🙏

Happy R package development! 📦

https://tiny.cc/r-pkg