Pull Request

a pull request is a way for contributors to submit changes to a project for review and inclusion by the maintainers. This is an important part of the collaborative development process in open source projects.

 

Here’s how it works: when you make changes to a project, you create a new “branch” in the project’s repository that contains your changes. You can then submit a pull request to the maintainers of the project, asking them to review your changes and merge them into the main branch of the project.

 

The maintainers of the project will then review your changes and decide whether to merge them into the main branch. If they accept your changes, they will “merge” your branch into the main branch, and your changes will become part of the project.

 

Example of a pull request on Github

Pull Request Process

When someone submits a pull request on an open source project, there are a few key steps that happen on both sides:

  1. The contributor makes changes to the project and creates a new branch in the project’s repository that contains their changes.

  2. The contributor submits a pull request to the maintainers of the project, asking them to review and merge their changes into the main branch of the project.

  3. The maintainers of the project receive the pull request and review the changes that have been made. They may ask the contributor to make additional changes or provide more information before they can merge the changes.

  4. If the maintainers are satisfied with the changes, they will “merge” the contributor’s branch into the main branch of the project. This will make the changes part of the project, and they will be available to all users.

  5. The contributor will receive a notification that their changes have been merged into the project. They can then continue to work on the project, or submit more changes in the future.

 

Best First-Time Pull Requests

the best type of first pull request will depend on your skills and interests, as well as the needs of the project. The important thing is to find something that you are interested in and that you think you can contribute to. If you are new to open source and are looking for a good first pull request to submit, here are a few suggestions:

  1. Documentation updates: Many open source projects need help with their documentation. You can look for typos, clarifications, or areas that need more information, and submit a pull request to update the documentation.

  2. Bug fixes: Many open source projects have a list of known bugs that need to be fixed. You can look for a bug that you think you can fix, and submit a pull request with your proposed fix.

  3. Small enhancements: If you have an idea for a small improvement to the project, you can submit a pull request with your proposed changes. This could be something like adding a new feature or improving an existing one.

  4. Tests: Many open source projects need more test coverage to ensure that the software is working correctly. You can submit a pull request that adds new tests to the project.

Here is an example of the message that you might include in a pull request:

Hi maintainers,
I’ve made some changes to the project that I’d like you to review and merge.

Here’s a summary of the changes:
– Fixed a bug where the software crashed when the user entered an invalid input
– Added a new feature that allows the user to customize the color of the interface
– Updated the documentation to reflect the changes in the latest version of the software
I’ve included a detailed description of the changes and a test plan in the pull request.

Let me know if you have any questions or if you need any additional information.

Thanks,
[Your name]

In this example, the contributor is letting the maintainers know about the changes they have made to the project, and is asking for the maintainers to review and merge their changes. The message includes a summary of the changes, as well as any additional information that the maintainers might need to review the changes.
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