February 2019 Summaries

The latest release of GitHub for Visual Studio introduces several new features and improvements, including the ability to view pull request conversations, enhanced status circles in the pull request list, and a streamlined experience for opening and cloning repositories. The conversations view pane allows users to participate in or catch up on discussions directly within Visual Studio, thanks to the contributions of @grokys. The updated status circles visually represent the outcome of checks in pull requests by displaying a mix of colors, an enhancement by @stanleygoldman. Improvements to the cloning and opening repositories process, led by @jcansdale, resulted in a unified tab that simplifies the user experience. Additionally, the extension now supports localization in 13 languages, matching the Visual Studio IDE, thanks to the collaboration between @stanleygoldman and Microsoft. Users are encouraged to provide feedback and contribute ideas to further enhance the extension.

Git 2.21 introduces several significant updates, including improved human-readable date formats via the `--date=human` option, which provides a more intuitive understanding of commit dates compared to previous formats. The update also addresses case-insensitive path collisions during cloning by detecting and reporting colliding file groups, thus reducing confusion when using case-insensitive file systems. Performance enhancements include the introduction of multi-pack indexes, which optimize object storage without frequent repacking, and the concept of "delta islands," which helps in serving fetches more efficiently by avoiding cross-references between separate repository branches. Additional improvements such as delta reuse with reachability bitmaps and the optimization of custom alternate reference advertisements enhance the speed and efficiency of Git operations. Moreover, user experience is refined with progress indicators for commands like `git status` and the transition of key Git functionalities from shell scripts to C for improved performance.

Courtney, a Lead DevOps Engineer for Wirecutter and a passionate open-source software maintainer, has dedicated her efforts to projects that promote online safety, data sharing, and community support. Her notable projects include the Green Book app, which facilitates information sharing among communities vulnerable to law enforcement violence; Dank Memes, a meme generator; and EvictionAnd, which maps eviction data to aid housing activists. Her involvement in these projects emerged from personal initiatives and participation in the White House LGBTQ Tech and Innovation Fellowship during the Obama administration. Despite challenges such as maintaining enthusiasm and balancing time commitments, Courtney finds joy in watching newcomers successfully contribute to her projects. She emphasizes the importance of patience, knowing one’s limits, and the value of seeking help. While she dreams of eventually compensating contributors, she currently seeks diverse contributors willing to write tests and documentation, especially those from underrepresented groups in tech.

GitHub's Security Bug Bounty program, launched in 2014, has evolved significantly, with 2018 marking a record $250,000 paid to researchers, thanks to initiatives such as researcher grants and private bug bounty programs. The program has continuously improved its processes, reducing the average time to triage and resolve vulnerabilities significantly. Notable highlights from 2018 include a GraphQL and API authorization researcher grant and participation in HackerOne's H1-702 live-hacking event, which led to numerous vulnerabilities being addressed. For 2019, GitHub announced major updates, including enhanced legal protection for researchers, an expanded scope to include more of its properties, and increased reward amounts for higher-severity vulnerabilities, emphasizing its commitment to security and collaboration with independent researchers.

Patchwork is an engaging, hands-on workshop event taking place in Austin, designed for both newcomers to GitHub and experienced mentors who wish to assist others in learning. Scheduled for February 27, 2019, from 6 to 9 pm at Microsoft's Quarry Oaks II location, the event offers participants the opportunity to explore learning modules from the GitHub Learning Lab, covering topics such as Markdown, GitHub Pages, and HTML, all within a relaxed and informal setting. Attendees will have the chance to work at their own pace, with community mentors available to provide support, and leave with practical experience such as a merged pull request and increased confidence in contributing to the open-source community. With contributions from partners like Chicktech, Microsoft, and R-Ladies Austin, the event promises an enjoyable evening of learning, networking, and snacks, complete with stickers for attendees. Participants are encouraged to create a GitHub account prior to the event, and dietary restrictions can be communicated during registration.

In celebration of Black History Month, this piece highlights William, the maintainer of GitHub Desktop, an open-source project aimed at simplifying GitHub workflows to make them more accessible and productive for developers of all skill levels. William, with a background in Computer Science and eight years of engineering experience, emphasizes the importance of creating an inclusive and approachable environment for contributors, noting that effective communication and empathy are crucial in maintaining a positive perception of the project. He shares that one of his proudest moments was collaborating with community members on a roadmap feature, which demonstrated the contributors' dedication to the project. William also discusses the challenges of code review in open-source and stresses the significance of welcoming contributors from diverse backgrounds. He advises aspiring open-source project leaders to have a clear vision, inclusive practices, and comprehensive documentation to facilitate contribution. The article is part of a series spotlighting Black maintainers and their contributions to open-source projects.

GitHub has introduced draft pull requests to facilitate early-stage collaboration by allowing developers to signal when their code is not yet ready for formal review or merging. This feature is particularly useful for projects like hackathons or preliminary discussions, enabling contributors to label their work as a draft, thus indicating it's a work in progress. Draft pull requests are visually distinct and prevent merging until the status is changed to "Ready for review," ensuring that feedback is focused on development rather than final approval. Additionally, draft pull requests suppress notifications to CODEOWNERS, minimizing unnecessary alerts until the code is ready for review. This functionality is available for use in both public and private repositories, enhancing collaboration across various GitHub environments.

The EU's controversial Copyright Directive proposal, which has been under negotiation for years, is nearing its final vote, aiming to reform copyright laws but facing criticism for certain provisions. A significant aspect of the discussions has been the potential negative impact on software development, particularly concerning Articles 11 and 13, which relate to press publishers' rights and the liability of content-sharing platforms. Developers actively participated in the dialogue, successfully advocating for the exclusion of open-source software development and sharing platforms, such as GitHub, from the requirement to filter uploaded content. This achievement underscores the importance of open-source collaboration and has heightened awareness of software development within the policy-making sphere. The Directive, if passed, will include a mandatory exception for text and data mining, crucial for AI and machine learning, while allowing press publishers to require licenses for news content usage. As the proposal moves toward final approval, developers and stakeholders are encouraged to continue engaging with policymakers to address remaining concerns about its broader implications for internet users and content creators.

Craftwork is a hands-on workshop taking place on February 20, 2019, at GitHub's San Francisco office, designed for developers of all skill levels interested in learning how to use the GitHub API to enhance developer workflows by building GitHub Apps. The session will guide attendees through creating their first GitHub App using the Probot tool and hosting code with Glitch, in a casual and supportive environment with assistance from GitHub staff. Participants will leave with a deployed GitHub App and the confidence to continue developing productivity tools for open-source projects or workplace tasks. The event promises a collaborative atmosphere with food, refreshments, and stickers provided, and requires attendees to have a GitHub account prior to the event.

Git Merge 2023, held in Brussels, was a two-day event dedicated to all things Git, drawing hundreds of business leaders, source control teams, and developers focused on the development and application of Git. The event not only fostered dialogue and collaboration among Git contributors and companies but also successfully raised a record amount for the Software Freedom Conservancy to support free and open source software. The agenda featured a strong lineup of sessions, including discussions on scaling, troubleshooting, and teaching Git, with standout presentations from industry giants like Google, Microsoft, and GitHub. A historic panel brought together team members from GitHub, GitLab, and Atlassian to discuss enterprise Git usage, and a Workshop Day offered hands-on experiences to 125 attendees. The event culminated in a Contributors Summit with almost 40 Git leaders aligning on future goals for Git development. The community's enthusiasm, inspiring content, and sponsor support were highlighted as key elements of the event's success, with session recordings to be made available online.

Dr. Shane Wilson significantly improved his teaching efficiency and student performance by integrating GitHub Classroom and Travis CI into his object-oriented programming module at Ulster University. By setting up a workflow where students use a template repository with pre-configured tests, Wilson reduced his grading time by 80% and increased the course passing rate from 76% to 90%. This system allows students to receive immediate feedback on their code through automated tests, fostering an iterative learning process that boosts their confidence in modern development workflows. The automated setup not only streamlines grading but also provides insights into student engagement, allowing Wilson to identify and assist struggling students more effectively. Despite the initial effort required to configure the setup and teach students Git, the benefits, including scalable solutions for varying class sizes and enhanced student satisfaction, have been substantial.

In celebration of Black History Month, the article highlights the contributions of Black maintainers, specifically Mark and Rachel, who are significant figures in the open-source community through their work on the End Bias Wiki (EBWiki) project. EBWiki is a crowd-sourced platform that documents cases of police violence against people of color, aiming to foster discussions on public safety and institutional racism by detailing incidents and subsequent legal or policy changes. Mark, a senior software engineer, and Rachel, a web developer, have both leveraged their expertise to enhance the project's functionality and visibility, despite the challenges of balancing it with full-time jobs. They emphasize the importance of community support, such as funding, additional contributors, and social media engagement, to sustain and grow the project. Both maintainers express the personal and professional growth they've experienced through their involvement, highlighting the significance of open-source projects in driving social change and community engagement.

The latest release introduces user-owned project boards, allowing individuals to manage work, ideas, or issues in a personal space tailored to their needs. Users can add issues and pull requests directly to their project boards or include them as references by adding URLs into notes. Up to five repositories can be linked to a project board to streamline issue tracking, and if more repositories are involved, the board will automatically search across all owned repositories. Collaboration is supported by inviting others to the project board, which can be kept private if desired, ensuring that work remains invisible to those without access. This feature is versatile for both professional and personal use, enabling users to visualize and track projects effectively.

In August 2019, GitHub announced the open-sourcing of its GitHub Actions parser and language specification, aiming to empower the developer community to create tools that enhance and manipulate workflow files. GitHub Actions, a platform for automating software development workflows, uses a workflow language based on a subset of Hashicorp's HCL, which is stricter to ensure compatibility with both text and graphical editors. The release includes a Go implementation and a developing JavaScript parser under an MIT license, with syntax-highlighting configurations for editors like Atom and Vim. This move is intended to foster community contributions, enabling developers to build and utilize tools that can run and visualize workflows beyond GitHub's ecosystem. The first project to leverage the open-source parser is "act," a tool by @nektos for running Actions workflows locally.

Release Radar's January 2019 edition highlights a variety of exciting new releases across diverse projects, all created by developers. Notable releases include gotop 2.0, a terminal-based activity monitor now featuring battery monitoring; Anime 3.0, which enhances animation capabilities in CSS and JavaScript; and Syncthing 1.0, marking a milestone in file synchronization technology. Dejavu 3.0 offers improved data exploration with Elasticsearch, while VSCodeVim 1.0 celebrates its official release, integrating Vim functionality into Visual Studio Code. Amplitude.js 4.0 enhances HTML5 audio player capabilities, and ApexCharts 3.0 refines interactive chart creation. Hue 4.0 updates its Swift library for color manipulation, TypeIt 6.0 introduces an enriched API for animated text typing, and ChatterBot 1.0 advances chatbot development with machine learning. The Lounge 3.0, a web IRC client, stands out with significant updates following extensive community collaboration. Each project showcases innovations and improvements, underscoring the vibrant activity in the tech community.

In celebration of Black History Month, Black maintainers like Safia are highlighted for their significant contributions to open source, specifically through the nteract project. Safia, a software engineer at Microsoft, is passionate about fostering community through open source and maintains nteract, a suite of tools built on the Jupyter specification to enhance interactive computing and data science workflows. Inspired by a vision for an inclusive and user-focused open source ecosystem, she actively promotes the project through various channels and values the diversity of contributions beyond just coding. Her involvement in open source has enriched her professionally by honing various skills, while also presenting unique challenges related to stereotypes faced as a Black woman in technology. The nteract project is currently seeking contributors with diverse skills, especially in design and documentation, to enhance user experience and accessibility. Safia emphasizes that successful open source projects prioritize people and relationships over technical details, encouraging an inclusive and empowering environment for collaboration.