Google Code-in/Participants

If you are considering to participate in the next round of Google Code-in, first get an overview of the contest rules and then learn how to participate below.

Steps to participate

 * 1) Register for the contest on the Google Code-in website once the contest has started
 * 2) Search for a Wikimedia task that is a good fit with your interests and skill set
 * 3) Claim a task and start working following the instructions in the task. You can work only on one task at a time
 * 4) Submit your work and wait to receive feedback from mentors
 * 5) Incorporate mentors feedback and resubmit your work for review
 * 6) Repeat steps 2-6 when your task is approved

Getting started recommendations
Recommendations for docs to read for coding and non-coding tasks and communication tips while reaching out for help:

Read the documentation

 * Coding task
 * For a task about contributing to MediaWiki, follow the steps in the How to become a MediaWiki hacker tutorial to set up the development environment, download the code repository from Git, and submit patches for review in Gerrit.
 * Some helpful tips:
 * Set up the development environment via the MediaWiki-Vagrant method instead of the manual process. It is a virtual machine that has the basic wiki software and various common extensions pre-configured.
 * Test your patch before submitting it for review in Gerrit. If you haven't done so, mention this in a comment in Gerrit.
 * If you have no idea at all how to start working on a task and what the task is about, consider finding an easier task first.
 * Tasks in the Phabricator task tracker have a 'Tags' section in the upper right corner. The tag name tells you a lot: what project the task is about, Git repository where you might find the related code, etc.
 * Non-coding task
 * For tasks related to contributing to documentation, outreach, design, research of Wikimedia projects, read our How to Contribute tutorial.

Communicate

 * To communicate with a mentor connect to the IRC channel they are frequently available at and send them a message. There is a list of mentors on the wiki page of this year's program. There you could also find the mentor's preferred method of contact
 * For a task related question comment in the related Phabricator task
 * For a contest specific question ask on the Freenode IRC channel
 * Some helpful tips:
 * Before asking a question, do some basic research yourself first on the task and on the related issues you are facing
 * Look at the code, try to understand what it is supposed to do, and try to find the probable place(s) where you need to make changes in order to fix the bug
 * What do I have to do to work on this? is not a good question to start with. The more specific your questions are, the more likely somebody can answer them quickly
 * Be patient when seeking input and comments. Your mentor will not always be around or awake, please just ask as other people might also be able to help
 * If you do not get an immediate response on an IRC channel, please ask on the phabricator task or wiki page related to the problem
 * To get faster help from other members of our community, introduce yourself as a Google Code-in student in our communication channels
 * Avoid private emails or reaching out via our social media channels

Related blogposts

 * Pre-university students contribute to Wikimedia in Google Code-in 2016, Andre Klapper
 * My walk with Wikimedia—Google Code-in participant speaks out, Justin Du

Stay Tuned!

 * Follow MediaWiki on Twitter and Facebook for program updates.
 * Join the wikitech-l mailing list to follow and take part in general technical announcements about Wikimedia.
 * Ask us almost anything on the Freenode IRC channel.