Desarrolladores nuevos
This page explains how to get started as a developer who wants to contribute to Wikimedia technical projects.
¡Bienvenido!
La comunidad técnica de Wikimedia siempre da la bienvenida a nuevos contribuidores a nuestros proyectos.
Forma parte de una comunidad global y ayuda a que el acceso al conocimiento libre sea más fácil para todos!
How to start contributing
The following steps are a general outline of how to get started contributing:
- Learn the basics of how Wikimedia open source software projects work.
- Read the Communication guidelines.
- Set up accounts: Create a developer account. Depending on the type of contribution you want to make, you may also need to set up accounts in Phabricator, and set up Git and Gerrit.
- Escoge un proyecto de software
- Escoge y resuelve una tarea (escribe y prueba tu código)
- Envía tus cambios de código
Follow the Guide to getting your code reviewed and submit a patch.
The rest of this guide provides additional details about the process.
Basics of how Wikimedia software projects work
Wikimedia tiene cientos de proyectos de software en muchas áreas diferentes.Revisa esta presentación si quieres obtener una visión general.
Quienes mantienen a cada proyecto de software son bastante libres de elegir la infraestructura que prefieran. En general, básicamente todos los proyectos de software tienen
- Un task tracking herramienta en la que se notifican, gestionan y debaten los fallos de los programas informáticos y las solicitudes de mejora.Ejemplos son Wikimedia Phabricator, GitHub, o Sourceforge.
- a code repository where the source code can be "checked out" to everybody. Examples are Wikimedia Git/Gerrit, GitHub, or Sourceforge.
- a code review tool where proposed code changes (so-called patches) get discussed and improved. Examples are Wikimedia Git/Gerrit, GitHub, or Sourceforge. Once your proposed patch is good and is merged into the code repository, your code changes will become available to everybody. (You could read more about good practices for code review here.)
- general places for discussion of the software project and/or for receiving help and support. Those places can be mailing lists or IRC chat channels or wiki pages or other places. The exact places depend on each project. You could also contact specific mentors via "Email this user" on their user pages, but note that "questions asked in private don't help others".
At any point, if you run into problems or need help, please ask. To ask good questions in the right places, follow the "communication tips".
Escoger un proyecto de software
The following projects offer resources, mentorship, and are looking for new developers to contribute to them. Choose one of the following projects and follow the project's documentation to set up your development environment, choose a task to work on, solve the task, and submit your code changes for review. You are free to contribute to these projects or any others you are interested in related to Wikimedia. Most can be found by searching for them on Phabricator or online.
An offline reader for people without internet access
- Habilidades requeridas: Java/Kotlin (Android), Swift (iOS), Qt (desktop), NodeJS (mediawiki offliner), C++
- Ponte en contacto: Mailing list / Slack here
- ver código fuente GitHub
- Leer la general documentation y el archivo README.md del proyecto correspondiente
- Revise las tareas recomendadas para trabajar: Android, iOS, JS, mwoffliner on GitHub
- Mentor(es): Matthieu Gauthier, Emmanuel Engelhart, Stephane Coillet-Matillon
Commons App for Android
Una aplicación para dispositivos Android para subir tus fotos a Wikimedia Commons
- Habilidades requeridas: Java
- Ponte en contacto: Google Groups
- ver código fuente GitHub
- Leer la [[1]]
- Revise las tareas recomendadas para trabajar: GitHub
- Mentor(es): Josephine Lim
Wiki Education Dashboard
A web application that supports Wikipedia education assignments, provides data and course management for instructors and students
Pywikibot
A Python library and collection of scripts that automate work on MediaWiki sites.
- Habilidades requeridas: Python
- Ponte en contacto: #pywikibot connect on irc.libera.chat / Mailing list
- ver código fuente Use git para obtener el [$source source code]
- Leer la documentation
- Revise las tareas recomendadas para trabajar: Phabricator
- Mentor(es): xqt
Scribe provides Wikidata based keyboards for second language learners. Features include translation, verb conjugation and noun-gender annotation. This project is very open to those who want to learn the needed languages and how to work with Wikidata!
- Skills required: Swift for iOS; Kotlin for Android; Python and/or Wikidata Query Service for Wikidata queries and formatting
- Get in touch: GitHub or email
- Get the source code: GitHub
- Read the contribution guidelines: iOS or Android
- Check the recommended tasks: iOS or Android
- Mentor(s): Andrew McAllister
VideoCutTool
A tool to edit the videos on Wikimedia Commons.
- Skills required: React JS, Node JS.
- Get in touch: #VideoCutTool in Zulip
- Get the source code: See link in description in Phabricator
- Read the documentation
- Check the recommended tasks to work on: Phabricator
- Mentor(s): Gopa Vasanth
Are you a maintainer and want your project to be included in the list of software projects above? Find out more and join!
Outreach programs and single tasks
In addition to the recommended software projects above, there are more ways to choose a project or task to work on:
Outreach Programas
Good first tasks
However, mentors may not be available for these tasks, and your proposed patches may not receive fast reviews.
Communication tips
Follow these tips to communicate effectively and get help from community members.
Use Phabricator tasks effectively
When you plan to work on a Phabricator task:
- No need to ask for permission: You can work on unassigned tasks without asking someone to assign them to you. There is no authority who assigns tasks or who needs to be asked first.
- If a task already has a recent patch in Gerrit, choose a different task to work on instead.
- If an existing patch in Gerrit has not been merged and has not seen any changes for a long time, you could improve that existing patch, based on the feedback in Gerrit and in the task.
- Do your research: When you consider working on a task, do research before you start coding. Look at the code, try to understand what it is supposed to do, read related documentation, and try to find the places where you need to make code changes.
- In a Phabricator task, use the project tags in the side bar to find the code repository for the task.
- If you have no idea at all how to fix the bug, consider finding an easier one first.
- You do not need to announce your plans before you start working on a task, but you should communicate that you are working on the task.
- When you start work, set yourself as task assignee by clicking Edit Task… in Phabricator, and set your Phabricator username in the Assigned To field. This communicates to others that you are working on it, so they don't duplicate work.
- When your plans or interests change: If you are no longer working on a task, remove yourself as the assignee of the task. This tells others that they can work on the task, and they won't expect you to still work on it.
- Follow Phabricator etiquette.
- In Phabricator tasks, discuss only specific questions about the topic of that task. Don't use Phabricator to ask general questions, like how to set up a development environment or how to fix problems with Gerrit.
Compose good questions
- Don't ask to ask...just ask!.
- Be specific and provide context: Instead of simply asking "Can you give me more info?", "Please guide me", or "Please tell me how to start", include the following information in your question:
- What are you trying to achieve?
- What have you already tried? Copy and paste your commands and their output (if not too long) instead of paraphrasing in your own words.
- What have you found out already during your research? Include links to code, documentation, or other resources you already consulted.
- Use specific titles and subject lines in your communication. "Proposal draft" or "Need help" is not specific.
- Keep conversations readable: When you reply in Zulip, in Phabricator tasks, or on mailing lists, only quote sections of previous comments that are relevant to your response. If you quote a complete previous comment, it makes threads hard to read.
Follow communication policies and best practices
Before you send or post your question:
- Read and follow the code of conduct for Wikimedia technical spaces.
- Use inclusive language: Instead of using terms that assume a gender identity (like "guys", "madam", or "sir") use the name of the person instead.
Ask in the right place
- Ask in public: Do not send private messages if your conversation topic is not secret. Private messages don't help others.
- Ask and discuss in the best place:
- In Phabricator tasks, discuss only specific questions about the topic of that task.
- Ask general technical questions, like how to set up a development environment or how to fix problems with Gerrit, in the places listed on Comunicación.
- If you take part in an outreach program, then Zulip is for discussing questions about the outreach programs themselves.
Be patient
After you post your question:
- Do not ask people for code review in a separate message. People receive Gerrit and Phabricator notifications and will respond when they can.
- When seeking input and comments, especially during weekends and holidays, you may need to wait until business hours resume. On chat channels like IRC: if nobody answers, try again at a different time; don't just give up!
- If you don't get an answer even after waiting and being patient, consider if other Communication channels might be a better place to ask your question.
Additional resources
- How to contribute lists many more ways to contribute, including areas like documentation, testing, and more.
- How to become a MediaWiki hacker: For developers who want to work on MediaWiki core or MediaWiki extensions.
- Developer hub: More resources for established Wikimedia developers.
- To ask your questions and to join general discussions, check the places listed on Communication.
- Wikimedia tutorials: An index of tutorials that feature various languages, APIs, and frameworks in the Wikimedia technology stack.