Open Source Stories

Join us in our first new contributor sprint!

Mon, 07 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

We are launching this month-long sprint to scale our efforts and invite more collaborators and capture even more diverse stories.

Just keep moving - building inclusive pathways in open source with Dr. Kari L. Jordan

Fri, 27 Jun 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Dr. Kari Jordan from The Carpentries talks about her “aha moment” discovering open source and how teaching Zumba helps her create more welcoming tech communities. Discover the importance of succession planning in creating contribution pathways and the power of grassroots to help keep you going, because open source work is too important to stop.

How we show up in open source with Julia Silge

Wed, 15 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Ever wonder if you’re the only one who feels like open source is a mystery? Julia Silge shares how she went from thinking it was just ‘some person alone in a room’ to realizing it’s a whole world of collaboration and community! Plus, find out why being wrong on the internet isn’t so bad after all.

The Open Source Eras Tour with Erin McKean

Tue, 17 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Dive into a whimsical view of open source with Erin McKean as she examines it through the lens of Taylor Swift’s Eras. From the ‘Inventor Era’ to the ‘Responsibility Era,’ Erin explores how the focus of open source has changed over time. Discover why you need napkins and what ‘fully automated luxury space communism’ might have to do with it all!

Focus and feedback in the tidyverse

Mon, 16 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Hadley Wickham takes Tracy Teal through the evolution of the tidyverse, starting with a box of rocks all the way through to a thriving community of data scientists. Join them on the Open Source Story of the tidyverse!

The power of invitation and responsibility of leadership

Mon, 21 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Open source lets you create the experiences you want– whether it be with technology, community, or your lasting impact on the world. In his Open Source Story, Rich Bowen reflects on some of the ways in which open source has opened doors to meet those who have inspired him as well as how he thinks about opening doors for others.

Changing communities have changing needs with Andy Piper

Thu, 27 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000

In this conversation between Andy Piper and amanda casari, Andy talks about their work in open source communities, specifically highlighting how communities differ, have different needs, and how these needs change and evolve over time. Additionally the discussion covers the “non-glamourous” work that needs to be done, and how difficult it can be to know what sort of help to ask for as a project.

"Why do we code?" and other musings with Carol Willing

Sat, 18 May 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Carol Willing, a veteran programmer with a passion for making technology accessible, shares her journey from mainframe computers to the world of Python and Jupyter Notebooks. She emphasizes the importance of generalist skills, critical thinking, and building up the next generation of engineers.

Rethinking the meaning of governance with Shauna Gordon-McKeon

Thu, 26 Oct 2023 00:00:00 +0000

In a conversation looking at multiple meanings of open source governance and project health, Shauna Gordon-McKeon shares with Open Source Stories views of how investing in project culture can build virtuous cycles of inclusion and contribution. From reducing the number of roles that a maintainer might have to fill to lowering the barriers for user participation, this conversation looks to build from crisis management in 2017 to continuing improvements into the future with the ways open source projects get done.

The power and joy in collaboration with Clare Dillon

Thu, 05 Oct 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Why should open source have all the fun? Clare Dillon shares her experience in the wonderful world of innersource, the application of open source practices within organizations. Collaboration is just too exciting not to share!

Robby Russell and the happy little accidental success of Oh My Zsh

Wed, 20 Sep 2023 00:00:00 +0000

From selling stickers to creating one of the most popular projects on GitHub, Robby Russell looks back at the inception and unexpected rise of Oh My Zsh. Usefulness, creativity, and a good onboarding experience are key ingredients in this recipe.

Community health and belonging with Anita Ihuman

Tue, 25 Jul 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Measuring community health reveals challenges people experience in contributing. Anita Ihuman explains how to build awareness and leverage existing solutions for greater belonging in open source. What you measure, you can see and change!

Maintainer Month 2023 recap

Mon, 12 Jun 2023 12:26:10 -0700

2023 was the first year that Open Source Stories participated in Maintainer Month. Here’s a recap and breakdown of the true cost of participating.

The peculiarities of security maintainership with Filippo Valsorda

Tue, 16 May 2023 00:00:00 +0000

What changes when the projects you maintain are cornerstones of security? Filippo Valsorda elaborates on his experience as a cryptographer, his work in Go, and how his approach to maintainership might be a bit different from the average maintainer.

The journey to becoming a maintainer with Jessica Tegner

Fri, 12 May 2023 00:00:00 +0000

How does one pick up the maintainership baton? Turns out that you can ask for it! Jessica Tegner tells the story of how she went from contributing to pypandoc to being the maintainer of it, and of the pressures that come from maintaining a widely used project.

The critical human infrastructure of open source with Duane O’Brien

Tue, 09 May 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Open source is people and people are open source. Duane O’Brien talks about what he’s learned about supporting, connecting with, and caring for the critical human infrastructure of open source.

Open Hardware and Finding Your People with Thea Flowers

Wed, 22 Mar 2023 00:00:00 +0000

If you find yourself curious about what’s running your software, then you’re in good company! Many Makers before you have cultivated our current open hardware opportunities to make it easier to start. Python Software Foundation Fellow Thea Flowers invites us to think beyond open source software to the vibrant community of open hardware. Bodge your way to greatness! In this episode, explore the right to repair, mid-scale manufacturing, and vinyl for video game soundtracks. Join Open Source Stories in finding your people.

VM Brasseur on free and open source ecosystems and culture

Thu, 09 Mar 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Free and open source software is, or can be, a public good. But, VM Brasseur finds that for some, it may have gotten disconnected from its open culture roots. In this open source story, VM talks about motivations behind FOSS, how they have shifted, and how those who work in free and open source software can help recenter principles of openness.

Alex Cabal and the Standard Ebooks "saga"

Thu, 26 Jan 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Open source, the public domain, and various freedoms take center stage in the story behind Standard Ebooks. Learn about Standard Ebooks, a project founded by Alex Cabal to solve one particular problem, and how it brought together contributors with diverse sets of talents to make public domain literature works of art.

John Minnihan and the genesis of hosted source control

Mon, 26 Dec 2022 00:00:00 +0000

John Minnihan walks through the creation of Freepository, the first hosted source control service, how it paved the way for lowering the barrier to participation in open source, and evolution of version control systems.

Richard Littauer talks about birds, hats, and commitments

Thu, 09 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +0000

When you focus more on connections than commit-ments in open source, what do you say yes to? Richard talks about open source as an evolving collective and commons unbounded by strict definitions, working in the open with creativity and joy, and the practices which allow him to sustain himself as a collaborator.

Eriol Fox on open source design

Sun, 05 Jun 2022 00:00:00 +0000

What is open source design? Eriol dives into how designers contribute to open source, resources for designers looking to contribute to open source, and how incorporating design work into open source projects benefits the contributors and community using it.

Dawn Wages on being an ethical open source engineer

Thu, 21 Apr 2022 13:00:00 -0700

How do we incorporate ethics into open source and software development at large? Dawn Wages describes some of the ways that she embraces ethical open source engineering, including exploring her guiding principles around how she makes technology decisions. Learn about how she works to bring anti-racist practices to the open source ecosystem.

Emma Irwin and open source maintainership

Wed, 20 Apr 2022 13:25:00 -0700

Emma Irwin explores a nuanced view of open source maintainership in today’s landscape, digging into what characteristics good maintainers cultivate, what role mentoring plays in maintainership, and how history influences who becomes a maintainer.

Nicolas Steenhout explores the intersection of accessibility and open source

Thu, 03 Mar 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Nic Steenhout recounts how barriers to access led him to getting involved in the open source community, reflects on challenges that accessibility advocates face in the ecosystem, and gives some advice to projects on how to prove their commitment to accessibility.

Elana Hashman on the evolution of open source

Thu, 18 Nov 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Elana Hashman recounts her first contribution to open source, the ecosystem’s potential, how norms have changed over the years, and what keeps her involved and contributing.

Samson Goddy : le pouvoir de centrer le code ouvert sur les besoins de la communauté

Sat, 23 Oct 2021 09:27:22 -0500

Samson échange avec Amanda sur son parcours de toute une vie dans le code ouvert, pourquoi il est si important de développer une culture du partage, et comment ses premières expériences ont influencé où et comment il a investi son énergie pour recentrer le noyau du code ouvert.

Samson Goddy on the power of centering open source on community needs

Sat, 23 Oct 2021 09:27:22 -0500

Samson talks with amanda about his lifelong journey in open source, why growing a culture of sharing is so important, and how his early experiences influenced where and how he has directed his energy into re-centering the nexus of open source.

Samson Goddy sobre el poder de centrar el código abierto en las necesidades de la comunidad

Sat, 23 Oct 2021 09:27:22 -0500

Samson conversa con Amanda sobre su trayectoria de toda la vida en el mundo del código abierto, por qué es tan importante fomentar una cultura de compartir, y cómo sus primeras experiencias influyeron en dónde y cómo ha invertido su energía en recentrar el núcleo del código abierto.

Joe Beda on open source as a positive sum game

Thu, 21 Oct 2021 19:11:04 -0500

Joe Beda shares with julia and amanda about his multigenerational family history with computers, his changing experience with open source since submitting the first commit to Kubernetes, and how the future of open source contains both "danger and opportunity".

Josh Simmons and open source diplomacy

Tue, 19 Oct 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Josh Simmons spends some time with Open Source Stories discussing the finer points of navigating open source dynamics, reflecting on the adoption of codes of conduct, and progress made towards increasing representation. Josh also coins the best tagline for open source.

Aaron Patterson on open source game changers

Thu, 14 Oct 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Aaron Patterson talks with julia and amanda about installing Linux for the first time, the story behind first patch, initial hesitancy around forking, and shares some advice for fellow programmers. Features plenty of bad puns from everyone.

Russell Keith-Magee's journey to open source

Tue, 05 Oct 2021 19:07:35 -0700

Russell Keith-Magee connects with Open Source Stories to talk about his earliest memories of technology, recount how he got involved with the Django ecosystem, and share his thoughts on open source contractualism.

Editorial Guide

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

This document describes the responsibilities for the person or people assigned to the editor role for an open source story, as outlined in the editing section of the new-story issue template.

Facilitator Guide

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

This document describes the responsibilities for the person or people assigned to the facilitator role for an open source story, as outlined in the recording section of the new-story issue template.