A Guide to Creating Open Source Projects

Many people misunderstand the meaning of an open source project, so we'll start by explaining what it is. An open source project is a project that has its source code, which is the code that makes up the project, free for everyone to see and edit. That's not all to make an open source project. You need some key things first. Here are the steps.

Step 1
Have an idea. Maybe it's the Scratch website, but with better design. Or it could be an app. Your idea could be anything, no matter how big it is.

Step 2
Create a forum (on the Open Source Projects forum) about what your project is about and what it's going to do, and maybe explaining what ideas you already have.

Step 3
(Recommended) Do some research so you'll know what to expect while making the project.

Step 4
Learn the programming languages needed. I've learned from experience that you can't use Scratch to make an open source project, there'll be more about that later. You can't expect a children's programming language to be like Java or Swift.

Step 5
Get the right equipment. Without it, your project will never succeed.

Step 6
Create your open source project.

Step 7
GitHub is almost necessary to use in order to share source code with the public. I recommend you to check out one of the stickies, it really helps people learn how to use GitHub: https://scratch.mit.edu/discuss/topic/289594/

Step 8
Finish your project, share it with the world, and you don't have do anything with it again! Wrong. You should constantly update your project, because you're never finished with anything, and to let others know you actually care about it.

Tips

• Actually care about the project you're making. If not, it may as well not be done.
  
• When in doubt, ask for help from other people. I made a project explaining my open source project, and I didn't ask for it, but there was advice and stuff I never knew before in the comments.
  
• Try to update your project regularly. It shows you care, and you're active, so no one needs to worry about outdated code.
  

Conclusion
Those are all the steps you need to make an open source project. I hope you like this! Now you can make your own open source project!

Good tips!

-020119 wrote:

Good tips!

Thank you!

Gonna report to be stickied. Super guide! Love the steps.

Why has the ST not stickied this yet?