Re: [PATCH v2] MyFirstContribution: add avenues for getting help

From: Junio C Hamano <gitster@pobox.com>
Date: Nov 19, 2019, 01:45 UTC
Message-ID: <xmqqy2wczliu.fsf@gitster-ct.c.googlers.com>
In-Reply-To: <20191118214519.GH22855@google.com>

Emily Shaffer <emilyshaffer@google.com> writes:

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>> I am (implicitly) assuming that it is the former, but I think it is
>> better to clarify what this "list of places" is meant to be.
>
> I'll try to fudge the language so that it implies these are official
> channels for getting help.

Sounds good.

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>> I notice that stack overflow is missing in this list.  Intended?
>> Not that I visit there at all nor I would recommend it, but I recall
>> seeing questions asked by more than a few people after getting bad
>> pieces of advice there.
>
> Hm. SO for getting help contributing to a specific project? ...
> I suppose the kinds of questions I expect to see on StackOverflow
> include "How do I write a mutex lock in C" or "How do I generate patches
> with a cover letter", not "I'm stuck on this Git tutorial" or "Would the
> Git project welcome X change". To me, this doesn't seem like the place
> to bring it up one way or another.

I am glad I brought this up, because "How do I force git ignore changes I make to an already tracked file?" was a question I thought a reader of this document might want to ask to these "avenues for getting help", and I wouldn't be surprised to see such a question asked on stack overflow.

After re-reading the title of the document, I am reminded that the intended audience is aspiring Git developers, and I now know that it is silly for an aspiring Git _developer_ to be asking such a question---I am guessing you meant that these "avenues" are only about getting help on _developing_ code to be included in git-core, and in that context, yes, I agree that SO is a poor place for that.

I'll re-read the patch to see if what is written in the document is prone to this kind of misunderstanding, or it was just my fault to have failed to notice a clear description on what kind of help the section is talking about.

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> I envision an exchange sort of like this:
>
> Newbie to git@vger.kernel.org: "I'm having trouble compiling Git and I
> want to write a patch, I'm getting X error"
>
> Veteran to Newbie, cc git-mentoring, bcc git@vger.kernel.org:
> "Please build with blah flag and paste console output, plus let us know
> system information blah blah blah"
>
> I don't mind the idea of pushing folks to ask on the mentoring list
> first. It's pretty well attended already - just now I count 16 list
> members, a pretty significant majority of which are project veterans. I
> have no problem suggesting newbies ask their questions, which others
> probably had and solved before them, in a space separate from the main
> mailing list.

OK.  I understand and agree with the direction.

I wonder how well the "CC: git-mentoring" part would work, though.

A response to "plus let us know" by the Newbie will most likely keep the list on CC, which would bounce with "you must be subscribed"? It may appear rather rude to tell somebody they need to subscribe to another list in order to obtain the help.

Thanks.