Evaluating Sourceforge projects to help on

[dmorin at lear.morinfamily.com (Duane Morin)]

On 30 Oct 2003, Stephen Anthony wrote:
> Question is, looking at Sourceforge, there are a bazillion (well close)
> projects looking for people. Fine, but how should I evaluate whether I
> want to help them? What criteria would be applied? 

An analogy:  Walk into the bookstore and look at all the programming 
books.  There are a bazillion books all looking for readers.   You 
probably say to yourself "Well there are some books I *should* read, to 
bone up on a certan aspect of the technology..."  What happens when you 
try to force yourself to read a book because you think you should?  Is it 
motivating?  Do you enjoy it?  Feel like you learned something?  Compare 
to when you find the book you want because...well...because you want to 
read it, and there's no explaining why that one leaped out at you.  Those 
are the books you tear through at lightning speed.

In other words, I'm with the "scratch your personal itch" crowd.  Don't 
ask other people what project to work on.  When you see one that you want 
to work on, dive in.  I'm already giving you major bonus points for asking 
about helping an existing project rather than just going off and starting 
one from scratch like way too many people do (the glory's only in getting 
your name on their first, ya see....grrr....)

Duane