contributor-expectations.ltx

\hypertarget{contributor-expectations}{}
\unnumberedsection{Contributors and Archetypes: Setting Expectations}\label{contributor-expectations}

Knowing a project's archetype helps to answer an important question:

\begin{adjustwidth}{3em}{3em}
\emph{How much, and in what ways, should we invest in attracting,
  onboarding, and working with contributors?}
\end{adjustwidth}

Setting contribution expectations accurately is one of the best moves a
project can make.  For example, an open source project is not
obligated to be \fullref{archetype:wide-open}, but it
should avoid accidentally misrepresenting itself as Wide Open if it's
not going to provide the kind of contributor support that a Wide Open
project would normally provide.  

Potential contributors want to see what they're getting into before
they invest significant effort.  The more clearly a project provides
such information up front, the easier it is for suitable contributors
to find their way in and, equally importantly, for unsuitable ones to
self-select out.  Remember that ``\textit{contributor}'' here does not
necessarily mean ``\textit{volunteer}'': a potential contributor might
a salaried employee acting on behalf of some other company, and the
impression a project makes on that contributor will be carried back to
their team and possibly to their management.

Here are some of the questions developers typically have regarding
participation in an open source project:

\begin{itemize}
  \item I'm considering contributing.  What's the typical onboarding
    path?  How far can a third party contributor go?
  \item I am a new contributor.  How much influence should I expect to
    have in this project, if I continue contributing at my current
    level?  What about if I start contributing more frequently or more
    substantially?
  \item I am part of the maintainance team.  How much time should I
    expect to spend mentoring new contributors?
\end{itemize}

Where each project puts the answers to such questions will vary, but a
typical place might be in a \texttt{CONTRIBUTING.md} file or in a
section called ``\texttt{\textbf{Contribution Expectations}}'' in the
project's \texttt{README.md}.  The exact language will vary from
project to project.  Here is an example for a project with the
``Rocket Ship To Mars'' archetype:

\begin{verbatim}
## Contribution Expectations

 This project is currently focused on high-velocity development toward
 a very specific goal: <summarize goal in one or two sentences here>.

 We welcome patches with bug fixes, and we're happy to answer
 questions if you've already put in some effort to find the answer
 yourself.  Please note, however, that we're unlikely to consider new
 feature contributions or design changes unless there's a strong
 argument that they are fully in line with our stated goals.  If
 you're not sure, just ask.

 Our technical scope and project governance may open up later, of
 course, especially after we release version 1.0.  For now, though, we
 would characterize this project as being an example of the "Rocket
 Ship To Mars" archetype (see <URL here> for details about RStM and
 other open source archetypes).
\end{verbatim}