Why do you need an OSS Etiquette?

You need an OSS Etiquette to be able to engage and contribute to OSS Communities. A social etiquette is nothing but a code of conduct to interact with others, on the streets of your city or throughout the internet.

Discourages harassment, discrimination and toxic behavior, with a framework to address any misconduct and it helps to maintain focus on the project goals, instead of dealing with unnecessary drama and intrigues.

A code of conduct is an 'accountability tool' in GitHub projects, as it requires adherents to comply with the written rules. A third party can enforce its application and align contributors towards the project's goals.

OSS is much more than just free software. OSS is a way of working and a production model. The central idea is to create by collaborating with others. The values of OSS are collaboration, communication and openness.

No discrimination against persons or any groups. Hence, openness must be backed up by a licensing model which grants OSS users the right to use, modify and distribute the software and its source code to anyone.

Professionalism in OSS Projects

Evolving an OSS involves a lot of remote work, where communication has become largely text-based and there is more room for an erroneous interpretation of the other person's emotions, than in office meetings.

A code of conduct enhances the reputation of your project by demonstrating organizational skills and maturity. Enterprises and institutions are more likely to adopt a software or contribute to a project with high standards.

OSS Etiquette v1.0 KERNAMON facilitates the resolution of issues and offers a structured approach to handle disputes or violations. Prevents subjective or arbitrary decisions by providing guidelines to everyone involved.

Ensures that as the community grows, it remains well organized. Prepares you to handle challenges that will arrive with an increasing number of contributors expecting to see an etiquette in any serious OSS project.

Photo by Dzmitry Tselabionak on Unsplash

Innovation and Community

The decentralized development of OSS by a community, although not by an enterprise, allows OSS to have a high degree of longevity and security, since all members of the community can check and develop the code.

OSS can continue to evolve as long as users have access to it, which allows to find innovative solutions and to improve the software. As a result, this promotes the development of new projects which are relevant and useful.

The birth of a community is great for any enterprise and an OSS project can attract many developers who want to be together. Community sharing increases its value and promotes a collective intelligence.

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OSS Etiquette v1.0 KERNAMON © 2024 Saskia Ostermann Toutatis and licensed under the CC BY-SA 4.0