Conduct landscape research to refine scope and purpose

[semioticrobotic]

As we articulate the scope and purpose of this guidebook (particularly in conjunction with #3), we might consider surveying the landscape of currently existing guides in order to determine the form(s) of value we intend to offer through our work and the audience(s) we intend to reach with it.

Questions to consider might include:

• What will this guide offer that others currently do not?
• What specific forms of value and knowledge do we hope to provide readers and collaborators?
• What do we hope someone who engages with our work be able to do (or do better) once they've interacted with it?
• What will compel contributors to invest in this work rather than in others?

I'll use this thread to begin sketching the landscape and identifying key sources of inspiration. Hoping others will do the same!

[semioticrobotic]

Open Source Guides (GitHub)

"Open source software is made by people just like you. Learn how to launch and grow your project."

Read: https://opensource.guide/ Contribute: https://github.com/github/opensource.guide

Table of contents

• How to contribute to open source
• Starting an open source project
• Finding users for your project
• Building welcoming communities
• Best practices for maintainers
• Leadership and governance
• Getting paid for open source work
• Your code of conduct
• Open source metrics
• The legal side of open source

Notes

This set of guides offers beginner-level advice on a number of issues—including contributing to, launching, maintaining, managing/governing, and measuring the success of open source communities. The target audience appears to be casual and individual contributors, though organizations and offices will certainly find the materials accessible (even if business-focused topics are generally absent in the guides). Punctuating the guides are pullquotes from open source contributors and experts (often culled from relevant articles around the web).

[semioticrobotic]

Open Source Guides for the Enterprise (Linux Foundation)

"Leverage best practices for running an open source program office or starting an open source project in your organization."

(Resources developed in partnership with the TODO Group)

Read: https://www.linuxfoundation.org/resources/open-source-guides/ Contribute: https://todogroup.org/guides/

Table of contents

Part I: Running an open source program office

• Creating an open source program
• Open source management tools
• Measuring your open source program's success
• Recruiting developers
• Participating in open source communities
• Using open source code

Part II: Managing an open source project in your organization

• Starting an open source project
• Improving your open source development impact
• Open source guides reading list
• Winding down an open source project
• Building leadership in an open source community
• Setting an open source strategy

Notes

This guide from the TODO Group (sponsored by the Linux Foundation) focuses primarily on organizational aspects of open source—running an open source program office, setting an open source strategy, using open source code in products, etc. It is not entirely devoid of community management materials (quite the contray!), but its target audience appears to be the enterprise interested in the whats and whys of open source approaches to development.