Unix Programming - Contributing to Linux

Author

Contributing to Linux

Karthick S.

2004-07-28, 6:19 pm

Hi,

I am interested in contributing to the Linux community. I want to
know how to proceed with that. Details that I would like to know
include:
1) Where do I get the complete source?
2) Is there somewhere where I need to register to start contributing?
3) How do I get the CVS access for the repository?
4) Any other requirements.

I have RedHat 9 from the "Red Hat Linux 9 Bible" book installed
in my office and Home PCs.

Please advise.

Thank you.

Rgds,
Karthick S.

Lew Pitcher

2004-07-28, 6:19 pm

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Karthick S. wrote:
> Hi,
>
> I am interested in contributing to the Linux community. I want to
> know how to proceed with that. Details that I would like to know
> include:
> 1) Where do I get the complete source?
It depends on what you mean by "the complete source". The operating
system kernel ("Linux" proper) can be downloaded from
http://www.kernel.org/ while the tools come from various sources (most
notably the Free Software Foundation at http://www.fsf.org/) and the
apps from everywhere (try http://freshmeat.net/ or http://sourceforge.net/)

> 2) Is there somewhere where I need to register to start contributing?
Not really.

If you are contributing by making modifications to someone else's
OSS-licenced program, then you should contact the owner or maintainer of
that program (the email addresses are generally listed in the source
package). You can distribute your own changes, but it is considered
polite (and is sometimes a requirement under the source code licence) if
you provide the package owner with the changes for consideration to be
included in the base package.

If you are writing a new package, then you /can/ register for a
distribution account at SourceForge, but it's not a requirement. You can
also /announce/ your package on FreshMeat, pointing to where-ever you
have made the package available from (SourceForge or your own
distribution site).

> 3) How do I get the CVS access for the repository?
It depends on the package. Some packages don't permit access to the CVS,
and some don't /have/ a CVS. Contact the owner or maintainer of the
individual packages for details on how you can get a current copy of the
source, and how you can populate your changes back into the official
package.

> 4) Any other requirements.
It depends.

You should /not/ have a closed mind about
* programming languages,
* application design,
* application use,
* distribution requirements, or
* licencing requirements

You should be able to accomodate the package owner's requirements, or
make good arguments (that is, well-reasoned and knowledgable arguments)
as to why you should be permitted to circumvent the requirements. You
should be able to read and write code, read and write documentation,
design, develop, and test without supervision and with minimal assistance.

>
> I have RedHat 9 from the "Red Hat Linux 9 Bible" book installed
> in my office and Home PCs.

I have Slackware 9.0 installed on my laptop, my home server, my home
workstation, and a server at work. Over the next few weeks, I'll be
upgrading all these to Slackware 10.0

Good luck with your endevours.

- --

Lew Pitcher, IT Consultant, Enterprise Application Architecture
Enterprise Technology Solutions, TD Bank Financial Group

(Opinions expressed here are my own, not my employer's)
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Gustavo G. Rondina

2004-07-28, 6:19 pm

Lew Pitcher <Lew.Pitcher@td.com> writes:

> Karthick S. wrote:
> It depends on what you mean by "the complete source". The operating
> system kernel ("Linux" proper) can be downloaded from
> http://www.kernel.org/ while the tools come from various sources (most
> notably the Free Software Foundation at http://www.fsf.org/) and the
> apps from everywhere (try http://freshmeat.net/ or

The lastest stable linux kernel (the core of GNU/Linux) is avaliable
at ftp://ftp.kernel.org/pub/linux/kern...x-2.6.7.tar.gz. Its
size is 44006970 bytes.
[vbcol=seagreen]
> Not really.
>
> If you are contributing by making modifications to someone else's
> OSS-licenced program, then you should contact the owner or maintainer of
> that program (the email addresses are generally listed in the source
> package). You can distribute your own changes, but it is considered
> polite (and is sometimes a requirement under the source code licence) if
> you provide the package owner with the changes for consideration to be
> included in the base package.

Reading the GPL to know how to distribute your code is a good starting
point, since most Linux programs are distributed under that
license. It is avaliable at http://www.gnu.org/

> It depends on the package. Some packages don't permit access to the CVS,
> and some don't /have/ a CVS. Contact the owner or maintainer of the
> individual packages for details on how you can get a current copy of the
> source, and how you can populate your changes back into the official
> package.

Sourceforge offers a good and free CVS service.
[vbcol=seagreen]

Debian (www.debian.org) is a great distro for developers. New
developers and contributors are always wanted. You could join it if
you think you are skilled enough.

--
Gustavo G. Rondina
http://gustgr.freeshell.org

Paul

2004-07-28, 6:19 pm

Hi,

On Wed, 28 Jul 2004 04:52:12 -0700, Karthick S. wrote:

> I am interested in contributing to the Linux community. I want to
> know how to proceed with that. Details that I would like to know
> include:
> 1) Where do I get the complete source?

The kernel : http://www.kernel.org
The gnu toolchain : http://www.gnu.org

Lots of really good stuff is at http://www.gnome.org and www.kde.org as
well as on sourceforge.

> 2) Is there somewhere where I need to register to start contributing?

Nope. Just do it! Best way is to find a package you like, contact the
maintainer and ask if it's okay to muck in.

> 3) How do I get the CVS access for the repository?

Depending on the package depends on if CVS is available for it. Most of
the time, cvs instructions are on the website hosting the package. For cvs
write access though, you either have to be trusted (typically comes if
you're either well known or have been contributing for a while) or package
your on is your own one.

> 4) Any other requirements.

Time, checking email regularly, not screaming "doh!" when you see a
glaring mistake somewhere, being polite with the other members of the
crew, don't assume anything - if unsure, ask and finally, don't bite off
more than you can chew. Some projects may be far beyond you.

Also, ensure you know the language. There is little point trying to
contribute to something in C# when you're a BASIC programmer! Sure open
source is a great place to learn, but unlike the commercial world, the
time given to it usually is your own (and the other peoples own), so while
they will help, they may also get a tad annoyed at questions they would
not expect from someone who has joined their project, has read the level
of knowledge required and not been up to the task grossly.

RH9 should be fine, though I would update to a newer version of gcc as
2.96 sucked big style!

Finally, welcome to Linux - we're all warm, cuddly penguin lovers, from
varied walks of life (I'm a Chemist by trade) but who all love the
advantages of F/OSS.

TTFN

Paul

Dragan Cvetkovic

2004-07-28, 6:19 pm

Lew Pitcher <Lew.Pitcher@td.com> writes:

>
> I have Slackware 9.0 installed on my laptop, my home server, my home
> workstation, and a server at work. Over the next few weeks, I'll be
> upgrading all these to Slackware 10.0
>

Linux on a server in TD bank? And the latest version of it? Lew, I hope
your server is not handling my money :-)

Dragan

--
Dragan Cvetkovic,

To be or not to be is true. G. Boole No it isn't. L. E. J. Brouwer

!!! Sender/From address is bogus. Use reply-to one !!!

Lew Pitcher

2004-07-28, 6:19 pm

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Dragan Cvetkovic wrote:

> Lew Pitcher <Lew.Pitcher@td.com> writes:
>
>
>
>
> Linux on a server in TD bank? And the latest version of it? Lew, I hope
> your server is not handling my money :-)

Nope. It's an internal server that we originally configured to test OS/2
X servers against (you need an X client to draw on an X server). Since
then, it's supported a 'print-to-email' solution for some of our
developers, a developer's wiki site (internal, of course), and a
Netware-to-SMB bridge (again, for our internal developers).

FWIW, we don't use Linux on our customer facing or banker facing systems.

- --

Lew Pitcher, IT Consultant, Enterprise Application Architecture
Enterprise Technology Solutions, TD Bank Financial Group

(Opinions expressed here are my own, not my employer's)
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Otto Wyss

2004-07-28, 6:19 pm

Karthick S. <karthicks@spymac.com> wrote:

> I am interested in contributing to the Linux community. I want to
> know how to proceed with that. Details that I would like to know
> include:
> 1) Where do I get the complete source?
> 2) Is there somewhere where I need to register to start contributing?
> 3) How do I get the CVS access for the repository?
> 4) Any other requirements.
>
> I have RedHat 9 from the "Red Hat Linux 9 Bible" book installed
> in my office and Home PCs.
>
Depends a little bit what you mean with Linux community. If you mean the
Linux kernel, follow the others suggestions. If you mean it in a broader
sense, i.e. any OpenSource project, look here
"http://wyodesktop.sourceforge.net/index.php?page=participate.html".

It's a good idea if you tell us a little what you can do, this would
make it easier to give good advices.

O. Wyss

--
How to enhance your code, see "http://freshmeat.net/projects/wxguide/"

Dragan Cvetkovic

2004-07-28, 6:19 pm

Lew Pitcher <Lew.Pitcher@td.com> writes:

> Dragan Cvetkovic wrote:
[vbcol=seagreen]
>
> Nope. It's an internal server that we originally configured to test OS/2
> X servers against (you need an X client to draw on an X server). Since
> then, it's supported a 'print-to-email' solution for some of our
> developers, a developer's wiki site (internal, of course), and a
> Netware-to-SMB bridge (again, for our internal developers).

> FWIW, we don't use Linux on our customer facing or banker facing systems.

I know, was just joking. AFAIK, some other CA banks are using big Iron or
semi-big iron for big servers (Sun, IBM, etc) and I assume that TD is no
different in that respect.

Dragan

--
Dragan Cvetkovic,

To be or not to be is true. G. Boole No it isn't. L. E. J. Brouwer

!!! Sender/From address is bogus. Use reply-to one !!!

Måns Rullgård

2004-07-28, 6:19 pm

Dragan Cvetkovic <me@privacy.net> writes:

> Lew Pitcher <Lew.Pitcher@td.com> writes:
>
>
>
>
> I know, was just joking. AFAIK, some other CA banks are using big Iron or
> semi-big iron for big servers (Sun, IBM, etc) and I assume that TD is no
> different in that respect.

What scares me is that some ATMs are running some mswindows version.

--
Måns Rullgård
mru@kth.se

Karthick S.

2004-07-29, 8:08 am

Hi,

Thanks everybody for you help. Especially Lew Pitcher, Gustavo G.
Rondina, Paul and Otto Wyss.

The replies to this posting may be very useful for many people.

Thanks once again.

Rgds,
Karthick S.

Bjorn Reese

2004-07-29, 5:55 pm

On Wed, 28 Jul 2004 04:52:12 -0700, Karthick S. wrote:

> 2) Is there somewhere where I need to register to start contributing?

Although there is no registration, it may be a good idea to
subscribe to the relevant mailing-lists and ask these people
for more specific guidance (e.g. how the source code is
organized, coding standards, submission policies, what needs
to be done, etc.)

--
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