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The brains behind the Joomla! GSoC projects

The brains behind the Joomla! GSoC projects

We have been sharing monthly with JCM readers the step by step of the exciting Google Summer of Code journey. Now that you already know about the developed projects and students feedback, it is time to listen to a very important group: our mentors - the brains behind the projects. 

Ladies and gentlemen, here are our Joomla GSoC Mentors: Al Walker, André Pereira da Silva, Ashan Fernando, Gunjan Patel, Javier Gomez, Jean-Marie Simonet, Llewellyn van der Merwe, Nicola Galgano, Niels Braczek, Peter Martin, Rishi Vishwakarma, Roland Dalmulder and Yves Hoppe. [claps]

How to become a mentor?

Stay alert to the public call next year.  

Mentors agree that participating in GSoC is important for Joomla.

It's important because the project gets both exposure and input from people outside of the community. These fresh views are important. The completed features that get added back into the project help the project propel forward.

Because it really brings the project forward! And gets us new important ideas, contributors and features :)

Mentors consider that the projects developed during the program are relevant for the Joomla!.

They believe that the new features will make the life of users & administrators easier and increase the software quality.

It adds an important feature for the future of Joomla. 

It will increase the software quality and reduce the risk of bugs.

Most parts of mentors are happy with results of the projects.

Seeing the project becoming part of the core is really what we wanted.

There has been a lot of development and improvement through nice debate and iteration. The results are much better than I expected.

*This feeling is not shared by the mentors who had to fail the student for not being able to complete the project.

Mentors shared very positive things about the experience that they had with the students.

Very interesting. It's very enrichment to work with young minds. As a menthor, we teach and learn at the same time. Of course, not all are golden fields, there are some days we despair, but all of that is forgotten when we all work to a common goal. And fullfil it!

The only exception was the project not well succeed since mentors had high hopes in the student and project.

It is difficult to stay motivated when things are not working.     

What would mentors say for the students who are interested in joining Joomla Project in the next GSoC editions?

Go for it! You will learn a lot. It will be very useful in your professional future. Also if you participate in an open source community driven project like Joomla! you are also making a better world :)

Don't be afraid. Ask. We all - including all the 'cracks' - have been bloody noobies once, so we know your situation. We mentors are participating, because we *want* to share our knowledge.

Make use of this excellent opportunity to learn about Joomla, open source, and to learn new development skills. It will be an excellent experience to work in an international community with other people from all around the world who have all different backgrounds. It's good for your own experience but might also be fruitful for your future career as a developer.

The learning curve in a project can be quite high. But don't give up on that, ask for help, learn, wrestle through and be eager to experience something new. This is your opportunity to learn and experience a lot more than at your university. You are working at an Open Source project, meaning that people putting all their enthusiasm, knowledge and a lot of spare time into it. Let you carry by this, even when things get rough and complicated. One key factor is communication, be sure to not only talk to your Mentors but be active in the whole community. Talk about the issues you have, ask people for their opinion and ideas. Don't wait until the last week before you present your project to a wider group of people. Be sure everyone knows of your project early! Don't forget to create an extensive documentation for your project - make screenshots, videos, blog posts and everything you can think off. This is almost as important as the code itself! And as a last advice, don't see this as a one-time project for one summer. Open Source is living from constant contribution, see it as a lifetime project. And it will return you far more than you give. Experience, Knowledge, Friends, Events, Contacts, Jobs and the great feeling doing something meaningful, something magic!

Make sure you are dedicated to the project. Show commitment during the GSOC time this will help keep your mentors motivated as well. Enjoy the experience.

Take more time to study and understand the already available concepts and conventions around the objective of your project. Then please once you know things and have become well knowledgeable as a programmer in the community remembers that you also once did not know, and therefore be kind to newbies who may ask or answer questions in a wrong way.

Have already some experience with Joomla specific topic concerned. Good will is not enough.

I have been a student working with Joomla and later also a mentor and the experience I gained is enormous. Joomla is a great place to start your open source journey and the community is quite strong and deeply bonded helping each other. So at last, all of you are welcome to take part in Joomla in the coming GSoC edition.

GSoC is fun and a unique professional experience.

This is a valuable experience to let you taste the real work life.

You are most welcome. We are a community and work together like family members. Join us and be a part of this awesome community. :)  

If you lost some of the previous GSoC articles, you can find them inGoogle Summer of Code in JCM.

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GSoC Student: Ruchiranga Wickramasinghe
From the Venue: Sean Antonson
 

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