How to Contribute to Open Source TypeScript Projects

If you think of the ideas of open source applied to information in an encyclopedia, you get to Wikipedia – lots and lots of small contributions that bubble up to something that’s meaningful. – Matt Mullenweg

One of my favorite aspects of open source is the fact that anyone can contribute! It’s like “productive volunteering” (if you’ll humor me). It’s a fantastic way to build something bigger than you, give back to the community, and level up your skills.

In this article, we’re going to talk about practical ways for you to get involved in open source TypeScript projects. We’ll first cover assessing your level then jump into how you can find opportunities.

Assessing Your Level

Before you get started contributing to open source, you want to find your comfort level. Where are you at skill-wise? What level of complexity are you wanting to solve? How much time do you want to spend? These are important questions to consider before diving in. This information will guide us during the process of finding opportunities.

To simplify things, we will create three levels:

• Level 1
• Level 2
• Level 3

In each level, we will provide a description and an example contribution for someone at that level. Let’s take a look.

Level 1: New to TypeScript

The first level in our three-level TypeScript skills assessment is for those who are “new to TypeScript.” You might find yourself here if any of this description resonates with you:

You are new to TypeScript. You feel comfortable enough with JavaScript that you decided to give TypeScript a try. You have looked at the docs briefly. Maybe you’ve gone through a tutorial or two and. Maybe you’ve watched a video about TypeScript on YouTube. “Beginner” feels accurate when labeling your TypeScript skills.

Below are a few examples of things you might contribute to while you are at this level:

• updates to documentation
  • open-source libraries
  • TypeScript Handbook or website
  • creating links to the TypeScript playground for examples

Level 2: Comfortable with TypeScript

The next level in our system is where I imagine most people self-categorize. Read the description and see if this relates to how you are currently feeling:

You’ve used TypeScript in a few projects. You feel comfortable with TypeScript and understand how to fix general type errors. You’re not an expert when it comes to understanding issues, but you sure know how to find the answer. Maybe you’ve written a handful of interfaces or type aliases. You know a decent number of TypeScript tricks or tips. The compiler isn’t your bestie, but you consider yourselves acquaintances.

At this level, you might feel comfortable contributing in the following ways:

• fixing bugs
  • fixing a type error
  • making a switch statement exhaustive
• adding small features
  • converting any to the correct type
• updating docs with new examples, templates, etc.
  • contributing to a cheatsheet

Level 3: Ready for TypeScript Challenges

The last level we’ll have is for people who feel quite comfortable with TypeScript and are ready for a challenge! Take a glance at the description below and see if that’s how you would describe your level:

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