Hacktoberfest 2023 marks its 10th anniversary. A collaborative online event encouraging individuals of all levels of experience to contribute to open source projects. Participation requires registration on the official website - Hacktoberfest. Registration opens on September 26th, and extends until October 31st. Contributions can be made from October 1st to October 31st as four or more accepted pull/merge requests. Individuals may contribute to any open source codebase found on GitHub & GitLab marked for "hacktoberfest."
There are many Beginner's Resources to explore. As well as external guides, such as How to Use Git & Github from freeCodeCamp. There are also a series of low/no-code contributions that can be made for first-timers such as the ones found on first issue. These issues can include design work, translation skills, social media coverage, writing (technical/copy), & code contributions. Hacktoberfest projects cover many different languages, uses, and requirements. Be patient, find the right project for you, and make sure to read any specific guidelines placed by the project owner.
My draft pull requests don’t seem to be counting toward Hacktoberfest. What’s going on?
For Hacktoberfest, pull requests on GitHub will not be counted until they are marked as ready for review: those marked as draft will not be counted. Please make sure to relabel any draft PRs as ready for review so that project maintainers can merge them.
Why is my pull request in a maturing state on my profile?
In an effort to reduce spam and help maintainers, we’ve introduced a one-week review period for all pull requests. Once you have submitted four eligible PRs (ready-to-review, not drafts), the seven-day review window begins. This period gives maintainers time to identify and label any spammy PRs as invalid. If your PRs are not marked invalid during that window, they will allow you to complete the Hacktoberfest challenge. If during this period any of your PRs are labeled as invalid, you will return to the pending state until you have four eligible PRs, at which point the review period will start again.
How do I get started?
First, register at hacktoberfest.digitalocean.com. Then, submit at least four PRs to any public GitHub repository. You can look for open issues labeled Hacktoberfest for inspiration. Quality contributions are encouraged!
Are you maintaining a repo? Create issues or label existing ones with Hacktoberfest on your GitHub projects to help new contributors know what to work on. Tag any spam or irrelevant PRs with the invalid label to disqualify them.
My pull request is marked as being on an excluded repository. What does this mean?
Unfortunately, your pull request was made on a repository that doesn’t align with the core values of Hacktoberfest. We’ve decided that pull requests made to this repository will not count toward completing the challenge.
My PR was labeled as invalid, but it isn’t. What should I do?
If a maintainer labels your pull request as invalid, but you don’t believe this is correct, please begin a conversation with the maintainer within the PR and explain your position.
How do I track my progress?
Log in with your GitHub account at hacktoberfest.digitalocean.com to check your progress and stats.
What is Hacktoberfest?
Hacktoberfest is a month-long celebration of open source software run by DigitalOcean and DEV.
Hacktoberfest is open to everyone in our global community. To participate, four pull requests must be submitted to public GitHub repositories. You can sign up anytime between October 1 and October 31.
As a maintainer, how do I encourage contributions to my repos?
Create issues for anything you’d like contributors to help with, making sure to give them a Hacktoberfest label so they’re easier to discover.
You can also share issues or repositories on Twitter, using #Hacktoberfest where we’ll retweet as many as we can for contributors to see.
What happens if I complete fewer than four PRs by the end of the month?
Unfortunately, you will have to submit at least four PRs to get a T-shirt.
As a maintainer, how should I handle spam PRs?
We don’t like seeing spam PRs just as much as you, so please give them an invalid label and close them. PRs with an invalid label won’t be counted toward Hacktoberfest.
How do I get stickers?
Stickers are included with your T-shirt after completing four PRs.
My pull request was labeled as invalid by a maintainer, why doesn’t it count?
If a repository maintainer decides a pull request you made was spammy or an unhelpful contribution to the project, they can add an invalid label to your PR. This lets us know they do not think your pull request is a quality contribution, so it will not count toward Hacktoberfest.
I completed four PRs. When will I receive my T-shirt?
T-shirts will be awarded on a first-come, first-serve basis to the first 50,000 participants who successfully complete the Hacktoberfest challenge. We’ll start sending out emails with more details on redeeming T-shirts throughout the month, so stay tuned.
Do issues/commits count?
No, only PRs count.
Do multiple PRs to the same repo count?
Yes, each pull request will count separately.
Do PRs have to be accepted/merged?
No, they will still count unless they are spam, irrelevant, or labeled as invalid.
Can I make PRs to issues/repos that are not listed on the homepage?
Yes, any public GitHub repo is good for Hacktoberfest.
I signed up for Hacktoberfest mid-October. Will PRs that I created earlier in October count?
Yes, all pull requests created between Oct. 1 and Oct. 31 will count, regardless of when you register for Hacktoberfest. Pull requests created before Oct. 1 but merged after do not count.
Do issues have to be labeled Hacktoberfest to count?
No, any pull request made on a public repository counts, whether it’s attached to a Hacktoberfest issue or not.
Do PRs made on my own repos count?
Yes, but we strongly encourage you to make quality contributions to other repositories.
Do contributions made outside of GitHub count?
No, PRs must be made on the GitHub platform.
Here are 3 quick and painless ways to contribute to this project:
- Add your name to the
CONTRIBUTORS.mdfile - Add a profile page to the
profilesdirectory - Create a simple "Hello, World" script in a language of your choice
Choose one or all 3, make a pull request for your work and wait for it to be merged!
- Fork this repository (Click the Fork button in the top right of this page, click your Profile Image)
- Clone your fork down to your local machine
git clone https://github.com/your-username/hacktoberfest.git- Create a branch
git checkout -b branch-name- Make your changes (choose from any task below)
- Commit and push
git add .
git commit -m 'Commit message'
git push origin branch-name- Create a new pull request from your forked repository (Click the
New Pull Requestbutton located at the top of your repo) - Wait for your PR review and merge approval!
- Star this repository if you had fun!
Add your name to the CONTRIBUTORS.md file using the below convention:
#### Name: [YOUR NAME](GitHub link)
- Place: City, State, Country
- Bio: Who are you?
- GitHub: [GitHub account name](GitHub link)Add a Your_Name.md file to the profiles directory. Use any combination of content and Markdown you'd like. Here is an example:
### Name
Your Name
### Location
Your City/Country
### Academics
Your School
### Interests
- Some Things You Like
### Development
- Fullstack Developer
### Projects
- [My Project](GitHub Link) Short Description
### Profile Link
[Your Name](GitHub Link)Add a hello_world_yourusername.xx script to the scripts directory in any language of your choice! Here is an example:
// LANGUAGE: Javascript
// ENV: Node.js
// AUTHOR: Reuben Antz
// GITHUB: https://github.com/antzshrek
console.log('Hello, World!');Name the file hello_world_yourusername.xx. e.g., hello_world_antzshrek.js or hello_world_antzshrek.py.
Don't forget to include the comments as seen above. Feel free to include additional information about the language you choose in your comments too! Like a link to a helpful introduction or tutorial.
- Check out some very creative ways to print out a "Hello, World!" string.