Developing at ten?

> 0. Is this the right place to ask these questions?
this is a good place for all development questions, also try
#kde-devel on irc.freenode.net

> 1. What do I need to know?
> 2. What applications/languages should I use?
> 3. What part of KDE should I work on?
there are many ways to help. if you understand c++ and can
make sense
of code, documentation in the code is a great place to
start. if you
are serious with c++ and some qt, you can then later
contribure some
code patches. if you don't know c++, you can contribute
translations
or docbooks.


> 4. Am I too young to start developing? (I'm only 10)
> 5. How much experience do I need?
no/none

> 6. Do I write .diff files, .cpp files, both, or others?
generally, you edit the existing files, and then generate
diffs.

> 7. When I'm done, how do I get it into KDE?
submit the diffs to this mailing list, and after a few
helpful
submissions, you will be given access to a faster way to do
it.

-
If you tell me what c++ experience you have, I would be able
to help
you get started.

-Will Entriken
 
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Hi Allan,

On Sunday 30 April 2006 18:20, Allan Sadun wrote:
> I would like to start developing for KDE,

Always nice to hear 

> and I can't figure out 
> if I can, and if so, how I can. I've read the
"How to Help" page,
> and it hasn't really helped me. This dilemna has lead
to a lot of
> questions; can anyone answer them?
>
> 0. Is this the right place to ask these questions?

Yes.

> 4. Am I too young to start developing? (I'm only 10)
> 5. How much experience do I need?

Well, 10 is young, but definitely not too young to start


How much experience in programing, ... do you have?  Is your
goal to 
start/learn developing software, or to contribute to KDE? 
The 
latter is possible in several ways (documentation, testing, 
translation, ...).

If you have nearly no experience in programming at all,
don't 
hesitate to ask me.  I'm in charge of teaching the
apprentices in 
the company I work for.


    Heiner

-- 
    heiner at heiner-lamprecht dot net    GnuPG - Key:
9859E373
  Fingerprint:  3770 7947 F917 94EF 8717 BADB 0139 7554 9859
E373
 
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On Sunday 30 April 2006 18:20, Allan Sadun wrote:
> I would like to start developing for KDE, and I can't
figure out if I can,
> and if so, how I can. I've read the "How to
Help" page, and it hasn't
> really helped me. This dilemna has lead to a lot of
questions; can anyone
> answer them?
>
> 0. Is this the right place to ask these questions?

Yes, definitely

> 1. What do I need to know?

Depends on what you want to do.
For example applications can be created in a couple of
programming languages 
through our language bindings so it is not necessary to know
a specific 
programming language.
Developing KDE libraries not only requires to know C++ but
also to know quite 
a lot about software engineering theory.

> 2. What applications/languages should I use?

Beginners usually find it easier to use an IDE, for example
KDevelop or 
Eclipse, sometimes working with an advanced text editor like
Kate, Emacs or 
VIM is personally preferred by some developers.

The choice of language depends on what you like best and
what you like to work 
on (see above), for example writing SuperKaramba themes
requires Python.

> 3. What part of KDE should I work on?

From my exerience I'd start with a simple application,
toying around with KDE 
features. Unless you are very new to a programming language
then my advise 
would be to start language tutorials and later come back to
KDE.

> 4. Am I too young to start developing? (I'm only 10)

I guess it is a matter of being able to understand concepts,
usually but not 
necessarily tied to age.
As long as you have fun doing it, you should be doing it.

> 5. How much experience do I need?

See answer to (1)

> 6. Do I write .diff files, .cpp files, both, or others?

.diff files are always generated, you'll write source files

> 7. When I'm done, how do I get it into KDE?

Depends what you mean with "get into"

Cheers,
Kevin
-- 
Kevin Krammer <kevin.krammergmx.at>
Qt/KDE Developer, Debian User
Moderator: www.mrunix.de (German), www.qtcentre.org
 
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On Sunday 30 April 2006 16:20, Allan Sadun wrote:
> I would like to start developing for KDE, and I can't
figure out if I can,
> and if so, how I can. I've read the "How to
Help" page, and it hasn't
> really helped me. This dilemna has lead to a lot of
questions; can anyone
> answer them?

Will, Heiner and Kevin have given great answers. What I
would recommend is to 
simply get an development setup up and running, and find
your way around that 
-- it can be daunting enough. KDE consists of so many files,
directories and 
complex build systems that gettings this done is a huge
effort in itself.

Also, you don't necessarily need to program in order to
help, there are tons 
of other ways. For example, help with keeping the bug
database clean is 
always appreciated(bugs.kde.org). This means reading a
report, try to 
reproduce the reported behavior, close/confirm reports, etc.
Learning C++ can 
be tough, so getting customized with KDE, its customs,
getting to know 
people(etc), with things like the bugzilla could be a good
start.

Documentation is also needed, in several ways. For example,
application 
documentation(the one found in KHelpCenter, or menu
Help->Application 
Handbook), or code documentation, the Doxygen comments found
in *.h files. 
Your English is just fine, better than mine, so you would be
excellent at 
that.

> 0. Is this the right place to ask these questions?
> 1. What do I need to know?
> 2. What applications/languages should I use?
> 3. What part of KDE should I work on?
> 4. Am I too young to start developing? (I'm only 10)
> 5. How much experience do I need?
> 6. Do I write .diff files, .cpp files, both, or others?

In your svn checkout, edit the C++ files, and enter `svn
diff` which will 
produce a diff, containing your changes. For example `svn
diff > 
myChanges.diff` will put your changes in the file
myChanges.diff, which you 
can attach to a mail.

> 7. When I'm done, how do I get it into KDE?

As described by Will you'll probably start off by sending
your changes to this 
list and others will commit it for you. Later on you'll get
an SVN account 
yourself. This means you can write `svn commit` in your svn
checkout, and 
your changes(the diff) will be sent to the repository
directly.

> There was another question, but I can't remember it.

Just keep them coming 


Cheers,

		Frans
 
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Hi!

On Sunday 30 April 2006 18:20, Allan Sadun wrote:

> 1. What do I need to know?
> 2. What applications/languages should I use?
> 5. How much experience do I need?

To answer these questions and to give you useful advice, it
would be good to 
know how if you already have some programming experience or
not. If you have, 
which language(s) do you already have written programs in,
and what kind of 
programs? Depending on your knowledge we can point you to
appriopriate 
tutorials and other material.

> 4. Am I too young to start developing? (I'm only 10)

I don't think so. There is no particular knowledge one
needs to start 
programming a 10 year old couldn't have or couldn't learn
on the way. Some 
skill in mathematics and "logical thinking" will
help though.
The good thing is, programming is something you can explore
by "playing 
around". You can have fun with simple "Hello
World"-style programs or doing 
some introductionary tutorial in an afternoon or two. Of
course, becoming a 
good developer needs a lot more time. But if you get into it
and enjoy 
programming, you will continue learning automatically. Just
try it 

Regards,

Frank
 
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